Amazing Amazonas 2 - Birding in and around Leticia

Leticia is a large Colombian town of about 40,000 people on the Amazon River that is the focus for the region and the main airport for visitors. I´ll say more about it and our travel arrangements in another blog entry.

Santander Park

We stayed several nights in Leticia, very close to Santander Park. The park is well laid-out with lots of trees and a small church on one side. What makes it special is the evening arrivals of an estimated 30,000 Canary-winged Parakeets (Brotogeris versicolurus). These very noisy birds arrive from all directions in small groups before sunset to roost safely in the trees. By the time darkness has fallen around 6.30 pm, the branches are packed. You can, for a small donation, view the arrival from up in the church tower. Down below it formed a spectacular flock though the smell resulting from the droppings is very strong. 

Canary-winged Parakeets - about 700 in this shot alone

When we arrived (August 14), joining the parakeets in the roost were many thousands of Purple Martin (Progne subis). They also packed themselves tight onto the branches. In the poor light of sunset, it wasn't easy to identify them - there were mixed males, females and juveniles in different stages of moulting, but their behaviour was characteristic. Large groups arrived high over the town and on approaching the park, the birds went into a steep fast dive into the trees. I understand that Purple Martin are migrants from North America which "winter" in Colombia. Perhaps that means the martin roost in Leticia is highly seasonal? Of course there could be other parrots and swallows in the roost, but picking them out is something of a challenge!

Purple Martins

The parakeets and purple martins were harrassed  and often "put-up" by circling Zone-tailed Hawks (Buteo albonotatus) and by Bat Falcons (Falco rufigularis). In the confusing swirl of thousands of birds, these raptors must have a hard time picking out individual targets. 

Near the park, in a vacant lot, I was lucky enough to get a good view of a Thrush-like Wren (Campylorhynchus turdinus). 

Thrush-like Wren

A short-walk out of Leticia takes you to the airport with open grasslands and wet areas. There is good birding there, but the roads around are fairly busy at times with construction work going on, and much of it is surrounded by military, who might not appreciate birders hanging around with binocular & cameras, but I had no problems except for a polite request to move on. I saw a few species new to me there Red-capped Cardinal (Paroaria gularis), Chestnut-bellied Seedeater(Sporophila castaneiventris), Silver-beaked Tanager (Ramphocelus carbo) and one Giant Cowbird(Molothrus oryzivorus). Later on, at the ponds near the Tercel plant, I saw my first Limpkin (Aramus guarauna). 

The only Colombian road out of Leticia - locally called "the kilometers"  goes past the airport and is well paved at least up to km 13. Buses go to km 11 every 20 minutes or so, but much less frequently to km 22. The areas along the road near to Leticia are farmed but there are turnings off with more trees. We walked along km 11 from the main road to the river Tacana. There are several eco-lodges/hostels in this area. Although we found plenty of wildlife, it's far from virgin forest!

Parrots were always around on our trip, and being noisy birds, fairly easy to spot. However, being up in the tree-tops often in bad light, they aren't always so easy to identify. I picked up Marroon-tailed Parakeet (Pyrrhura melanura) and Short-tailed Parrot (Graydidascalus brachyurus) and later White-eyed Parakeet (Aratinga leucophthalma) here at least. There are plenty of clearings and tanagers are common including Turquoise Tanager (Tangara mexicana). 

Turquoise Tanager

One morning we walked to the local port and negotiated a 70,000 COP (about 25 GB Pounds) boat trip to the nearby river islands. This was our first experience of the actual river and very impressive it was. During our visit (mid-August) the river was low, but when the river is high (December to May) no doubt it takes on a different character.  

Some islands, such as Isla Ronda, about 1 hour or so from Leticia, have extensive mud patches attracting migrant waders such as Pectoral Sandpiper (Calidris melanotos) and Spotted Sandpiper (Actitis macularius). Collared Plover (Charadrius collaris) were common and approachable. There are lots of grassy and wooded areas too, but these islands are flooded for many months each year and getting around on foot is not easy. I was pleased to see Lesser Hornero (Furnarius minor), a bird which specializes in Amazon river islands. I also added some very easy to identify species on the islands like White-headed Marsh Tyrant (Arundinicola leucocephala), Oriole Blackbird (Gymnomystax mexicanus) and Yellow-billed Tern (Sternula superciliaris). 

Oriole Blackbirds bathing in the Amazon

Mudflats of Isla Ronda

A most surprising birding aspect of the river and its islands was the sparsity of herons and egrets. I had expected to see huge numbers gathering together as you often see in the River Magdelena cienagas, but perhaps they are much more spread out in the Amazon or maybe the season has a big effect. As everywhere, local knowledge is key and a good local guide would no-doubt find many more interesting and unusual species around Leticia and the nearby river islands, but for my first trip to the area I was very pleased with more common and conspicuous birds.

Amazing Amazonas 1 - Mammals

We decided to take the opportunity to visit the Amazon region of Colombia, a dream of mine since I was young. We stayed two nights in Leticia, the sizable and only major Colombian town on the River Amazon. Then we traveled to the excellent Yoi Eco-lodge (Yoi Ecotours) on the Amacayacu River just outside the Amacayacu National Park for three nights before returning to Leticia for the last two nights.

After catching a speedy scheduled river launch from Leticia to the Amacayacu Park headquarters we were taken up the small Rio Matamata to see the new home of the Maikuchiga Foundation, a rehabilitation centre for primates and other Amazonian animals.

Although laws are strict in Colombia, there are still major problems with an illegal wildlife trade and widespread and often indiscriminate hunting which is threatening many animal species. The foundation has recently had to relocate its facility but it was well worth a visit to get close up to the residents and understand more about their work. The monkeys present seemed to have been rescued pets - local people are still taking young monkeys to keep in their homes. The resident monkeys were able to come and go into the forest as they pleased, but no-doubt rehabilitation of primates back to the wild is not easy as they are highly social animals.

Many tourists go to the "Isla de los Micos", a river island where a number of monkeys have been "relocated", and, of course they cannot leave. If you're visiting this area, give this Monkey Island a miss and support Maikuchiga instead.

This female Monk Saki (Pithecia monachus)  has a badly injured arm and was very friendly. She was very keen to be scratched, perhaps because of her surprisingly long coat. Her tail was also very fluffy, but not prehensile like some other species. Sadly they are hunted, but there is virtually no meat under all that fur. Their tails are used as dusters which is a terrible waste for such a marvelous animal. Although she was fairly passive, we later on saw other wild Monk Saki in the forest living up to their Spanish name of Flying Monkeys. We were very pleased as Elena could identify them without help from the guide!

Although we didn't manage to see one elsewhere, this Wooley Monkey (Lagothrix lagotricha) made a big impression. Her prehensile tail was really strong and easily supported her weight. She was a little overly aggressive with Elena though, pulling her hair and trying to bite her.

Later on, near the Amacayacu river we got a few glimpses of several  Titi monkeys (Callicebus sp)  and also Black-manted Tamarin (Saguinus nigricollis) and much better views of a large group of Common Squirrel Monkeys (Saimiri sciureus).

Later on, after returning to Leticia, we saw a small family group of three Lucifer Titi (Callicebus lucifer). I don't know why they have that name, but their hands stand out with a yellow colour.

Bats were of course plentiful, but as usual extremely hard to get any idea of which species they might be. Most noticeable were the large numbers heading out very low over the River Amazon at sunset. Our guide pointed out a number of Long-nosed Bats roosting on a tree by the Rio Matamata (I'm not really sure if this is the right species). Colombia has a huge number of bat species and I'd be surprised if there aren't a few more waiting to be discovered.

Dolphins are always great to see, and we had no problems seeing both species present in the Amazon. In the River Amazon itself, opposite Puerto Nariño, the small Tucuxi or Grey River Dolphin (Sotalia fluviatilis) stayed a little distant from our boat but did jump clear of the water and show a blue-grey colour with shape similar to bottlenose dolphin. In the same spot several Boto or Pink River Dolphin (Inia geoffrensis geoffrensis) came much closer and even passed under the boat blowing bubbles. They were much larger and slower when surfacing. The dorsal fin is very long  and on a few occasions I could see the head and long-neck which makes them look very different. Apparently they favour the main channel of the Amazon during the dry periods (like in August when we visited), but spread-out into the flooded forest during the wet season.

We did a night-walk near the lodge and our guide Ray, an indiginous Ticuna and former hunter with amazing eyesight,  spotted what he called a night-monkey high in the canopy. In the torch-light it moved slowly and looked more like a cat but was actually a Kinkajou (Potos flavus). These are neither monkeys nor cats but related to the Raccoons and the similar-looking Olingos. By co-incidence, just a few days before, a related new species was "discovered" or more accurately announced, the Olinguito  (Bassaricyon neblina) in Colombia.

On another daylight walk in the forest, Elena spotted a "mouse" moving near a fallen trunk across the path. It appears to be a young Anderson's Four-eyed Opossum (Philander andersoni). It was still breathing and moving but seemed to be in a bad-way. Perhaps it was stunned having just fallen from the canopy? Or perhaps it was "playing possum"?

Of course there are many other fantastic mammal species in the Amazon, but hunting and habitat loss has had a big impact and unfortunately many are no longer easy to see.  Overall we saw at least 10 species of mammals (plus all the unidentified bats of course). I was pleasantly surprised and much credit goes to our guide Ray and Yoi Ecotours without whom we'd have seen far less.  

More trip sightings coming soon!

Top Reasons to Love Birding in Colombia

1.   The challenge.

It might seem strange to put this as #1 but birding in Colombia is challenging in the best ways. Although there are some species that are unmistakable and obvious, if you are trying to find birds yourself (rather than rely on a guide), identification can often be really tough. Groups such as the Tyrant Flycatchers, with 203 species especially provide a lot of head-scratching even with excellent views. I'll admit that I just give up on some of them as just too tough for now until I have more experience.

There is no doubt I've had to improve my observation skills a great deal. It has sometimes taken 3 or 4 good sightings for me to be confident in my ID and I have many "probables" that won't make it to my list.

I'm much more reliant on taking decent notes though I've still not mastered writing neatly in the field! The need for comprehensive and accurate descriptions of birds rather than just pictures is much more apparent to me here. Hopefully they'll publish books like Hilty & Brown electronically one day to avoid the problems of traveling with such heavy books!

The need to learn the calls and songs is more obvious here as well, with so many to master it takes time and patience even using online resources like Xeno-Canto and a decent mobile phone in the field. I'm still a little uncomfortable using playback of calls sometimes but it's often the best way to see some skulking birds, of which there are many in Colombia! Of course, you have to have ID'd the bird first to use playback.

I´ve learned the value of photos as record shots here - although it is often very hard to find comparison photos of some species on the web! The large number of subspecies can also provide a challenge for some species.

Azara´s Spinetail - Synallaxis azarae - Often heard but hard to see and photograph

Apical Flycatcher (Myiarchus apicalis) - a Colombian endemic best identified by its call. 

Overall, despite still being a novice neotropical birder, I feel I've improved my skills immensely since coming to Colombia 18 months ago and that gives me a great sense of satisfaction.

2.    The surprises

Although there can be quieter moments, there is always a great possibility of seeing something unexpected. Many of the birds here are very local. Of course the amazingly varied geography and local micro-climates have lead to great diversity of species in this country. Also, sadly, many of the mountain habitats here are fragmented but that does lead to some common species having very patchy distribution. You can find even endangered species turning up in new places. (Post-script - like the endangered endemic Chestnut-bellied Hummingbird that turned up on our balcony just before we left)

With very few birders and a huge area to cover it's inevitable that many species are under-recorded and even excellent tools like the Cornell Neotropical Birds distribution maps will not be totally reliable.

Add to that the fantastic array of migrants that arrive in Colombia each year. It is a real treat to be in the wintering area of these species and during passage, when who knows what might turn up anywhere.

Russet-throated Puffbird (Hypnelus ruficollis) - sat perched for easy photos

Rufous-tailed Tyrant (Knipolegus poecilurus)

It's a wonderful experience to discover so many birds myself, and quite different from my birding in the UK where it´s much harder to find a real surprise.

3.    The colours

Drab birds can be very pleasing too but Colombia has some spectacularly colourful families of birds. My favourites are the tanagers. In one flock you can get 7 or 8 species, each with bright colours.

The toucans too are stunning birds and a great range of colours with 22 species. The Keel-billed Toucan has just amazing colours in the beak.

Highland Motmot (Momotus aequatorialis)

Collared Trogon - female (Trogon collaris)

Parrots, Trogons, Woodpeckers, Motmots, Barbets and Manakins all add bright colours which definitely makes seeing a new bird really special.

4.    Hummers

I can't deny I've developed a huge fondness for hummingbirds. They´re often challenging to see well but highly rewarding to study, especially for their acrobatics and feistiness. With 162 species there are plenty to choose from, but I still find the common ones fun to watch. They seem to pop-up in all kinds of places too, so great for brightening up a dull day. To see one in the gardening section of the DIY store in the centre of Bucaramanga is a treat.

Green-fronted Lancebill (Doryfera ludovicae)

Rufous-tailed Hummingbird (Amazilia Tzacatl) - posing on our balcony 

5.    Birds everywhere

 Colombia has more bird species than any other country (more than 1800 species). But also there are still large numbers of birds, even in more developed areas. It's always worth keeping your eyes open wherever you go. In the mountains, agriculture is not often very intensive and there is space left for birds and other wildlife. Of course, much habitat has been lost, and many species have suffered significant declines, but many still remain in good numbers. 

As much of the country has a warmer climate year-round, the open-air living allows you to do more birding and also see birds whilst doing other things. I've seen 83 + species from my balcony, many interesting birds from restaurants and even a few nice ones whilst I've been swimming in the open-air pools.

Here's my recommendations to help your birding if you come from a temperate region like the UK to Colombia for an extended period.

Get a decent book:

• A Guide to the Birds of Colombia by  Hilty and Brown is the bible, but is awaiting a new issue.
• Birds of Northern South America by Restall etc in 2 volumes is also very good. 
• Field Guide to the Birds of Colombia published by ProAves is very useful in the field

• Birdwatching in Colombia: - Jurgen Beckers and Pablo Florez - a site-guide for Colombia to be published in Nov 2013.

and copies of free publications like these. I can send you a copy of these.

• Travel guide to Birdwatching Sites in Colombia
• Guia de las Especies Migratorias de la Biodiversidad en Colombia, Vol 1 (Guide to the Migratory Species of Colombia). In Spanish but very useful.

Make use of  internet resources like Cornell Neotropical Birds is good for descriptions and distribution maps, The Internet Bird Collection is very good for comparison photos. Birdforum Q & A can help with some photo IDs.

Learn as many calls as you can with Xeno Canto and download them to a smartphone.

Take plenty of fieldnotes. A recorder app on a phone might be a good idea to save trying to write the notes in a rush. Try to get record shots, though it can sometimes get in the way of taking proper notes.

Many Colombian birders use Facebook and it's a good way to see photos of local birds.

Don't forget to learn those latin names if you're going to communicate with local birders. There are often many different names for the same species in Spanish.

And finally, use suncream ;-)

Rogitama

Whilst in Boyacá Department we paid a visit to the nature reserve of Rogitama, near to Arcabuco. This small private reserve of 29 hectares provides inspiration to those who would like to restore wildlife to Colombia. It is also a great place to see several species of rare hummingbird.

View of SFF Iguaque in the mountains and the back of Rogitama on the extreme left

The reserve is at 2500m above sea level in the green valleys in the north of Boyacá. Roberto Chavarro and his family have been working since 1982 on the reforestation and restoration of a former cattle farm which had become eroded. Trees were planted to stabilize and protect the water sources. Hedges were established to increase habitat connectivity. They are improving the fertility and health of the soils using composting and worm farming.

As a result of this hard work there is now much more healthy undergrowth with moss, lichens and epiphytes in the trees which all store moisture and release it slowly which helps keep the streams running steadily. This means less erosive flash floods and fewer periods with a lack of water. Many species of insects are recolonizing the reserve.

They have also planted many flowering plants and bushes on the reserve which attract 19 different species of hummingbirds as well as flowerpiercers and other birds. Although it can get very cold at night, it is seldom below freezing and there are flowers year-round. With so much natural nectar, there is no need for artificial feeders.

Black Inca

Birders coming to Colombia from around the world are visiting the reserve to see a few harder to find species. Roberto is especially proud of the population of Black Inca (Coeligena prunellei) an endemic species classified as Vulnerable to extinction and only present in the Eastern Andes of Colombia. The population on the reserve seems to be healthy and they are easy to see. (They are also present in good numbers in the ProAves reserve Reinita Cielo Azul in Santander see my previous post).

Lazuline Sabrewing

Another rare species that is easy to see by the house is the Lazuline Sabrewing (Camplyopterus falcatus). I got this photo from the balcony just outside our room. They look much more blue in the right light!

It is possible to see other harder to find species including Golden-bellied Starfrontlet (Coeligena bonapartei), Mountain Velvetbreast (Lafresnaya lafresnayi) and Short-tailed Emerald (Chlorostilbon poortmani). You can get great opportunities as well to photograph commoner higher-altitude species like this Speckled Hummingbird (Adelomyia melanogenys) which sat just feet away.

Speckled Hummingbird

But there is more ....Rogitama achieved some fame at the end of 2011 after several unidentified hummingbirds were photographed and filmed.  There is a picture here and you can see some youtube video here  and here. Apparently there are/were at least 3 individual birds and they come and go somewhat, so I didn't get a chance to see them.

Initially it was thought they might be Bogotá Sunangel (Heliangelus zusii) an enigmatic species only known from a 1909 skin marked "Bogotá" and never seen since. The rediscovery of this species would be sensational. Later, some theories emerged that this "Rogitama Sunangel" was a new species, a hybrid, or possibly a new sub-species or colour morph of the Long-tailed Sylph (Aglaiocercus kingi). DNA testing would resolve the debate. Feather samples were taken and sent to the University of the Andes in Bogotá to be tested. However, since then, no results have been released, so the mystery continues!

A Long-tailed Sylph from Santander. They like blackberry bushes!

Whatever the outcome it is fantastic that the hard work gone into restoring the habitat and encouraging the hummingbirds at Rogitama has been rewarded by the discovery of a very interesting bird as well as the presence of many others that are in decline elsewhere.

If you want to see hummingbirds in their more natural environment rather than at feeders, this is a great place to come.