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Crested Eagle |
After leaving Panama City (see following post) we headed east,
crossing the Panama Canal and along the Pan American Highway. In the lowlands of the Bayano area, our first
stop was in riparian forest along the Rio Mono, where we had nice looks at
Black Ant-shrike, a species some of us had missed in Colombia.
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Double-toothed Kite |
We moved on to the town of Torti, checking out some patches
of scrub along the Rio Torti near the town where the much-wanted Double-banded
Greytail and Pacific Antwren showed
nicely. A Double-toothed Kite here was suitably
co-operative.
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Snowy-bellied Hummingbird |
The hummingbird feeders at the Torti Hotel were buzzing with
activity. Snowy-bellied Hummingbird and Scaly-breasted Hummingbird were lifers
for most.
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Scaly-breasted Hummingbird |
Sapphire-throated Emerald and Long-billed Starthroat added
to the colourful display while Rufous-tailed Hummingbird was common.
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Long-billed Starthroat |
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Sapphire-throated Hummingbird |
At Torti
we had to made our first preparations for the trip to Darien National Park in the province's lowlands and
Cerro Pirre. We left most of our gear in suitcases in the hotel for security reasons before continuing east,
crossing the state border and entering the birding mecca province of Darien. We
overnighted in the basic but adequate hotel in the town of Metiti.
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Rufous-tailed Hummingbird |
The next morning saw us in some open country near the
highway south of Metiti where common and widespread species such as Striped
Cuckoo, Spot-breasted Woodpecker, Pied Water-Tyrant and Ruddy-breasted
Seedeater were added to the list.
Grey-headed and White-throated Crakes were heard.
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Striped Cuckoo |
|
Spot-breasted Woodpecker |
|
Ruddy-breasted Seedeater |
Further east we checked roadside forest within a few
kilometres of the town of Yaviza, where the Pan-American Highway terminates.
Here we enjoyed the antics of a couple of groups of Geoffroy’s Tamarin by the
road.
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Geoffroy's Tamarin |
A huge butterfly of the genus
Caligo feeding on bananas was a brief distraction
from the birds.
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Caligo Butterfly |
Black Oropendola and Barred Puffbird were welcome additions
to the list. Grey-cheeked Nunlet was elusive until we eventually nailed one
bird and then another.
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Black Oropondola |
Spot-crowned Barbet
was another nice find while Greater Anis put on a show.
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Greater Anis |
At the bustling port of Yaviza on the Rio Chucumaque, our
gear, safely secured in waterproof bags, was loaded into our boat for the next
leg of the journey into the heart of the Darien lowlands.
|
Yaviza, Rio Chucumaque |
We were met at the
port by our local guide for the Darien trip, Isaac Pizaro, from the Guna Indian
tribe.
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Isaac Pizaro |
We had a pleasant journey of about an hour up the river to
the town of El Real, seeing huge numbers of Broad-winged Hawkes on their
southward migration.
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Migrating Broad-winged Hawks |
After lunch at El Real, we loaded our gear and ourselves
into a truck for a bumpy 30-minute drive to the edge of the forest. Here, our
gear was loaded onto horses while we headed off along a 5km trek to Rancho Frio
– the Darien National Park headquarters where
we would spend the next two nights in a basic dormitory.
About half-way along the hike to Rancho Frio we were
thrilled to encounter a dark phase Crested Eagle perched above the path high in
the trees (see first image). This was at or close to the top of the wishlists of everyone; a
spectacular bird indeed.
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Deserted Harpy Eagle nest |
Nearby was the now deserted nest of a pair of Harpy Eagles
that had raised chicks for several years in succession until one of the adults
was shot earlier this year - apparently by locals who believed they were not
getting enough money from visiting birders. Similar problems have been
encountered overseas, highlighting the point that the economic benefits from
ecotourism can sometimes be a double-edged sword.
|
Our stuff arrives on horseback at Rancho Frio |
We were suitably tired by the time we reached Rancho Frio in
the late afternoon, and pleased that all our stuff had arrived safely aboard
the horses.
An amazing collection of birds and congratulations on the Crested Eagle. Sad to hear about the Harpy being shot. The locals who shot have lost a major asset regardless of the monies they seek from visiting birders.
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