In Search Of The El Oro Parakeet

Posted on June 29, 2016 by Tara

Most birders who come to Buenaventura Reserve are hoping to see the beautiful endangered El Oro Parakeet. This petite parakeet would normally be a challenge to see in the wild but fortunately there is one special trail where they nest. Access is limited and you must go there with a guide from Umbrellabird Lodge booked in advance with Jocotoco Foundation. The trail is locked for the protection of the birds.

We arrived at the spot about an hour early, the parakeets usually show up around 5pm-ish so we looked for other birds in the meantime. Not many around, here’s a Striped Cuckoo. IMG_2206a

Our patience was rewarded as the El Oro Parakeets started arriving right on schedule. First they perched in the trees, then a pair went down to the nest box. One bird went inside the nest while the other kept watch on top. I couldn’t see if there were any babies inside but the behaviour of the adults suggested they were feeding babies. IMG_2184a IMG_2193a IMG_2201a IMG_2200a IMG_2217a IMG_2221a IMG_2237a IMG_2250a IMG_2251a IMG_2259a IMG_2272a DSCN0677 DSCN0687 DSCN0703 DSCN0675 DSCN0671 DSCN0666 DSCN0663

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EBIRD LIST

Visiting Buenaventura Reserve, Ecuador

Posted on June 27, 2016 by Tara

The Buenaventura Reserve is managed by Jocotoco Foundation and is located in the south of Ecuador. This is the home of the El Oro Parakeet so it’s well worth the effort to get there. The nearest airport is Loja which is served by TAME airlines, then you can take a bus or taxi to Pinas, the nearest town. You can also get buses from Guayaquil via Machala which are very cheap, less than $10 per person. An overview and map of the reserve can be seen here.

We left Loja on the 9:15am bus which was very comfortable and only $6 per person. If you miss the bus, you can get a taxi to Pinas but it will be over $100 so not a good idea to miss the bus!

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It’s about a 5 hour ride through very beautiful scenery. DSCN0631 DSCN0632 DSCN0633 DSCN0634 DSCN0635

After arriving in Pinas, you can get a camioneta to the reserve and the Umbrellabird Lodge. The road is pretty bad so don’t use a normal taxi. DSCN0636 DSCN0637 DSCN0638

Awesome statue of an El Oro Parakeet! I just love when local people honour their native birds! DSCN0639

And here’s one of a Jocotoco Antpitta. DSCN0641 DSCN0643

Turn off to the lodge. DSCN0644 DSCN0645 DSCN0646 DSCN0648 DSCN0649

At last we arrived! After checking in and dropping off our backpacks, we asked the same camioneta driver to wait for us and take us and the lodge’s guide to the El Oro Parakeet hotspot which is about 10km from the lodge. The whole transport cost around $30. DSCN0650

Repositioning To Loja Due To Road Conditions

Posted on June 26, 2016 by Tara

As I had mentioned before, there were extensive delays on the road between Loja and Zamora due to mudslides. I had planned to stay 2 nights at Copalinga Lodge and leave early in the morning to get the bus to Loja, then another one to Pinas. We would have missed the bus if we had done that so Catherine of Coplinga Lodge graciously let us out of our second night without charging for it and called a taxi to take us to Zamora bus station.

Bus from Zamora to Loja. I tried to get a shot of the backed-up traffic out the window but it was dirty.

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On arrival, I first scoped out the transport for the next day so we would have time to buy tickets and board the bus. The office was closed but I noted the departure of 09:15. DSCN0606 DSCN0607 DSCN0605 DSCN0608

We then got a taxi to the Hotel Podocarpus that I had booked online before leaving Copalinga. We passed this cool fort type building, couldn’t get a good shot. DSCN0613

The hotel was fine for a night, clean and decent sized rooms. We were pretty tired so just decided to find food as close as possible, then crash out. DSCN0617 DSCN0618 DSCN0615

Bird motifs on the doors! DSCN0616

This chicken place was right around the corner on the main road. We went for the $14.99 special which turned out to be WAY too much food for a couple, it was more suitable for a family of 4. DSCN0619 DSCN0620

Chicken foot soup was the first course. I took a pass but my hungry husband wolfed it down. DSCN0621

View from the room. DSCN0622

Nice toucan carving! DSCN0623

Breakfast was included and was ok for the price. DSCN0624

We then got a taxi to the bus station, I think it was around $3.

Birding In & Around Zamora, Ecuador

Posted on June 23, 2016 by Tara

After a successful birding walk in Podocarpus National Park, we moved on to the small town of Zamora because the flowers in the town garden are a favourite spot for Spangled Coquettes. The Coquette family of hummingbirds is quite unique with their brilliant crests and bright colouring. They are really fast so not easy to capture in a photo! You can also see some beautiful butterflies and different hummingbirds in the gardens.

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Female Spangled Coquette. IMG_2051a IMG_2054a IMG_2056a IMG_2057a IMG_2061a IMG_2068a IMG_2069a

Yellow-tufted Woodpecker IMG_2071a IMG_2047a

We then headed out of Zamora to the surrounding countryside to try our luck. It was around noon by now so not the best time to go birding but we found a few birds and some Blue Morpho Butterflies which are even harder to photograph than hummingbirds! Our guide hired a camioneta taxi as the road was pretty rough in spots. It wasn’t too expensive, maybe around $15 for an hour and if the birding had been better we could have kept him longer.

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The highlight was the Blue-necked Tanager. We also saw some other tanagers like Green & Gold Tanager (no photo), Blue-grey Tanagers and Palm Tanagers. IMG_2115a IMG_2119a

Now we were pretty hungry so the camioneta dropped us back in town. I had asked for empanadas as I had read that they were a specialty of Zamora and I was expecting a savoury meat & cheese filled dish but we somehow ended up at a bakery (miscommunication with non-English speaking guide) but the sweet empanadas were tasty and they had nice cakes too!

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There’s some amazing graffiti/art around the town, many of which feature birds and wildlife. DSCN0518 DSCN0519 DSCN0521

This statue of a lady is kind of a landmark and you may see directions saying “turn left at the statue” or similar – this is her! DSCN0520

Our guide (I forgot his name but Catherine at Copalinga can book him) dropped us back at Copalinga and it was the end of a great day of birding in Podocarpus and Zamora. DSCN0529

Visiting Podocarpus National Park

Posted on June 20, 2016 by Tara

Podocarpus National Park in southern Ecuador made it onto my itinerary because it is a reliable place to see White-breasted (white-necked) Parakeets and a host of other amazing birds. A good guide to help plan your visit complete with maps is here. The amazing Copalinga Lodge is only a few km from the Bommuscaro entrance and the owner, Catherine can arrange a birding guide and transportation.

My eBird List for Podocarpus

Gotta love the logo on this taxi!

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Entrance is now free! Although it says it’s open at 8am, most birders arrive around 6:30 and there is no problem. DSCN0448

The well maintained trail winds slowly uphill. DSCN0452 DSCN0455

Beautiful Inca Jay IMG_1978a IMG_1984a

Squirrel Cuckoo IMG_1988a

Our first glimpse of White-breasted Parakeets on the road and the rock face.

A curious little Parakeet inspecting us IMG_2000a

Could they get any cuter? IMG_2002a IMG_2005a

And then they took off.

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More White-breasted Parakeets! IMG_2035a IMG_2038a DSCN0466 DSCN0467 DSCN0471

Eeeeek, a school group! Luckily this was on our way out after seeing our target birds as a large school group is not conducive to peaceful birding! DSCN0456 DSCN0457 DSCN0459

Getting From Loja Airport (Catamayo) To Zamora (Podocarpus)

Posted on June 15, 2016 by Tara

Arriving at Loja’s airport in Catamayo was quite an adventure. I had toyed with the idea of renting a car but there are no car rental companies there. You simply walk from the plane across the tarmac, through the tiny arrival hall where bags are delivered and straight out to the parking lot where LOTS of taxi drivers are competing for your attention.

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The battle of the yellow vs the white taxis! I didn’t know which one to go for. Prices are pretty much fixed as the owner of Copalinga Lodge had told us at around $35-38 USD. Ecuador uses the USD as their own currency. DSCN0432 DSCN0433 DSCN0435

Finally we were off! It was a smooth trip from the airport at Catamayo to Loja city, just under an hour away.

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The road from Loja to Zamora is beautiful and scenic but it does have problems with mudslides. We were delayed about 2 hours stuck in traffic while one mudslide was cleared and the two lanes of traffic (inbound and outbound) took turns passing through. DSCN0440 DSCN0441

The distance in kilometers isn’t far, it’s the mudslides that get you! It was well after dark by the time we arrived at Copalinga. This is something to consider if you have bus connections onwards. Theoretically a taxi should get you from Copalinga to the Loja bus station in 2-2.5 hours but the mudslides can push you way back so if you have an early flight or bus it’s best to spend the last night in Loja.

Guayaquil – Gateway To Southern Ecuador & The Galapagos

Posted on June 5, 2016 by Tara

Guayaquil is one of two main gateway/airport cities in Ecuador and is the best option if your trip includes the spectacular reserves in southern Ecuador and/or the Galapagos as all the Quito flights stop in Guayaquil so you might as well save the time.

GETTING TO GUAYAQUIL WITH AIRLINE MILES

Guayaquil has service with members of all three major alliances so it is pretty easy to get there with miles.

STAR ALLIANCE – Avianca & Copa

ONEWORLD – American & the LATAM Group, Iberia

SKYTEAM – Aerolineas Argentinas

NON-ALLIANCE – TAME (good for smaller airports and Galapagos)

WHERE TO STAY USING HOTEL POINTS

IHG REWARDS – Holiday Inn Guayaquil Airport is normally 20,000 points but often goes on Pointbreaks. We stayed there our first night in Guayaquil, you can see my review.

STARWOOD – Sheraton Guayaquil Airport is a Cat 3 for 7000 points.

HILTON – Hilton Colon Guayaquil is 30,000 points & the Hampton Inn is 20,000 points.

WYNDHAM – Wyndham Guayaquil is 15,000 points.

If these options don’t suit you, you could try earning airline miles by booking with Rocketmiles or Pointshound.

WHAT TO DO IN GUAYAQUIL

We only spent a night here on arrival and an evening here upon returning from our southern Ecuador loop before flying to the Galapagos so I can’t really get into city sight-seeing. Just don’t miss out on Bosque Cerro Blanco, it’s amazing!

Guayaquil was the jumping off point for a loop through southern Ecuador to visit 2 major birding hotspots (reviews to come) – Podocarpus and Buenaventura. I had been checking the TAME website daily for specials and finally got one in January for around $35 per person plus tax to Loja airport which is actually about an hour out of Loja proper. From there we took a taxi to Zamora for a visit to Podocarpus, then went by bus back to Loja, then to Pinas for Buenaventura and back to Guayaquil. Finally we flew to San Cristobal in the Galapagos.

Guayaquil trip

Birding In Bosque Cerro Blanco

Posted on June 1, 2016 by Tara

Bosque Cerro Blanco is only about 20 minutes outside of Guayaquil and it is very easy to organize a visit there. You need to contact them in advance so they can arrange a guide and permission to enter the reserve by emailing bosqueprotector@yahoo.com. Use Google translate to communicate in Spanish as they don’t speak English.

In our case, they also organized a taxi to pick us up at the Holiday Inn and take us out there, then to return later to take us back to the hotel. This is the safest option as Guayaquil is not a city you want to take risks with potentially dodgy taxis. Even though it is slightly more expensive, the difference isn’t great in terms of actual dollars.

There is some great information about the reserve and a map HERE.

Our guide, Paul Abad was waiting for us when we arrived around 6am and we were off to explore and hopefully get some good birds!

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Although the Guayaquil Macaw (Great Green Macaw) is the flagship species, they are rarely seen in the area of the reserve most birders can access. DSCN0366

We walked along the trails with Paul pointing out all the species. My complete eBird list is HERE. Photography wasn’t the best as it was overcast and many species were far away though I did the best I could with my long lenses.

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Yellow-rumped Cacique

Since I was targeting parrot species, I was thrilled to see a small flock of Lilicine Amazon Parrots flying in the distance. IMG_1791a IMG_1794a IMG_1808a

Southern Yellow Grosbeak IMG_1813a

The White-tailed Jay was a stunning bird! IMG_1829a IMG_1834a IMG_1840a

This lookout proved to be a real hotspot especially for parrots! DSCN0395 DSCN0401

First a flock of Red-masked Parakeets flew by.

Smooth-billed Ani

Pale-vented Pigeon

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Parrotlets are usually my downfall. I have a good success rate on finding most parrots but these little guys are usually elusive. So it was especially thrilling to have a small flock of Pacific Parrotlets land in the trees near the lookout……………….closely followed by some gorgeous and acrobatic Grey-cheeked Parakeets!

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To top it off, a Red-masked Parakeet decided to come in closer for a better look! IMG_1958a IMG_1961a IMG_1948a

Yellow-tailed Oriole IMG_1901a IMG_1890a

The reserve has some educational signs but in Spanish only. DSCN0405 DSCN0406 DSCN0407 DSCN0404 DSCN0408 DSCN0411

A Saffron Finch DSCN0410

Paul and Ina walking back to the office. DSCN0412

The office had been closed when we arrived so I paid the entry fee $5.00 each and the guide fee $60, then had a look at the hummingbird feeders where Amazilia Hummingbirds can be seen. DSCN0413 DSCN0416

Surfing, Boating, Fishing & Birding

Posted on May 26, 2016 by Tara

School’s out and the northern hemisphere is gearing up for summer. If you are a birder who has a family wanting to enjoy more traditional summer vacation activities, see this video by Birding Adventures on how you can please everyone in the family in south Florida.

The highlights of course are the urban parrots! Once you see Quakers and Nanday Parakeets in Florida, why not plan a trip to the Pantanal to see them in their native lands?

Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park – Night Safari Experience Pictorial

Posted on May 9, 2016 by Tara

A night safari in any South African game park is a magical experience and should not be missed. Most of the Sanparks rest camps will have them so be sure you book one as soon as you arrive at reception. You are not allowed in the park in your own vehicle after sunset, the gates will close at 6pm-ish and you could be fined if you are late.

The safari vehicles are large and comfortable and your guide will be a ranger who is very familiar with the park and knows what all the animals and birds are.

Here’s a few pics from our night safari at Mata-Mata Rest Camp. The sunsets are unreal! Sorry I didn’t get more but it’s hard to focus in the dark although they will shine torches on any animal found.