Tag Archives: El Dorado

Scaly-naped Parrot (Amazona mercenarius)

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The Scaly-naped Amazon or Scaly-naped Parrot (Amazona mercenarius) is a species of parrot in the family Psittacidae.

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They have a huge range throughout the mountainous areas of Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru & Bolivia.  You may get lucky as I did at Wildsumaco,  El Dorado and Rio Blanco.

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I really struggled to find anything on these charming parrots.  The first one is a slideshow.

I couldn’t find any live-action filmed in the wild so I have to use a clip of a captive bird to show him up close.

Back To Minca For The Night

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After a rewarding birding trip to El Dorado Reserve, we headed back to Minca for the night hoping to see some Military Macaws the next morning.  There were no others to share the jeep so we had to pay the $80 ourselves but there is no other way to get down the mountain unless you want to walk!

We only had one night before our flight to Medellin.  We got a late start on the return trip as the jeep was still in use by other people who had been picked up at the airport and were checking in.  I didn’t mind though as the late departure enabled us to see a beautiful female Masked Trogon fairly close up!

We finally hit the road with another driver and met up with the other car headed up the mountain and I came up with the idea of a car swap so each driver could end up back at his station.  I was a bit envious of the young couple who had a great adventure in store but then again so did we elsewhere in Colombia!

Although we arrived at our lodge well after dark, I did get some pics of the small town of Minca the next day (and a few from passing through on the way up).

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Masked Trogon (Trogon personatus)

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It’s time to unmask the beauty of the elegant Masked Trogon (Trogon personatus) who is a species of bird in the family Trogonidae.  They have 8 different subspecies:

  • T. p. assimilis is found in the subtropics of the west Andean slope in Ecuador.
  • T. p. duidae is found on Mount Duida in the tepui region of southern Venezuela; males of this subspecies are reddish-bronze on the back.
  • T. p. personatus is found in the subtropical Andes of Venezuela, central and east Andean slopes in Colombia, and east Andean slopes in Ecuador and Peru; males of this subspecies are glossy green above.
  • T. p. ptaritepui is found in the tepui region of southern Venezuela; males of this subspecies are golden-green on the back.
  • T. p. roraimae is found on Auyantepui and Monte Roraima, on the border between Venezuela, Guyana and Brazil.
  • T. p. sanctamartae is found in the Santa Marta Mountains of northeastern Colombia.
  • T. p. submontanus is found in the Andean foothills in Bolivia.
  • T. p. temperatus, sometimes considered to be a separate species, the highland trogon, is found in the temperate Andes of Colombia, Ecuador and Peru.

I took the photos below from the verandah of the El Dorado Reserve Lodge.  This female  bird (T. p. sanctamartae) seemed to know how gorgeous she is and made sure I got her good side – both of them!

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Here’s a male bird from the Mindo area.

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Another male from Cabanas San Isidro

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They have a huge range throughout the mountainous areas of Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru & Bolivia.  You may get lucky as I did at Mindo, San Isidro,  El Dorado and Rio Blanco.

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This clip from the Mindo area has the male bird’s call.

A quiet but curious female.

 

 

Scarlet-fronted Parakeet (Psittacara wagleri)

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The Scarlet-fronted Parakeet (Psittacara wagleri), also known as the Scarlet-fronted Conure or Wagler’s Conure, is a long-tailed South American species of parrot.

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They are found in Colombia & Venezuela.  I saw the “3 Amigos” pictured above at the El Dorado Reserve in Colombia.

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This little guy didn’t know he was being scoped as he groomed himself.

 

These youngsters are enjoying a meal.

 

Santa Marta Warbler (Myiothlypis basilica)

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The Santa Marta Warbler (Myiothlypis basilica) is a species of bird in the Parulidae family. They are extremely quick-moving, this was the only photo I got that was less blurry.

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They are endemic to the Santa Marta mountains and your only chance to see them is on the excursion with the El Dorado Reserve Lodge.

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I could only find one and it was taken by a Colombian birding guide.  Notice how quickly the bird keeps moving?

 

Morning Birding Trip – El Dorado Reserve Mountain Top

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The highlight of a visit to the El Dorado Reserve is an early morning birding trip with the local guide to the top of the mountain where many endemic birds can be seen.  With luck, this would include the Santa Marta Parakeet.

It’s an early start from the lodge, about 5am-ish as it takes about a hour to reach the top due to a very bad road.  Here’s what that part of the trip looks like.

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This is the most common place where people see Santa Marta Parakeets because they have nesting boxes there but they can be seen anywhere in the reserve and occasionally even are seen near the lodge.  Unfortunately they didn’t show up this morning.dscn2767 dscn2770 dscn2769

Some Scarlet-fronted Parrots were hanging around the area.  Notice how misty it was-very frustrating for photography.dscn2773 dscn2776

We walked around the trails for a while while the guide pointed out birds, many of which were endemics.  I have a full bird list here.dscn2785

Band-tailed Pigeon

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Mountain Elaenia

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Santa Marta Warbler

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Black-capped Tyrannulet

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Cinnamon Flycatcher

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Scarlet-fronted Parakeet

These guys always stayed together and I was calling them “the 3 amigos”.

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Scaly-naped Parrot

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Golden-olive Woodpecker

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This is what the walking trails were like.dscn2822

Black-cheeked Mountain-Tanager

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We headed back down the mountain very slowly, still watching for Santa Marta Parakeets.  The guide would listen, hop out and scan the trees with his binoculars.dscn2824

Just when we were about to give up, he spotted 2 flying to a tree and told us to come quickly.  I barely had time to try a couple of Hail Mary shots (which failed) before the birds flew off.img_5275 img_5274

The mist closed in and it started to rain so I knew we weren’t going to get another chance.  At least we caught a glimpse which is better than nothing.  We went back to the lodge for lunch.dscn2825

Santa Marta parakeet (Pyrrhura viridicata)

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The Santa Marta parakeet (Pyrrhura viridicata) is a species of parrot in the family Psittacidae. It is extremely rare and only seen by visitng the El Dorado Reserve.  There aren’t many photos of this bird online, and my sighting was distant and in bad weather so I didn’t get a shot.  I only saw a pair flying through the trees across the valley and this time “Hail Mary” didn’t work.

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This is the photo from the ProAves website for El Dorado Reserve which is where you go to see these birds.

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This Colombian endemic has an extremely limited range in the Santa Marta mountains.  The only realistic way to see them is through El Dorado Reserve.

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Other people (Colombian birding guides) have been lucky enough to see this lovely bird at close range and get videos of them eating.

 

Blue-naped Chlorophonia (Chlorophonia cyanea)

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The Blue-naped Chlorophonia (Chlorophonia cyanea) is a colourful South American species of bird in the family Fringillidae; it was formerly placed in the Thraupidae.

I just fell in love with them at El Dorado where one bird was building a nest just opposite the front door of our room.  These little birds are seriously cute!  They seem to like banana feeders.

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They have a huge range throughout Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru & Bolivia.   El Dorado seems to be an easy place, I have been all over Brazil and didn’t see them there.

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This is how you eat a banana.

And this is how you share some bananas with 20 of your best friends!

 

 

Birding The Grounds Of El Dorado Reserve

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After getting a look at the lodge in the El Dorado Reserve, we really need a closer look at some of the birds you can see just by sitting on your balcony, the main verandah or wandering the garden.

FULL LIST OF ALL BIRDS SEEN

eBird Checklist #1

HUMMINGBIRD FEEDERS

Look how they all are happy to share!

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This one had me worried with that crooked neck but when I went to find the guide to check him out, he had flown off so hopefully he was ok.dscn2852 dscn2868 img_4838 img_4943 img_4956 img_4964 img_5286 img_5280

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Band-tailed Guan just lept up onto the banana table.img_4941 img_4938

 

BIRDS SEEN FROM BALCONY & VERANDAH

It was a bit misty but I did my best!

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This adorable little Blue-naped Chlorophonia was building a nest just outside our room!dscn2704 dscn2701 dscn2700

A very elegant Masked Trogonimg_5332 dscn2870 dscn2878 dscn2875

Lodge Review: El Dorado Reserve, Colombia

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The El Dorado Reserve is the flagship of the ProAves Conservation group and was founded over 10 years ago.  Their location high atop the Cuchilla de San Lorenzo, in the western sector of the northern slope of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta provides access to many Colombian endemic birds such as the Santa Marta Parakeet.  This place is a must for any birding trip to Colombia!

I’d like to say that getting there is half the fun but nothing compares to getting from the lodge to the birding location further up!

A welcome sight after the bumpy ride!

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A restaurant with a view!dscn2683 dscn2684

Some nice handicrafts made by localsdscn2685 dscn2686

The verandah looks out over the grounds and you can see some of the hummingbird feeders.  I’ll have to so a separate post for the birds as there are so many.dscn2687 dscn2688 dscn2689

We had a jennian room with a private balcony.  The room was beautifully furnished and the view was amazing!dscn2690 dscn2692 dscn2694 dscn2695 dscn2696 dscn2698 dscn2699

We went back to the restaurant for lunch and to look for birds.dscn2712 dscn2713

The second story of the main building has another viewing terrace and a cozy lounge to relax and talk to other birders.dscn2714 dscn2715 dscn2716 dscn2717 dscn2718

The lounge is decorated with conservation posters.dscn2719 dscn2720 dscn2721

Amazing sunset!dscn2736 dscn2739

Educational video about ProAves and the El Dorado Reservedscn2741Dinner was quite tasty with local home-made food and delicious juice. dscn2839 dscn2840 img_4839

El Dorado Lodge is easy to book on their website.  I recommend pre-paying the transfers and the morning birding excursion so you can use your credit card as much as possible.  They can accept credit cards at the lodge but only if the signal is working.  This lodge is an amazing experience and the staff clearly love what they do and their contribution to conservation.  Highly recommended!