Miles To The Wild

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Ever wonder what sound a Choco Toucan makes?

A Stroll Around Mindo Town

Posted on August 1, 2016 by Tara

After visiting Paz de los Aves & the Oilbird cave, it was starting to rain pretty heavily so we asked Daniel to drop us at the El Quetzal Chocolate Factory in the town of Mindo.

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They have some nice artwork here, also chocolate for sale. DSCN1283

The tour is pretty interesting, they show you how chocolate is made from the cacao bean. DSCN1284 DSCN1285

Cool looking moth on the balcony. DSCN1286

After the tour, we sat on the balcony drinking hot chocolate and watching birds outside like this Choco Toucan and some parrots doing a flyby. IMG_3209a

When the rain let up, we walked around the small town for awhile. I liked the bird motifs on some of the shops.

I love this logo and wanted to buy a t-shirt but couldn’t find one.

The rain started up again so we headed back to Sachatamia by taxi ($3) to swim in the indoor pool and relax.

Oilbirds (Steatornis caripensis)

Posted on July 31, 2016 by Tara

The Oilbirds (Steatornis caripensis), locally known as the guácharo, are birds found in the northern areas of South America (including the island of Trinidad in the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago). Nesting in colonies in caves, they are nocturnal feeders on the fruits of the oil palm and tropical laurels. They are the only nocturnal flying fruit-eating birds in the world (the kakapo is flightless). They forage at night, with specially adapted eyesight. However they navigate by echolocation in the same way as bats, and are one of the few kinds of birds known to do so. They produce a high-pitched clicking sound of around 2 kHz that is audible to humans.

DSCN1264 DSCN1251 IMG_3186a Although they have a large range in the northern part of South America, there are a few Oilbird caves which are easier to access such as Chontal near Mindo, Rio Claro in Colombia & Asa Wright’s in Trinidad.

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VIDEOS

Mindo Oilbirds showing the love!

Night flights

Visiting “Cueva De Los Tayos” Oilbird Cave Near Mindo

Posted on July 30, 2016 by Tara

There aren’t many places around the world where Oilbirds can be seen so easily so I wanted to visit the Cueva de los Tayos Oilbird Cave which is about a 90 minute drive from Mindo. It can be easily slotted in after a visit to Angel Paz if you have your own transport as the Oilbirds can be seen any time of day. We saw them around 1pm-ish, a time when other birds would be taking a siesta.

The route out to El Chontal where the cave is located is pretty interesting as it passes a few small villages and some nice farmland. Most of it is a good tarred road but there are some rough roads to travel so if you are renting a car, choose accordingly. I thought it best to leave the driving to the locals, in our case a driver arranged by Sachatamia Lodge named Daniel.

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After arriving at the farm owner’s house, a lady joined us to show us the way to the cave. We drove for about 10 minutes, then pulled up outside the cave. DSCN1241 DSCN1243 DSCN1244 DSCN1245

It’s less than 5 minutes walking to a place where the Oilbirds can be seen but a bit slippery so I was taking it slow. DSCN1247

It’s pretty dark in there and kind of eerie to see those big eyes staring down at you. The website describes them as “scary” but I thought they were cute! DSCN1251 DSCN1257 DSCN1264 DSCN1266a IMG_3186a

I am standing at the place to observe the birds and the guide is at the gate which is on the roadside. DSCN1268

The guide is probably wondering what is keeping me so long! But not every day I get to see Oilbirds so I was taking my time! DSCN1273

Afterwards we drove back to Mindo through the countryside as the weather started getting drizzly. DSCN1274 DSCN1275 DSCN1276

Orange-bellied Euphonia (Euphonia xanthogaster)

Posted on July 29, 2016 by Tara

The Orange-bellied Euphonia (Euphonia xanthogaster) is a species of bird in the Fringillidae (finch) family. They were formerly considered tanagers (Thraupidae).

IMG_3467a IMG_3465a DSCN1521 These bright little birds have a huge range in South America and are favourites at banana feeders at lodges within their range. I saw them just about everywhere in Mindo – Angel Paz, Sachatamia and Milpe.

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Not one to turn down free bananas!

Red-billed Parrot (Pionus sordidus)

Posted on July 28, 2016 by Tara

The Red-billed Parrot (Pionus sordidus) or Red-billed Pionus is a species of parrot in the Psittacidae family.

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They can be found in humid subtropical forests in the Venezuelan Coastal Range, Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, and in the Andes from Colombia in north to Bolivia in south (though with significant gaps). I took these photos on the Mindo Waterfall Trail just outside of Mindo and I also saw some in El Dorado Reserve in Colombia.

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A hungry little guy!

Ready for his close-up!

Booted Racket-tail (Ocreatus underwoodii)

Posted on July 25, 2016 by Tara

The Booted Racket-tail (Ocreatus underwoodii) is a species of hummingbird and a firm favourite with birders in Ecuador. The fashion-forward little beauty not only sports the distinctive rackets on the end of his long tail but different coloured boots! On the western slopes of the Andes (Mindo area), the hummingbirds are sophisticated and elegant in fluffy white boots. On the eastern slopes (WildSumaco, Napo, etc) they dazzle in rusty orange boots. Either way, they are dressed for success and you won’t want to miss them!

These 2 photos showing white boots were taken at Angel Paz Refuge in Mindo area.

This little guy is proudly showing his orange boots at Wildsumaco. See the iridescence by night! DSCN2141

You can find them in in the Andean cordillera of Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Venezuela. They are easily seen at the hummingbird feeders in most lodges in the Mindo area and at Wildsumaco Lodge.

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American Bird Conservancy

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Filmed at Wild Sumaco, this video shows how fast they really are.

Looking adorable with very puffy boots!

There’s a short clips here NOT at a hummingbird feeder.

Andean Cock-of-the-Rock (Rupicola peruvianus)

Posted on July 24, 2016 by Tara

The Andean Cock-of-the-Rock (Rupicola peruvianus), also known as tunki (Quechua), is a large passerine bird of the cotinga family native to Andean cloud forests in South America. It is widely regarded as the national bird of Peru.

DSCN1081 DSCN1076 DSCN1083 DSCN1074 Watching their antics as they dance around hoping to attract the ladies is one of the highlights of a birding trip to South America. There are a few leks easily accessible to tourists- Paz de las Aves (Angel Paz) near Mindo in Ecuador; Jardin in Colombia & the Cock of the Rock Lodge in Manu, Peru.

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This is a case where you need to see and hear the birds to fully appreciate them. Here’s a few clips filmed (in order) in Mindo, Jardin & Manu.

Morning Birding At Paz De Las Aves (Angel Paz), Mindo

Posted on July 23, 2016 by Tara

The Refugio Paz de las Aves, also known as Angel Paz’s place is a highlight for all visitors to Mindo whether they are primarily birders or not. Angel and his sons make it easy for everyone to see some really amazing birds. Our guide was Venecio who speaks English well and knows all the birds. The location is off the main road and uphill quite a bit so it’s best to organize some transport through your lodge. We had Sachatamia organize a driver named Daniel who took us here (leaving at 5am), waited for us to see all the birds, then took us to the Oilbird cave and back to Mindo. I also emailed Angel Paz to book in advance so he knew to expect us. It’s $30 for the full morning tour (April 2016) which includes the Cock of the Rock lek, several antpittas, birding along the roadside and close-up viewing of hummingbirds and tanagers back at the lodge where breakfast is served. This is a prime example of how local people embrace eco-tourism and protect the wildlife on their property. Map & Description

COCK OF THE ROCK LEK

First stop at 5:45am was the Cock of the Rock lek. We spent about 45 minutes here just watching these amazing birds dance around trying to attract the ladies.

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Dark-backed Wood Quail near the lek. DSCN1093 DSCN1095 DSCN1097 DSCN1103

ANTPITTAS

Then we drove to a few places where Venecio coaxed normally shy antpittas out with worms which form part of their normal diet. We saw two species – Yellow-breasted Antpitta (2 different ones), Giant Antpitta (Maria). Shakira didn’t show up that day.

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Near the Antpitta place, we saw a beautiful Golden-headed Quetzal perched high in a tree.

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BIRDING THE AREA – ROADSIDE

Next we drove up and down the road looking for birds and stopping to observe them better. Here are a few highlights that I managed to get photos of. My full bird list is on eBird.

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Orange-breasted Fruit-eater DSCN1172 DSCN1179 DSCN1174

Golden-headed Quetzal

We also saw some Red-billed Parrots fly over but I missed the photo.

LODGE AREA

There are a couple areas to see here. One deck overlooks a banana feeder where tanagers and toucans can be seen.

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Blue-Winged Mountain Tanager DSCN1200

Crimson-rumped Toucanet DSCN1210 DSCN1208

More Blue-Winged Mountain Tanager

Toucan Barbet

Flame-faced Tanager & Golden-naped Tanager

Blue-grey Tanager

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HUMMINGBIRD FEEDERS

There are several hummingbird feeders at the deck where breakfast is served and I was so engrossed by the tiny beauties I almost forgot to eat breakfast! Highlights here were Booted Racket-tails, White-necked Jacobin, Velvet-purple Coronet, Violet-tailed Sylph, Rufous-Tailed Hummingbird and more! Full list as per Venecio is on eBird.

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Difficult as it was to tear ourselves away from the hummingbirds, our birding day was just beginning and we had a 2 hour drive to the Oilbird Cave so off we went!

Violet-tailed Sylph (Aglaiocercus coelestis)

Posted on July 21, 2016 by Tara

The Volet-tailed Sylph (Aglaiocercus coelestis) is a species of hummingbird.which lives in areas from 300–2,100 metres (980–6,890 ft) in elevation, though typically above 900 metres (3,000 ft) on the west slope of the Andes.

I may not go in much for “selfies” but I am more than happy to take “sylphies”!

They are found in Ecuador & Colombia. Probably the most easily accessed locations to eco-tourists would be the hummingbird feeders at lodges in the Mindo area. I took these photos at Sachatamia Lodge.

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