My first wish list

Seeing the Least Bittern in Gamboa earlier this week after all these years birding in Panama (19 years so far) with my wife was a great experience.  As I mentioned in the previous post, this was not a lifer.  I saw my first Least Bittern maaany years ago in coastal Lima (Peru) and since then, I had seen many spectacular heron species, including Least and other bitterns... so, what's the big deal?

Pinnated Bittern in Guaviare (Colombia), where I also saw a Least Bittern

This bird was so important to me because it is part of my very first wish list of birds to see in Panama!  You make a wish list with those species (of birds, in this case) that you want to see in the near or far future in a specific geographical area (state, country, world).  And I did my first formal wish list 18 years ago, in 1996.  In fact, I still have that list with me... handwritten in spanish (back then I did not have my physician handwriting) and with a yellowish hue due to the years, I found it deep buried under some old notes and bird lists.

The second bird in this list is Least Bittern (Mirasol Menudo)

Reading it brought back fond memories.  I can swear I remember each of those observations.  If you read it carefully, you can infer that I was just beginning to see birds.  My wish list have some birds not considered rare at all (Mourning Dove for example) and some broad groups (like any macaw or any quail-dove for example) as well.  Each of those records is an anecdote... I have some to share with you.  When I wrote that list, I considered that the most difficult species to see in Panama would be the Grasshopper Sparrow.  In fact, I thought it would be impossible, since the endemic subspecies beatriceae had probably been eradicated from our territory by habitat destruction in the Coclesian savannah of central Panama.

Grasshopper Sparrow.  January 2012.

Then, two years ago, in a random field close to our house in Penonome, while birding alone I found a Grasshopper Sparrow that allowed great photos!  The news of the re-discovery of the once-thought-exctinct bird in Panama spread like wildfire and the bird was relocated by at least two different birding groups in the next week.  Want to hear another story?  Look at my list... there are still two spaces left blank.  One is Bobolink, the other is Little Cuckoo.  Back in April 1998, while participating in the Young Ornithologist Program by the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia and the Panama Audubon Society, I had a chance to see this bird.  The field trips for the program included a visit to Costa del Este, then a marshy area surrounded by a mangrove forest in the outskirts of Panama City.  At one point, one of the instructors (Dr. Robert Ridgely!) pointed a rare Spot-breasted Woodpecker to the group while, in the opposite direction, someone else (I don't remember who, sorry) pointed a Little Cuckoo.  In matter of seconds I weighted both options.  Both were in my wish list... the cuckoo was considered uncommon in the right habitat (including some areas in the Canal Area close to the city); in the other hand, the woodpecker was considered rare even in its usual range and only few reports for those mangroves (and none since then).

My life Little Cuckoo in Guaviare (Colombia)

Well, you know what was my choice.  After seeing the Spot-breasted Woodpecker, I ran in the opposite direction to see if I can catch the cuckoo... the bird was gone.  Since then, I've seen the woodpecker on six occasions in Panama, and I have not even had a chance to see the cuckoo!

I have done many other lists since then, but the first will always be special ... and from what I see, I have two targets for my upcoming birding trips!

Savanna and mangroves

The morning of last saturday, january 28th; Penonome (Cocle province, central Panama) received the visit of an important delegation of birdwatchers from Panama City, prepared to repeat past weekend finding of a Grasshopper Sparrow in Panama after more than 50 years! I joined Rafael Luck, Osvaldo Quintero and Venicio "Beny" Wilson early that morning and departed to the exact site where I saw the bird.

We didn't see it immediately, but certainly our hearts started pumping when we saw a very unusual flycatcher-type bird. Similar in shape and behavior to a Fork-tailed Flycatcher, it seemed to be a partially albino immature because of its relatively short tail. Shortly after this, we were joined by Darien and Camilo Montañez and Marlene (a guest), and started searching. Soon, we had several sightings of a single bird, all brief, but definitives. You can read more about these encounters at Darien's site, Xenornis.

After spending a couple of hours at the site, we went to the Aguadulce Salinas (saltponds), 25 minutes to the west. However, the former saltponds were completely dry, and we decided to go directly to the coast, were some mangrove still persist... and it turned to be a good idea!

In a little pond surrounded by mangroves, we found this flock of sandpipers. As you can see, most of these birds are Lesser Yellowlegs ( straight, relatively short bills, white eye rings, spotted flight feathers) plus some Greater Yellowlegs (similar to the Lesser Yellowlegs, but bigger, with two-toned upturned bills) and Short-billed Dowitchers (chunky shape, long & straight bills) There are at least two Stilt Sandpipers too (slightly downcurved bills). The pond also hosted a single Red Knot and many Black-necked Stilts which refused to stay for the photos. After seeing the obligate Yellow "Mangrove" Warblers, we had lunch at a local restaurant (we ordered an excellent fried fish) and returned to Penonome where we had more encounters with the sparrow before we had to return to our normal lives. It is always nice to scape from the monotony and to engage in the search of a lost bird.

Grasshopper Sparrow in Penonome!!!

If there is a resident bird species in Panama that evokes myths and mystery, that certainly is the Grasshopper Sparrow. Formerly a breeder in the Pacific slope, it was thought eradicated due to habitat loss. Not a single resident, nor a vagrant migrant of northern subspecies, have been recorded since the 60's and thus the endemic subspecies of Cocle, beatriceae, was sadly believed extinct by almost all of those who have crossed the country looking for birds in the last decades... until now.

Last saturday's afternoon, I was returning from seeing my first life bird for 2012 (Ring-necked Duck, more on that in another post) and was almost at the entrance of the dirt road (4 miles west of Penonome, central Panama), already seeing the cars at the Panamerican highway, when I decided to stop just to check a pair of Eastern Meadowlarks. As soon as I stopped, I detected a subtle movement in the short grass next to the car. My very first impression was of a gray, tiny mouse, crawling under the grass... but soon realized that it was a bird! The tiny creature eventually stopped no more than 4 meters from my window, raised its head over its shoulders to inspect me and froze... I was shocked! A mythical bird, almost a ghost, the lost Grasshopper Sparrow was standing in front of me, alive... I still shake only of thinking of it. Nervous, I grabbed my camera and started shooting... and the bird did not move. I was able to see it very well, both with my binoculars and through my camera, realizing how beautifully patterned it was. It stayed for complete five minutes, only moving quickly few steps each time just to stand again. It was doing this whenever I was lowering my look to check the photos or to take the binoculars, and sometimes it was difficult to relocate the bird due to its perfect camouflage. It left so unexpectedly as it appeared, flying very quick and low to taller grass taking advantage of the second I took to check the last series of photos... it was very cautious! I started calling my friends to give the good news, but almost immediately I was concerned about the specific identity of the bird I saw: it was a member of one of the resident subspecies or a migrant from the north?

There is little literature regarding the subspecies of Grasshopper Sparrow found in Panama, and none in recent years. There are descriptions in the monumental work of Alexander Wetmore, and in Ridgely & Gwynne's Birds of Panama, both based on previous papers. However, you can get on-line the paper of Storrs Olson aptly named "The subspecies of Grasshopper Sparrow (Ammodramus savannarum) in Panama" (Proc Biol Soc Wash 1980; 93: 757-9), which describes the three subspecies recorded for the country (two resident, one migrant).

The first thing to take into consideration: the migrant subspecies (pratensis) is essentially indistinguishable of the resident subspecies bimaculatus, distributed along the Pacific slope of Panama (specimens from Chiriqui, in western Panama, and Chepo -east of the Canal area-) and extending to Mexico. There are plenty of photos on-line of pratensis, so it is useful in order to compare with my photos (I took many, but they are essentially variations of those I'm posting here). We have to consider pratensis as a VERY rare vagrant to Panama, only recorded so far in the western Caribbean slope twice in the late 60's and with its southernmost -usual- winter range extends only to Belize. In the other hand, beatriceae (named honoring Alexander Wetmore's wife, Annie Beatrice) is described as quite distinctive in being the palest of all the subspecies.

Based on range, beatriceae is the expected subspecies at that locality (and notice that two specimens examined by Olson were collected exactly at 4 miles west of Penonome). The key characteristics are: throat, breast, flanks and undertail coverts pale pinkish buff (not rich ochraceous yellow as in bimaculatus or pratensis); median crown stripe very pale, almost white (no deep buff). As bimaculatus, beatriceae have distinctly reddish streaks in the nape (distinguishing them from southern subspecies). Others -pale- subspecies from North America have never been recorded south of Honduras in the winter, and are not expected in Panama.

I think (or want to think) the bird of Penonome belongs to the endemic subspecies beatriceae by the field marks highlighted above and that can be appreciated in my photos, which I only cropped (no adjustments of color, contrast or sharpness added)... what do you think?