Off shore western Azuero: birds and mammals

It was 5:00 am last October 1st, 2016.  In spite of a not-so-favorable weather forecast, a group of intrepid birders, including George Angehr, Howard Laidlaw, Joris Deruwe, Miguel Siu and your blogger host were standing in the dark while Kees Groennedijk was taking care of the last details for our first pelagic trip of the year.  We were at the dock in Reina beach close to the town of Mariato in western Azuero Peninsula (Veraguas province).  A little "panga" took us along the Negro river and, eventually, to the fishing boat anchored off shore due to tide issues.

Part of the group at the dock in Negro river

Our pelagic trip started in the dark.  It was not after passing the 6:00 am mark that we started to watch some birds... the first one was the silhouette of a Magnificent Frigatebird.  We took the same route we did last year, navigating parallel to the western coast of the Azuero Peninsula to Punta Naranjo (the southwest corner of the peninsula), then off few miles to deep waters along the Continental Shelf break, moving to the west while chumming and then going back to Reina beach more or less in an straight line.

Punta Naranjo

Still within the Continental Shelf, our first highlight was an immature Red-billed Tropicbird that decided to swim quite close to the boat, allowing some shoots before taking off again.  The species seems to be regular in those waters according to Kees, but it was the first time I see it in the Pacific Ocean.  Eventually, we saw three to four different individuals, all of them immatures and within the Continental Shelf.

Immature Red-billed Tropicbird

Immature Red-billed Tropicbird

At Punta Naranjo we only saw two (instead of dozens) Brown Noddies flying close to the rocks.  By that time, it was evident that the most common species present was the Black Tern... loose flocks of up to 50 birds were seen each hour, specially within the Continental Shelf, plus other terns species like Royal and Common Terns inshore and many Bridled Terns well offshore... but also some resting on floating debris close to shore.

Brown Noddy 

Black Tern (basic)

Common Tern (alternate)

Bridled Tern (basic)

This time, our time at deep waters was not very productive.  At the chumming sites we only saw few Galapagos Shearwaters... the only tubenose recorded in the whole trip.  That's right... no other shearwater, petrel nor storm-petrel species that day.  At least, we were expecting two or three different species of storm-petrels... none was seen.  Were they not there?  The chum was not smelly enough?  We were not lucky enough?  Certainly, we still need to know a lot about our pelagic avifauna.

Galapagos Shearwater

Besides the birds (and lack of them), the other highlight was the number of Pantropical Spotted Dolphins that we managed to see.  Several dozens of these intelligent animals accompanied us for a while, they gave us a marvelous show!

And that my friends was our day at the sea.  No new birds for Panama and no life birds, plus a little bit of seasickness for the first time (weird, since the sea was quite calm)... but hey! that's pelagic birding!!!  Can't wait for the next one!

Pelagic off Western Azuero

The pelagic avifauna of Panama is essentially unknown.  Very few, if any, pelagic birding trips are done off Panamanian coasts, specially off the Azuero Peninsula (central Panama) where the Continental Shelf break is close to shore.  Several new species for Panama have been recorded in those trips in the last five years, including Tahiti Petrel, Pink-footed Shearwater and Band-rumped Storm-Petrel, while many others have been confirmed and documented adequately.  That's why a pelagic trip in Panama is always exciting.  So, more or less one month ago, we took the opportunity to make a pelagic trip off the Azuero Peninsula again... but this time from its western side... departing from Reina beach close to the town of Mariato.  Our friend Kees Groenendijk (who runs the charming Heliconia B&B in the town of Malena with his wife Loes) organized everything: lodging, boat, captain (Tim), chum and snacks... so it was not difficult to convince George Angehr, Howard Laidlaw, Rafael Luck and Euclides -Kilo- Campos to join us in the adventure!

Rafael, Euclides, Howard, George, Jan and Kees

The Continental Shelf break was still one and a half our away to the south from the departing point, but the inshore waters were full of life, with American Oystercatchers and Collared Plovers at the sand of Reina beach, with over-summering Willets, Whimbrels and a lonely Spotted Sandpiper.  Soon, we started to see the first Brown and Blue-footed Boobies for the day, plus many Magnificent Frigatebirds, Brown Pelicans and even a pod of Bottlenose Dolphins close to Cebaco island.  Kees showed us some rocky islets close to Punta Naranjo (Azuero's southwestern corner) that were covered in Brown Noddies.  This tern is seldom seen so close to shore in Panama.

Rocky islets close to Punta Naranjo (and a Brown Pelican)

Brown Noddies 

The omnipresent Magnificent Frigatebird dwarfed the Brown Noddies, although they are quite large for a tern.

Magnificent Frigatebird and Brown Noddy

At this point we started to see real pelagic birds. The Continental Shelf break drops steeply VERY close to shore in this part of the Azuero Peninsula... in fact, most of the pelagic birding was done having the southern Azuero coast within sight.  Kees started to chum at several spots along the break... soon, we were surrounded by several Black and Wedge-rumped Storm-Petrels attending the slick. I have to admit that this was the first time I saw those species so close and in detail!

Wedge-rumped and Black Storm-Petrels

Black Storm-Petrels

Black Storm-Petrel

Wedge-rumped Storm-Petrel

These small tubenoses are well adapted for the rough seas, in spite of their size.  Most (if not all) of the Black Storm-Petrels seen were in wing molt, probably indicating non-breeding birds on its second cycle (year) at this date.  About the Wedge-rumped Storm-Petrels... I don't know if they can be ID to subspecies in the field.  Both the nominate tethys and kelsalli forms have been recorded in Panamanian waters.  These birds were evidently larger than the Least Storm-Petrels seen nearby and the wings looked narrow and long, with a shallow tail fork (they looked square-tailed in the field and in the photos), all consistent with nominate tethys.  As I mentioned earlier, we also saw some Least Storm-Petrels.  They showed little interest in the chum and only visited the slick for few seconds; however, I managed a diagnostic photo showing the graduated tail and the dark plumage resembling Black Storm-Petrel.

Least Storm-Petrel

The storm-petrels were the highlights of this trip due to the prolonged and detailed views of the birds, but we also recorded several Galapagos Shearwaters (all of them of the "light-winged" variation), a definitive Pink-footed Shearwater (fifth report for Panama, second one documented with photos) and a Nazca Booby flying to the west above the Continental Shelf break.

Galapagos Shearwater

Pink-footed Shearwater

Nazca Booby

The pelagic birds were not the only highlights of this trip.  At some point, we saw no less than four Humpback Whales, with one young animal leaping off the surface almost completely!  This, plus the dozens Pantropical Spotted Dolphins off shore in a feeding frenzy, the Bottlenose Dolphins inshore and the Spinner Dolphins spotted by some of the group (not by me), made it a four-species-day of cetaceans!

Humpback Whale

Pantropical Spotted Dolphin

I wish to thank Kees and Loes for receiving us and for organizing this amazing trip.  I know I'll be back to western Azuero soon... and not only for the pelagic birding because the area is home to many endemic taxa and other nature marvels.  See you soon!

Hungry birds

The exposed mudflats, mangroves and beaches of the Upper Bay of Panama are a very important feeding station for both migrant and resident waterbirds and waders year-round.  The simply amazing numbers of peeps and other shorebirds that spent most of their lives here are prove of that.  But this time, I want to highlight that almost during every visit I witness a waterbird catching/eating large catfishes... like this Great Egret in Costa del Este.

Great Egret

The habitat is just ideal for the catfishes, so I guess they abound and are quite easy to catch. Sometimes, the birds just take them from the mud... or, in the case of the Magnificent Frigatebirds, are stolen from other birds.  This is a repetitive scene in Panama Viejo (where I took the next photos): a lucky bird catch a fish just to be harassed by these feathered pirates... and who can resist those bandits?

Magnificent Frigatebird

The Magnificent Frigatebird is a specialized kleptoparasite... parasiting by theft.  However, as it usually happens, this frigatebird was not the only one patrolling the site and soon another individual tried to steal the prize.

Two Magnificent Frigatebirds after the fish

Seeing those two frigatebirds in the air is fun.  The large birds are extremely agile in the air, and elegant... even when they chase each other.

Agility in the air

Eventually, the catfich fell to the floor... after all, nobody knows to whom is working... the birds spend 10 minutes disputing the catfish just to give it to a cat that was just passing by.

Yummy!

What can I say?  Some are luckier than others!

San Andres Island hotspots. Part II

In the second day of our trip to San Andres Island (Colombia), we decided to travel around the island, visiting its touristic attractions.  I already showed you some of these hotspots.  After stopping for a while in Cove Bay (and watching our life San Andres Vireo), we continue southward along the island's  western rocky shore.  After passing several natural pools, we reached the southern tip of the island.  There, a tiny hole in the rocky beach brings a nice show to the tourists... it is known as the "Blowing Hole".

This hole is the only exit tract to a cave systems that reach the beach.  When the waves push the water inside the caves, the air is expelled through this hole... but beware, depending on the tide, the air can be followed by the water as well (just watch this video).  This rocky shore is coralline in origin... perfect for the Ruddy Turnstones.  They were the most common shorebird in the island.

Ruddy Turnstone

After turning at the southern tip, we drove north along the east coast, where most of the white-sand beaches are located.  These beaches are coralline too, and protected by a coral reef where most of the cays surrounding the island can be found.  Al these cays are major attractions, but we decided to spent the afternoon relaxing at Rocky Cay (the entrance road was property of the Archbold-Suarez family)... its warm and crystalline waters were perfect!

Two thirds of the Cubilla-Archbold family

Rocky Cay

The next day, we hired a boat in order to visit the other cays.  They are close to shore, so you can visit them in one morning.  Our first destination were Haynes and Rose Cays.  The later is known also as the aquarium due to its coral reef filled with multicolored fishes.  In the way to the cays, we crossed a replica of an ancient Pirate Ship.

Rose Cay as seen from Haynes Cay (San Andres urban center in the background)

At Rose Cay we took a tour through the reef aboard a boat with glass floor... simply amazing.  At Haynes Cay we had little time to walk around the tiny cay, finding two other waders (Willet and two Spotted Sandpipers) and a Contopus pewee that didn't vocalize.

Spotted Sandpiper

Then, our boat took us to Johnny Cay, to the north.  This cay is a popular destination due to its white beaches and Caribbean-style... you can have a Coco-loco (a local drink) while hearing Bob Marley or any other reggae or calypso rhythm.  However, the surf was pretty strong for Gabrielle... so we decided better to enjoy the music.  Only Bananaquits and Magnificent Frigatebirds in this cay for the record.

Bananaquit

Magnificent Frigatebird (male)

That was our last day in San Andres Island, and we hurried to make the check-out at our resort.  We still had some time on the island and decided to spend it well, but that's another story.

Birding the Pearl Islands: seabird colonies and huge beasts!

After a successful first day finding our main target, the White-fringed Antwren, in the Pearl Islands, the itinerary for the second day included to visit some other islands with colonies of common seabirds and, in the way, to look for whales and other cetaceans.  In that aspect I was optimistic because the previous day we saw both Pantropical Spotted and Bottlenose Dolphins from the ferry to Contadora and even a Humpback Whale very close to the first island we were suppose to visit this time, Paquecha.

Bottlenose Dolphins (file photo)

We first did a short walk in Contadora before breakfast, finding more migrants than resident species (by the way, if you know how to ID the empid pictured below, that did not vocalize, let me know).  Purple Martin and Pied-billed Grebe were nice surprises for me... and new year birds too.

At 9:00 am, we boarded the boat in Executive beach and headed to Pacheca and Pachequita Islands, passing first by Saboga Island and its 300 years-old church, the oldest in the archipelago.

Saboga

The first thing we noticed was the huge number of Magnificent Frigatebirds swarming over the two islands.  Pacheca holds the second biggest colony of this species in Panama (only Isla Iguana has a bigger colony of frigatebirds in Panama), and we saw hundreds of them, including immature birds perched in low bushes and trees.

Other species also nest on these islands, including Neotropic Cormorant, Brown and Blue-footed Boobies, Brown Pelican, and so on...  These diversity reminded me a previous trip to the islands of the Upper Bay of Panama, also with Beny as a guide.

The Virgen Del Valle protects those who ventures to these waters... and it seems that also protects these birds!

After inspecting Pacheca and Pachequita Islands, we landed in Bartolome Island to watch the colony of Brown Pelicans.  While I was trying to photograph the resident Yellow "Mangrove" Warblers, Gabrielle was having a great time enjoying the island's white sands.

Gabrielle in the sands of Bartolome Island

Then, something catched Beny's attention out in the sea passing Contadora, so we headed that way immediately.  After some minutes in the boat, what caught his attention became evident... it was... it was... well, see by yourself:

OH YES!  A huge Humpback Whale with calf!  As I said before, the Pearl Islands have become a major site for whale watching in Panama.  These whales travel all the way from the southern seas to give birth to their young in these warm waters.

And they are pretty picky with temperature selection, choosing only waters around 24.8º Celsius.  We followed them for a while from a safe distant... what an amazing experience.  I'm glad that my family could marvel at this spectacle of nature.

In the way back to Contadora, we found this American Oystercatcher resting in some rocks... always a beauty.  Curiously, this and the Spotted Sandpipers were the only waders we saw in the islands.

After all these emotions and nature marvels, we still had time to enjoy Executive beach in Contadora before heading back to Panama City in the ferry.  Thank you Beny for this great trip and to all the participants who joined us to this corner of Panama!

Gloriela and Gabrielle in Executive beach, Contadora

Visiting Isla Iguana

It is summer time in Panamá, time to enjoy the sun and the beaches along our coasts... as we did last weekend.  The Cubilla family, along with a bunch of great friends, visited the coast of southern Azuero peninsula, specifically around the town of Pedasí and beyond!

We then headed to the Isla Iguana Wildlife Refuge, 7 km off the coast from El Arenal beach where we took the boats (seeing both Royal and Elegant Tern in the beach).  The island emerged from the sea thousands of years ago, first as two islands with a coral reef between them that eventually formed the central part of the island (it looks like an "8"), with coral white sand beaches and crystal-clear waters, a must for every beach lover!

The island is well-known by the scuba divers, but also for its wildlife, including birds, as you can see in this interpretative sign at the Visitors' center (and eventually, I saw ALL these species that day).

As you arrive, it is immediately obvious that this is an important nesting site for the Magnificent Frigatebirds... hundreds can be seen resting or flying over the island... each season, more than 5000 birds engage in mating activities.

The iguanas are also an important element of the island's wildlife (as you can guess by its name).  I found MANY Black Iguanas (Ctenosaur sp.) close to the beach, but only one Green Iguana behind the Visitor's center on an introduced exotic tree.

Of course, I spend more time enjoying the warm waters, but I took a couple of minutes to walk the short trail to the lighthouse where I found several individual of Yellow "Mangrove" Warblers, of the endemic subspecies iguanae, found only in this tiny island.  Then, I returned to the beach to see my two girls enjoying the trip: PRICELESS.

After a couple of hours, it was time to leave.  Reluctantly, we boarded our boats and started the return journey.  At the estuary of the Pedasí river, we where able to see a flock of resting Laughing Gulls accompanied by two American Oystercatchers that even my non-birders friends appreciated as really beautiful birds.

That was an excellent end for a great day at a paradisiac island, but we continue our trip southward, searching new beaches to enjoy, so stay tuned!