From sea level to paramo!

Western Panama is a diverse region.  Only on its Pacific slope, you can explore lush lowland forests (although, currently, there are only a few patches left), coastal wetlands and mangrove stands in the morning, montane and sub-montane forests at midday and visit the paramos of Panama's highest peak, the Baru Volcano, to see the sunset.  I did that itinerary some months ago during my Big Year quest (OK, not exactly in the same order).  If you have the chance to bird Chiriqui province, I suggest you to follow this itinerary, starting at Chiriqui's capital city, David.

Northern Jacana

Sunrise caught me in Quebrada Berlina, at the David-Querevalo road, very close to busy David city in fact.  As you guess, I saw many common water birds, including hundreds of Cattle Egrets, Anhingas, Cormorants, gaudy Northern Jacanas, etc...  But the reason why I went there so early was not the water birds, but an emblematic species of western Panama.  Ages ago, Scarlet Macaws used to fly wild all over our western Pacific lowlands, but the pet trade, habitat loss and the use of their long and colorful feathers for regional folkloric dances decimated them, to the point that they were extirpated from mainland Panama (it last stronghold was Coiba island, off Veraguas province).  Since some years now, Scarlet Macaws have returned to the David - Querevalo area.  It is not clear if they arose from an informal re-introduction program or escapees... the truth is that now there are no doubts about the wildness of this population.

Scarlet Macaw

As expected, at least three pairs of Scarlet Macaws flew above me, with one pair staying on nearby trees, detected by their raucous calls.  I hope this population continues to grow and, eventually, reoccupy its former distribution in western Panama.  From there, I drove through agricultural landscapes and cattle pastures to the highlands.  In fact, I was willing to visit Cerro Punta area, but a car accident blocked the only access road, so I stayed around the town of Volcan, looking for mid-elevation species and mixed flocks filled with migrants... and they didn't disappoint!  A huge mixed flock with mostly migratory species showed up almost as soon as I got off the car:  Yellow-throated and Philadelphia Vireos, Yellow-bellied Flycatcher and hordes of warblers, including Louisiana Waterthrush, Black-and-white, Blackburnian, Black-throated Green, Golden-winged, Tennessee and rare Yellow-throated Warblers allowed great views and some photos!

Yellow-throated Warbler

But I was more interested in some resident warblers.  Soon, I also found both of them... both Gray and Olive-crowned Yellowthroats.  The Gray-crowned Yellowthroat was a year-bird for me, while the Olive-crowned Yellowthroat was... well, kind of complicated.  The form present in Panama (and adjacent Costa Rica) was considered conspecific with South American Masked Yellowthroat and known as "Chiriqui Yellowthroat".  However, the last taxonomic review considered it only a form of the more widely distributed Olive-crowned Yellowthroat... a species I already saw for the year.  They sound similar, although are quite different in their head patterns.  So it was not a year-bird, but it was the first time I managed to actually see the "Chiriqui" form for the year (I heard it few months before in the same site).

Gray-crowned Yellowthroat (file photo)

Olive-crowned "Chiriqui" Yellowthroat (file photo)

Olive-crowned Yellowthroat (file photo)

After noon, I hit the road again, this time I took the road that connects Volcan to Boquete, at the opposite flank of the Baru volcano.  This road transects some nice patches of forests and also get you to one of the best sites in Panama for bird photography (yes, I'm talking about Birding Paradise)... but I was in a hurry and drove directly to the charming town of Boquete, where I met my friends Howard, Dodge and Lorna.  We hired in advanced another two friends who are excellent bird guides for western Panama: Jason Lara (of Jason Lara Tours) and Raúl Velásquez.  Using a high-clearance, modified 4WD vehicle, we started our ascent to the summit of the Baru volcano around 3:00 pm.  The rough and steep 13 km-long road to the summit is only accesible with that type of vehicles, and some restrictions apply for entering it.  Of course, Jason and Raul took care of all the permits well in advance.  Of course, the road transects several habitat types, and we birded them all.  The lowest part (but well above 1800 meters) produced such beauties like Scintillant Hummingbirds, Long-tailed Silky-Flycatchers, Flame-colored and Spangle-cheeked Tanagers, more resident and migrant warblers and an exquisite pair of Resplendant Quetzals feeding on an "aguacatillo" tree.  The quetzal is the essence of the western highlands... a bird that arouses emotions both in experienced  and novice birders and even in the general population.

Adult male Resplendent Quetzal

Jason and Raul had a surprise for us.  At a known site, they started to search for a special bird for us.  Some activity of Volcano and Fiery-throated Hummingbirds, plus alarm calls of Sooty Thrushes confirmed our suspicions... a top predator was close.  Some searching and there it was: a fierce Costa Rican Pygmy-Owl was steering at us trying to ignore the hordes of hummingbirds and other little birds mobbing him.

Costa Rican Pygmy-Owl

We left the pygmy-owl with his fans and keep ascending through the windy road.  Above 3000 meters, the landscape changes abruptly to paramo, the only easy accesible paramo in Panama.  Not only the vegetation, but the wildlife is very different up there.  These paramos hold very unique species for the country, including three of them that are essentially restricted to this habitat (present only in another mountain top in Panama apart of the Baru volcano) both in Panama and Costa Rica (and nowhere else), descending to lower elevations only seasonally and/or occasionally. The most common is the previously mentioned Sooty Thrush.  In spite of the boring name, this bird is really attractive and with attitude, showing no fear to the humans intruders of its reign.

Sooty Thrush

The second one is the aptly named Timberline Wren.  A real skulker, difficult to photograph, but easily detected by its nice song.  Notice how much patterned is this guy, with vibrant white facial marks and underparts.

Timberline Wren

Lastly, but not less important, a real high-elevation specialist.  The next species is rarely seen away of the paramo.  It is also the most difficult one to find... for me that is... it takes to climb all the way to the highest part of the volcano, right a t the top of it to find it... the southernmost junco, the Volcano Junco!  That is another fearless, fierce-looking marvel:

Volcano Junco (file photo)

The above is a file photo.  It took me two ascents to the Baru volcano top to finally add the junco to my year-list.  But all the effort of climbing to the roof of Panama has its benefits.. like awesome sunsets and chilly weather!

Clouded sunset from the summit

That's me at the summit of Baru volcano

At dark, it is time for owling.  The star of the show is, by far, the Unspotted Saw-whet Owl.  However, it also took me two volcano climbings to add him to my year-list.  At the other hand, we were lucky enough to have crippling views of a cooperative Bare-shanked Screech-Owl.  Its distinctive vocalization was heard at several sites along the road, but this guy decided to show up right in front of us and at eye level after calling it only once.  I only took some quick shots while the bird was in the spotlight, to not disturb it.

Bare-shanked Screech-Owl

Descending the volcano road in the dark is quite scary at places, but is an exciting experience anyway!  We heard some other species in the way down, like Dusky Nightjar, but essentially were focused on the road.  We arrived at our hotel in Boquete around 11:00 pm.  As you can see, it is possible to bird starting at sea level and ending at the high paramo of the highest peak in Panama... all of this in one day.  Try it once, you won't regret it!

At the highlands with family and warblers!

Taking advantage of one of these long weekends, I went with my extended family to spent some time relaxing in the highland town of Paso Ancho, close to Volcán, in Chiriquí province.  Although not a birding trip, I still enjoyed some resident and migrant warblers that call the highlands their home.  We spent most of the days at a comfortable cabin watching the children playing in the garden, grilling on the barbecue or just chatting.

Gabrielle and her cousins, Ana, Givellis and Kevin

Right at the garden, some common species showed up, including Blue-gray and Flame-colored Tanagers, Yellow-billed Siskins and Rufous-collared Sparrows.  However, I was interested in some common migrant warblers.  The first one spotted was the Wilson's Warbler.

A very bad shot of an adult male Flame-colored Tanager... this bird is well-named!

Adult male Wilson's Warbler

This is the most common warbler wintering in the highlands, found essentially everywhere!  The black cap is characteristic of the adult males... but the bright overall yellow coloration is enough to ID this species.  Then, I spied two other migrant species.  These were working the non-native pine trees next to the property.

Black-throated Green Warbler

Black-and-white Warbler 

As you can see, both the Black-throated Green and the Black-and-white Warblers (both females) were close enough to snap a shot... something quite hard with these restless birds.  We call the latter species the "Creeper Warbler" due to its unique habit of climbing trunks, sometimes upside down, very creeper-like.  The Black-and-white Warbler is very common during the winter through all Panama.  At the other side, the Black-throated Green Warbler is also common during the winter, but only at the highlands; however, it is a frequent passage migrant in the rest of the country.  Both these species are, in fact, more common and widespread than some resident species.  One morning, I went with Gloriela to the Macho de Monte canyon, at the foothills below Volcan... there, we saw one of these resident warblers... the smart Buff-rumped Warbler.

Buff-rumped Warbler

Buff-rumped Warbler

In comparison with the typical and familiar warblers, this species exhibit a different behavior.  It is terrestrial, always found close to water... usually rushing streams, flicking its expressive tail from side to side.  Certainly the Macho de Monte canyon is a great place to find this species... and a nice touristic attraction too!

Macho de Monte canyon

The Buff-rumped Warbler was not the only river-dweller bird we saw that morning.  A Spotted Sandpiper and a pair of Black Phoebes were present too.  In previous visits we had seen Torrent Tyrannulets and American Dippers as well!

Spotted Sandpiper and Black Phoebe

Black Phoebe

Well, a trip to the highlands is always a nice trip.  Of course, we ended it with the traditional stop at the dessert shop to enjoy some sweet strawberries with cream!

Gabrielle, Gloriela and... strawberries!

Quick trip to the highlands. Part II

After a relaxing day in the western highlands of Chiriqui province, I was about to start a new birding day very early in the morning.  I left my family in the hotel room and joined Ito Santamaría who is a knowledgeable local guide and friend of mine.  He kindly accepted to show me two long desired additions to my life list right in the town of Volcan.  For the first species, we drove a little further towards the outskirts of the town. He emphasized that we needed to be very early in the site to locate the bird while it was vocalizing.  The place was just by the road, bordering some lush gardens.  He recognized a weird call... after some moderate use of playback a little flycatcher flew towards us and started to respond with the same rattling call.

White-throated Flycatcher

I got some shots of the little, and rather drab, creature: a White-throated Flycatcher!  You may say why this bird is so special... look at it, a LBJ (little brown job) that looks identical to many other common flyactchers.  In fact, I have confused this species but for its call, which is quite distinctive for an Empidonax flycatcher.  Notice that this bird looks nothing like the illustrations of the field guides plates... it looks disturbingly similar to the Lesser Elaenia, that was pretty common in the area.  However, notice the smaller size and chunky shape, proportionally shorter tail, discrete eye ring and the obvious white throat (I think this bird was molting).

White-throated Flycatcher

Also, this bird behaved very different to the elaenias, actively feeding by making short flights and flutterings and returning to the same perch or close to it.  Ito thinks they breed near this site, but so far he still need to confirm this by finding an active nest of young birds (that look more like the illustrations in the plates, with warmer brown upperparts and ochraceous wing bars).  The White-throated Flycatcher is rare and localized in the western highlands of Panama.  Actually, it seems to be quite uncommon and localized along its wide range.  There were only two previous records in eBird for this species in Panama, so I was more than happy when Ito showed me this individual only 5 minutes after our arrival!  However, Ito had another surprise for me.  We drove less than 5 minutes to the center of the town, to a particular garden bordered with tall trees and a wet meadow (although tiny).  We waited and listen... nothing happened, but he was optimistic.  He played a tape once and listen again... suddenly, an elaborate call was heard in the distance... and we hurried to the source.

Melodious Blackbird

I know, I know... another drab bird!  This is a very special bird... a recent colonizer to this part of the country: a Melodious Blackbird.  Originally endemic to northern Central American, the impressive range extension is probably due to deforestation.  It was first reported in Costa Rica in the 80's, and the first confirmed report for Panama was in the western Caribbean slope almost exactly three years ago (report in Xenornis).  According to Ito, a small population established in the town of Volcan two years ago, at least... but it is very localized... actually found in only two sites.  WOW!  Two life birds in less than 20 minutes... wordless!  It was still very early, so we decided to go to the Volcan lakes; however, the activity around the access road and the nearby coffee farm prevented us for reaching the lakes.  The highlight was a cooperative Masked Yellowthroat.

Masked -Chiriqui- Yellowthroat

Now you are talking Jan (you may say)... this bird is an eye-popper.  The Masked Yellowthroat is a widespread species in South America, with a isolated population in this part of Panama and adjacent Costa Rica.  In fact, this form is known as the Chiriqui Yellowthroat, and sometimes is considered a valid species.  Compare the extension of black in the face of this male with that of other subspecies in South America.

Masked -Chiriqui- Yellowthroat

Certainly is more extensive.  There are some differences in songs and calls as well, and the idea of having an endemic yellowthroat is simply great, so I hope to call this bird Chiriqui Yellowthroat in the near future.  That was only my third sighting of this species in 19 years of birding the highlands... not bad at all.  In the way out, an obliging Olivaceous Piculet sang to call our attention.

Olivaceous Piculet 

A common species, and a nice one.  After it, we had breakfast... a well deserved one!  Two life birds the same day two times the same month (do you remember those rare swifts?).  Thanks Ito for showing me these special birds!

Quick trip to the highlands. Part I

In order to increase my life list, I went with my family, my sister in law and her son to the western highlands of the Chiriqui province last weekend.  This was a quick trip, we only spent one night in the quiet town of Volcan after driving five hours from Penonome in central Panama.  We arrived to Volcan after noon last saturday, and after a quick check in at a modest hotel, we went to a coffee farm and shop to enjoy the cool breeze, some amazing views and great coffee.

The cousins, Kevin and Gabrielle

The grounds of the coffee shop had many common birds, and I tried to ID as many as possible.  The purple flowers around the shop attracted Rufous-tailed and Scintillant Hummingbirds, while some Bronzed Cowbirds were feeding in the ground at the garden.

Female Scintillant Hummingbird

Male Bronzed Cowbird

I really like those flaming red eyes.  After enjoying some coffee beverages, we decided to go the town of Guadalupe.  The main avenue of this tiny town was full of tourists visiting the little shops and cafes... the strawberry desserts are highly recommended.  We hiked a short, but steep trail to a lookout at 1990 meters above sea level, enjoying nice views of the surroundings.

In the way down, this Slaty Flowerpiercer allowed some photos.  Notice the specialized bill, upturned to pierce the flowers in order to steal the nectar.

Male Slaty Flowerpiercer

After the hike, we ended in a comfortable restaurant where we had a pasta dinner and a pizza next to the fireplace.

This was a relaxing day, enjoying with the family and doing some "internal" tourism.  Panama has a lot to offer, even for the Panamanians!  I planned to bird with a local guide and friend the next morning... and the result of using the local expertise was awesome... stay tuned and you'll understand what I mean!

Birding the Volcan Lakes

After a successful day in the lush montane forest above Cerro Punta with my friend Ito Santamaría, he and his father accompanied me to lunch in the town.  It was around midday and, surprisingly, the day was clear and hot... like a summer day in the lowlands!  Only the abundant Tío Chicho (Rufous-collared Sparrow) was heard behind the restaurant windows.  Just the previous day (as well like the entire week), the highlands were being hit by a cold front and heavy rain!

After lunch we drove to the town of Volcan, in the slopes of the Baru volcano.  This potentially active volcano is the highest peak in Panama, and bears its own national park.  From a lookout close to our destination (the Volcan Lakes) you can recognize the ancient lava flow where the town is located.

Baru volcano and the town of Volcan

By the time we reached the Volcan Lakes, it was hot and quiet.  The birding was pretty slow... however, we found an interesting mixed flock with many of the most common inhabitants of these forests: Slaty Antwrens, Plain Antvireos, Silver-throated, Bay-headed and Golden-hooded Tanagers, Smoky-brown Woodpecker and a pair of Red-faced Spinetails.

However, the most conspicuous members of the flock were the warblers, with the migrants Black-and-white, Golden-winged, Blackburnian and Black-throated Green Warblers along with the residents Golden-crowned and Rufous-capped Warblers... also with the smart Slate-throated Whitestart.

The lake itself had less birds than in previous occasions, but we saw most of the usual species, including three Lesser Scaups.  We followed a road in the car, stopping after noticing some activity in the shrubs.  For the first time I experienced the phenomena of an antswarm in these foothills.  The ants swiftly covered the road... and behind them we saw a familiar ant-follower for me (in the lowlands): Gray-headed Tanagers (file photo).

Other birds were following the ants, like Rufous-capped Warbler, White-naped Brush-Finch and a Yellow-bellied Flycatcher.  It was a great day in the western highlands... and I'll look forward to come back!  

Birding the highlands

Today was an unusual day... I left Penonome in the morning with Gloriela, and now I'm blogging from an hotel's room in the town of Volcan, in the western highlands of Chiriqui, after seeing in Cerro Punta a completely new set of birds to which I'm used in central Panama. We are taking advantage of these days off, celebrating today our separation of Colombia and tomorrow, the day of our national flag. Panama, being so small and varied, offers the opportunity to watch dry lowland birds in the morning and then Quetzals in the evening, without any flight involved. Following directions of the Where to find birds in Panama book, we visited Cuesta de Piedra, before Volcan. It was 11:00 am so we do not find many birds, with Golden-hooded, Bay-headed and Cherries' Tanagers being highlights; but anyway, the place is awesome, with a quite deep but narrow canyon surrounded by lush vegetation. Then, we registered in our hotel and took a nap before heading to Cerro Punta, where we met with Darien Montañez (of the Xenornis). He was also taking advantage of these days to find new birds... specially those bamboo specialists. He arrived earlier and already had seen Peg-billed Finch and Green-fronted Lancebill, among others, in the trails of the "Los Quetzales" cabins, in Guadalupe. We decided to bird along the access road to El Respingo, into the boundaries of the Volcan Barú National Park. We got a nice bird activity, with common species quickly showing up: Rufous-collared Sparrow, Wilson's Warbler, Slaty Flowerpiercer, Mountain Thrush and Sooty-capped Bush-Tanagers. The ethereal song of the Black-faced Solitaires filled the air, while a group of Prong-billed Barbets quickly vanished among the bushes. We spied our first Magnificent Hummingbird (a female) flycatching... certainly it was not our last Magnificent. A little farther, a tree covered with big yellow flowers was holding many others Magnificents, plus some White-throated Mountain-Gems, Slaty Flowerpiercers, Yellow-thighed Finches and a couple of hungry squirrels. Higher, we saw a cute Volcano Hummingbird and smarts Collared Whitestars. We decided to initaite the retreat when realized the long and steep stretch of trail that still we were lacking. In the way back we found more warblers, both migrants (Black-throated Green, Black-and-white) and residents (Flame-throated, Black-cheeked), plus Ruddy Treerunner, Yellow-bellied Siskin, Dark Pewee, Yellow-winged Vireo, Ruddy-capped Nightingale-Thrush, and so on... We also got some flying-too-fast-to-appreciate-well birds in the form of Band-tailed Pigeons and Sulphur-winged Parakeets. It was an amazing birding evening, with nice weather and cooperative birds (most of them). A well deserved dinner and a cup of hot chocolate were all we needed to call it a day. Tomorrow we are heading to La Amistad International Park, seeking those bamboo specialists.

Going to the West

In spite of being a small country, Panama possesses five Endemic Bird Areas (EBA's) according to BirdLife International. That means more endemics birds in a little container. That's why I drove almost 2000 km in an extendend weekend (since thursday) with Gloriela to visit the western part of the country (Chiriqui and Bocas del Toro), passing through three different EBA's. Though the Panamerican highway runs along the historical limits of the South Central American Pacific Slope EBA, now what's left is only very degraded habitat in the lowlands, except for some isolated sites. However, is good for raptors. Only along the stretch of highway between Chame and Santiago we saw three different vultures species; Pearl and White-tailed Kites; Savanna, Roadside, Short-tailed and Common Black Hawks; Crested and Yellow-headed Caracaras; Bat and Aplomado Falcons and even two American Kestrels (hard to see details of the crown and chest at 80 km/hr). After a few stops in the way, we arrived to Paso Canoa, in the border with Costa Rica, and headed south to Puerto Armuelles to check the Progreso and Esperanza marshes described in the book Where to Find Birds in Panama (Angher, Engleman & Engleman 2006), finding only Cattle Egrets. We headed back to Concepcion and, eventually, Volcan and Cerro Punta, but the heavy rain and the fog prevented us to do any birding that afternoon. We stayed at the modest Cerro Punta hotel. Friday's morning was sunny, allowing us to bird the road to El Respingo above Cerro Punta, and to visit Finca Dracula in the morning. The first birds of the day were the familiar Rufous-collared Sparrow and the Mourning Doves (we started very early as you can see in the photo). A pair of Black Phoebes were working at the hotel's garden, and flocks of Band-tailed Pigeons flew over us. Then, at the entrance of the Respingo road, a female Resplendent Quetzal welcomed us with a group of Black Guans. More or less at the middle of the road, we found a big mixed flock with Sooty-capped Bush-Tanagers, Ruddy Treerunner, Streak-breasted Treehunter, Yellow-thighed Finches, Ruddy-capped Nightingale-Thrush and Collared Whitestart that delighted us for an hour or so, allowing me to take some pictures. Back to Guadalupe, we had brunch in a little restaurant with Stripe-tailed Hummingbirds and Slaty Flowerpiercer out in the garden. We decided to spent the rest of the morning at the Finca Dracula. They have an incredible orchid collection, making them 7th in the world! We took the orchid tour and learned a lot about these marvelous flowers, saw the world's smallest orchid and all the different Dracula sp. that grow in their grounds, among others (hundreds of them, the finca houses 2200 species from all over the world!!). The orchids aren't the only reason to visit Finca Dracula. Being adjacent to La Amistad International Park, and the several bird feeders in their ground (fruit, seed and hummingbird feeders) make this place excellent for birding. In fact, we saw or heard many birds there, including the regular Slaty Finches, Silver-throated & Flame-colored Tanagers, many hummingbirds, and even a Red-tailed Squirrel on a banana feeder. We spent several hours in this place, crossing the sidewalks, taking pictures and watching birds. For the evening, we descended to Volcan and took the road to Santa Clara. It was devoid from birds, maybe because of the time of the day (it was hot). We reached the frontier town of Rio Sereno where we don't last much. Back in Bambito we had our dinner in an argentine grill and called it a day. Time to sleep because next day's plan included to drive over the Continental Divide to Bocas del Toro!