Panama City Nature Challenge 2020

The present sanitary situation certainly changed the world.  The SARS-CoV-2, the infectious agent causing the COVID-19, is now widespread worldwide.  This situation affects all the spheres, including the way how we enjoy our environment.  Taking this into account, this year City Nature Challenge had a different connotation.  The organizers announced that, in order to keep the participants and the organizers safe, the challenge was no longer a competition and encouraged to document biodiversity using the iNaturalist app following the recommendations of the health authorities, which in the case of Panama meant participating from home.

In my case, living in an apartment at a highly urbanized area of the city means a relatively low biodiversity; however, I was determined to document as much living things as possible in the four days of the challenge (from April 24 to 27) from my balcony.  The view from there is dominated by a huge fig tree (Ficus benjamina) that attracts several common birds species.  My balcony list includes 142 species of birds in almost seven years.  However, I usually record 30 birds species daily.  This time, I was eager to obtain photos of those common species that I usually detect by voice-only... and I'm proud about my results!

Southern Beardless-Tyrannulet

I realized that my list of usually-heard-only species was quite long... Golden-fronted Greenlet, Common Tody-Flycatcher, Yellow-crowned Tyrannulet, Southern Beardless-Tyrannulet and Tropical Pewee are just some of them.  Anyway, taking photos of those common species more than 15 meters away is a real challenge... and those were the near ones!  Imagine taking photos of  swallows and swifts high in the skies!

Lesser Swallow-tailed Swift

Being aware all day of what was moving outside my balcony gave results. I managed to record many migratory, but also resident bird species that I rarely observe from home.  The swallows, flycatchers, tanagers (well... both Summer and Scarlet Tanagers are not "real" tanagers) and New World warblers were well represented by migratory species, while some of the scarce residents (only few records from my balcony in seven years) were Pearl Kite (only my second record ever from my balcony!), Roadside Hawk, Lesser Swallow-tailed Kite and a flock of Wood Storks.

Scarlet Tanagers

Pearl Kite

Wood Storks

In total, I uploaded photos of 57 different bird species during the challenge.  The rest of my 74 species for the challenge were trees and plants that I found at the common areas of my apartment building, including some amazing little wild flowers that I'm still trying to identify correctly.  That was my challenge... how was your?

Oleander (Nerium oleander)

More information on my Big Year in Panama

Just a short note.  If you browse my blog (specially last year's entries) you will have, more or less, a clear idea on how my year went.  If you want to know a little bit more about the Panama Audubon Society's 600 Club or/and my Big Year in Panama, here is the link to the lecture that I gave (in Spanish) during The 600 Club closure act, in Panama City: https://drive.google.com/open?id=1VrWZyN2NfgvekOyc3x21m2ISEM0Yie65

With Panama Audubon Society's Proyect Manager Yenifer González

Also, here is the link to the Facebook Live interview by Rosabel Miró (Panama Audubon Society's Executive Director), held last Thursday, April 16th, that summarizes the above lecture (also in Spanish): https://www.facebook.com/audubonpanama/videos/2899017773527369/https://www.facebook.com/audubonpanama/videos/2899017773527369/

Hope you will enjoy it!

The closing of an awesome Big-Year!

At the beginning of December 2019, my year list of birds was at 764 species for Panama.  I knew it would require a great effort to reach the Panamanian record of 800 species for a single year.  But I still had a trip to complete: a 10-days expedition to Cana, in eastern Darien province.  Cana Field Station closed operations around nine years ago due to security issues, but going there had been in my mind since I started to birdwatch.  Fortunately, the two Central America's top eBirders (Chris Fischer and Oliver Tomar) hired the top Panama's eBirder (Euclides "Kilo" Campos) to go there and I was able to join them!

The Cana trip was simply spectacular.  We hiked 120 km in 10 days!  The original plan was to hike from the town of Boca de Cupe to Cana in 2.5 days.. but rainy season was not over yet so the trails were really muddy and was very hard to walk.  Also, after former Cruce de Mono station, the jungle ate the trail, so our guides had literally to re-open it with machetes all the way to Cana.  It took us 4.5 days to reach Cana (two more days than expected, improvising two camps in the jungle).  However, we saw many birds species on the way, including my life Slate-throated Gnatcatcher and Black-billed Flycatcher.

Cruce de Mono Station

Black-billed Flycatcher

Cana is overgrown and tearing apart.. it is a shame.  The site was exploited since colonial times for its gold.  At its peak, the area housed around 20,000 inhabitants and there was a railroad in which the material was transported through broken terrain to the town of Boca de Cupe. Now there are only vestiges of that mining operation. Along the trail to Boca de Cupe you can still see sections of the rails on the forest floor, and in Cana there are still old mining machineries swallowed by the jungle.

Old gold-mining machinery at Cana

We stayed in the remains of Cana's main building.  The place still is excellent for birds... Swallow Tanagers were quite common and I got my life Cinereus Becard by the former airstrip.  The Cecropias behind the lodge were filled with fruit and birds, including obliguing Black-tipped Cotingas.

Adult male Swallow Tanager

Adult female Cinereous Becard

Adult male Black-tipped Cotinga

The hike to the upper camp was long and steep.  We got two (of four) major targets: Bronze-olive Pygmy-Tyrant and Pirre Warbler.  We dipped on Golden-headed Quetzal and Yellow-collared Chlorophonia (I already got the latter for my year list at Rancho Plástico in March).  The eastern Darien highlands are so rich and diverse that we got an impressive list of birds, including most of the endemic specialties.  After 10 days, I got 24 new year birds, including 8 Panama lifers, so my total was 788 species by December 20th.

Bronze-olive Pygmy-Tyrant

Pirre Warbler

With the same group (Kilo, Oliver Komar and Chris Fischer), I did a pelagic off Punta Mala on December 22th.  I left Panama City on the 21st (just one day after returning exhausted from the Cana expedition), adding Slate-colored Seedeater in Summit Ponds, and joined them in Pedasi the next day.  The sea was quite rough, but got very good birds, including my life Leach's Storm-Petrel (first photographic record for Panama) and my Panama lifer Red-footed Booby, who was my Panama bird #900 (all time Panama list I mean).  At the end of the pelagic my total was 792 species for the year.

Leach's Storm-Petrel

Some short trips around Panama City produced two more year-birds... by December 24th (my birthday), my total was 794, thanks to a Rufous-winged Tanager accompanying a mixed flock in the foothills of Cerro Azul.  My family was with me and later that day, they surprised me with an original b-day cake to celebrate my 40 years-old!

So close to the 800 mark (only 6 birds left), I organized a quick trip to Chiriqui province, in western Panama.  I took the first flight to David city on Saturday, December 28th, rented a car and drove to the Continental Divide trail in Fortuna (central Chiriqui), where I was expecting to get at least 4 new year birds... however, it was rainy, foggy and swampy due to a cold front from Bocas.  A huge treefall blocked the trail close to the beginning.. so I only got Costa Rican Warbler.  My original plan was to drive from Fortuna (with theorically 4 new year birds in the bag) to Boquete and to spent the night there.  Then, at 3 am, a truck would take me to the summit of the Baru volcano. However, with only one new year-bird, I decided to left Fortuna around 3pm, heading to Cerro Punta, where I got around 5:00pm.  I was after the Hermit Warbler that was reported at the beginning of the road to El Respingo... as soon as I started to "pish", a Hermit Warbler popped out in a pine tree!  Year-bird # 796.  Then, almost  at dark, I played the tape of Rough-legged Tyrannulet, getting a response that I was able to record (I saw the bird briefly)... year bird #797!  Then, I drove to Boquete where I spent the night.

Hermit Warbler

At 3am on Sunday, December 29th, the truck driver was picking me up at my hostel.  He was quite experienced, so he knew the places to look after my main target: the Unspotted Saw-whet Owl.  In fact, at the very first stop (Potrero Mulato), we got a responsive Unspotted Saw-whet Owl that never got close enough.  But heard-only birds count too, so we kept on.  We waited for the sunrise at the summit. With first light I was able to locate a pair of Volcano Juncos at the very top of the volcan (at the cross)... no photos.. my camera was in my backpack because it was rainning!  Year bird 799!  After that, I hurried to get down to Boquete to see if I had chances to bird around Lerida or Bajo Mono.  However, my driver suggested to try the pygmy owl call at Los Fogones campsite (around 3200 meters)... to my surprise, tons of birds popped out with the call, including two females Peg-billed Finches!!!!! My year-bird #800 for 2019 and a bird I had only seen once before! That was an excellent 800 bird!

Adult female Peg-billed Finch

More relaxed, I spent the afternoon in Finca Lerida, but was not able to find any new year birds (was hoping for White-winged Tanager). During the evening flight to Panama City, the idea of actually break the record was in my mind.

The next day, Monday, December 30th, I went to my workplace extremely early... I did all my procedures and asked for a permission to leave earlier.  Took my car and drove all the way to former Fort Sherman, in Colon (Caribbean side, some 80 kms away of Panama City).  Went to Shelter Bay marina and tried my old spot for Gray Catbird.  Of course, a catbird showed itself, allowing some photos.  Year bird #801 in the bag.  I drive back to Panama City and started my afternoon journey at 3:00 pm at the office.  Now that the Atlantic bridge over the Panama Canal is open, I was able to did this micro twitch essentially using my lunch time!

Gray Catbird, record-breaking year-bird #801

By December 31st, I left Panama City with my family, heading to Penonome where we planned to receive the New Year. On route, a friend of mine (Josanel Sugasti) told me that he was seeing the Yellow-rumped Warblers at the same site where he saw them few days ago.  He waited for us at the site and, when we finally arrived, he showed me at least three birds.  That was my year-bird #802 for 2019!

Yellow-rumped Warbler

Josanel, Gloriela and me after watching my year-bird #802

Well, 802 species for Panama in 2019... birding mostly during weekends and taking advantage of free days (like Carnival, Holy week, Dias Patrios, etc..). In fact, the only ocassion I took days off of work to bird was for the Cana trip.  Also, take into consideration that I spent 5 weeks out of Panama (two week of vacations with my family, two weeks in Ithaca, NY at Cornell and one week attending several international congresses).. Not bad at all eh?