Swamp Sparrow

Outside my office window, along with half a dozen White-throated Sparrows, there is a new bird.  New to me anyway.  First glance, it looked like a Chipping.  Dark line through the eye, rufous cap...but then I noticed the faint streaks on its breast, the grey collar, the black and rufous back.  Chipping crossed with Lincoln's.  The internet was no help.  Obviously I was putting the wrong words in the search bar.  Sibleys, however, came through.

Unless someone tells me differently, this is a Swamp Sparrow.  Nice to get a lifer.  Especially right outside my window.  Best part, it's been here over an hour so Ray and I have both seen it.  Cute bird.

December 8, Antisana, Ecuador

What I discovered is that it is more difficult for a bird to hide if there are no trees.  Antisana is high in the mountains.  The grass is short and there are few trees.  It was like a gift after trying to see an Umbrellabird in a jungle.

We only counted 44 species on Day 8, 24 were new trip birds and 23 were lifers for Ray and me. Most of these new birds live exclusively at the higher elevations.

There were larger birds like the Black-faced Ibis

and Carunculated Caracara.

There were water birds like the Yellow-billed Pintail.

There were smaller birds like the Black Flowerpiercer,

the Brown-backed Chat-Tyrant,

and the Stout-billed Cinclodes.

There was a Black-tailed Trainbearer,

an Ecuadorian Hillstar,

a Giant Hummingbird,

and the bird with the longest bill in the world compared to the size of its body, the Sword-billed Hummingbird.  If you look carefully you will see where the bill ends and the tongue begins.

There was a Tufted Tit-tyrant, an extremely cute bird,

and an Andean Lapwing.

There was also a Tawny Antpitta, because what is a day without an antpitta?  This one showed up without anyone luring it with worms.

The hilights of the day for our guide were several Spectacled Bears. The rest of us were happy to see them too, especially the two babies that ran and hid as quickly as short legs would take them.

Day 7: Deep in the darkest corners of an Euador forest

In case the title didn't make it clear enough, December 7th was the day I could have left the camera in the van and hardly missed a thing.

It started early in the morning (when didn't it start early in the morning?)  Our first bird of the day was called up by yet another young man who feeds antpittas.  This particular antpitta is called Shungita.  She, or possibly he, is a Rufous-crowned Antpitta. A little hesitant at first, eventually Shungita came out for a good visit and many photos.

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We then spent a couple of hours wandering around glimpsing distant bird-like shapes that through binoculars revealed themselves to be some of the most sought after birds of the South American rain forests.   A Long-wattled Umbrellabird, a Purple-throated Fruitcrow, a Club-winged Manakin, a Choco Toucan.  Ah it was a wonderful day.

Just not wonderful photos.

We did see goats. Not wild goats, so they didn't count on our daylist.

After the experience in the forest of Mashpi Shungo we were rewarded with a visit to the Alambi Hummingbird Feeders.  We saw 18 different Hummingbirds this day, 1 of which was a new bird to us, though 2 were new trip birds.

The new hummer was a Tawny-bellied Hermit.

I prefer to photograph the hummingbirds away from a feeder, but sometimes that just doesn't happen.

Our wild mammal of the day was a South American Agouti.  

I am told we saw 72 different species on Day 7; 13 were new trip birds, 11 were lifers for us. If the photo numbers seem a little low, never fear.  Day 8 is coming.  Day 8 when I got a photograph of every new bird we saw.  Oh wow.