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Taiwan - Asiaís Best Birdwatching Paradise

TAIWAN is blessed with an extraordinary abundance of ﬂora and fauna, including endemic species that are found nowhere else. There are 27 species of endemic birds, including the Taiwan Blue Magpie, Mikado Pheasant, Collared Bush Robin, Formosan Yuhina and Steere’s Liocichla Taiwan also plays winter host to around half the world’s population of globally-threatened Black-faced Spoonbill. The country is isolated enough to have developed a unique avifauna in an area smaller than Switzerland, and boasts vast tracts of undisturbed and bird-rich habitats.

With 639 bird species recorded, Taiwan is one of the most important centres of avian endemism in Asia. Modern infrastructure enables travellers to easily travel around the island, making it possible to view all endemic birds during a 10-14 day visit.

Unique bird species, welcoming people, superb cuisine and breath-taking landscapes make Taiwan a must-see birding destination in 2018.

Visit www.taiwan.net.tw

James Lowen

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IF you’re planning on taking a birding holiday next year, here’s half a dozen great ideas on where to go, from familyfriendly locations such as Crete, to destinations more likely to appeal to the experienced lister, such as Colombia, as well as a couple of less well-known destinations, North Carolina and Flores. What they all have in common, of course, is great birds – you’ll come back from each and every one of them with new ticks on your list, and most importantly, with great memories. Just remember to send us your photos and stories, wherever you go, and enjoy birding the world! Matt Merritt, Editor

Welcome to W RLD 4

Gambia

North Carolina

Crete

Get in touch with Bird Watching Bird Watching, Media House, Lynch Wood, Peterborough PE2 6EA

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This West African country is cited by many as one of the best birding destinations in the world

Enjoy some of the best birding that the North American continent has to offer

A superb location for combining a family holiday with some fantastic birdwatching

birdwatching@bauermedia.co.uk

Colombia

Flores

Ecuador

An increasing number of birders have rightly put this country on the top of their must-visit list

Could this habitat-rich island be the next big thing in Azores birding? We ﬁnd out...

A wealth of exotic birdwatching opportunities await visitors to this biodiversity hotspot

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GAMBIA

Glorious

GAMBIA Renowned as one of the most rewarding birdwatching destinations in the world, a trip to the Gambia will not disappoint – this really is birding at its very best WORDS & PICS: ED HUTCHINGS

Beautiful Sunbird

SENEGAL

Banjul

THE GAMBIA

★

Brikama

GUINEA-BISSAU

N 1863, SIR Richard Francis Burton said “Gambia is said to mean clear water, surely a misnomer, it is as muddy as the Mersey.” Whatever the views of the 19th Century explorer (one among many métiers), the River Gambia is strongly associated with its namesake, the smallest country in mainland Africa, which consists of little more than the downstream half of the river and its two banks. Legend has it that the 30-mile width of The Gambia was decided by the furthest distance British gunboats could fire their cannonballs from the river. Fifteen miles would seem fanciful even for the most powerful of 19th Century cannons. Ballistics aside, this diminutive Africa nation is saturated with winged wonders. The avian delights of The Gambia are renowned throughout the birding world. Your hotel garden could produce as many species in a day as you would see in a week back home. The obvious place to

4 Birding Travel Guide 2017

Black-headed Weaver

start any tour of The Gambia is on the coast, where a proliferation of decent hotels is to be found. The Kotu Creek area (where most of the hotels are situated) provides the perfect introduction to the country’s avifauna, where one may find Black Heron, Black-headed Lapwing, Blue-bellied Roller, White-crowned Robin Chat, Beautiful Sunbird, Yellow-crowned Gonolek and water birds, including the chance of Greater Painted-snipe. Here, too, is the stall of The Gambia Birdwatchers’ Association, where you can pick up a guide, safe in the knowledge that they are suitably qualified. Ten kilometres south of Kotu, the Abuko Nature Reserve is one of The Gambia’s 13 Important Bird Areas (IBA) and one of the best known. The reserve consists of typical savanna and gallery forest (fed from ground water as opposed to rain) landscape with trees, some up to 30ft high, including African

A Gambian moth

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WHAT TO EXPECT The Gambia has long been a popular destination for UK birders, and deservedly so. In winter, a six-hour flight from the UK winter sees you arriving in this small sun-kissed country during the dry season, when you can expect temperatures in the high 20s or low 30s °C. Often described as a finger poking in the side of Senegal, the country’s borders follow the River Gambia, and for much of its 205-mile length it is only 15-20 miles wide.

Start your birdwatching tour on the coast

Oil Palm, Mahogany and Teak. More than 270 bird species have been recorded in the forest, including Black Heron, Hamerkop, Green and Violet Turacos, Little Greenbul, Grey-headed Bristlebill, Snowy-crowned Robin Chat, Oriole Warbler, African and Red-bellied Paradise Flycatchers and Common Wattle-eye. There is also the possibility of seeing African Pygmy Kingfisher, Western Bluebill, Western Red Colobus, Green Monkey, Kéwel and Maxwell’s Duiker. Lepidopterists won’t be disappointed as the reserve is one of the best places in the country for butterflies and moths. Snakes are common but rarely seen. We were lucky to see a huge two-metre Blacknecked Spitting Cobra appear on the path in front of us on my last visit. Heading west for a dozen miles and back near the coast, Brufut Woods – a green oasis in an alarmingly increasingly urban environment – harbours species such as Long-tailed Nightjar, Swallow-

tailed Bee-eater, Blue-bellied and Abyssinian Rollers, African Pied Hornbill, Yellow-throated Leaflove, White-crowned Robin Chat, Northern Crombec, Redwinged Warbler and also Copper Sunbird. There is also the likelihood of seeing Verreaux’s Eagle and Northern Whitefaced Owls, Black Scimitarbill and Sulphur-breasted Bush-shrike. Just west of Brufut, the Tanji Bird Reserve (IBA) incorporates mangrove, dry woodland and coastal dune scrub woodland. Along the coastal part there is a series of lagoons, while the offshore Bijol Islands are important sites for breeding marine turtles and roosting birds. The reserve has had more than 300 species of bird recorded within it – more than half of all those recorded in The Gambia. These include gulls and terns, such as Kelp and Slender-billed Gulls, as well as Royal Tern. There is also the likelihood of seeing Pied-winged Swallow, Senegal Batis and White Helmetshrike. A terrific eco-lodge is also to be found within the reserve. A further 10km down the coast, the rather more open habitats around Tujereng support Black Scimitarbill, Red-winged Warbler, Yellow Penduline Tit and Orange-cheeked Waxbill. There is also the prospect of seeing Temminck’s Courser, Striped Kingfisher, Brown-backed Woodpecker, White-fronted

The Gambia is home to many habitats

Black Chat, White-shouldered Black Tit and White Helmetshrike. Heading back inland and east for 30km, brings one to the excellent Pirang Forest Park (IBA) which is brimming with such delights as African Green Pigeon, Green and Violet Turacos, African Pied Hornbill, Grey-headed Bristlebill, Green Crombec and Green Hylia. Lucky birders will also have a shot at seeing White-spotted Flufftail, African Wood, Verreaux’s Eagle and Northern White-faced Owls and Yellowbill. Greyish Eagle Owl is also possible a short hop east at the Faraba Banta bush track. Another short jump further east, Brown-necked Parrot may be found at Sotokoi on occasion. Lastly, and before leaving the West Coast Region, the roadside village of Kampanti is renowned for a wide variety of large raptors that visit the waterhole. Blue-bellied Roller and Piapiac add further interest. The shift from the West Coast Division into the Lower River Division may be

Blue-bellied Roller

birdwatching.co.uk 5

GAMBIA

administrative, but there is a palpable change in the landscape, too. The further one heads east, the greater the sense of Africa and the surrounding bush. Huge trees dot the landscape, only preserved owing to their sanctity. The sea breezes melt away and the baking heat of the interior envelops everything. Only the muddy banks of the River Gambia offer scant relief. About 150km east of Banjul, perched on the river itself, Tendaba Camp is an essential stop on any trip upriver, as well as the Bao Bolon Wetland Reserve (IBA), which is found on the opposite bank. There is a change in the avifauna here, too, with a roll call of spectacular localised and widespread African classics.

Hooded Vultures

Abyssinian Roller

Northern Red Bishop

6 Birding Travel Guide 2017

Such birds include African Darter, White-backed Night Heron, Goliath Heron, African Fish and Martial Eagles, Bruce’s Green Pigeon, Blue-breasted Kingfisher, Swallow-tailed Bee-eater and Black Scimitarbill. Add to the mix African Blue Flycatcher, Brown Sunbird, Bronze-tailed Glossy Starling and Brown-rumped Bunting. With an element of luck, one might encounter African Finfoot, Spotted Thick-knee, Bronzewinged Courser, Four-banded Sandgrouse, African Scops Owl, Standard-winged Nightjar, Grey-headed and Woodland Kingfishers, White-throated Bee-eater, Abyssinian Ground Hornbill, Green Monkey and Senegal Bushbaby. The guides will happily help you look for the latter after dark. Tendaba Camp itself offers basic accommodation, though now looking somewhat tired and resting on its laurels these days.

Immediately west of Tendaba, the huge Kiang West National Park (IBA) occupies an area of 11,526 hectares of Guinean savanna and dry deciduous woodland. The park’s numerous tree species include Baobab, Red Acacia, African Rosewood, Kapok, Afara, African Mesquite and Sycamore Fig. Representatives of most of The Gambia’s remaining mammal species

Speckled Pigeon

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Egyptian Plover with Senegal Thick-knees

Long-tailed Glossy Starling

are found within Kiang West, including Guinea Baboon, Senegal Bushbaby and Common Warthog. Reptiles are also prevalent, including West African Crocodile (split from Nile Crocodile in 2011). However, it is the birds that really shine, with more than three hundred species recorded, including 21 species of raptor. The latter are best seen during the dry season, including the park’s official symbol, the Bateleur. There is also the

chance of finding Greyish Eagle Owl here. A total of 35km east of Tendaba, on the south side of the River Gambia before the Farafenni ferry crossing, the roadside wetlands at Soma offer the first real chance of Egyptian Plover. Opportunities for seeing it any further west of here are very slim indeed at any time of the year. Keep an eye out for African Fish Eagle while enjoying the colourful carnival atmosphere of the ferry crossing. Once you are on the north side of the River Gambia and in the Farafenni area, there is the possibility of seeing Savile’s Bustard. This is the North Bank Division and, once again, there is a marked shift in the landscape. This is Sudanian savanna, characterised by the coexistence of trees and grasses, as well as it being noticeably drier. Continuing from Farafenni on the north bank of the River Gambia for 37km, and on the way to Janjangbureh (formerly Georgetown) ferry crossing, brings you to the Kaur Wetlands (IBA) which is situated in the Central River Division. Here, one has an even-better chance of Egyptian Plover (bettered only by Basse much further east) from November to December. We saw several on our visit in late October. The definitive target species for any birder visiting The Gambia, the Egyptian Plover is a striking and unmistakable species, with its spectacularly contrasting plumage of black, white, blue-grey and orange. They are usually very tame and allow a close approach. Good thing, too, as these are among the most photogenic of birds. Further interest at Kaur is added by large flocks of Collared Pratincole and Chestnut-backed Sparrow Lark. So, when to go? The peak time for birds is during the dry season from November to March, though it usually lasts until May. November is the most reliable time for Egyptian Plover, the presence of which

is dependent on water levels. The temperature is usually high, especially in March and April, but a little lower during December and January. Regardless, whenever and wherever you go, you won’t know which way to look.

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OBSERVATION

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NORTH CAROLINA

Bountiful

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Northern Cardinal

A host of colourful and exotic birds await those who visit North Carolina WORDS: MATT WILLIAMS

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

NORTH CAROLINA

Ahoskie

end of things to discover. HE DOGWOOD TREES are in Our trip took us from the wetland bloom in early April in North hardwood forests in the east of the state Carolina. Their delicate and to the forested Appalachian mountains in beautiful white flowers single the west, crossing the North American them out from the rest of the continental divide. foliage that lines the interstates. The forests are made up of huge Many of the other trees are draped in cypress and Tupelo trees, in some cases purple Wisteria that has grown and clung hundreds of years old. The forest floor is to the branches. ankle deep or deeper in water and, where Above them Turkey and Black it is dry, it is a mass of rich leaf litter. Vultures circle in groups, tilting on the High up in the Appalachians, the air wing. They are ubiquitous, giving a was cooler and most of the trees were flavour of what it must have once been like to have Red Kites all across the UK in centuries gone by. The Turkey Vultures are distinguished American Robin by their red heads, slightly narrower wings and the pale band of feathers right along the outer edge of each wing. The forests of North Carolina are some of the most biodiverse on the North American continent, home to Alligators, wild hogs, bears and snakes. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a state full of a unique blend of culture, too, home to biscuits (a kind of bready breakfast dish), Bibles and barbecues... and birds. For a birdwatcher, there is no William Leaman / Alamy

NatureByDarrellYoung/Alamy

Appalachian mountains Roanoke River

still blossoming, a mix of oranges, reds, yellows, pinks and greens. These colours were highlighted by the sightings of Blue Jays and striking red-and-black Northern Cardinals. In the towns we stayed in, mockingbirds rose early, imitating their neighbours. They were backed by the gentle cooing of Common Ground Doves. American Robins sing early, too, sounding deceptively similar to the European Blackbird. Their black backs and red breasts can be picked out as light begins to flood in from the east. In roadside fields, we would sometimes spot White-tailed Deer, or even groups of 10 or 15 Wild Turkeys lekking, the males fanning their magnificent tails. Along water bodies, such as the Black River, Great Blue Herons stand and fish. As you drive along the highways, you can sometimes spy Great Egrets also fishing among the trees of the wet woodlands. Their plain white bodies and yellow legs and beaks stand out strikingly amidst the grey and brown birdwatching.co.uk 9

trunks and the dark water. A boat trip took us 10 miles down the Roanoke River. Even though it was only April, it was pushing 30 degrees by midday. Common Grackles, black and with long tails, fly overhead in flocks, cackling. Double-crested Cormorants launch themselves into the air ahead of the prow of the boat. Here, too, vultures fly over the water. To either side, there are the hardwood forests. At one point, a bird the size of a Song Thrush, steel blue and white, darts out ahead of us and then flies right past the boat: a Belted Kingfisher, far larger than its European cousin. Everything is bigger in America. Moments later, a Pileated Woodpecker flies overhead, its broad, black wings adorned with a flash of white. As the air warmed, a silhouette appeared in the distance upriver. The body shape was all too familiar – an Osprey that was fishing from above us. Then, the most exciting moment. A bird with a longer neck and head than the vultures appeared overhead. Its broader, flatter wings and white tail gave it away. It was the emblematic American bird, a Bald Eagle. It was joined by a greyer bird with less well-defined markings – a juvenile. They soared together, low over the river, displaying well for a few minutes. After they had gone, a beautiful male Wood Duck drifted by on the water, his delicate markings making him look as if he were hand painted. A few moments later, he was followed by a female with a clutch of eight ducklings. On our return journey, we spotted ‘turtles’ basking on logs on the south-

Wood Duck facing bank of the river. A Ring-billed Gull was perched near one of the docks and Northern Rough-winged and Barn Swallows swooped low over the water. They were feeding furiously, having only recently returned to this part of America. Birds in this part of the world were mirroring the great northwards migration happening at the same time in Europe. A brief glimpse of a male Blackburnian Warbler, and its high-pitched electric call from the trees on the riverbank, was more evidence of this.

Hiding a dark secret

Along the roads and the rivers we travelled on, fringes of trees sometimes hid a dark secret. In some cases, instead of thick and rich forest sitting behind them, were vast open areas which had been recently clear-cut. The buffers of three or four trees that had been left standing were an attempt to conceal this dirty truth. A new industry is menacing the forests in this part of the world. The wood pellet industry is in many cases clear-cutting natural hardwood forests. Millions of tonnes of these pellets are shipped to the UK every year to be burned in our power stations, at the expense of the birds and other wildlife that rely on the forests. It’s all done under the banner of renewable energy, but unlike wind or solar power, it relies on burning stuff. Groups like Sound Rivers and Dogwood Alliance, who hosted us, are working with local communities to fight the impacts of this new industry on human health, air, water, climate and wildlife. When the forests are cut, often hundreds of William Leaman/Alamy

Killdeer

Brian Kushner/Alamy

NORTH CAROLINA

10 Birding Travel Guide 2017

acres at a time, they dry out and they lose their properties as buffers against storms and as natural filtration systems for water. And, of course, the wildlife that lived in them disappears. During our trip, we drove to one of the pellet mills in Ahoskie, North Carolina. The stacks of trees piled up were a stark view of the devastation being wrought in this region. Next to the plant, on a small patch of earth, and scarcely more than a puddle of water, a pair of Killdeer stood. These are relatives of the Ringed Plovers we have in the UK. They looked out of place surrounded by a McDonald’s, a crossroads filled with traffic and a huge mill, grinding trees into pellets. At sunset, one evening, we pulled over next to a clearcut, right by the roadside. The light was beautiful. A pair of American Woodcocks rose from the woody rubble and began roding overhead. They settled down among severed branches and sprawled trunks. The woodland they must have once inhabited was now gone. But they had stayed, trying to pretend that nothing had happened. The wildlife of North Carolina faces some serious threats, not least from UK power stations burning its homes. But it remains one of the most bountiful areas you could choose to visit on the North American continent.

PLANNING A VISIT? As well as great birdwatching sites, there are many attractions to visit while you’re in North Carolina. The Visit North Carolina website is an invaluable online resource detailing where to go and what to see once you’re there. For inspiration, visit the website at: uk.visitnc.com

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Birding on a

FAMILY BREAK Swifts, skinks and swallowtails: family wildlife-watching in Crete proved a joy WORDS & PICS: JAMES LOWEN

Agia Lake Aptera

Heraklion

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RUNDLING ALONG A succession of motorways towards Gatwick Airport, car rammed with suitcases and four-year-old daughter, I learnt of an Alpine Swift circumnavigating buildings a mile or two south of the runway. The swift seemed a fabulous omen: this sleek aeronaut was one of a score of exciting Mediterranean species that we hoped to see on our family holiday to the Greek island of Crete. To enjoy one even before we checked in would be too good to be true. Indeed, it was too good to be true. Once the pre-Easter traffic finally dispersed sufficiently for us to reach Gatwick, the skies had darkened and the swift was roosting out of sight. Perhaps we were being greedy, and ought to have bided our time. For the first bird species we saw sailing through the azure Aegean skies upon descending from the aircraft at

12 Birding Travel Guide 2017

Alpine Swift Chania airport was...? You guessed it: Alpine Swift, a handful careering overhead by way of Greek greeting. The Crete trip celebrated a 30-year friendship. Durwyn Liley and I met on a Young Ornithologists Club (now Wildlife Explorers) course in 1986. We have been friends and colleagues ever since, conducting conservation assessments of Paraguayan rainforests during our twenties, and collaborating on contracts through Durwynâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s consultancy, Footprint Ecology, in our thirties. Our young children have also become friends, so we decided it was time to try a joint holiday with respective offspring. The break would need to combine the necessities of family life (beach, food, scenery, culture) with outstanding wildlife-watching, at an affordable

package destination. Crete fitted the bill. On this North Yorkshire-sized island, bordering the Aegean Sea, in southernmost Greece, we could combine beach with botany, halloumi with harriers, and raki with reptiles. The choice of location was influenced by a wildlife mentor that Durwyn and

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Akotiri Peninsula

Black-eared Wheatear

and unhurried ease. Slow Birding is for people whose days of ‘birding till they drop’ are long gone; for anyone whose depleted energy levels demand a holiday alongside a lengthy list; for everyone who values leisurely mealtimes as much as the next tick.

Terrace birding

Black-headed Wagtail

I shared: the leader of that YOC course, Stephanie Coghlan, whose association with Crete dates back 30 years. Her Birdwatching Guide to Crete has long been an invaluable guide for birding tourists. Coghlan recently retired from leading tours to Crete, but admits that “the island is addictive” and reckons Crete still offers her “secrets to discover”. After our fortnight, we understand the attraction. Crete is seductive. It is perfect for combining the demands of children with a wildlife holiday. There is something about the nature of Crete that calmed us, that gently coaxed us into relaxed birding. And this made Crete all the more special. Rather than pelt round innumerable hairpin-bends, bent on tracking down an elusive Rüppell’s Warbler or Cretzchmar’s Bunting, we took our time with Crete’s birdlife – and enjoyed it all the more. Crete makes for what I will call – you heard it here first – ‘Slow Birding’, where ‘slow’ is imbued with luxuriant quality

Through the company Pure Crete, we rented a traditional farmhouse with hefty, whitewashed stone walls, which nestled below Aptera fort in the olive-cloaked hills of northern Crete. Perched on a promontory overlooking the Akotiri Peninsula, Aptera funnels migrant birds on their northbound spring journeys. We reaped ample benefits from this location, watching visible migration from the farmhouse terrace. While ostensibly child-minding, Durwyn and I sipped citrus juice harvested from the garden, and enjoyed raptor migration. Marsh Harriers sauntered by and a male Pallid Harrier ghosted past. Insectivores also paused to refuel, with Red-rumped Swallows hawking overhead and more Alpine Swifts hurtling through. Migration, in combination with the Mediterranean,

added a twist to otherwise familiar birds in the farmhouse’s shrubby, clifftop garden. Goldfinches tinkled overhead, but so, too, Serins. Blackbirds were complemented by a Nightingale. Blackcaps fluting from the trees were offset by Sardinian Warblers chastising us from scrub. Chaffinches ‘pinked’ their distinctive call, and the colour pink also featured on a Hoopoe. Rarely had breakfast been so rewarding! These tweaks to the commonplace characterised Cretan birding. We saw a few Whitethroats in the gorse, but they were outnumbered by Eastern Subalpine Warblers, which Colin Turvey of the useful Crete Birding website found at crete-birding.co.uk told us “were passing through in record numbers this year”. Falcons were always worth doublechecking, for we found Lesser Kestrel almost as frequently as Kestrel. Domiciled in Norfolk, I have become accustomed to Marsh Harriers cruising above reedbeds.

Sardinian Warbler birdwatching.co.uk 13

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In Crete’s coastal lowlands, however, passing harriers incongruously quartered above spiny bushes of the rocky garrigue. We soon realised that surface freshwater and damp habitats are at a premium on Crete. Accordingly, we coaxed our families into making several trips to Agia Lake, a 20-minute drive south from Chania. And how this paid off! Agia was undoubtedly a perfect location to indulge in Slow Birding. The lake is sufficiently small to cover, yet possesses enough habitat to hold different species on each visit. Even better, there are two restaurants to use as a family base. One establishment looked directly onto marshy fringes frequented by three Little Crakes, a much-wanted and long-awaited ‘lifer’ for Durwyn. The elevated position of the other café, combined with a sizeable terrace, offered grandstand views of avian migration.

Little Crake

Stonechat

Orange juice and eagles

Over a freshly squeezed orange juice, we watched Booted Eagles, Marsh Harrier and Buzzards dawdle across our vista. As we moved decadently onto Greek coffee, a flock of Bee-eaters devoured insects in

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14 Birding Travel Guide 2017

front of us while both Squacco and Night Herons flapped languidly past. At beer o’clock, we heard Moustached Warblers in the reeds and, above them, a trio of Penduline Tits – a local rarity, according to Colin Turvey. We sat and waited, supped and watched. Scanning the lovely landscape, and the skies above, became a frequent tactic wherever we were on Crete. In the foothills near Laki, we watched Griffon Vultures float on the morning’s thermals, with Bonelli’s Eagles and yet more Alpine Swifts as their wingmen. Up in the mountains, high above the magnificent Samaria Gorge, where Libyan dust stained the snow pink, a flock of Choughs performed acrobatics, Ravens croaked past the cliffs and Crag Martins flaunted their pale tail-spots. “There’s got to be a Lammergeier up there somewhere”, reckoned Durwyn. Enchanting though the birding was,

Bory’s Orchid

we wanted to share with our children a more diverse wildlife experience. Assuredly, a major draw of Crete was its flora. Botanists revere the island as one of the world’s plant hotspots. One in every nine species here grows nowhere else in the world. For Sophie, visiting the limestone outcrops of Spili Bumps was to realise a dream long harboured. “Even if you’re not that into plants, Spili is special”, Philip Precey, tour leader at Wildlife Travel, had impressed upon me before our visit. “Don’t miss it.” An array of orchids – beautiful and bewildering in equal measure – sprouted all over the ground. Here, a lusciously velvet Bory’s Orchid. There, a Sparseflowered Orchid, for its ilk startlingly primrose in colour. Everywhere, Milky Orchids, in a multitude of forms and tones. And more flowers besides: a raft of Rock Tulips, delicately rose and tightly packed, and the sublime Snake’s-head Iris, a designer plant if ever there were one. Spili was also typical of western Crete’s rocky areas in that it harboured reptiles, sunning themselves on walls and stretching out on top of piles of boulders. We were less fortunate with amphibians, however. Of the endemic Cretan Water Frog, and the striking Green Toad, there was, sadly, not a sniff.

Blooming lovely

And so we reverted to flowers. For where the ground bloomed, butterflies were enticed. Most zipped by, fuelled by solar power. But many paused to slurp nectar with their unfeasibly elongated tongues. Eastern Dappled White and Cleopatra were common, but the star was undeniably Swallowtail; the continental brand of Britain’s Broadland wonder. We lingered to watch the butterflies imbibe. As we took our time, the birds came to us. A Black-eared Wheatear fluttered to our feet, bobbing away. A male Stonechat scratched out a song from the top of a bush. A Wood Lark fluted and a Quail wet its lips. Overhead, a gang of Alpine Swifts scored the sky, their velocity the antithesis of our snail’s pace holiday. Crete: the birthplace of Slow Birding. Just remember where you heard it first.

Estonia • Finland & Norway • Isles of Scilly • Spain (Photographic) • Spain (Pyrenees & Steppes) • Spain (Iberian Lynx) • Australia • Sri Lanka • Taiwan • New Zealand • Tanzania • Namibia • Morocco • Arizona • New York • Texas • Brazil • Costa Rica • Peru • Chile • Honduras & Grand Cayman • Cuba

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COLOMBIA

Colourful

COLOMBIA Whatever your level of birding, there’s something for everyone to enjoy in this fascinating country WORDS: NIKI WILLIAMSON

VENEZUELA Medellín Bogotá Cali

★

Crimson-rumped Toucanet

COLOMBIA

ECUADOR

BRAZIL PERU

16 Birding Travel Guide 2017

and endemism lies in the hugely varied habitats the country contains – from tropical rainforests to Andean mountains, plus vast plains, coastlines, mangroves, coral reefs, deserts, and a myriad of rivers and streams. Here, in a unique quirk of Andean geography, the famous mountains split into three distinct ranges, with peaks so high that the valleys and slopes between them are cut off from one another. The interior of the country is effectively a series of islands, where a kind of ‘Galápagos effect’ creates isolated regions of endemism, and Nature has free license to go crazy with the evolutionary paintbox.

iStock

HA-CHALACAA!! CHACHALACAA!!” THE extraordinary rasping sound – part bird, part power tool – seems to come from all directions as dawn breaks and the forest awakens. It is being emitted by a raucous group of Colombian Chachalacas, crashing about in the treetops. I am not in the unchartered depths of the rainforest. I am in a cosy B&B not five miles outside a major city. And I have just been woken up by one of Colombia’s 79 endemic species. Such is the omnipresence of Colombia’s world-beating biodiversity, a staggering 1,950-plus bird species have been recorded here, making it far-and-away numero uno for avian biodiversity in the world. It has 300 more species than its nearest neotropical neighbour Ecuador, and more than twice as many endemics. The secret of its high rate of diversity

Saffron Finch (Sicalis flaveola)

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CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE BIRD KIND

Javier Ladino, ProColombia

If weird and wonderful is your thing, don’t miss out on a trip to La Leonera, where another small finca has embraced ecotourism and nurtured an Andean Cock-of-the-Rock lek in the nearby forest... “As we descended into the shadowy forest by way of a narrow track, we heard the strange sounds of the lek before we saw it. As we approached, eye-popping scarlet plumage shone through the gloom with almost extra-terrestrial intensity. The disconcerting shape of the bird’s head, its piercing pale eye, and its other-worldly dance moves made us feel like we were in the presence of an alien rather than a bird. That something this weird not only exists, but was existing just metres from my face, was not only amazing but strangely unnerving…”.

Inner city colours

Even the urban birds are lovely here. In Cali, Colombia’s relaxed and verdant second city, red, yellow and green are the new black. Instead of heading straight to the dark depths of the Andean forests, you could do a lot worse than take a wander along the river right in the heart

of town. It’s a great place to start for any virgin neotropical birder and gives the newcomer a gentle introduction to some of the country’s more common – but still outrageously beautiful – birds. Within a half-hour stroll you should have Vermillion Flycatchers, Great Kiskadees, Red-crowned Woodpeckers, Bananaquits, Tropical Kingbirds, Yellowheaded Caracaras, Roadside Hawks, Hepatic Tanagers, Blue-Grey Tanagers, Groove-billed Ani, Saffron Finches, Chestnut-fronted Macaw and Scarletfronted Parakeets on your list to name but a few. In fact, any one of the 230 bird species commonly noted in the city could be perched up on a park bench or litter bin before your eyes. In total, 550 bird species have been recorded in the Municipality of Cali, and they include the Red-listed Spot-breasted Woodpecker, near-endemic Scrub Tanager

Tanager-tastic

A walk through the woods of this wonderfully accessible remnant will yield many typical Andean species, as well as range-restricted specialities not easily seen elsewhere in Colombia. I particularly enjoyed views of a Masked Trogon on the path, Crimson-rumped and Emerald Toucanet right above our heads, and flashing glimpses of the outrageous Golden-headed Quetzal as it crashed calling through the undergrowth. In the heart of the patch you’ll find Finca Alejandria Hummingbird Paradise, a fine example of Colombia’s burgeoning ecotourism industry, where you can sip a café con leche as you enjoy superb close-up views of birds on the speciallyprovided feeders. As a relative new-comer to neotropical birding, I still enjoy the naming ‘formula’ which seems to be based around ‘colour + body part + exotic-sounding group name’. Enter a kaleidoscope array of tanagers, 10 species of which are viewable at the finca. Birds such as Flame-rumped, Saffron-crowned, Golden-naped, and Blue-winged Mountain Tanager all

View over Cali

Watchtheworld/Alamy

Biosphoto/Alamy

Bananaquit

Gordon Mills / Alamy

and endemic Grayish Piculet and also Apical Flycatcher. Once you’ve got your head around your common tanagers and can tell your Bananaquits from your Kiskadees, it’s time to venture out of the city. Just a short 18km journey will bring you to San Antonio Cloud Forest, an excellently preserved patch of habitat that was once connected to nearby National Park, Farallones de Cali.

birdwatching.co.uk 17

COLOMBIA

decorated the tables while we watched. Among them were Red-headed Barbet – the original ‘Angry Bird’ – and Green Honeycreeper, named for the spearmint female rather than the equally attractive azure and black male. And all these merely supporting the headline act – superb views of the endemic Tanager so over-decorated they simply call it ‘Multi-coloured’. The scattered jewelbox of hummingbirds, too, was a joy to behold. Fifteen species of hummingbird frequent the feeders here, including Blue-headed Sapphire, Bronzy Inca, White-necked Jacobin, Buff-tailed Coronet, Fawnbreasted Brilliant and the tiny Purplethroated Woodstar.

Sparkling Sonso Follow Cali’s River Cauca downstream and you’ll find teeming Sonso lagoon, the largest remnant of the historic Cauca wetlands that once used to dominate this

COLOMBIA, A LAND OF BIRDS AND PEACE

The time has come to visit Colombia. The country is now at peace, and tourism – especially people coming to see birds and wildlife – is booming. Colombia is home to more than 1,900 different kinds of bird – almost one in five of all the world’s species – making it the number one birding destination on the planet. There are few countries in the world more geographically varied than Colombia. It has rainforests and cloud forests, grasslands and savannahs, deserts and wetlands, snow-capped peaks and both Atlantic and Pacific coasts. The country is divided into five key regions: The Amazon, the Orinoco and its savannahs, the massive mountains of the Andes, the rainforests of the Chocó, and the permanently snow-covered peaks of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta – each with its own unique avifauna. Together, these provide a wonderful range of bird and wildlife habitats, packed with an incredible range of different species, making Colombia the ideal place to promote nature tourism. Birders can visit more than a hundred Important Bird Areas, which together safeguard the places and habitats the country’s birds need. To book a Colombian birdwatching holiday easily and directly with leading Colombia tour operators and companies, visit blueskywildlife.com/ colombia-wildlife/

18 Birding Travel Guide 2017

San Antonio Cloud Forest inter-Andean valley. The preservation area, run by the local autonomous corporation of Valle del Cauca department, covers about 2,000 hectares of wetland and patches of critically endangered dry tropical forest, one of the world’s most threatened ecosystems. This superb patchwork habitat holds a fabulous array of birds, including the rare and local Horned Screamer, a bird once thought to be extinct in the area. Among the massive crowds of egrets and Black-necked Stilts feeding in the early morning mist, we saw Fulvous and Black-bellied Whistling Ducks, and a Red-breasted Meadowlark singing its heart out. During a very pleasant riverside stroll through the marshes, we encountered Striped Cuckoo singing from the reeds and Ringed Kingfisher, and a spotted a plucky little Least Sandpiper hitching a lift down the river on a floating log. Majestic Snail Kites were impressive to watch as they plucked their molluscan prey from the water. In the woodland edge habitats along the pathways, where interspersed trees provide cover for a diversity of species, you can encounter Yellow-headed Caracara, Dwarf Cuckoo, Yellow-crowned and Blue-headed Parrots, Lineated Woodpecker, Orchard Oriole and Pied Water-tyrant as well as star species like the endemic Apical Flycatcher and Grayish Piculet. In the more heavily wooded areas around Sonso’s visitor centre, look out for roosting Common Potoo, as well as Common Tody-flycatcher, Cocoa and Streak-headed Woodcreeper and the near-endemic Bar-crested Antshrike. You should also get fantastic views of the adorable Spectacled Parrotlet, arguably Colombia’s cutest near-endemic.

Choco-holic Heading out into the hills, it’s not long before you’re in the Choco-Andes transition area, where you’ll find the iconic mystical cloud forests that instantly spring to mind when conjuring up a mental image of Colombia. Until recently, this area was strictly no-go, being at the heart of the country’s conflicted areas. Now by simply strolling along the Anchicaya road, you can spend a couple of hours racking up a spectacular list without seeing the same bird twice! Star species include Rufous-throated Tanager, the near-endemic Black-chinned Mountain-tanager, Chestnut-headed Oropendola, White-tailed Hillstar, local and uncommon Green Thorntail and maybe one of the tropics’ most vividly coloured birds – Purplish-mantled Tanager. We made a dawn raid on the area, setting off from Cali at 5am to reach

Red-headed Barbet

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Juan Jose Arango/Alamy

Javier Ladino, ProColombia

Long-tailed Sylph

iStock

Common Tody-flycatcher

the site as the sun was rising. Almost as soon as we emerged from our transport into the misty tropical morning, the sleep was driven from our eyes by the fresh citrusy tones of two near-endemic Glistening-green Tanagers making their way through the canopy of the surrounding forest.

iStock

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Niki Williamson is a partner in birding and wildlife tour company ingloriousbustards.com – you can read her blog, ‘Inglorious Rambles’ on the website. She was thrilled to have this opportunity to visit the neotropics – thanks to Colombia Bird Fair and ProColombia for making it possible, guide Diego Calderon for making sure she missed nothing, and Juan and Brian from colombianproject.com for making it an unforgettable experience.

Covering no more than a couple of hundred yards of road, we encountered a huge selection of the forest’s brightest, best and most special, including Ornate Flycatcher, Empress Brilliant, Red-faced Spinetail, Golden-winged Warbler and the endangered Cerulean Warbler. One of the best birds for me though was a lone Crested Ant-Tanager, another one of Colombia’s eye-poppingly gorgeous endemic species, resplendent in crimson as it eyed us from a lower branch. By a bend in the hillside road, the canopy parted to reveal that the sky, too, was absolutely teeming with birds. We watched elegant Swallow-tailed Kites, huge White-collared Swifts and a soaring Barred Hawk among the ubiquitous but wonderful Black Vultures. In the scrub, surrounded by the explosive song of Bay Wren, we encountered Black-headed and Tricoloured Brush-finches, the difficult Olive Finch, and were thrilled by amazing views of the normally skulky endemic Choco Tapaculo. To our excitement, the answering phrases of a bubbling duet heralded the arrival of one of the Choco’s superstars – a pair of unbelievably colourful Toucan Barbets. The harlequin duo fluted their Sonny and Cher-style love-song to one another high in the canopy above us. This is a place that has a real buzz around its booming ecotourism industry. As the country treads carefully into a new era of peace and stable development, ecotourism is set to be at the heart of its new economy, and the frontiers are being pushed back on a world of new birding experiences and undiscovered species. There are hill ranges here that have never been birded, and the number of endemics is rising at a staggering rate of one or two new species a year. Colombia’s biodiversity is not only astounding but also refreshingly accessible. Here, you can take things as seriously as you want. For the beginner, it’s a wonderful place to simply sit back and drink in the beauty. For the super-keen birder there

is the thrill of the gargantuan list or the many fascinating ID challenges. If you go hardcore into the hills, there is a genuine chance that you could stumble upon a species new to science, so keep your eyes and ears open!

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FLORES

Amazing

AZORES

With the ever-popular Corvo at saturation point, Steve Newman asks if neighbouring Flores is the next big thing in Azores birding... WORDS: STEVE NEWMAN

Corvo

Graciosa San Jorge

Flores

Terceira

AZORES, PORTUGAL Ponta Delgada

Faial Pico

Santa Maria

Sao Miguel Goldcrest Caption here

Corvo from the Baia de Alagos viewing point the coming years. There are no raptors or corvids on the island, which is helpful to the passerines here. So, there now follows a very brief guide to Flores and my visit. I am indebted to Gerbrand Michielsen of Gerby Birding, the birdwatching company of the Azores, who many of you reading this will have met in the islands on guided trips, for his invaluable advice and help. Remember, I didn’t set out to look for birds, just the sites, so the birds I got were an added bonus. I can only imagine what I would have seen had I been part of an organised tour with a local guide and more eyes looking.

Steve Newman

LORES HAS BEEN under Corvo’s shadow for too long, in my opinion. A far larger island with high peaks, lakes, ravines, forests and other types of habitat, it offers a huge opportunity for the birder. It is, however, a difficult island to bird and a little knowledge goes an awful long way to help you. I went to reconnoitre the island in the third week in September, a bit too early for the migration, but things were already starting to turn up, as the strong winds the week before were bringing birds in. There‘s another point here, too. Don’t rule out the island in the winter months, as many birds stay over. You’re going to have to allow for the weather maybe cancelling the inter island flights for a day or so, but it’s still a good idea. About a third of the island is now officially designated a Protected Area, which can only be good for the birder in

Nuno Fonseca/Alamy

birdwatching.co.uk 21

FLORES

1 Ponta do Albernaz Lighthouse Situated on the north of the island, the lighthouse acts as a magnet to migrants flying at night. I managed to get Solitary Sandpiper within 10 minutes of arrival and the fields around were good for the local subspecies of Chaffinch, with only one wing bar) and the North Atlantic Canary, which is a bit like a Serin but with a longer tail. There’s a nice section of clifftop walk just to the south which gives excellent sea views.

2 The central lakes

There are six lakes in the centre of the island which can be very productive. Most of them, such as Funda and Comprida, are truly spectacular to visit, but are too deep for diving ducks, Teals and waders. Seca can be dry but it is a great place for Snipe. I managed to get American Black Duck, here, but they have interbred with Mallards, so it’s worthwhile checking y am exactly what you’ve got. The smaller / Al lake, Caldera de Lomba, to the south east is good for ducks and situated near the forested area. While driving to get to it I got three Woodcock sauntering across the road. y, Nat

ure’s

Ark

Pho

tog

ra p

Semipalmated Plover

James Mund

3 Lajes Harbour

5 Fajazinha

Drive straight through the village to the north until you come to a little road that brings you to the boulder-strewn shore. Just before are some fig trees and abandoned farm buildings with stone walls. Male and female Blackcaps were here and Grey Wagtails on the stream. The latter are actually as common on Flores as our own Pied Wagtails, at home. A great place for smaller migrants.

Yellow-legged Gulls were here on my visit and it’s also a good place for terns. There are very few beaches on Flores but the small black sand beach here can hold interesting plovers and other waders.

6 Faja Grande

As the most westerly point of ‘Europe’ you would expect this to be the jewel in

Santa Cruz

Jorge Tutor/Alamy

Ponta do Albernaz Lighthouse

22 Birding Travel Guide 2017

An American Herring Gull was here when I stopped and Bonaparte’s, Laughing and Ring-billed Gulls have all been recorded. It’s also worth scanning the trees and rooftops nearby. Several Killdeers were found in the past and the harbour also has records of egrets and cormorants. Just to the north is the reserve of Baia de Alagos, where you can see the Roseate Tern colony. A viewing point on the road also gives very good views. To the south, the coast around Faja de Conde is good for passerines. The airport can also turn up roosting gulls and waders and is easily scanned through the fence around its perimeter. Buff-breasted and Pectoral Sandpipers are a distinct possibility.

Roseate Tern

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also arrange trips where you can visit as many as five or six of the islands with car hire. I was also provided with a day’s birding on Sao Miguel with Gerby Birding, who can be found online at gerbybirding.com/en/ An outstanding birder, Gerby has lived on the islands for 30 years and knows the best sites. He took me to sites for the Azorean Bullfinch and Sao Miguel Goldcrest and within 15 minutes at each site we had found the bird. Earlier, we had gone to investigate some cattle-water reservoirs tucked way on a farm and found Blue-winged Teal, Semipalmated Plover and Lesser Yellowlegs, all within 10 feet of each other. His knowledge of Flores, too, is immense, so much so that he has built a hide close to Lagoa Branca. He is also co-author of the first Azorean birdwatching guide, which is now sadly out of print. If you can persuade him to republish the guide and also to start birding tours on Flores, he’s very keen to do this – and you would be doing us all an immense favour.

Flores’s birding crown and it is. It’s no exaggeration to say it’s probably one of the best places for Nearctic vagrants. The area consists of small fields, and ponds beneath a tall cliff. You should expect to get North American thrushes, buntings and warblers here.

Karen Debler/Alamy

WHERE TO STAY

One of the highest roads on the island, the area is good for Snow Bunting and Lapland Bunting and as well as many highland species.

Who to go with?

Hemis/Alamy

David Chapman / Alamy

Pectoral Sandpiper

The Faja Grande coastline is great for watching passerines

Caldeirinha

Whatever happens, you’re going to have to land at the main island of Sao Miguel and stay here for at least two nights. I went with Sunvil (sunvil.co.uk) Its service was outstanding throughout and it can

Cory’s Shearwater

The coastline of Flores offers great birding and boats that can be hired for the day for ‘around the island’ trips, or you could combine a look at the islands to the north of Santa Cruz with their Roseate Tern colonies with a trip to Corvo where you can get a lift from a car/taxi to take you around. A ferry also leaves Flores for Corvo early morning and returns in the early evening, but you’ll need to check the days it runs once you’re there. I also took a whale watching trip from Ponta Delgarda on Sao Miguel and besides having a great experience, was lucky enough to see a huge flock of Cory’s Shearwaters.

robin chittenden / Alamy

Snow Bunting

ON THE WATER

David Chapman / Alamy

LOOK Die Bildagentur der Fotografen GmbH / Alamy

Enjoying the view at Caldeira Funda

Santa Cruz on the east coast has the best hotels and all of them are within walking distance of the airport. There is birding in the area but the vegetation and pools are scarce as the town has an industrial estate and is basically a semi urban area. That’s not to say the birding isn’t good as the harbour can turn up some nice birds. However, if you want to get up early and walk about then the hedgerows, pools and vegetation of the west coast area around Faja Grande and Fajazinha offer far more chances of spotting passerines in particular. birdwatching.co.uk 23

We have been taking birdwatching groups around the world for 36 years. Our extensive programme of tours has something for all levels of interest and all budgets, and our team of leaders are dedicated to ensuring you have the best possible holiday. Visit www.sunbirdtours.co.uk to see full details of all our tours.

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Head in the

CLOUDS James Lowen explores the Chocó cloudforest of north-west Ecuador, chasing the bird that changed his life a quarter of a century previously

Santa Lucia

Andean Cock-of-the-rock

COLOMBIA

Quito

ECUADOR PERU

HE RAINFOREST AIR is thick with humidity, the visibility impaired accordingly. And somewhere concealed high above me in the treetops – excitingly, yet frustratingly – is singing the very bird that changed my life precisely 25 years ago. A small, canopydwelling passerine that revolutionised both my outlook on birdwatching and my attitude to life – simply by dint of its discovery. For a quarter of a century, I have yearned to see the Chocó Vireo – a dream that is surely about to be realised. I am birding at Mashpi Lodge, a simply astonishing five-star modernist hotel plonked in the midst of Ecuador’s Chocó cloudforest – one of the world’s top biodiversity hotspots – barely two hours north-west of the capital, Quito. I am on a whistlestop tour of ‘the three Ms’:

Mashpi, Mindo (where I am staying at El Séptimo Paraíso, 2016 winner of Luxury Cloud Forest Lodge of the Year) and Maquipucuna Ecolodge. By also sneaking in visits to an astounding hummingbird garden and to a forest where a local blackberry-farmer has ‘befriended’ normally reclusive antpittas, I aim to demonstrate that even a five-day trip to equatorial South America can blow the mind. I last visited Mindo in 1997, as a 20-something birding backpacker with flowing locks and slide film in my camera. The place has changed substantially, and for the better. Along the highway from Quito, stern road signs now warn against causing environmental damage and billboards coax interest in a plethora of new ecotourism lodges. We call in at one, Alambi, and it enthralls.

Chestnut-crowned Antpitta

birdwatching.co.uk 25

ECUADOR

Mashpi Lodge

View from the hotel steps at El Séptimo Paraíso I have experienced hummingbird feeders in several countries – but this one takes the sugary biscuit. Alambi’s garden is a riot of colour, a chaos of winged forms zipping, hovering and bickering. It is hard to know where to look, so I let the movement blur around me and drink in the experience, just as the ‘hummers’ are doing with the nectar substitute. Eventually I make sense of the 15 or so species present, of which six occur only

Purple-bibbed Whitetip

26 Birding Travel Guide 2017

within the Chocó: the lanky Whitewhiskered Hermit, Brown Inca, Purplebibbed Whitetip, Empress Brilliant, the staggering Violet-tailed Sylph, and Western Emerald. Retreating to my vehicle, I catch my breath and continue to Mindo. Owner Ana-Lú Goetschel welcomes us to El Séptimo Paraíso. Ana-Lú and I met over a plate of Indian delicacies at the 2016 British Birdwatching Fair. I was intrigued by what birding opportunities might texture the rainforest surrounding Ana-Lú’s award-winning lodge – combining wildlife-watching and luxury accommodation could only be a good thing, right? – and received an invitation to find out for myself. Several trails wind through Séptimo Paraíso’s 420 hectares of mature

secondary forest, which spans an altitudinal range of 950-1,650m. Bird highlights include displaying males of both Club-winged and Golden-winged Manakins, both colourful delights that make wacky sounds. Rainbows of tanagers – colourful fruit-eaters – cascade through the lichen-bearded, bromeliad-splattered canopy; my favourite was the glorious Rufous-throated Tanager, which only occurs in Chocó cloudforest. Back at the hotel, a bevy of hummingbirds jostle for position at sheltered feeders, then a nightwalk elicits a Common Potoo straining itself atop an isolated branch and a Colombian Screech-Owl indifferent to our admiring gaze. For an entirely different experience, we

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arrive before dawn at nearby Refugio Paz de las Aves. Ushered towards a hillside hide by Angel Paz, I wait for light to filter through the dense vegetation. Even through the gloom, I detect that the forest is ablaze. And the fire is unrepentantly noisy too, for this is the lek of the Andean Cock-of-the-rock. Crow-sized and bubble-crowned, with flaming red plumage and a screeching call, each of six male gallitos is rowdily dancing away in an attempt to lure a female. After 30 bawdy minutes, a female appears, prompting the males depart in hormonal pursuit. The forest quietens. We move on.

Attracting antpittas Angel Paz is a true birding entrepreneur. A dozen years ago, he spotted a gap in the avitourism market. Birders visiting Ecuador (myself included) spent days trying, and usually failing, to see

Pale-mandibled Aracari

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28 Birding Travel Guide 2017

antpittas, clandestine denizens of the forest that bounce along its floor. Angel spent months investigating whether individual antpittas could become accustomed to human presence, particularly if their habituation were rewarded with a free meal. Angel’s success in coaxing out five species of antpitta from the sylvan shadows has prompted imitators throughout South America. “Ma-riiii-a!”, Angel hollers along a forest track. “Ma-riiii-a!” Named after Angel’s wife, Maria is a Giant Antpitta – a hefty, leggy beast that I have long yearned to see. Like the other habituated antpittas, Maria is entirely wild, and frequently not sufficiently hungry to display interest in worms that Angel’s brother Rodrigo has harvested and scattered around the undergrowth. It takes an hour for Maria to deign to arrive. Her eventual appearance is brief but much appreciated. When she vanishes back into the cloak of green, we move on, trying our luck with other antpittas. The tiny Yellow-breasted and the striking Chestnut-crowned play ball; Moustached and Ochre-breasted stay resolutely hidden. Maquipucuna, an hour away, provides a very different experience. No antpitta feeding here, but plenty of avian action nevertheless. Hummingbirds fizz around, even over, the restaurant tables – causing forks to freeze in mid air and mouths to remain agape. Fruiting trees around the lodge are caked in a colour chart of tanagers, plus a complementary array of other birds from Rufous Motmot to

Blackburnian Warbler, Swainson’s Thrush to Red-headed Barbet. Even if I never left the lodge grounds, I would have seen some great birds. But why would I stay put? Trails traverse much of the reserve’s 6,000 hectares, with the forest rising in quality the longer I yomped. But even within an hour’s walk of the lodge, there was plenty to enjoy. Broadbilled Motmots observed from the shady mid-storey while Collared Trogons flaunted themselves on pathside perches. Golden-headed Quetzals – a bigger version of the trogon – posed like sentinels just below the canopy, looking down knowingly at us. Huge, bananabilled Chocó Toucans bickered in the treetops, before they coasted off on arthritic wings.

Outstanding accommodation If I were not in heaven already, a constant flow of mixed flocks soon transported me there. It was hard to keep track of all the different species; eight types of tanager here, two woodcreepers there; a becard and a barbet; two warblers and two foliage gleaners. So far, so very good indeed. Mindo and Maquipucuna have enthralled. But what about Mashpi? Well, the exclusive Mashpi Lodge is a world apart again. You may need to dip into savings to stay here – the prices are eye-watering – but it would be worth it. The accommodation is outstanding, the cuisine excellent and the ecotourism offerings as good as they get. All this among some of the highest quality, bird-rich rainforest I have ever

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ECUADOR Broad-billed Motmot

visited in South America. It is quite rightly a National Geographic Ultimate Lodge of the World. You can explore the canopy through a brand-new open-air cable car (the ‘Dragonfly’) or an aerial pedal-bike on a wire (the ‘SkyBike’). You can enjoy hummingbirds, notably the scarce Velvet-purple Coronet, and fruit-eating Toucan Barbets at close range. You can talk to biologist-guides about Mashpi’s exciting programme of biological research, which has already unveiled two new frogs for science, among other discoveries. Or you can go birdwatching, pure and simple. Each morning starts around the Lodge itself. Bright lights entice thousands of nocturnal moths to the Lodge each night, which – come dawn – attract numerous hungry, insectivorous birds. Zeledon’s Antbirds forage at point-blank range and Rufous-brown Solitaires feed fearlessly. The scarce, sought-after Moss-backed Tanager is delightfully abundant. Three species of trogon are trumped by the globally threatened Long-wattled Umbrellabird. Two more such endangered birds flaunted themselves: a Baudó Guan nibbled fruit at point-blank range and a Purple Quail-Dove trotted along the road. But as the mist condensed into groundlevel cloud, even these avian stars became also-rans. For the distinctive cascading song of the Chocó Vireo suddenly emanated from somewhere above me in the greenery. My ears pricked up, my heart pounded. So, why was I so keen to see this 30 Birding Travel Guide 2017

Hummingbirds steroid-enhanced version of a Yellowbrowed Warbler, with its broad supercilium and double wingbar? In 1991, in my university fresher’s week, I met a second-year birder called Paul Salaman. He had just led a student conservation expedition to the Colombian Chocó. Amazingly, Paul had discovered a bird entirely new to science and was about to auction its scientific name to raise funds to save the site’s cloudforest. For a teenage birder whose horizons barely stretched beyond his home county of Yorkshire, this was revelatory. Here was a way I could put my interest in birds to good use – through participating in, and eventually leading similar expeditions – and even potentially make a living. Paul’s Chocó Vireo fomented my personal revolution. Without it, I would probably have become an accountant...

Hence why I was so keen to finally clap eyes on this small, endangered songbird. Springing into Mashpi Lodge itself, I ran to the roof terrace, where sophisticated guests may sup evening cocktails. From here, I had an eye-level view of the canopy... and of a glorious, voraciously active, incessantly vocal and utterly life-changing Chocó Vireo. A dream come true, 25 years on.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR’S STAY

James Lowen travelled courtesy of Quito Turismo, El Séptimo Paraíso Country Hotel, Mashpi Lodge/ Metropolitan Touring, and the Maquipucuna Foundation. For further details on Ecuador, including where to stay, where to go and what to see, visit: ecuador.travel

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