Copyright: monacoeye • Santa Lucia, Ecuador, Feb 2011 • Do not copy

Bird name: Olivaceous Piha
Latin: Snowornis cryptolophus
Other: Piha olicacéa (Es)
Family: Cotingidae • Cotingas, Pihas
Range: Colombia, Ecuador, Peru
Similar: Grey-tailed Piha, tanagers

Although Birds of Ecuador (Ridgely & Greenfield, 2001) puts the Pihas on the Flycatchers plate (and uses old genus name Lathria), as they look rather similar, in fact, Pihas are related to Cotingas.

I was lucky in that a good Dutch guide (can’t remember name) with another group managed to call this one down from the tree tops at Paz de las Aves. We then observed it swooping and the guide even took a recording. Note light eye-ring.More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Santa Lucia, Ecuador, Feb 2011 • Do not copy

Bird name: Andean Cock of the Rock
Latin: Rupicola peruvianus
Other: Gallo de la Peña Andino (Es)
Family: Cotingidae • Cotingas, Cock-of-the-Rocks
Range: Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia
Similar:

The Andean Cock of the Rock is a superb bird, emblematic of the Mindo - Choco region. Tours can be taken to visit Cock of the Rock leks at several places, where anything from two or three individuals to two or three dozen males will gather daily in a lek at dawn to be selected by a female. Good weather helps and the “summer” (around June) is said to be the breeding season.

Photography is difficult for all but the latest generation of cameras, because you are shooting in the dark - flash is not allowed. If you can shoot above 3000 ISO and have a fast, stabilised lens, you should be OK.

Santa Lucia has a very good lek, well over a dozen males turned up on the day we attended, despite it being off-season, with no female and rain in the night. But it’s a fair old trek in the morning - a couple of hours before dawn, some through deep mud on steep paths. Before that, just to reach Santa Lucia involves an excruciating two-hour walk up the mountainside in thin air, unless you happen to be a mountain goat, in which case it will take you an hour.

I saw a female flying though the forest at San Isidro - it perched above us.

More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Pas de las Aves, Ecuador, Feb 2011 • Do not copy

Bird name: Orange Breasted Fruiteater
Latin: Pipreola jucunda
Other: Frutero pechinaranja (Es)
Family: Cotingidae • Cotingas, Fruiteaters
Range: Colombia to Ecuador
Similar: Scarlet-breasted Fruteater, female Black-Chested Fruiteater

We were treated to very good views of one or two Orange-breasted Fruiteater at Angel Paz’s ranch, feeding on two sorts of berry. The colour of the tree above seems to match the Orange-breasted Fruiteater’s colours perfectly. Angel notices what trees attract particular birds and tries to plant accordingly.

A hawk was circling nearby, which seemed to keep the fruiteaters stuck to their branches.

The orange-breasted Fruiteater has a well-defined yellow-orange chest and neck, black hood, lemon-yellow belly and rich green upperparts. Iris is yellow-orange. Beautiful birds, males are unmistakable in Ecuador, females are mostly green, striated underparts, with orange bill and yellow iris.

In Ecuador only found in northwest, mid altitude.

More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Guango Lodge, Ecuador, Feb 2011 • Do not copy

Bird name: Green and Black Fruiteater
Latin: Pipreola riefferii
Other: Frutero verdinegro (Es)
Family: Cotingidae • Cotingas, Fruiteaters
Range: Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru
Similar: Black-chested Fruiteater

We saw and heard male and female Green-and-black Fruiteaters several times, but although responsive to calls, they proved difficult to photograph, often perching directly above our heads!

The male has a dark hood and bib, bright orange bill and legs, yellow-green underside with marks, and dark leaf-green upperside, with some black.

The female (further below) is plainer and more uniform green, with no black hood, but still orange bill.

Directly below, a male Green-and-black Fruiteater, which was calling to a nearby female.
More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Pas de las Aves, Ecuador, Feb 2011 • Do not copy

Bird name: Scaled Fruiteater
Latin: Ampelioides tschudii
Other: Frutero escamado (Es)
Family: Cotingidae • Cotingas, Fruiteaters
Range: Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia
Similar:

Just one sighting of this Scaled Fruiteater, at Paz de las Aves, which perched right above me then flew off…

Note short tail and contoured feathers.

Copyright: monacoeye • Silanche, Ecuador, Feb 2011 • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Purple Throated Fruitcrow
Latin: Querula purpurata
Other: Querula gorgimorada (Es)
Family: Cotingidae • Cotingas, Manakins, Fruitcrows
Range: Southern Nicaragua to Amazonia. Inc. Panama, Ecuador.
Similar:

Above a male Purple-throated Fruitcrow, extending the purple ruff on its neck after calling, in the Rio Silanche Reserve in northwest Ecuador. Females are all black (see “more photos”), only males have the purple throat. Not in the crow family, but related to Cotingas. More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Yanacocha, Ecuador • Mar 2011 • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Red Crested Cotinga
Latin: Ampelion rubrocristatus
Other:
Family: Cotingidae • Cotingas
Range: Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia
Similar:

I saw these two Red-crested Cotingas on shrubs beside the road up to Yanacocha, at about 3000m altitude. They tend be found at this kind of altitude in the Andes.

The Red-crested Cotinga is easy to identify - a grey, pigeon-sized bird, with long, lank, rufous feathers at back of head, and bright red irises. The red crest is often not visible though when the bird is viewed from the front. One was eating a winged insect.


More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Do not copy without permission • Canopy Tower, Panama • April 2010

Bird name: Blue Cotinga
Latin: Cotinga nattererii
Other:
Family: Cotingidae • Cotingas
Range: Central Panama through Colombia to nw Ecuador and w Venezuela.

Do you see that tiny blue spot right in the centre of the photo? Standing on the crest of a pale green tree? Trust me it is there, and it is a beautiful Blue Cotinga. See below for the proof!

I would never have seen him, but our eagle-eyed guide spotted him from the observation roof of the Canopy Tower, in central Panama, and we had a good view through his scope.

The female Blue Cotinga is brown and rather dove-like.

More photos...

118 Cotingidae - Cotingas - IOC 2.5 2010

Ampelion rubrocristatus - Red-crested Cotinga - W Venezuela to Bolivia
Ampelion rufaxilla - Chestnut-crested Cotinga - Colombia to Bolivia

Zaratornis stresemanni - White-cheeked Cotinga - W Peru

Doliornis remseni - Chestnut-bellied Cotinga - Colombia, Ecuador
Doliornis sclateri - Bay-vented Cotinga - C Peru

Phytotoma raimondii - Peruvian Plantcutter - NW Peru
Phytotoma rutila - White-tipped Plantcutter - SC, SE South America
Phytotoma rara - Rufous-tailed Plantcutter - Chile, W Argentina

Carpornis cucullata - Hooded Berryeater - SE Brazil
Carpornis melanocephala - Black-headed Berryeater - E Brazil

Pipreola riefferii - Green-and-black Fruiteater - N Venezuela to N Peru
Pipreola intermedia - Band-tailed Fruiteater - Peru to Bolivia
Pipreola arcuata - Barred Fruiteater - W Venezuela to Bolivia
Pipreola aureopectus - Golden-breasted Fruiteater - Colombia, Venezuela
Pipreola jucunda - Orange-breasted Fruiteater - Colombia, Ecuador
Pipreola lubomirskii - Black-chested Fruiteater - S Colombia to Peru
Pipreola pulchra - Masked Fruiteater - Peru
Pipreola frontalis - Scarlet-breasted Fruiteater - N Ecuador to Bolivia
Pipreola chlorolepidota - Fiery-throated Fruiteater - S Colombia to Peru
Pipreola formosa - Handsome Fruiteater - N Venezuela
Pipreola whitelyi - Red-banded Fruiteater - Tepuis

Ampelioides tschudii - Scaled Fruiteater - W Venezuela to Bolivia

Rupicola rupicola - Guianan Cock-of-the-rock - N Amazonia
Rupicola peruvianus - Andean Cock-of-the-rock - W Venezuela to Bolivia

Phoenicircus carnifex - Guianan Red Cotinga - NE Amazonia
Phoenicircus nigricollis - Black-necked Red Cotinga - W, SC Amazonia

Cotinga amabilis - Lovely Cotinga - SE Mexico to Costa Rica
Cotinga ridgwayi - Turquoise Cotinga - Costa Rica, Panama
Cotinga nattererii - Blue Cotinga - Panama to NW Ecuador
Cotinga maynana - Plum-throated Cotinga - W Amazonia
Cotinga cotinga - Purple-breasted Cotinga - NE Amazonia
Cotinga maculata - Banded Cotinga - SE Brazil
Cotinga cayana - Spangled Cotinga - Amazonia

Procnias tricarunculatus - Three-wattled Bellbird - Honduras to Panama
Procnias albus - White Bellbird - NE Amazonia
Procnias averano - Bearded Bellbird - N, E South America
Procnias nudicollis - Bare-throated Bellbird - E, SE South America

Tijuca atra - Black-and-gold Cotinga - SE Brazil
Tijuca condita - Grey-winged Cotinga - SE Brazil

Lipaugus weberi - Chestnut-capped Piha - NW Colombia
Lipaugus fuscocinereus - Dusky Piha - Colombia to Peru
Lipaugus uropygialis - Scimitar-winged Piha - SE Peru, Bolivia
Lipaugus unirufus - Rufous Piha - S Mexico to NW Ecuador
Lipaugus vociferans - Screaming Piha - Amazonia, E Brazil
Lipaugus lanioides - Cinnamon-vented Piha - SE Brazil
Lipaugus streptophorus - Rose-collared Piha - Tepuis

Conioptilon mcilhennyi - Black-faced Cotinga - SW Amazonia

Snowornis subalaris - Grey-tailed Piha - S Colombia to Peru
Snowornis cryptolophus - Olivaceous Piha - Colombia to Peru

Porphyrolaema porphyrolaema - Purple-throated Cotinga - W, SC Amazonia

Xipholena punicea - Pompadour Cotinga - Amazonia
Xipholena lamellipennis - White-tailed Cotinga - SE Amazonia
Xipholena atropurpurea - White-winged Cotinga - E Brazil

Carpodectes hopkei - Black-tipped Cotinga - SW Panama to NW Ecuador
Carpodectes nitidus - Snowy Cotinga - SW Honduras to W Panama
Carpodectes antoniae - Yellow-billed Cotinga - Costa Rica, Panama

Gymnoderus foetidus - Bare-necked Fruitcrow - Amazonia

Querula purpurata - Purple-throated Fruitcrow - S Nicaragua through Amazonia

Haematoderus militaris - Crimson Fruitcrow - NE Amazonia

Pyroderus scutatus - Red-ruffed Fruitcrow - N, NW, E, SE South America

Perissocephalus tricolor - Capuchinbird - NE Amazonia

Cephalopterus glabricollis - Bare-necked Umbrellabird - Costa Rica, Panama
Cephalopterus ornatus - Amazonian Umbrellabird - W, C Amazonia
Cephalopterus penduliger - Long-wattled Umbrellabird - Colombia, Ecuador

Incertae Sedis - Family Uncertain

Phibalura flavirostris - Swallow-tailed Cotinga - SE South America

Calyptura cristata - Kinglet Calyptura - SE Brazil