© GW - monacoeye • All rights reserved • Brazil, Aug 2011

Bird name: White-banded Swallow
Latin: Atticora fasciata
Other: Golondrina fajiblanca (Es) • peitoril, andorinha-de-cinta-branca, andorinha-de-faixa-branca (Br), Hirondelle à ceinture blanche (Fr)
Family: Hirundinidae • Swallows & Martins
Range: Amazonia: Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyanas, Peru, Venezuela
Similar:

The White-banded Swallow was a typical swallow found on and near small tributaries of the Amazon. I saw them in Ecuador and Brazil. Easy to recognise - all dark with white band on underside.

Below, White-banded Swallows, Rio Azul Lodge, Brazil, 2011


Below, White-banded Swallow in flight, Liana Lodge, Ecuador, Mar 2011
More photos...

© GW - monacoeye • All rights reserved • Brazil, Aug 2011

Bird name: White-winged Swallow
Latin: Tachycineta albiventer
Other: Golondrina aliblanca (Es) • (Br), Hirondelle à ailes blanches (Fr)
Family: Hirundinidae • Swallows & Martins
Range: Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, to Brazil, N Argentina
Similar: Tree Swallow

I saw the White-winged Swallow in the same places as the White-banded Swallow, even sharing the same perches: Upper Napo in Ecuador and Parà in Brazil. All white underside, with white rump and some white on wings.

Below, White-winged Swallow in flight, Liana Lodge, Ecuador, Mar 2011


Below, White-winged Swallow perched with White-banded Swallows, Ecuador, Mar 2011
More photos...

© GW - monacoeye • All rights reserved • Ecuador, Mar 2011

Bird name: Brown-bellied Swallow
Latin: Notiochelidon murina
Other: Hirondelle à ventre brun (Fr)
Family: Hirundinidae • Swallows & Martins
Range: W Venezuela to C Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru
Similar:

Record of Brown-bellied Swallows roosting in the highlands of Ecuador.

© GW - monacoeye.com, all rights reserved. Ecuador, Mar 2011

Bird name: Torrent Duck
Latin: Merganetta armata
Other: Pato de torrente (Es)
Family: Anatidae • Ducks
Range: South America and sub-Saharan Africa
Similar:

The Torrent Duck is a beautiful duck which lives in fast flowing streams. Guango Lodge in Ecuador was a good place to try and find them. We found them very difficult to photograph - much shier than some reports. These photos were taken through bushes so we couldn’t be seen.

Torrent Duck, Guango Lodge, Ecuador.
More photos...

© GW - monacoeye.com, all rights reserved. Lagoa do Peixe, RS • November 2009

Bird name: Yellow Billed Pintail
Latin: Anas georgica
Other: Marreca-parda (Br) • Pato Maicero, Pato Piquidorado (Es)
Family: Anatidae • Ducks
Range: S America
Similar:

The Yellow-billed Pintail was the most common duck in the area of Mostardas when I visited in November. Also seen in Papallacta, Ecuador

It is a plain duck with yellow bill with small markings and has a white and green/purple speculum (wing “badge”). The only other duck in Brazil with a yellow bill is the smaller Speckled Teal, which has a yellow (not white) stripe in the upper part of its speculum.


Below, Yellow-billed Pintail, Lagoa do Peixe, RS • November 2009


Below, Yellow-billed Pintail, Ecuador, March


Below, Yellow-billed Pintail with ducklings, Lagoa do Peixe, RS • November 2009
More photos...

© GW - monacoeye.com, all rights reserved. Ecuador, March.

Bird name: Andean Teal
Latin: Anas andium
Other: Cerceta barcina (Es)
Family: Anatidae • Ducks
Range: Colombia, Venezuela, and Ecuador
Similar:

I saw Andean Teal by the lake at Papallacta Pass in the Andes, Ecuador.

Andean Teal, Ecuador, March
More photos...

© GW - monacoeye.com, all rights reserved. Gambia, Feb 2013

Bird name: Osprey
Latin: Pandion haliaetus
Other: Aguila pescadora, halieto (Es), Aguia-pesqueira (Pt), Balbuzard pêcheur (Fr), Falco pescatore (It), Fischadler (De)
Family: Pandionidae • Osprey
Range: Worldwide, especially tropics, coastlines and Canada, Russia, China.
Similar:

Ospreys have long thin wings and a distinctive zorro eye mask. They are white underneath with brown marks on wings, upperside is brown. Ospreys eat fish almost exclusively.

I saw a couple of Ospreys in the Valle de Anton area. One in the town itself and one higher in the mountains, both near water.

Seen again in Napo, Ecuador. Migrating on the Cote d’Azur, France in September.

I saw Ospreys frequently in the south of Gambia, March, and on the coastal area. They fly out to sea, catch a large fish, then fly back inland - several kilometres sometimes - to a perch where they eat their meal.

The bird pictured above was a ringed bird (tag NW), seen about an hour south of Janjanbureh on the River Gambia.

Below, Pied Crow harasses Osprey for fish, Tujereng Woods, Gambia, March 2013


Below, Osprey takes a bath in a quarry, Gambia, March 2013


Below, Osprey in flight, Panama, April
More photos...

© monacoeye • All rights reserved. Mostardas, RS • November 2009

Bird name: Lesser Yellowlegs
Latin: Tringa flavipes
Other: Maçarica-de-perna-amarela (Br)
Family: Scolopacidae • Sandpipers
Range: Americas
Similar: Greater Yellowlegs

The Lesser Yellowlegs breeds in the boreal forest between Alaska and Quebec and migrates to South America in the northern winter. It can be found throughout Brazil during this time.

Quite a tall bird, it’s a bit slimmer than the similar looking Greater Yellowlegs. The Lesser Yellowlegs also has a proportionately smaller bill. In flight its white rump can be seen, which gets darker at the tip. Its feet protrude past the tail in flight too.

Also seen in the mountains in Ecuador

More photos...

© GW - monacoeye, all rights reserved, Ecuador, Feb

Bird name: Ruddy Pigeon
Latin: Patagioenas subvinacea
Other: Pigeon vineux (Fr), paloma vinosa (Es), Purpurtaube (De)
Family: Columbidae • Pigeons, Doves
Range: Costa Rica to C Brazil
Similar:

Record shots of Ruddy Pigeon in Ecuador

© monacoeye • All rights reserved • Pantanal, Aug 2011

Bird name: Squirrel Cuckoo
Latin: Piaya cayana
Other: Alma-de-gato (Br)
Family: Cuculidae - Cuckoos
Range: Mexico to Brazil
Similar: Little Cuckoo

The Brazilian Squirrel Cuckoo (above) has a red eye ring. In fact all South American birds have the red eye ring, but Central American birds (below) have a yellow ring.
Long tail, with white and black underneath.

Seen in central Panama and Chiriqui. Again in Ecuador and widespread in Brazil. Seen in most wooded areas.

Below, Squirrel Cuckoo, Piaya cayana thermophila, Panama, showing yellow eye ring.


Below, Squirrel Cuckoo, San Isidro, Ecuador


Below, Squirrel Cuckoo with yellow throat, Curicaca Lodge, Pantanal, Brazil


Squirrel Cuckoo, Brazil
More photos...

© monacoeye • All rights reserved • Septimo Paraiso, Mindo, Ecuador

Bird name: Little Cuckoo
Latin: Coccycua minuta
Other: chincoã-pequeno (Br), Petit Piaye (fr), cuco ardilla menor, tingazú chico, piscuita enana (Es)
Family: Cuculidae - Cuckoos
Range: E Panama to NE Brazil & N Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Trinidad
Similar: Squirrel Cuckoo

Just a record shot of Little Cuckoo in Mindo, Ecuador, at Septimo Paraiso Lodge. It looks rather like a small Squirrel Cuckoo.

© monacoeye • All rights reserved • Gamboa, Panama, April 2010

Bird name: Greater Ani
Latin: Crotophaga major
Other: garrapatero (Es), Ani des palétuviers (Fr), anu-coroca (Br), Riesenani (De)
Family: Cuculidae - Cuckoos, Anis
Range: Panama to Argentina
Similar: Smooth-billed Ani

The Greater Ani lays eggs in a communal nest. It is quite a bit larger than the Smooth-billed Ani and has distinctive pale irises. We saw them several times on visits to Gamboa in the canal area of central Panama.

Also seen in Ecuador, Napo.More photos...

© GW monacoeye. All rights reserved. Chapada das Guimarães, Mato Gross, Aug 2011

Bird name: White Eyed Parakeet
Latin: Aratinga leucophthalma
Other: Periquitão-maracanã (Br), cotorra ojiblanca (Es), Conure pavouane (Es)
Family: Psittacidae - Parrots, Parakeets
Range: Amazonia to Argentina, incl Brazil etc
Similar:

Note red and yellow under wing, otherwise mostly green.

Also seen in the Upper Napo, Ecuador.

Below, White-winged Parakeet showing underwing pattern, Mato Grosso, Aug 2011
More photos...

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

Bird name: Toucan Barbet
Latin: Semnornis ramphastinus
Other: Barbudo Tucán (Es)
Family: Semnornithidae • New World Barbets
Range: Western Colombia to western Ecuador
Similar:
Red List: Near threatened

The colourful Toucan Barbet is an emblematic bird for the region around Santa Lucia, where duetting birds can be heard resounding across the mountainside. The original indiginous residents of the area share the same name as this Choco endemic in the local tongue. [I don’t recall the name - if anyone knows please leave in comments below.] Many thanks to Heike for jogging my memory - the name is Yumbo.

Toucan Barbets have now been placed in their own family, Semnornithidae, by the IOC and SACC, alongside the Prong-billed Barbet of Costa Rica. Though for convenience they are tagged here with New World Barbets.

Although I saw Toucan Barbets on many occasions in Santa Lucia - they’re good birds for guides to call in - the best views were at Paz de las Aves, where they visit the feeders.

The Toucan Barbet is classed as near-threatened on the IUCN Red List due to habitat loss.

More photos...

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

Bird name: Red Headed Barbet
Latin: Eubucco bourcierii
Other: Barbudo Cabecirrojo (Es)
Family: Capitonidae • New World Barbets
Range: Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, W Venezuela, Ecuador, N Peru
Similar:

Record shots of the Red-headed Barbet, seen here on a river island in the Upper Napo region.More photos...

© monacoeye • Napo, Ecuador, Mar 2011 • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Gilded Barbet
Latin: Capito auratus
Other: Barbudo Filigrana (Es)
Family: Capitonidae • New World Barbets
Range: N,W Amazonia: E Colombia, Venezuela, E Ecuador, Peru, NW Brazil
Similar:

Record shots of a female Gilded Barbet, seen here on a river island in the Upper Napo region. The male lacks the black stripes on its underparts.

More photos...

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

Bird name: Scarlet Crowned Barbet
Latin: Capito aurovirens
Other: Barbudo Coronirrojo (Es)
Family: Capitonidae • New World Barbets
Range: W Amazonia: NW Brazil, S Colombia, E Ecuador, N Peru
Similar: Gilded Barbet

Record shots of a pair of Scarlet-crowned Barbets, seen here on a river island in the Upper Napo region.

The male Scarlet-crowned Barbet, pictured above, has a red crown. The female, below, has a white crown. Both have an orange chest.

More photos...

© monacoeye • Silanche, Ecuador, 2011 • All rights reserved

Bird name: Black Cheeked Woodpecker
Latin: Melanerpes pucherani
Other: Es: carpintero centroamericano, carpintero cara negra
Family: Picidae • Woodpeckers
Range: S Mexico to W Ecuador
Similar: Yellow-tufted Woodpecker ?

I had a brief view of a male Black-cheeked Woodpecker in the Canal Zone in central Panama and better views at the Rio Silanche Reserve in NW Ecuador.

The male has a red cap with black band running down from eye to neck and cream coloured face and throat. Small white spot above eye. Blackish back with some white spots or bars. Belly lightly barred. Female only nape is red.

Below, male Black-cheeked Woodpecker, Silanche, Ecuador, 2011
More photos...

© monacoeye • Amazonia, Brazil, 2011 • All rights reserved

Bird name: Yellow Tufted Woodpecker
Latin: Melanerpes cruentatus
Other: Es: Carpintero Penachiamarillo; Br: bendito, pica-pau-de-barriga-vermelha
Family: Picidae • Woodpeckers
Range: Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Peru, Suriname, Venezuela
Similar:

A generally unmistakeable, small, mostly black woodpecker with bright yellow “spectacles” and nape (male). Each time I saw them in the Amazon regions of Ecuador and Brazil, there were several, very visible on dead trees in exposed flooded areas. But a little far for detailed photos. Pretty sure they had nested in one of the dead trees.

Below, Yellow-tufted Woodpecker, Pará, Brazil, 2011
More photos...

© monacoeye • Milpe, Ecuador, 2011 • All rights reserved

Bird name: Smoky Brown Woodpecker
Latin: Picoides fumigatus
Other: Es: carpintero café; carpintero ahumado
Family: Picidae • Woodpeckers
Range: Argentina, Belize, Bolivia, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru, Venezuela.
Similar: Little Woodpecker, Red-rumped Woodpecker

The Smoky-brown Woodpecker seems to pass under many birders’ radar - perhaps because it is plain brown with no barring, and in the female has no red or black. So as yet I haven’t found anyone to confirm this photo I took in Milpe Reserve in NW Ecuador.

It looks a little like a woodcreeper, but the zygodactyl (two forwards, two back) arrangement of toes indicates this must be a woodpecker. All woodcreepers have three toes forward and one backwards in a syndactyl (two partially fused) type of anisodactyl (three forwards, one back) toe formation

© monacoeye • Pantanal, Brazil, 2011 • All rights reserved

Bird name: Little Woodpecker
Latin: Veniliornis passerinus
Other: Es: carpintero chico, carpinterito oliváceo, carpintero oliva chico, carpintero ribereño; Br: Picapauzinho-anão
Family: Picidae • Woodpeckers
Range: E of Andes: Ecuador, Colombia, Brazil, Venezuela, Guyanas, Peru, Bolivia, Paraguay, N Argentina
Similar: Red-stained Woodpecker

The Little Woodpecker should have a red cap and nape, light supercilium and darker cheek, with a few yellow spots on the wing, slightly indistinct barring below, olive upper parts.

The lowest photos, in a mixed flock on a river island in the Upper Napo region of Ecuador, show a bird without a red nape, which doesn’t fit this description, but still looks more like a Little Woodpecker than any other similar woodpecker, such as Red-stained Woodpecker, so I’ve included it on this page.

Below, Little Woodpecker, Pouso Alegre, Pantanal, 2011.
More photos...

© monacoeye • SIlanche, Ecuador, 2011 • All rights reserved

Bird name: Red Rumped Woodpecker
Latin: Veniliornis kirkii
Other: Es: Carpintero lomirrojo
Family: Picidae • Woodpeckers
Range: Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, W Ecuador, Venezuela, Trinidad & Tobago
Similar: Choco Woodpecker

Initially I thought these birds, which I saw in the Silanche Reserve in NW Ecuador, might be the rarer Choco Woodpecker, but looking carefully at the photos I detected some red on the rump, which is diagnostic of the more common Red-rumped Woodpecker, found in the west of Ecuador. The red rump is apparently often not visible. I’ve included the indistinct photos below.More photos...

© monacoeye • Pichincha, Ecuador, 2011 • All rights reserved

Bird name: Golden Olive Woodpecker
Latin: Colaptes rubiginosus
Other: Es: carpintero verdidorado • Br: Pica-pau-oliváceo
Family: Picidae • Woodpeckers
Range: Mexico to Argentina
Similar: Golden-green Woodpecker, Yellow-throated Woodpecker

The Golden-olive Woodpecker seemed the most common mid-sized woodpecker in the Milpe area.

The male Golden-olive Woodpecker has a red moustachial stripe, the female’s (above) is black. The front cap is dark grey, rear cap is red. Upperparts olive, underside barred. Bill dark.

Below, Golden-olive Woodpecker, Ecuador.
More photos...

© monacoeye • Pichincha, Ecuador, 2011 • All rights reserved

Bird name: Crimson Mantled Woodpecker
Latin: Colaptes rivolii
Other: Es: carpintero candela, carpintero dorsicarmesí
Family: Picidae • Woodpeckers
Range: Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Venezuela
Similar: Scarlet-backed Woodpecker

Crimson-mantled Woodpeckers are stunning and not very shy - I managed to observe them on several occasions in different locations in Pichincha, Ecuador, above 1800m. In Ecuador they are found in the inter-Andean montane region.

The female Crimson-mantled Woodpecker above allowed me to follow very closely - she has a black moustachial stripe. She was by the side of the road, rooting through fallen trees in a landslide that had been cleared from the road. The male, below, which has a red moustachial stripe, was near Angel Paz’s house on his bird reserve.

Below, male Crimson-mantled Woodpecker, Pichincha, Ecuador
More photos...

© monacoeye • Silanche, Ecuador, 2011 • All rights reserved

Bird name: Cinnamon Woodpecker
Latin: Celeus loricatus
Other: Es: carpintero canelo
Family: Picidae • Woodpeckers
Range: SE Guatemala, Nicaragua, Coast Rica, Panama, Colombia, W Ecuador
Similar: Ringed Woodpecker, Chestnut Woodpecker, Scaly-brested Woodpecker

The Cinnamon Woodpecker is an attractive brown forest woodpecker. I saw them in northwest Ecuador and central PanamaMore photos...

© monacoeye • Para, Brazil, 2011 • All rights reserved

Bird name: Crimson Crested Woodpecker
Latin: Campephilus melanoleucos
Other: Br: Pica-pau-de-topete-vermelho • Es: picamaderos barbinegro, carpintero marcial • Fr: Pic de Malherbe
Family: Picidae • Woodpeckers
Range: Panama to northern Argentina
Similar: Lineated Woodpecker

The Crimson-crested Woodpecker is a large woodpecker, similar-looking to the Lineated Woodpecker. One main difference is that the two white stripes on its back are narrow and converge in a v, unlike those of the Lineated Woodpecker which are widely spaced.

The Crimson-crested Woodpecker male (further below) has a mostly red head, with a black and white “badge” on the ear coverts. The female (above and below) has a broad white stripe on face and black forehead. Throat black, underside swirly stripes.More photos...

© monacoeye • Santa Lucia, Ecuador, Feb 2011 • All rights reserved

Bird name: Guayaquil Woodpecker
Latin: Campephilus gayaquilensis
Other: Es: Carpintero guayaquileño
Family: Picidae • Woodpeckers
Range: SW Colombia, Ecuador, NW Peru
Similar: Crimson-crested, Lineated, Powerful Woodpecker

The three Guayaquil Woodpeckers above were also seen on my first day, on the journey from the airport to Nanegal.

The male Guayaquil Woodpeckers (on left of trunk) has a badge on the cheek; the female, a broad white line running from the bill down the neck. The female has no black on crest, unlike Powerful and Lineated. The male has no white near bill, unlike Powerful.

The Guayaquil Woodpecker is classed as Near Threatened on IUCN 3.1 from habitat loss.

Directly below, a female Guayaquil Woodpecker near Nanegal, NW Ecuador.


Directly below, a male Guayaquil Woodpecker in the Rio Silanche Reserve, Ecuador.
More photos...

© monacoeye • Santa Lucia Reserve, Ecuador, 2011 • All rights reserved

Bird name: Powerful Woodpecker
Latin: Campephilus pollens
Other: Es: Carpintero poderoso
Family: Picidae • Woodpeckers
Range: Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Venezuela
Similar: Lineated Woodpecker, Guayaquil Woodpecker

These photos hardly count as record shots, but Powerful Woodpeckers were quite often seen near a piece of cultivated land at the Santa Lucia Reserve in Ecuador, where they had nested in a tree hole. Unfortunately always on very foggy mornings and at a great distance. Females have no red on head.More photos...

© monacoeye • Central Panama, April 2010 • All rights reserved

Bird name: Lineated Woodpecker
Latin: Dryocopus lineatus
Other: Br: Pica-pau-de-banda-branca • Es: picamaderos listado, carpintero crestirrojo, carpintero real, carpintero de garganta estriada, pito negro listado
Family: Picidae • Woodpeckers
Range: Widespread Latin America
Similar: Crimson-crested Woodpecker, Guayaquil Woodpecker, Powerful Woodpecker etc

The Lineated Woodpecker is found throughout most of South and Central America north of Argentina, including all of Brazil. Was seen fairly frequently in Panama, Ecuador, Brazil.

The Lineated Woodpecker has a red crest, and white face stripe, relatively thin usually, which extends down neck - red malar stripe (see below) on male, dark on the female (photo above). The chest is dark, with variable amounts of horizontal barring on underside, depending on race.

The Lineated Woodpecker usually has two widely-spaced white vertical bands on its back, differentiating it from the Crimson Crested Woodpecker which has narrow bands which meet in “v”. It also has a large dark grey patch behind the eye unlike most of the Campephilus woodpeckers.

Below, male Lineated Woodpecker, Pantanal, Brazil, showing red facial stripe
More photos...

Copyright monacoeye • Itatiaia November 2009

Bird name: Shiny Cowbird
Latin: Molothrus bonariensis
Other: Vira-bosta (Br) • Tordo (Es), Tordo común, Tordo renegrido
Family: Icteridae • Cowbirds
Range: SE USA though C South America, Brazil etc
Similar: Bronzed Cowbird, Screaming Cowbird, Chopi Blackbird

The Shiny Cowbird is one of a few entirely black birds to be found in Brazil. The photo above is a presumed female - the adult male (below) is deep blue-black and shiny.

The Shiny Cowbird’s range covers much of Latin America and has recently extended into Chile and Florida.

It’s usually seen in groups but not always. It tends to walk around on the ground and looks more relaxed than the male Ruby-crowned Tanager. The Chopi Blackbird has a more peaked head and has a grooved bill.

The Shiny Cowbird, not beloved by many birders, is a brood parasite, like the European Cuckoo, laying its eggs in the nests of other birds, and in some cases endangering host species survival.

Below, the bird on the right looks like a male Shiny Cowbird, Pantanal, Aug 2011
More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Pantanal, August 2012 • All rights reserved

Bird name: Crested Oropendola
Latin: Psarocolius decumanus
Other: Japu-preto (Br) • Oropéndola crestada, conoto yapú, conoto negro (Es)
Family: Icteridae • Oropendolas
Range: Panama to northern Argentina, incl Brazil, Ecuador etc
Similar: Chestnut-headed Oropendola, Band-tailed Oropendola

The Crested Oropendola is the most common Oropendola, often seen at feeders in the Pantanal, Brazil; huge numbers seen returning to roost each evening in the Upper Napo region of eastern Ecuador (photo below); also seen as far west as Chiriqui, Panama (photo lowest) - it is currently expanding northwest into Honduras etc.

The Crested Oropendola has a pale yellow bill, bright blue irises, black body with long yellow undertail feathers, which extend past the 2 black central feathers, and chestnut vent and rump.

Charismatic birds which make wonderful noises and calls and a spectacular display (pic below).

Brazil

Below, Crested Oropendola at fruit feeder, Curicaca Lodge, Pantanal, Aug 2011


Below, presumed juvenile Crested Oropendola (dark iris), Curicaca Lodge, Pantanal, Aug 2011


Below, Crested Oropendola displaying at Rio Clarinho tower, Pantanal, Aug 2011
More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • San Isidro, Ecuador, March 2011 • All rights reserved

Bird name: Russet Backed Oropendola
Latin: Psarocolius angustifrons
Other: Oropéndola dorsirrojiza (Es)
Family: Icteridae • Oropendolas
Range: Andes, incl Ecuador, and Venezuelan coast
Similar:

The Russet-backed Oropendola is the only Oropendola in the Ecuadorian Andes, which makes identification easier there. There are several subspecies, the eastern race has a dark bill, generally, whereas other morphs (south and west) have light bills.

All birds pictured on this page, except the lowest, were taken at the same lodge, San Isidro, on the eastern slope, but even at this one location there appears to be variability in bill colour and plumage (see below). You can get very good views of this bird at San Isidro Lodge.

There were also large numbers Russet-backed Oropendolas seen returning to roost each evening in the Upper Napo region of eastern Ecuador (photo below), I think mixed with Crested Oropendolas; I certainly identified some of each species in the flocks containing many hundreds of birds.

The eastern Russet-backed Oropendola, pictured here, is a dark bird with an olive head, variable bill colour, olive - brownish body and long yellow undertail feathers.


Ecuador

Below, Russet-backed Oropendola at San Isidro Lodge, Ecuador, March 2011
More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • San Isidro, Ecuador, March 2011 • All rights reserved

Bird name: Green Oropendola
Latin: Psarocolius viridis
Other: Oropéndola dorsirrojiza (Es)
Family: Icteridae • Oropendolas
Range: Amazonia: Brazil, Ecuador, Peru, Colombia, Venezuela, Guyanas.
Similar: Olive Oropendola

These were the only views I had of Green Oropendolas - on a small island river in the Upper Napo region of Ecuador. They are identifiable by a pink tip to their light bills. Otherwise mostly olive with long yellow tails and chestnut rump and vent.

Ecuador

Below, Green Oropendola in Upper Napo, Ecuador, March 2011
More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • San Isidro Lodge, Ecuador, March 2011 • All rights reserved

Bird name: Subtropical Cacique
Latin: Cacicus uropygialis
Other: Cacique subtropical (Es)
Family: Icteridae • Caciques
Range: Colombia, Ecuador, Peru
Similar: Scarlet-rumped Cacique split

The Subtropical Cacique is a red-rumped cacique living in Ecuador and neighbouring Andean countries. Treated here as split from the similar Scarlet-rumped Cacique in Panama, west of the Darien Gap, into Central America.

Below, Subtropical Cacique showing red rump. San Isidro, March 2011.
More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Do not copy without permission • Panama, May 2010

Bird name: Scarlet Rumped Cacique
Latin: Cacicus microrhynchus
Other: Arrendajo cola escarlata, plío, sargento, cacique de rabadilla roja (Es)
Family: Icteridae • Caciques
Range: Honduras to Panama
Similar: Subtropical Cacique split

Here the Scarlet-rumped Cacique, refers only to the bird mostly west of the Darien Gap: Panama, Honduras etc. Also found in western Ecuador (pic below). The red rump is often not visible when perched.

Below: Scarlet Rumped Cacique spotted from the observation deck of the Canopy Tower.

More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Do not copy without permission • Panama, May 2010

Bird name: Yellow Rumped Cacique
Latin: Cacicus cela
Other: Xexéu (Br), japi, japim
Family: Icteridae • Caciques
Range: Panama, Colombia, Venezuela, Amazonia, Brazil, Peru etc
Similar: Northern Mountain Cacique, Golden-winged Cacique

Yellow-rumped Caciques tend to build a colony of nests beside an active wasp nest (picture below).

Yellow-rumped Caciques were common in central Panama (top pics). Also frequently seen in Pantanal, Brazil (lower pics). Again at Chapada das Guimaraes. Also in Ecuadorian Amazonia (lowest record pics).

Panama

Below, Yellow-rumped Cacique displaying, central Panama, May 2010


Below, beautiful Yellow-rumped Cacique, central Panama, May 2010
More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Ecuador, March, 2011 • All rights reserved

Bird name: Northern Mountain Cacique
Latin: Cacicus leucoramphus
Other: Mountain Cacique • Cacique montañes norteño (Es)
Family: Icteridae • Caciques
Range: Colombia to E Brazil & N Argentina
Similar: Yellow-rumped Cacique

The Northern Mountain Cacique is the regular cacique at Guango Lodge. In Ecuador it is found at 2000 - 3100 m on the eastern slope, so there is no known overlap with Yellow-rumped Cacique.

Adults have bright blue eyes and dark bills, so the bird pictured above may be a juvenile, which have dark irises.

Split from Cacicus chrysonotus.More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Pantanal, Brazil, August 2011 • All rights reserved.

Bird name: Orange Backed Troupial
Latin: Icterus croconotus
Other: João-pinto (Br) • Matico (Es)
Family: Icteridae • New World Orioles, Troupials
Range: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Paraguay, Peru.
Similar:

The Orange-backed Troupial is a real stunner, quite regularly seen in the Pantanal and reasonably approachable. The bird above was the first one I saw, on day three of my Pantanal trip, as I was driving along the Transpantaneira. Too good to be true that this bird was feeding on a tree with similarly-coloured flowers! Of couse I stopped the car for a good fifteen minutes. I’d like to know what tree this is.

Below, Orange-backed Troupial feeding, Pantanal, Brazil, August 2011
More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Napo, Ecuador, March 2011 • All rights reserved.

Bird name: Oriole Blackbird
Latin: Gymnomystax mexicanus
Other: Maicero (Es) • Iratauá-grande (Br)
Family: Icteridae • New World Orioles, New World Blackbirds
Range: Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Peru, Suriname, Venezuela.
Similar:

There are two populations for the Oriole Blackbird: one stretching along the Amazon from Brazil to Ecuador; the other from northern Venezuela into Colombia. I saw this individual in Ecuadorian Amazonia perched on a stump mid river.

An unmissable bird.More photos...

Copyright monacoeye • Iguaçu, Brazil 2006

Bird name: Giant Cowbird
Latin: Molothrus oryzivorus
Other: Iraúna-grande (Br) • Tordo Gigante (Es)
Family: Icteridae • Cowbirds
Range: S Mexico through N South America
Similar: Great Tailed Grackle

The Giant Cowbird is a brood parasitic icterid, laying its eggs in the nests of oropendolas, caciques and some other birds such as jays. It is found from Central America to the northwestern half of South America and to a lesser extent the southern part of Brazil.

The Giant Cowbird is a large bird (40 cm) - it looks a bit similar to the Great-tailed Grackle in Panama, but the latter has a thinner bill. The adult male is larger and shiny blue-black, the female browner and smaller. Irises can be red or yellow, depending on regional differences, also in some regions males tend to have red irises and females yellow irises.


Below, a Giant Cowbird with red eye in the Canal zone of Central Panama, 2010
More photos...

Copyright monacoeye • Amazonia, Brazil, August.

Bird name: Black Caracara
Latin: Daptrius ater
Other: Gavião-de-anta (Br) • Caracara negro (Es), chupacacao negro, cacao negro
Family: Falconidae • Falcons, Caracaras
Range: Amazonia: Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Peru, Suriname, Venezuela.
Similar:

I saw Black Caracaras in Amazonia in Brazil and Ecuador. Adults are black birds with red-orange face masks, juveniles have a yellow face. Unmistakeable. Like other caracaras, often in groups.

Below, a perched Black Caracara in Para, Brazil, August.
More photos...

Copyright monacoeye • Pantanal, Brazil, August.

Bird name: Laughing Falcon
Latin: Herpetotheres cachinnans
Other: Acauã (Br) • Halcón reidor (Es), halcón guaco, halcón risueño, guaicurú, guaco
Family: Falconidae • Falcons
Range: Mexico, Central America, South America, Brazil to Argentina
Similar:

No mistaking the Laughing Falcon, with its light underside and large black eye mask. When perched it appears to have a “flat-top” haircut. A specialist snake-eater. Seen in the Pantanal at Pouse Alegre.

More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Mindo, Ecuador, February 2011

Bird name: Ecuadorian Thrush
Latin: Turdus maculirostris
Other: Mirlo ecuatoriano (Es)
Family: Turdidae • Thrushes
Range: Western Ecuador and Peru
Similar: Spectacled Thrush

Above, a juvenile Ecuadorian Thrush, showing flecks above and spotting below. The adult Ecuadorian Thrush (below) is coloured uniformly. This was the typical bird at a hostel fruit feeder in Mindo. A fairly plain bird with yellow bill and eyering. Not shy.

Below, adult Ecuadorian Thrush, Mindo, Ecuador, February.
More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Papallacta, Ecuador, February 2011

Bird name: Great Thrush
Latin: Turdus fuscater
Other: Paraulata morera, Mirla patinaranja (Es)
Family: Turdidae • Thrushes
Range: Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia.
Similar: Glossy-black Thrush

The Great Thrush is a large bird and very large for a thrush. They are quite common and visible in the highlands of Ecuador - when I visited, one or two could always be found on the grassy slopes of Papallacta, often standing on a grassy knoll.

The male Great Thrush (above) is dull grey-black with bright yellow eyering and orange legs and bill. The female Great Thrush (below) is browner and lacks the yellow eyering.

Below, female Great Thrush, Papallacta, Ecuador, February.
More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Bellavista Lodge, Ecuador, February 2011

Bird name: Glossy Black Thrush
Latin: Turdus serranus
Other: Zorzal negro (Es)
Family: Turdidae • Thrushes
Range: Argentina, Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Venezuela.
Similar: Great Thrush

The Glossy-black Thrush is found at mid-altitude in Ecuador, so generally lower than the larger and duller Great Thrush but there is some overlap.

The male Glossy-black Thrush is deep black with yellow or orange bill, eyering and legs. The female is browner but still with yellow eyering.More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Napo, Ecuador, February 2011

Bird name: Black Billed Thrush
Latin: Turdus ignobilis
Other: Zorzal piquinegro (Es) • (Br)
Family: Turdidae • Thrushes
Range: N, W Amazonia: Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Peru, Suriname, and Venezuela.
Similar:

The Black-billed Thrush has a light underside with beige chest. This was the only one I saw in Ecuador, though I heard it regularly around the lodge.More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Mindo, Ecuador, February 2011

Bird name: Swainson’s Thrush
Latin: Catharus ustulatus
Other: Zorzalito de Swainson (Es)
Family: Turdidae • Thrushes
Range: Widespread Americas - migratory
Similar:

Swainson’s Thrush is a migrant in Ecuador - not that common. I saw this one in Mindo lurking behind some feeders. A small thrush with speckled chest and eyering.More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Santa Lucia Reserve, Ecuador, February 2011

Bird name: Andean Solitaire
Latin: Myadestes ralloides
Other: Solitario andino (Es)
Family: Turdidae • Thrushes
Range: Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Venezuela
Similar:

Very pleased to get a shot of the Andean Solitaire while I was in Ecuador. A beautiful, eery song although shorter (in the examples I heard) and less varied than the Black-faced Solitaire of western Panama, which remains my favourite. Andean Solitaire were often heard in forests of Pichincha. I saw them in Santa Lucia and Milpe Reserves. The Andean Solitaire has a grey face and brown back. More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Do not copy • Itatiaia, RJ, Brazil • November 2009

Bird name: Rufous Collared Sparrow
Latin: Zonotrichia capensis
Other: Tico-tico (Br) • Chingolo, Chincol, Cachilo, Copetón, Pichitanca (Es)
Family: Emberizidae • New World Sparrows
Range: South and Central America, Panama western highlands
Similar:

The Rufous-collared Sparrow is found throughout South and Central America, often near human habitation.

These birds in Itatiaia would feed at dawn on the great numbers of insects that collected around the hotel lights at night. With the aid of the geckos and a few other birds the whole compound was cleaned up by about 7.30!

Adults Rufous-collared Sparrows have a characteristic rufous collar, whereas juveniles lack this and have streaked underparts.

Seen frequently in Itatiaia, Ubatuba and Mostardas. In Panama, only seen in Chiriqui highlands in the west (lowest photo on next page).

Below, Rufous-collared Sparrow, Brazil


Below, Rufous-collared Sparrow, Brazil

More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • Ecuador, March 2011

Bird name: Orange Billed Sparrow
Latin: Arremon aurantiirostris
Other: Pinzón piquinaranja, rascadorcito piquinaranja (Es)
Family: Emberizidae • New World Sparrows
Range: Mexico to Peru
Similar:

I snapped these shots of an Orange-billed Sparrow through the glass at the restaurant at the Mirador Rio Branco. You can see quite a few good birds at this well-priced hotel close to the Milpe Reserve.More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • Ecuador, March 2011

Bird name: Pale Naped Brush Finch
Latin: Atlapetes pallidinucha
Other: Matorralero Nuquipálido (Es)
Family: Emberizidae • Brush Finches
Range: Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru
Similar:

Pale-naped Brush Finch at Guango Lodge. It’s a high altitude Brush-finch, with yellow-orange above bill fading into white streak as pictured.

Below, Pale-naped Brush Finch, Ecuador, March.
More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • Yanacocha, Ecuador, March 2011

Bird name: Rufous Naped Brush Finch
Latin: Atlapetes latinuchus
Other: Yellow-breasted Brush Finch (SACC) • Matorralero de pecho amarillo (Es)
Family: Emberizidae • Brush Finches
Range: Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru
Similar: Pale-naped Brush Finch, Choco/Tricolored Brush Finch

The Brush Finches are in a state of taxonomic flux, but for this entry I’m following IOC v2.11 Jan 2012 taxonomy, which corresponds to Ridgely & Greenfield, Birds of Ecuador, 2001, and does not include the Bolivian Brush Finch.

These photos were taken on the Yanacocha trail at 3500m, near Quito in northwestern Ecuador - a bit higher than the range suggested in Birds of Ecuador: 3200m.

I don’t think there’s much point spending too much time on the ID/name of these birds as they will doubtless change names again.

Typically though Rufous-nape Brush-finch should have a rufous nape, black mask, dark grey upperparts, yellow underparts going greyish near the legs.

Below, presumed Rufous-naped Brush Finch, Yanacocha, March.
More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • Ecoruta, Ecuador, March 2011

Bird name: White Winged Brush Finch
Latin: Atlapetes leucopterus
Other: Matorralero aliblanco (Es)
Family: Emberizidae • Brush Finches
Range: Ecuador, Peru
Similar: Pale-naped Brush Finch, Tricolored Brush Finch

I saw the White-winged Brush Finch on a couple of occasions, both in the same general region northwest of Quito, once on the Ecoruta and once at Angel Paz’s reserve. Both times there was a Crimson-mantled Woodpecker nearby. Ridgely places White-winged Brush Finch at between 1600 and 2600m on the western slope in Ecuador.

The White-winged Brush Finch has whitish underparts, grey upperparts with prominent white wing bar, dark head, rufous head stripe and dark malar stripe, though there are various subspecies, some much whiter, especially in the south.

Below, White-winged Brush Finch, Ecoruta, March, 2011.
More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • Guango Lodge, Ecuador, March 2011

Bird name: Slaty Brush Finch
Latin: Atlapetes schistaceus
Other: Matorralero pizarroso (Es)
Family: Emberizidae • Brush Finches
Range: Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru
Similar: Bay-crowned Brush Finch

Ridgely says the Slaty Brush Finch is the only Brush Finch with whitish-grey underparts on the eastern slope, so these birds must be Slaty Brush Finch then. They occur at high altitude, between 2500 and 3400 m - I saw them at 2800 at Guango Lodge on the eastern slope in Ecuador.

The White-winged Brush Finch has whitish-grey underparts, a white wing bar, dark head, rufous head stripe, dark malar stripe, and light patch above the bill.More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • Santa Lucia Reserve, Ecuador, March 2011

Bird name: Choco Brush Finch
Latin: Atlapetes crassus
Other: Tricolored Brush Finch (SACC) • Matorralero tricolor (Es)
Family: Emberizidae • Brush Finches
Range: Colombia, Ecuador
Similar: Tricolored Finch, Rufous-naped Brush Finch, Pale-naped Finch

Well, I was going to upload this photo as a record shot of a Tricolored Finch in the cloudforest, but I see that the IOC currently has Choco Brush Finch in Ecuador, and Tricolored Brush Finch in Peru, so I guess that the former is this bird.

Ridgely has “Tricolored Brush Finch” as occurring between 600 and 1800m on the northwest slope - I saw the bird above at about 1800m at the Santa Lucia Reserve, north of Quito.

I saw similar birds at Yanacocha but rejected them as Choco/Tricolored because at 3700m that should be out of range.

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • Mirador Rio Branco, Ecuador, 2011

Bird name: Yellow Throated Bush Tanager
Latin: Chlorospingus flavigularis
Other: Montero gorgiamarillo, Clorospingo goliamarillo (Es)
Family: Emberizidae • Bush Tanagers
Range: Panama, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia
Similar:

I saw the Yellow-throated Bush-tanager several times around the Milpe Reserve region - including the cheap and excellent Mirador Rio Branco, which I would recommend to anyone visiting the area.

Yellow-throated Bush-tanagers have a yellow hood and upperparts, grey lores and light underparts, pale irises.

Below, the Yellow-throated Bush-tanager at Mirador Rio Branco, Ecuador
More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • Panama, Chiriqui, May 2010

Bird name: Common Bush Tanager
Latin: Chlorospingus ophthalmicus
Other: Tangarita oftálmica, Tangara de monte orejuda, Clorospingo comun (Es) • C. flavopectus
Family: Emberizidae • Bush Tanagers
Range: SW Mexico to N Argentina,
Similar:

I saw the Common Bush Tanager in several locations in Panama, above in El Valle, below at the Finca Dracula in Cerro Punta. In Panama, recognisable by the large white patch behind the eye.

But in Ecuador, Common Bush Tanagers do not have this white post-ocular mark.More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • Santa Lucia Reserve, Ecuador, 2011

Bird name: Dusky Bush Tanager
Latin: Chlorospingus semifuscus
Other: Clorospingo oscuro (Es)
Family: Emberizidae • Bush Tanagers
Range: Colombia, Ecuador
Similar:

Although the Dusky Bush-tanager was common at the Santa Lucia Reserve, like most Bush-tanagers it was not easy to photograph. A guide told me that in the morning it is easy to see as it chatters continually, but does not stop moving. Later in the day it is quiet and doesn’t move so much, but is difficult to see because it’s so camouflaged in the trees.

Dusky Bush-tanagers have greyish hoods, olive upperparts, grey underparts, pale irises, dark bill.More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • Guango Lodge, Ecuador, 2011

Bird name: Grey Hooded Bush Tanager
Latin: Cnemoscopus rubrirostris
Other: Montero piquirrojo (Es)
Family: Thraupidae • Tanagers
Range: Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia
Similar:

Just a record shot of a Grey-hooded Bush-Tanager in Ecuador. One of only two Bush-tanagers still in the Thraupidae family.

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • Panama, Gamboa, May 2010

Bird name: Lemon Rumped Tanager
Latin: Ramphocelus icteronotus
Other: Flame-rumped Tanager • Tangara lomilimón (Es)
Family: Thraupidae • Tanagers
Range: Panama, Colombia, Ecuador
Similar:

Lemon-rumped Tanagers hybridize with Flame-rumped Tanagers, and so are often lumped together. But for the purposes of this entry, if the rump is yellow, not red, the bird is called Lemon-rumped, even though the birds in Panama were often referred to as Flame-rumped Tanagers by the guides.

Females, in particular, were not uncommon in Gamboa and El Valle. Lemon-rumped Tanagers were also seen frequently in Ecuador, especially around Mindo - only in the west.

The Lemon-rumped Tanager male is black with a very bright lemon rump. The female is yellow below and brown above - a slightly washed out look with light throat, and pale wingbar visible. Both have light bluish-white bills with dark tip.

Below, female Lemon-rumped Tanager, Panama


Below, male Lemon-rumped Tanager, Ecuador, 2011
More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • Liana Lodge, Ecuador 2011

Bird name: Yellow Bellied Dacnis
Latin: Dacnis flaviventer
Other: Saí-amarela (Br) • Dacnis ventriamarillo (Es)
Family: Thraupidae • Tanagers, Dacnises
Range: Amazonia - Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Brazil, Venezuela
Similar: A passing likeness to some orioles

Record shots of Yellow-bellied Dacnis, seen in Pará, Brazil, September, and Oriente, Ecuador with a mixed flock. Yellow and black with red irises.More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • Ecuador, February 2011

Bird name: Golden Naped Tanager
Latin: Tangara ruficervix
Other: Tángara nuquidorada (Es)
Family: Thraupidae • Tanagers
Range: Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia
Similar: Metallic-green Tanager

The Golden-naped Tanager was seen at the Santa Lucia Reserve and in the highlands of Mindo, Ecuador.

The Golden-naped Tanager is a generally blue bird, with black mask, cream belly and crissum, and small light patch on back of head.More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • San Isidro, Ecuador, March 2011

Bird name: Black Capped Tanager
Latin: Tangara heinei
Other: Tangara gorrinegra (Es)
Family: Thraupidae • Tanagers
Range: Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru
Similar:

The adult male Black-capped Tanager, pictured above, has the typical black cap, bright blue body and green collar. The one I saw below was more grey and black than blue. The female (record shot further below) is green and yellow.More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • Panama, Chiriqui, May 2010

Bird name: Bay Headed Tanager
Latin: Tangara gyrola
Other: Tángara cabeciroja (Es) • Saíra-de-cabeça-castanha (Br)
Family: Thraupidae • Tanagers
Range: Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, Ecuador, Brazil through N, W Amazonia
Similar:

More bright colours. The Bay-headed Tanager has a chestnut head, light blue underparts and green upperparts. The female is similar to the male but duller.

There are variations in race. In Para, Brazil, Bay headed-Tanagers had more yellow on neck and shoulders (pic below). In Mindo, Ecuador, they had much yellow on wing (pic below).

More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • Ecuador, March 2011

Bird name: Chestnut Bellied Seedeater
Latin: Sporophila castaneiventris
Other: Espiguero de vientre castaño, buchicastaño (Es) • Caboclinho-de-peito-castanho (Br)
Family: Thraupidae • Tanagers, Seedeaters
Range: Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Guyanas, Brazil
Similar:

A record shot of Chestnut-bellied Seedeater near Tena, Ecuador. This one seemed to only have partial rufous underparts - mostly on throat and crissum - but others on the internet have much more extensive colouring - maybe different subspecies? Female brown. In Ecuador, only found in the Eastern lowlands.

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • Tena, Ecuador, March 2011

Bird name: Chestnut Bellied Seed Finch
Latin: Oryzoborus angolensis
Other: Split from Lesser Seed-Finch • Semillero sabanero, arrocero buchicastaño, cacagüero, tawa tawa, curió (Es) • Curió (Br)
Family: Thraupidae • Tanagers, Seed-finches
Range: East of Andes - Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Paraguay, Brazil etc
Similar: Female Thick-billed Seed-finch

The male Chestnut-Bellied Seed-Finch has a large bill, chestnut belly, and is otherwise black with a white mark on wing. All the individuals I saw in eastern Ecuador were similar to the bird pictured above, with a mottled aspect to the chestnut underparts.

The female is brown. The photo below is probably one, based on bill shape.

The Chestnut-Bellied Seed-Finch used to be grouped with the Thick-billed Seed-finch as the Lesser Seed-Finch.More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • Ecuador, March 2011

Bird name: Plain Colored Seedeater
Latin: Catamenia inornata
Other: Plain-coloured Seedeater (UK) • Semillero sencillo (Es)
Family: Thraupidae • Tanagers, Seedeaters
Range: Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Chile, Argentina
Similar: Catamenia seedeaters

I saw these Plain-colored Seedeaters at around 3000 metres altitude in Ecuador.

The male (above) Plain-colored Seedeater is greyish with orange bill and rufous crissum (under base of tail). The female (below) is streaked and brownish.More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • Panama, Chiriqui, May 2010

Bird name: Yellow Bellied Seedeater
Latin: Sporophila nigricollis
Other: Espiguero capuchino, espiguero vientriamarillo, espiguero corbatita amarillo (Es) • Papa-capim-capuchinho, Baiano (Br)
Family: Thraupidae • Tanagers, Seedeaters
Range: Costa Rica, Panama to Bolivia, Brazil
Similar: Female Variable Seedeater

The male Yellow-bellied Seedeater above, seen at Finca Hartmann, is pale, but there is considerable individual variation in the amount of yellow on the belly. Pictured below, a Yellow-bellied Seedeater from Mindo, Ecuador, which is more yellow. Male Yellow-bellied Seedeaters are easy enough to identify by their dark hood.

The presumed female Yellow-bellied Seedeater, directly below, looks much like the female Variable Seedeater, so ID should be treated with caution.

Below, presumed female Yellow-bellied Seedeater, W. Panama.
More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • San Isidro Lodge, Ecuador, March 2011.

Bird name: Black Eared Hemispingus
Latin: Hemispingus melanotis
Other: Hemispingo orejinegro (Es)
Family: Thraupidae • Tanagers, Hemispingus
Range: Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia
Similar: Bush-tanagers, Fawn-breasted Tanager

The Black-eared Hemispingus is another fast-moving, small tanager that is easily missed. Although pointed out to me quite a few times by the guide, I struggled to get any photos at all, until finally I saw a pair, foraging on relatively open ground, around some bamboo - a typical habitat. Wags tail left to right.

The Black-eared Hemispingus lives between 2200 and 3000m. Seen here at San Isidro Lodge, which is about 2300m.More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • Guango Lodge, Ecuador, March 2011.

Bird name: Capped Conebill
Latin: Conirostrum albifrons
Other: Picocono coronado (Es)
Family: Thraupidae • Tanagers, Conebills
Range: Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia
Similar: Flowerpiercers, Bush-tanagers

The Capped Conebill is a small bird. Males are all blue, mostly dark blue, with bright blue highlights on the cap, shoulder etc. Females olive and blue-grey. Easily overlooked. In Ecuador found at 2000 - 2800m - seen here at Guango Lodge, 2700m.More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • Guango Lodge, Ecuador, March 2011.

Bird name: Blue Backed Conebill
Latin: Conirostrum sitticolor
Other: Picocono dorsiazul (Es)
Family: Thraupidae • Tanagers, Conebills
Range: Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia
Similar:

The Blue-backed Conebill is a small, attractive bird - I was frustrated not to get better shots. It’s a high altitude conebill, living above 2500m - these were seen near Guango Lodge, at 2800 m on the eastern slope in Ecuador.More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • Serra dos Tucanos, September 2011

Bird name: Red Eyed Vireo
Latin: Vireo olivaceus
Other: Vireo ojirrojo (Es) • Juruviara (Br)
Family: Vireonidae • Vireos
Range: Canada through Amazonia, South America
Similar:

The Red Eyed Vireo has a red iris, thin black stripe above white supercilium, light underparts, yellowy green upperparts.

There are resident North American and South American populations, both migrating. A South-American resident group is called Chivi Vireo - birds have brown eyes and yellow vent.

The Chivi Vireo pictured above was seen at Serra dos Tucanos Lodge near Rio in September. Red-eyed Vireos are seen in many forests of South America, many for example in Oriente, Ecuador, in March. We saw a migrant Red-eyed Vireo at the Finca Hartmann in western Panama, in May (further below).More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • Silanche, Ecuador, March 2011

Bird name: Scarlet Browed Tanager
Latin: Heterospingus xanthopygius
Other: Tangara cejiescarlata (Es)
Family: Thraupidae • Tanagers
Range: Panama, Colombia, Ecuador.
Similar:

Difficult to see in this record shot, but the Scarlet-browed Tanager is mostly dark with red streak behind eye, red iris, yellow rump and should-streak. Female lacks head streak.

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • Para, Brazil, September 2011

Bird name: Silver Beaked Tanager
Latin: Ramphocelus carbo
Other: Sangre de toro apagado, toche negro (Es) • Tie-sangue (Br)
Family: Thraupidae • Tanagers
Range: Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyanas, Peru, Paraguay
Similar: Female Guira Tanager

The Silver-beaked Tanager is quite common over its range. It seemed to be the default tanager approaching Tena and into the Upper Napo region of Ecuador. Also the most common tanager in the Pantanal in August, where it was often seen beside rivers and in fruiting trees. Also seen in Parà.

The male Silver-beaked Tanager (above) is easy to identify - dark red with bright lower bill. It can look black in weak light.

Females (below) are browner - but still reddish - with less contrast on the bill. They look similar to female Brazilian Tanagers, but fortunately the two ranges do not overlap.More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • Ecuador, March 2011

Bird name: Scarlet and White Tanager
Latin: Chrysothlypis salmoni
Other: Tángara escarlatiblanca (Es)
Family: Thraupidae • Tanagers
Range: Colombia, Ecuador
Similar: Hepatic Tanager, Summer Tanager

Another unconfirmed record shot - this time of a possible Scarlet-and-white Tanager at the Mirador Rio Blanco in northwest Ecuador. Scarlet-and-white Tanagers do look similar to this - red body with black edging to wings and white belly - but from this angle Summer Tanager or Hepatic Tanager are also both possible.

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • Ecuador, March 2011

Bird name: Plushcap
Latin: Catamblyrhynchus diadema
Other: Cabecipeludo (Es)
Family: Thraupidae • Tanagers
Range: Argentina, Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Venezuela
Similar:

A couple of record shots of a Plushcap I saw on the Ecoruta northwest of Quito.

The Plushcap is an unusual bird, at one taxonomical extreme of the Thraupidae family. It lives at high altitude, between 1600 and 3500m, has stiff crown feathers and usually lives near Chusquea bamboo.More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • Ecuador, May 2010

Bird name: Summer Tanager
Latin: Piranga rubra
Other: Tángara roja migratoria (Es) • Sanhaçu-vermelho, sanhaçu-verão (Pt)
Family: Thraupidae • Tanagers - now Cardinalidae
Range: USA, Mexico, Central America, N South America, Ecuador, Peru, Brazil
Similar: Hepatic Tanager

Summer Tanagers look very similar to Hepatic Tanagers, so the identity of two birds pictured here should be treated with caution.

The bird above is identified as a migrant male Summer Tanager on location - it was seen at San Isidro Lodge (2300m) in March. San Isidro doesn’t list Hepatic as occuring there. Otherwise it might have been taken for a Hepatic Tanager, since it has a dark bill, slightly greyish lores and a carmine, not orange, tint to the bright red hue.

The bird below was, I believe, a migrant male Summer Tanager at the Milpe Reserve, 1600m?, in northwest Ecuador. It has the characteristic pale bill of the Summer Tanager, pale lores and slightly orange-red hue.

Female Summer Tanagers are olive-yellow.

Below, presumed male Summer Tanager, Milpe, Ecuador, March 2011.
More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • Panama, Chiriqui, May 2010

Bird name: Golden Hooded Tanager
Latin: Tangara larvata
Other: Tangara capuchidorada, tangara cabecipinta (Es)
Family: Thraupidae • Tanagers
Range: S Mexico to Ecuador
Similar:

The Golden Hooded Tanager was one of the first birds I saw in Panama in Cerro Azul, then more frequently in El Valle.

The golden hood makes this bird pretty unmistakeable. Good-looking bird!

Also seen at the Silanche Reserve in northwest Ecuador - western slope.

Below: Golden-hooded Tanager, Panama
More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • Itatiaia, RJ • November 2009

Bird name: Magpie Tanager
Latin: Cissopis leverianus
Other: Moriche blanco, frutero overo, tangará urraca (Es) • Tietinga (Br)
Family: Thraupidae • Tanagers
Range: Widespread South America
Similar:

There’s no mistaking the Magpie Tanager, with its strong black and white markings, which are reminiscent of the European Magpie, its large size, long tail and bright yellow irises. Its distribution is split into two parts, one comprising southeastern Brazil.

Also seen in Ecuador near Tena and the eastern lowlands.More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • Guango Lodge, Ecuador, March 2011

Bird name: Blue and Black Tanager
Latin: Tangara vassorii
Other: Tangara azulinegra (Es)
Family: Thraupidae • Tanagers
Range: Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia
Similar: Masked Flowerpiercer

The Blue-and-black Tanager is found at quite high altitudes, generally above 2000m. I saw these birds at Guango Lodge on the eastern slope of the Andes in Ecuador at about 2700m.

No other tanager like it in Ecuador, but similar colours to the Masked Flowerpiercer, which has a very different bill.More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • Milpe Reserve, Ecuador, March 2011

Bird name: Rufous Throated Tanager
Latin: Tangara rufigula
Other: Tangara golirrufa (Es)
Family: Thraupidae • Tanagers
Range: Colombia, Ecuador
Similar: Beryl-spangled Tanager

A record shot of a Rufous-throated Tanager in Milpe; you can just make out the rufous throat in the photo. Found on the western slope in northern Ecuador.

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • Milpe, Ecuador, March 2011

Bird name: Guira Tanager
Latin: Hemithraupis guira
Other: Pintasilgo de buche negro, güira (Es) • Saíra-de-papo-preto (Br)
Family: Thraupidae • Tanagers
Range: Brazil to Venezuela and neighbours
Similar: Female with Yellow-backed Tanager

The Guira Tanager is apparently widespread throughout South America in lowland and degraded forest. I’ve only seen them a couple of times - in Ecuador in Mindo and at Milpe.

The adult male Guira Tanager has a yellow pointed bill, brown or black mask, orange throat, whitish underparts, olive upperparts, orange rump. The female lacks the orange and black markings.More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • Milpe, Ecuador, March 2011

Bird name: Ochre Breasted Tanager
Latin: Chlorothraupis stolzmanni
Other: Tangara pechiocrácea (Es)
Family: Thraupidae • Tanagers
Range: Colombia, Ecuador western slope
Similar: Dusky Bush Tanager, other female tanagers

The Ochre-breasted Tanager is fairly nondescript, and can be difficult to identify. It has a heavy, dark bill and generally ochre colouring elsewhere, slightly warmer colours below and darker above, and grey irises.

See below for same bird without flash.More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • Ecuador • 2011

Bird name: Flame Faced Tanager
Latin: Tangara parzudakii
Other: Tangara cariflama (Es)
Family: Thraupidae • Tanagers
Range: Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru
Similar:

I saw Flame-faced Tanagers on several occasions at the Santa Lucia Reserve, Ecuador, but there often in deep mist. Clearer views at the Milpe Reserve, where they also visited the feeders.

On the eastern slope, also seen at San Isidro, where the nominal subspecies Tangara parzudakii parzudakii is found, which is more brightly coloured - record shot further below.

Above and directly below, the western subspecies Tangara parzudakii lunigera which has less colour in the cheeks.

Below, a Flame-faced Tanager feeding at the Santa Lucia Reserve in northern Ecuador.
More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • Ecuador • 2011

Bird name: Blue Necked Tanager
Latin: Tangara cyanicollis
Other: Tangara capuchiazul (Es) • Saíra-de-cabeça-azul (Br)
Family: Thraupidae • Tanagers
Range: Brazil, Ecuador, …
Similar:

Blue-necked Tanagers have bright blue heads, with black mask, dark bodies, and orange on shoulder. Underfeathers are actually blue and green but in normal lighting the body looks blackish.More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • Ecuador • 2011

Bird name: Grey and Gold Tanager
Latin: Tangara palmeri
Other: Gray-and-gold Tanager (US) • Tangara doradigris (Es)
Family: Thraupidae • Tanagers
Range: Panama, Colombia, Ecuador
Similar:

A grey-and-gold Tanager from a difficult angle. I only saw this bird at Silanche Reserve in Ecuador, in the northwest of the country.More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • Ecuador • 2011

Bird name: Beryl Spangled Tanager
Latin: Tangara nigroviridis
Other: Tangara mariposa (Es)
Family: Thraupidae • Tanagers
Range: Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia
Similar:

Probably the most frequently seen of all tanagers on my recent trip to Ecuador - often in mixed flocks, but very difficult to photograph - it’s small and fast moving and keeps its distance.More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • Ecuador • 2011

Bird name: Metallic Green Tanager
Latin: Tangara labradorides
Other: Tangara verdimetallica (Es)
Family: Thraupidae • Tanagers
Range: Colombia, Ecuador, …
Similar:

Metallic-green Tanager was another frequently glimpsed tanager, hard to photograph. Found mid-altitude in the northwest of Ecuador.More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Do not copy without permission • Panama, El Valle, May 2010

Bird name: Dusky Faced Tanager
Latin: Mitrospingus cassinii
Other: Tangara carinegruzca (Es)
Family: Thraupidae • Tanagers
Range: Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, Ecuador
Similar:

A blurry record shot of a Dusky-faced Tanager in El Valle, Panama.

And another blurry record from Silanche Reserve, Ecuador.More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • Ecuador, March.

Bird name: Saffron Crowned Tanager
Latin: Tangara xanthocephala
Other: Tángara coronada (Es)
Family: Thraupidae • Tanagers
Range: Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia
Similar: Golden-eared Tanager, Flame-faced Tanager

Another very beautiful design on the Saffron-crowned Tanager, which lives in montane forests from 1200 to 2400m. I saw these birds at the San Isidro Lodge on the east slope of the Andes, in Ecuador.More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • Ecuador, March.

Bird name: Grass Green Tanager
Latin: Chlorornis riefferii
Other: Clorornis patirrojo, tángara hierba verde, tángara verdirroja, tángara carirroja (Es)
Family: Thraupidae • Tanagers
Range: Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia
Similar:

Incredibly intense green on the Grass Green Tanager. Contrasted with red face, bill, legs and crissum - a stunning colour scheme. I saw these in cloud forest near Bellavista and San Isidro in Ecuador. These large tanagers live at high altitudes in the Andes - 1500 to 3300m. I saw birds in the middle of that range.

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • Ecuador, March.

Bird name: Golden Tanager
Latin: Tangara arthus
Other: Tángara dorada (Es)
Family: Thraupidae • Tanagers
Range: Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia
Similar: Blackburnian Warbler (if glimpsed)

The Golden Tanager is not uncommon in Ecuador in mid-altitude montane habitats. Seen in most locations, usually at least one in a mixed flock. Very easy to see - a bright light in cloud forest canopy. But Golden Tanagers are small and fast moving, and often stick to tree tops, so getting a good photo was not easy. Unmistakeable markings - usually the only other possibility for an orange flash is Blackburnian Warbler (which has a black head)

Below, Golden Tanager in Mindo, Ecuador.
More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • Yanacocha, Ecuador, March.

Bird name: Golden Crowned Tanager
Latin: Iridosornis rufivertex
Other: Frutero cabecidorado (Es)
Family: Thraupidae • Tanagers
Range: Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru
Similar:

Intense colours in this high-altitude Golden Crowned Tanager (usually 2500-3300m), which I saw on the Yanacocha trail (3500m). Great bird - the only one of its kind I saw in Ecuador.

Below, Golden Crowned Tanager - Yanacocha, Ecuador
More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • Serra dos Tucanos Lodge, September

Bird name: Fawn Breasted Tanager
Latin: Pipraeidea melanonota
Other: Saíra viúva (Br) • Tangara pechianteada (Es)
Family: Thraupidae • Tanagers
Range: Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Paraguay; and SE S America
Similar:

The Fawn-breasted Tanager is buff or orange below with blue upper half and red irises. Found in the Andes and in montane habitats in southern Brazil and bordering countries.

I saw Fawn-breasted Tanagers in Mindo and San Isidro Lodge in Ecuador and at Serra dos Tucanos Lodge in Brazil.

The male Fawn-breasted Tanager has deeper colours than the female and the Brazilian Fawn-breasted Tanager (above, male) apparently had richer colours than the Ecuadorian birds (below).

Below, Fawn Breasted Tanager, Ecuador, March.
More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • Ecuador, March

Bird name: Blue Winged Mountain Tanager
Latin: Anisognathus somptuosus
Other: Tángara primavera, cachaquito primavera, tangara montana aliazul (Es)
Family: Thraupidae • Tanagers
Range: Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia
Similar: Black-chinned Mountain-tanager

Blue-winged Mountain Tanagers could be seen at various places near Mindo, as well at San Isidro Lodge.

Blue-winged Mountain Tanagers have more blue on wings than Black-chinned Mountain-tanagers and have black backs, vs olive shoulders for the latter. They have a large yellow stripe on their head.

Below, Blue-winged Mountain-tanager, Mindo.
More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • Ecuador, March

Bird name: Black Chinned Mountain Tanager
Latin: Anisognathus notabilis
Other: tangara montana barbinegra (Es)
Family: Thraupidae • Tanagers
Range: Colombia, Ecuador
Similar: Blue-winged Mountain-tanager

Black-chinned Mountain-tanagers could be seen alongside Blue-winged Mountain-tanagers at the Paz de las Aves feeders.

Black-chinned Mountain-tanagers have less blue on the wing than Blue-winged, more black below the chin and olive top of back vs black back for Blue-winged.More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • Ecuador, March

Bird name: Scarlet Bellied Mountain Tanager
Latin: Anisognathus igniventris
Other: Tangara montana ventriescarlata (Es)
Family: Thraupidae • Tanagers
Range: Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia
Similar:

The Scarlet Bellied Mountain Tanager is a very eye-catching bird - I only saw one pair at Yanacocha at 3500m, feeding on the berries below. Their range descends to 1500m.
More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • Serra dos Tucanos Lodge, September

Bird name: Hooded Mountain Tanager
Latin: Buthraupis montana
Other: Tangara montaña encapuchada (Es)
Family: Thraupidae • Tanagers
Range: Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia
Similar:

I saw this Hooded Mountain-tanager near the Bellavista Lodge grounds in Ecuador. Found at quite high altitudes - 2000 to 3200 m. Also seen at San Isidro Lodge on the eastern slope of the Andes.

The Hooded Mountain-tanager has red irises and a black head. A large tanager.More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • All rights reserved • Ecuador, 2011

Bird name: Broad Winged Hawk
Latin: Buteo platypterus
Other: Gavião-de-asa-largo (Br) • Aguila aliancha, gavilán aliancho (Es)
Family: Accipitridae • Hawks, Birds of Prey
Range: USA through Latin America, E Brazil
Similar:

A Broad-winged Hawk, beside the road, in the mountains in eastern Ecuador.

Copyright: monacoeye • Do not copy • Ecuador • March

Bird name: Plumbeous Kite
Latin: Ictinia plumbea
Other: Sovi, gavião-sauveiro (Br) • Milano plomizo (Es)
Family: Accipitridae • Kites, Birds of Prey
Range: Latin America: Mexico to Argentina, incl Ecuador
Similar:

A Plumbeous Kite flying through the trees in Ecuador, March. Note rufous wing tips and banded tail. Also seen at Floresta Amazonica in Alta Floresta, Brazil.More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Do not copy • Lagoa do Peixe • November 2009

Bird name: Pearl Kite
Latin: Gampsonyx swainsonii
Other: Gaviãozinho, cauré, cricri (Br) • (Es)
Family: Accipitridae • Kites, Birds of Prey
Range: Panama, Colombia, Venezuela to Bolivia, Argentina
Similar:

Quick view of a Pearl Kite in eastern Ecuador. The smallest of raptors in the Americas. Note peachy cheeks and black line down neck.

Copyright: monacoeye • Guango Lodge, Ecuador, February • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Chestnut Breasted Coronet
Latin: Boissonneaua matthewsii
Other: Esmeralda andina, Diamante de pico largo, coronita pechicastaña (Es)
Family: Trochilidae • Hummingbirds
Range: Andes; Colombia, Ecuador, Peru
Similar:

The beautiful Chestnut Breasted Coronet, seen at Guango Lodge - a good place to see it.

The Chestnut Breasted Coronet lives at quite high altitudes - I didn’t see it below 2000m - but not as high as Yanacocha.

More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Mindo Lindo, Ecuador, February • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Velvet Purple Coronet
Latin: Boissonneaua jardini
Other: Coronita Aterciopelada, Colibrí sietecolores (Es)
Family: Trochilidae • Hummingbirds
Range: Andes; Colombia, Ecuador
Similar:

The Velvet Purple Coronet is a very striking bird with superb deep purple plumage. The head and chest can often look black. In Ecuador found northwest of Quito, in mid-altitude forest - seen here at Mindo Lindo Lodge, for example.

More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Mindo, Ecuador, February • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Buff Tailed Coronet
Latin: Boissonneaua flavescens
Other: Colibrí colihabano, chupasavia, coronita colianteada (Es)
Family: Trochilidae • Hummingbirds
Range: Andes; Colombia, Ecuador, Venezuela
Similar:

Buff Tailed Coronet is buff under the tail, has white puffy thighs, otherwise mostly green. Also some buff on shoulders and white post-ocular spot.

850m to 2000m altitude; usually above 1400m. Seen at Paz de las Aves, Bellavista Lodge and Guango Lodge.More photos...

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

Bird name: Buff Winged Starfrontlet
Latin: Coeligena lutetiae
Other: Frentiestrella alianteada (Es)
Family: Trochilidae • Hummingbirds
Range: Andes; Colombia, Ecuador, Peru
Similar:

Buff-winged Starfrontlets are one of the easiest hummingbirds to recognise - they are the only hummingbirds in Ecuador with buff-coloured “epaulets”.

Male Buff-winged Starfrontlets have purple throats (below), distinguishing them from females, which have buff throats.

These are high-altitude hummers - I saw them on the Yanacocha trail at 3500m.
More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • San Isidro Lodge, Ecuador, February • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Long Tailed Sylph
Latin: Aglaiocercus kingii
Other: Silfo de King, Silfo colilargo, Colibrí coludo azul, Cometa verdiazul (Es)
Family: Trochilidae • Hummingbirds
Range: Andes; Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia
Similar: Violet Tailed Sylph


Long-tailed Sylphs at in Ecuador. Only males have the very long tails. Females have chestnut bellies and short tails. Seen at Guango and San Isidro Lodges - the latter is a good place to see them. 1600m - 2600m.

Not much overlap with Violet-tailed Sylph (only on west slope) fortunately.More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Mindo, Ecuador, February • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Andean Emerald
Latin: Amazilia franciae
Other: Esmeralda andina, Diamante de pico largo (Es)
Family: Trochilidae • Hummingbirds
Range: Andes; Colombia, Ecuador, Peru
Similar:

The Andean Emerald, pictured here in Mindo, Ecuador. White below with green crown. It lives in the cloud forest from 1000 to 2000 metres.

More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Pantanal, Brazil, August 2011 • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Amazon Kingfisher
Latin: Chloroceryle amazona
Other: Martim-pescador-verde (Br) • Martín pescador amazónico (Es)
Family: Alcedinidae • Kingfishers
Range: Mexico to Argentina, including all Brazil
Similar: Green Kingfisher

The Amazon Kingfisher is a large river kingfisher. The male Amazon Kingfisher (pictured directly below) has a rufous chest. The female Amazon Kingfisher (above) has white and green markings. They are much larger than Green Kingfishers and have less white wing spotting than the latter.

Several near Curicaca Lodge in the Pantanal in August, above ditches beside small roads and above rivers.

Also seen in Amazonia above river banks and in Rio Grande do Sul on telephone wires above wetlands.

Below: a male Amazon Kingfisher in the Pantanal.


Below: a female Amazon Kingfisher in the Pantanal, August.
More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Pantanal, Brazil, August 2011 • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Ringed Kingfisher
Latin: Megaceryle torquata
Other: Martim-pescador-grande (Br) • Martín pescador grande, Martín pescador de collar (Es)
Family: Alcedinidae • Kingfishers
Range: Texas to Tierra del Fuego, including all of Brazil
Similar:

The Ringed Kingfisher is a large kingfisher, which seemed abundant on the banks of the Rio Claro, in the Pantanal, in August; one was perched every few hundred metres in some places. A large, dominant and vocal bird. Also seen beside roads near drying pools, and in by the river in Napo, Ecuador.

The female Ringed Kingfisher (directly below) has a grey chest, while the male (above) is rufous right up to the white neck line. Bill has a light yellow patch on lower base. Rufous belly, grey wings, white collar, large white patch in front of eye; grey plumage is diagnostic.

Below: female Ringed Kingfisher in the Pantanal, Brazil, 2011.
More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Pantanal, Brazil, August 2011 • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Green Kingfisher
Latin: Chloroceryle americana
Other: Martín pescador verde (Es) • Martim-pescador-pequeno (Br)
Family: Alcedinidae • Kingfishers
Range: SW USA to N Argentina
Similar: Amazon Kingfisher

The male Green Kingfisher (above) has a white neck, rufous chest, green head and back, white-spotted black wings and white underneath. The female (below) lacks the rufous colouring.

A smaller bird than the Amazon Kingfisher. Seen regularly in the Pantanal on the banks of the Rio Claro, at Curicaca Lodge, for example. Also Ecuador in the Oriente and Panama in the Canal Zone.

A presumed female Green Kingfisher at Pousada Curicaca.
More photos...

Copyright: TC/monacoeye • Napo, Ecuador, 2010 • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Yellow Billed Jacamar
Latin: Galbula albirostris
Other: Jacamar piquiamarillo (Es) • Ariramba de bico amarelo (Br)
Family: Galbulidae • Jacamars
Range: Amazonia, north of Amazon: Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Peru, Suriname, Venezuela
Similar: Blue-necked Jacamar

Thanks to Tom for this shot of a Yellow-billed Jacamar in the Oriente, Napo, Ecuador. Note darker cap than Blue-necked Jacamar.

Copyright: monacoeye • Napo, Ecuador, May 2011 • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: White Eared Jacamar
Latin: Galbalcyrhynchus leucotis
Other: Jacamar orejiblanco (Es) • Ariramba vermelha (Br)
Family: Galbulidae • Jacamars
Range: Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Brazil
Similar:

The taxi driver spotted this White-eared Jacamar on a telephone wire beside the road, not far from Tena, Napo, Ecuador.

The White-eared Jacamar has a heavy bill and characteristic white ear patch. Otherwise reddish.More photos...

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

Bird name: Turkey Vulture
Latin: Cathartes aura
Other: Urubu-de-cabeça-vermelha (Br) • Turkey Buzzard (US) • John Crow (Caribbean) • Aura común (Es)
Family: Cathartidae • New World Vultures
Range: Americas: Canada to Argentina, incl Panama, Ecuador, Brazil etc.
Similar: Black Vulture, Lesser Yellow Headed Vulture, Comparison

In Panama, there is only one other similar vulture with a thick white trailing band on the wing, the Lesser Yellow-headed Vulture, which has a yellowish, not pink, head.

Turkey Vultures can quickly be distinguished from other birds of prey at a distance by their V-shaped wings when gliding. The key fieldmark for differentiating them from other vultures is the well defined light underside of wings. Also they have pink heads.

Cathartes aura ruficollis, the indigenous Panamanian vultures pictured above and further below have light marks on the back of the neck. Large numbers of migrating Turkey Vultures can also be seen in Panama at the right time of the year.

Turkey Vultures were less common than Black-headed Vultures by the coast and in Itatiaia NP. There I saw them on three occasions, singly or in pairs, very high up or low in the forest.
In the Pantanal they were seen regularly in August 2011, but not as frequently as the Lesser Yellow-headed Vulture.

In Panama, in April, the Turkey Vulture was more common than the American Black Vulture, and frequently seen in most non-urban locations. The observation deck of the Canopy Tower is a good place to get views of them soaring across the top of the forest.

Below: Turkey Vulture showing light underside of wing feathers, Pantanal, Brazil, August.
More photos...

Copyright: DK/monacoeye • Do not copy without permission • Pantanal, August 2011.

Bird name: Andean Condor
Latin: Vultur gryphus
Other: Condor-dos-andes (Br) • Cóndor andino, cóndor de los Andes, condornel (Es)
Family: Cathartidae • New World Vultures
Range: Andes: (Venezuela, Colombia), Ecuador, Peru, Chile, Bolivia, Argentina, (also Brazil)
Similar: juvenile is dark like Black Vulture

Thanks to Dirk for these photos of the majestic Andean Condor in Peru. I saw no Condors in Ecuador at Papallacta, where they are occasionally seen. A rare bird now, classified as Near Threatened on the IUCN red list.

The adult Andean Condor has a characteristic white collar and white back of wing, unlike any other vulture. With three-metre wingspan, it is also much larger than even the Greater Yellow-headed Vulture (210cm). The juvenile, pictured above, is brown.

Below: adult Andean Condor in Peru.
More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Rio Azul Lodge, Sept 2011 • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: White Throated Toucan
Latin: Ramphastos tucanus
Other: Tucán goliblanco (Es) • Tucano-de-peito-branco (Br)
Family: Ramphastidae • Toucans
Range: East Ecuador, Amazonia, incl Brazil
Similar: Channel Billed Toucan

These birds were identified by the Rio Azul Lodge guide as White-throated Toucans. Note blue patch at base of lower mandible, yellow above. Very similar to Channel-billed Toucan, though calls are different, so treat ID with caution.

Below, a White Throated Toucan in flight carrying food, in Para, Brazil, September
More photos...

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

Bird name: Lettered Aracari
Latin: Pteroglossus inscriptus
Other: Arasari Letreado (Es), Araçari-letrado (Br)
Family: Ramphastidae • Toucans, Aracaris
Range: W, S Amazonia including east Ecuador, Brazil
Similar:

Lettered Aracari were seen perching high up, on several occasions, in the Upper Napo region of Ecuadorian Amazonia. They are so named because of the inky markings on their upper bill. Like many other aracaris they often sit perched with a small fruit in their bills. Attractive birds and not uncommon.

Bill markings vary widely from individual to individual, some with few thick black lines, others with many thinner lines. The Ecuadorian subspecies pictured above is Pteroglossus inscriptus humboldti, which has a completely black lower bill.

The nominate subspecies, pictured below, lives in Brazil east of the Rio Madeira tributary of the Amazon, has much yellow on the lower bill, a black mark at base of lower mandible and black at tip.

Below, the Brazilian subspecies in flight. Bill mostly yellow. Para, Brazil, September.
More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Pantanal, Aug 2011 • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Agami Heron
Latin: Agamia agami
Other: Garça-da-mata (Br) • Garza agamí (Es) • Chestnut-bellied Heron
Family: Ardeidae • Herons
Range: Central America to Brazil
Similar: none

The Agami Heron is usually very difficult to see as it hides in the darkness of overhanging vegetation by the river’s edge, or in forest swamps, but what a stunner!

It is a medium sized heron with a very long pointed bill and beautiful dark red and green colouring to its feathers, with white markings down the neck. The juvenile, pictured further below, is much duller.

I saw Agami Herons with my in-house guide, Dodo, from Rio Clarinho Lodge (basic accommodation but recommended for this bird), who punted me down the Rio Claro river. We saw three different Agamis over about two hours, including one juvenile.

To notice them you really need to have eyesight than can pierce the darkness - or a very good guide. These photos were taken without flash at very slow speeds.

The birds moved very slowly, generally with neck retracted, and though initally very shy, after a while continued with their normal stalking behaviour, moving gracefully through the network of roots that reach down into the water from overhanging bushes and trees.

Below: An adult Agami Heron on the Rio Claro, Pantanal, Brazil, Aug, Sep 2011
More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Do not copy without permission • Lagoa do Peixe, Brazil • Nov 2009

Bird name: Roadside Hawk
Latin: Buteo magnirostris
Other: Gavião-carijó (Br) • Gavilán pollero (Es), Aguilucho de ala rojiza, Taguato común
Family: Accipitridae • Hawks, Birds of Prey
Range: Latin America, Mexico to Argentina, incl Brazil
Similar:

The Roadside Hawk has a dark head with pale irises and usually pale barred chest and underwings. Topside of wings are dark, with a rufous wing patch on primaries. This rufous patch, usually just visible on perched birds, is diagnostic for Roadside Hawk.

The Roadside Hawk is typically the most frequently seen bird of prey when birding in Latin America, so it is a good bird to learn to identify.

Tail has thick brown and white horizontal stripes. Bill base is yellowish with dark tip and perhaps some light blue in the middle.

There are several subspecies and morphs, where dark brown is replaced by grey. Upper chest can be dark (Panama) or vertically striped (Brazil).

In the Pantanal in August I saw Roadside Hawks on most days - near roads, rivers and in forest. Near Mindo, Ecuador, in April, it was also the most common and visible bird of prey.

Below, Roadside Hawk mobbed in El Valle, Panama, May 2010. Dark throat and chest.


Below, a pair of Roadside Hawks in Mindo, Ecuador, April 2011. Yellow irises, orange ceres, grey throat and chest, rufous primaries just visible in perched birds. Thin white barring lines on underside.

More photos...

Copyright: DK/monacoeye • Chile • April 2011 • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Andean Coot
Latin: Fulica ardesiaca
Other: Focha andina
Family: Rallidae - Rails, Coots
Range: Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Chile, Argentina
Similar:

Many thanks to Dirk for sending in this nice photo of an Andean Coot at the Salar de Atacama, Chile.

Bill and frontal shield can vary in colour from yellow and red to white. See below for paler variants.More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Ecuador • April 2011 • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: White Bellied Woodstar
Latin: Chaetocercus mulsant
Other: Colibrí de Mulsant
Family: Trochilidae • Hummingbirds
Range: Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Chile
Similar:

These White-Bellied Woodstars were seen at Guango Lodge, 2800m altitude on the eastern Andean slope in Ecuador.

The male, above, is green and white with purple throat, and female, below, more buffy.

Further below, a shot from Dirk shows the purple throat of the male clearly.

Directly below, a female White-Bellied Woodstar at Guango Lodge, Ecuador, April.
More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Pantanal, August 2011 • Do not copy without permission,

Bird name: White Capped Dipper
Latin: Cinclus leucocephalus
Other: Mirlo acuático de coronilla blanca (Es)
Family: Cinclidae • Dippers
Range: Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia
Similar:

Guango Lodge in Ecuador was a good place to see the White-Capped Dipper in April. We saw one diving in and out of the water, and making its way up the fast moving river that runs along the bottom end of the property, and another pair of White-Capped Dippers right underneath the waterfall at the upper section of the property.

The White-Capped Dipper is always found by water, in the Andean highlands, often in pairs. It has no problem walking on wet boulders.More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Ecuador • April 2011 • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Mountain Wren
Latin: Troglodytes solstitialis
Other: Soterrey montañés (Es)
Family: Troglodytidae • Wrens
Range: W Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, N Argentina
Similar: House Wren

There was a Mountain Wren coming in to feed on insects at Guango Lodge, near Papallacta on the eastern slope of the Andes. Relatively common in Andean montane forest but fast moving.

The Mountain Wren is more richly coloured than the House Wren.More photos...

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 • Ecuador • March 2011 • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Three Striped Warbler
Latin: Basileuterus tristriatus
Other: Reinita cabecilistada (Es)
Family: Parulidae • New World Warblers
Range: Costa Rica, Panama, Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia
Similar:

I saw Three-striped Warblers on the slope up to Santa Lucia and at San Isidro, Ecuador, but they are fast-moving and very tricky to photograph…

More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Ecuador • March 2011 • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Black Crested Warbler
Latin: Basileuterus nigrocristatus
Other: Reinita crestinegra (Es)
Family: Parulidae • New World Warblers
Range: Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru
Similar:

This Black-crested Warbler was seen at Guango Lodge, but again, hard to photograph.

© TC/monacoeye • San Isidro, Ecuador • Sep 2010 • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Black Banded Owl
Latin: Strix huhula
Other: Cárabo negro (Es) • Coruja-preta (Br)
Family: Strigidae • Owls
Range: Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay
Similar: Black-and-white Owl

Thanks to Tom for this great shot of the resident Black-banded Owl at San Isidro Lodge, in Ecuador. If you visit, be sure to ask a guide to point him out for you. When I visited he was on top of the tall palm tree near the entrance to the lodge one night - too far for a decent photo.More photos...

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

Bird name: Masked Flowerpiercer
Latin: Diglossa cyanea
Other: Pinchaflor enmascarado (Es)
Family: Thraupidae • Tanagers, Flowerpiercers
Range: Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia
Similar: Bluish Flowerpiercer, Indigo Flowerpiercer

Beautiful rich colours on these fast-moving Masked Flowerpiercers. Large black mask and red eye with blue body. Females duller. Seen in several locations, will visit nectar feeders. The best location, where there were large numbers feeding, was at the end of the Yanacocha trail - 3800 m.

If you don’t get a good view, can be confused with Bluish Flowerpiercer.More photos...

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

Bird name: White Sided Flowerpiercer
Latin: Diglossa albilatera
Other: Pinchaflor flanciblanco (Es)
Family: Thraupidae • Tanagers, Flowerpiercers
Range: Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru
Similar: Black Flowerpiercer

Above a female White-sided Flowerpiercer, which is light brown with a fleck of white on its side just visible behind the bend of the wing. The male, below, is black, with the same white fleck.

White-sided Flowerpiercers were easy to see at the Santa Lucia Reserve (1800m), fog and rain notwithstanding, as they visited a flowering bush outside the lodge every day I was there. I also saw males at San Isidro.

Below, male White-sided Flowerpiercer - uses hooked bill to pierce the base of flowers.
More photos...

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

Bird name: Glossy Flowerpiercer
Latin: Diglossa lafresnayii
Other: Pinchaflor satinado (Es)
Family: Thraupidae • Tanagers, Flowerpiercers
Range: Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru
Similar: Black Flowerpiercer, White-sided Flowerpiercer

The Glossy Flowerpiercer is all black, with white patch on shoulder and hooked bill-tip. Only confusion in Ecuador could be White-sided Flowerpiercer, whose white patch is lower down, under the wing.

Seen in good numbers at the feeders at the end of the Yanacocha trail at 3800 m altitude.
More photos...

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

Bird name: Black Flowerpiercer
Latin: Diglossa humeralis
Other: Pinchaflor negro (Es)
Family: Thraupidae • Tanagers, Flowerpiercers
Range: Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru
Similar: White-sided Flowerpiercer, Glossy Flowerpiercer

This seems likely to have been a Black Flowerpiercer, seen at San Isidro Lodge. Black Flowerpiercers are all black, with hooked bill tip, to pierce the base of flowers and reach the nectar. So you need a good view of the side to eliminate White-sided and Glossy Flowerpiercers.More photos...

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

Bird name: Bluish Flowerpiercer
Latin: Diglossa caerulescens
Other: Pinchaflor azulado (Es)
Family: Thraupidae • Tanagers, Flowerpiercers
Range: Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia
Similar: Masked Flowerpiercer, Indigo Flowerpiercer

Record shots of (probable) Bluish Flowerpiercer at San Isidro Lodge, Ecuador. Bill is smaller than Masked, mask is smaller and does not extend behind eye. Iris also red. More blue-grey than bright blue.More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Anaconda Island, March • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Black Fronted Nunbird
Latin: Monasa nigrifrons
Other: Monja frentinegra (Es) • Chora-chuva-preto (Br)
Family: Bucconidae • Puffbirds, Nunbirds
Range: Amazonian Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru. And E Brazil.
Similar:

Small groups of calm Black-fronted Nunbirds were quite easy to observe on disembarkation on Anaconda Island, in the Upper Napo region, and then again near the raised habitations. They have bright orange bills and black plumage. In Ecuador they live in the Amazonian Oriente region.More photos...

Copyright: TC/monacoeye • Ecuador, October 2010 • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Pied Puffbird
Latin: Notharchus tectus
Other: Buco Pinto (Es) • Macuru-pintado (Br)
Family: Bucconidae • Puffbirds
Range: Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, Ecuador through Amazonia to Brazil
Similar:

Many thanks to Tom for the great photo above of a Pied Puffbird, in Ecuador. With white spotting to crown, and larger black band.

In Panama, the Pied Puffbird has a narrow black collar and white-tipped tail, differentiating it from other Notarchus Puffirds. More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Do not copy without permission • Santa Lucia, Ecuador, March.

Bird name: Slate Throated Whitestart
Latin: Myioborus miniatus
Other: Slate-throated Redstart • Candelita goliplomiza (Es) • Mariquita-cinza (Br)
Family: Parulidae • New World Warblers, Whitestarts
Range: Mexico, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Honduras, Guatemala, Belize, Costa Rica, Panama, Venezuela, Guianas, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Brazil, Argentina.
Similar: Parulas, Euphonias

One of the most widespread and frequently-seen passerines in Ecuador in March at mid-altitude - fast-moving but will perch nearby. Seen on the slope up to Santa Lucia, Mirador Rio Blanco, Paz de las Aves and Milpe, but the best views were at San Isidro (above). Often found in mixed flocks.

In Panama, I only saw them in the eastern Chiriqui province, where they are known by the old name of Slate-throated Redstart. They did not live close to huts like the Collared Whitestart, so were seen less frequently.

The Slate-throated Whitestart is yellow below, slate above, extending over head and throat (unlike the Parulas in Panama). Longish tail with white outer feathers distinguishes it from Euphonias. Small rufous crest is sometimes difficult to see. One fanned its tail frequently (photo below).



Directly above and below, Slate-throated Whitestarts, Chiriqui, Panama, May. © monacoeye
More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Guango Lodge • March 2011 • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Spectacled Whitestart
Latin: Myioborus melanocephalus
Other: Candelita de anteojos (Es)
Family: Parulidae • New World Warblers, Whitestarts
Range: S Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, N. Bolivia
Similar:

The Spectacled Whitestart replaces the Slate-throated Whitestart at higher elevations. These were seen at Guango Lodge.

Distinctive marks include rufous crest and yellow “spectacles” around eye. Underparts are yellow and upperparts slate grey. Longish tail feathers, white below.

At times the rufous crest can be obscured, sometimes yellow unibrow stretches across both eyes, sometimes black above bill.

Spectacled Whitestart at Guango Lodge, Ecuador. March. © monacoeye
More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Ecuador • March 2011 • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Blackburnian Warbler
Latin: Dendroica fusca
Other: Reinita de garganta naranja (Es)
Family: Parulidae • New World Warblers
Range: Canada, East USA - migrating to Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, Ecuador, Bolivia
Similar:

A bright flash of orange at the Santa Lucia Reserve in Ecuador, in March, is sure to be a Blackburnian Warbler. These cheerful small birds were also particularly easy to see around San Isidro Lodge.

The adult male Blackburnian Warbler (above) has strong orange, black and white markings. Females and juveniles and non-breeding plumages (below) are greyer and have less orange.

Directly below probably female or juvenile Blackburnian Warbler. Ecuador, March. ©
More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Ecuador • March 2011 • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Russet Crowned Warbler
Latin: Basileuterus coronatus
Other: Reinita coronirrojiza (Es)
Family: Parulidae • New World Warblers
Range: Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia
Similar:

The Russet-Crowned Warbler was seen at Guango Lodge and San Isidro Lodge in Ecuador in March.

These are Basileuterus coronatus orientalis, which have light-grey (not yellow) underparts, found on the eastern slope of the Ecuadorian Andes. Main distinguishing mark is the russet stripe on crown.More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Ecuador • March 2011 • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Black and White Warbler
Latin: Mniotilta varia
Other: Reinita blancinegra (Es)
Family: Parulidae • New World Warblers
Range: Canada, E USA - Mexico to Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, West Indies
Similar:

We just saw one Black-and-White Warbler (rare according to the guide), at San Isidro Lodge in Ecuador in March. An attractive migrant warbler with only black and white markings. The male has a black throat, non-breeding plumage has white throat and lighter underparts.
More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Ecuador • March 2011 • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Canada Warbler
Latin: Wilsonia canadensis
Other: Reinita Collareja (Es)
Family: Parulidae • New World Warblers
Range: Canada, East USA - migrating to Panama, Colombia, Ecuador, Bolivia etc
Similar:

Canada Warbler were seen on several occasions at San Isidro Lodge, Ecuador, in March.

Adult male Canada Warblers (above) have strong black “necklace”markings on a yellow underside. Females and juveniles (below) have fainter markings.

Directly below female or juvenile Canada Warbler. Ecuador, March. ©
More photos...

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

Bird name: Booted Racket Tail
Latin: Ocreatus underwoodii
Other: Colaespátula zamarrito (Es)
Family: Trochilidae • Hummingbirds
Range: N Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Bolivia
Similar: Purple-bibbed White-tip female

The Booted Racket-Tail was one of the first hummingbirds I saw in Ecuador, at 1800 m altitude at the Santa Lucia Reserve feeders. Then at other feeders, for example, the excellent hummingbird set-up at Mindo Lindo, and at nearby Septimo Paraiso, but not lower down in the town of Mindo.

The male Booted Racket-Tail (above) is instantly recognisable by its long tail feathers, terminating in purple “rackets” (more difficult to identify when regrowing these feathers) and fluffy white thigh “boots”. Otherwise mostly green, with white post-ocular mark and brown wings.

The female (directly below) is more difficult to identify. She has a normal-sized tail, white chest and underparts, greenish upperside (coppery with flash) which stretches down round the sides leaving a few spots on the belly. She has smaller thigh puffs, pale feet, dark bill, white post-ocular spot, white tail-tip, and faint short white malar stripe.

There are two subspecies in Ecuador: peruanus female has buff thighs and crissum and more spotting on chest, melanantherus - the one seen NW of Quito - has white puffs and crissum and white chest.

Directly below, a female Booted Racket-Tail in northwest Ecuador. Copyright monacoeye.
More photos...

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

Bird name: Black-capped Donacobius
Latin: Donacobius atricapilla
Other: Donacobio (Es) • Japacanim (Br)
Family: Donacobiidae • Black-capped Donacobius
Range: Panama, Colombia, Venezuela, Guyanas, Ecuador, Peru, Brazil, Bolivia, Paraguay, N Argentina
Similar:

We saw our first Black-capped Donacobius clinging to reedtops in flooded pasture beside the road down to Tena from Quito. Then further east, in the upper Napo region, in a river-island marsh.

They are vocal, often duetting, ‘kwik, kwik, kwik’, and conspicuous, hopping up to see what you are doing then retreating. When duetting they display their orange throats.

The Donacobius is placed in a family of its own here, following the IOC classification, but opinions differ - originally it was thought to be a wren, and now perhaps a type of old-world warbler.

The Black-capped Donacobius is found throughout northeast South America, including the Amazon basin and Pantanal.

The Donacobius is cream below, brown-black above, black head and bill, bright orange-yellow iris, with relatively long black and white tail feathers. So easy to identify in Ecuador.


Below, a pair of duetting Black-capped Donacobius, nr Tena, Ecuador, March
More photos...

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

Bird name: Turquoise Jay
Latin: Cyanocorax turcosa
Other: Urraca Turquesa (Es)
Family: Corvidae • Crows, Jays
Range: Southern Colombia, Ecuador, northern Peru
Similar: Black-collared Jay, Beautiful Jay

Turquoise Jays are the most visible large bird around Guango Lodge in Ecuador. They come close to the lodge in the morning and feast on the insects attracted by the night lights.

They have an electric blue plumage under flash, and are bright cobalt blue in normal light, with black eyemask and thin chinstrap - unlike the rarer Black-collared Jay which has a thick chin strap.

They live at altitude - 2 to 3 thousand metres - so higher than Inca Jays, though their ranges overlap a little at Guango.

One also seen in Bellavista.

Below, a Turquoise Jay at Guango Lodge in Ecuador. Copyright: monacoeye.comMore photos...

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

Bird name: Inca Jay
Latin: Cyanocorax yncas
Other: Urraca Inca (Es)
Family: Corvidae • Crows, Jays
Range: Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia
Similar: Green Jay

A stunning Inca Jay at the San Isidro Lodge in Ecuador, where they were much in evidence, especially in the morning, feeding on the insects attracted by the lights at night.

Inca Jays have recently been split from the Green Jay - their northern counterpart.

In addition to their beautiful plumage, Inca Jays have a wonderful repertoire of different noises and calls. They tend to move around in groups.

In Ecuador they’re found in the highlands of the east slope of the Andes and are unmistakable.

Below, an Inca Jay at San Isidro Lodge in Ecuador.
More photos...

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

Bird name: Violaceous Jay
Latin: Cyanocorax violaceus
Other: Urraca Violácea (Es) • Gralha-violácea (Br)
Family: Corvidae • Crows, Jays
Range: Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Brazil, Guyana
Similar:

A couple of record shots of a Violaceous Jay we saw when driving back to Quito from the Oriente near Tena. I didn’t recognise it as a jay at the time - it’s larger than the Inca Jay.

On the photo below though you can see the characteristic white nape. Violaceous Jays are found in Ecuador only in Amazonia, so the road near Tena is at the edge of its range. This was the only individual I saw.

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

Bird name: Masked Trogon
Latin: Trogon personatus
Other:
Family: Trogonidae • Trogons
Range: Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, SC Venezuela
Similar:

Masked Trogons were seen in many locations in Ecuador - Mindo, Milpe, Mindo Lindo, Bellavista, Guango, San Isidro.

Males are green, black and red with white marks. Females are brown and red. Many more examples in “more photos”.


More photos...

Copyright: TC/monacoeye • Do not copy without permission • Ecuador, 2010.

Bird name: Choco Trogon
Latin: Trogon comptus
Other: White-eyed Trogon
Family: Trogonidae • Trogons
Range: W Colombia, NW Ecuador
Similar: Ecuadorian Trogon

Wonderful shot of a Choco Trogon by Tom. I missed this one in Mindo. Note white iris, no eye-ring or white breast-band.

Copyright: monacoeye • Pipeline Rd, Panama, April 2010 • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: White Tailed Trogon
Latin: Trogon chionurus
Other:
Family: Trogonidae • Trogons
Range: Panama to W Ecuador

The White-Tailed Trogon is now considered a separate species from T. viridis. Both male and female White-Tailed Trogons have pale blue eye rings and predominantly white tails (unlike all other Panamanian yellow bellied trogons). The female has slate grey upperparts while the male is bluish-black. Both have yellow bellies.

We saw several in Central Panama, including one from the observation deck of the Canopy Tower. Also seen in Ecuador at the Rio Silanche Reserve (see “more photos” below).
More photos...

© Tom C - monacoeye • All rights reserved • Napo, Ecuador, 2010.

Bird name: Dusky Headed Parakeet
Latin: Aratinga weddellii
Other: Weddell's Conure, Dusky-headed Conure (Pets) • Lorita pico negro (Es)
Family: Psittacidae - Parrots, Parakeets
Range: Colombia, Ecuador, Peru to Bolivia, W Amazonia
Similar:

Thanks to Tom for this great shot of a hundred-odd Dusky-headed Parakeets at a clay lick on the Rio Napo in eastern Ecuador. The parrots ingest the mineral-rich clay as a dietary supplement.
More photos...

Copyright: TC/monacoeye • Do not copy without permission • Napo, Ecuador, 2010.

Bird name: Yellow Crowned Amazon
Latin: Amazona ochrocephala
Other: Yellow-crowned Parrot • Loro real amazónico (Es) • Papagaio-campeiro (Br)
Family: Psittacidae - Parrots, Amazons
Range: Mexico to N Brazil & E Peru
Similar: Yellow-naped Amazon

Thanks also to Tom for this photo of a group of Yellow-crowned Amazons, beside the Rio Napo in eastern Ecuador.

Copyright: monacoeye • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Blue Headed Parrot
Latin: Pionus menstruus
Other: Blue-headed Pionus (Pet) • Loro cabeciazul (Es) • Maitaca-de-cabeça-azul (Br)
Family: Psittacidae - Parrots
Range: Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Venezuela, to Brazil
Similar:

The Blue-headed Parrot below was seen at Finca Hartmann in the Chiriqui province of western Panama in May.

The Blue-headed Parrot has a distinctive blue head, with small patch of red at base of bill and on chest, difficult to see in the field. Otherwise green with reddish under tail.

More seen in the Upper Napo region of the Amazon Basin in Ecuador below in “more photos”.

Below, a Blue-headed Parrot at Finca Hartmann, Panama, March 2010.
More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Black headed Parrot
Latin: Pionites melanocephalus
Other: Caique de cabeza negra (Es) • Marianinha-de-cabeça-preta (Br)
Family: Psittacidae - Parrots
Range: N Amazonia: Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyanas, Peru, Venezuela.
Similar:

A shot of a captive Black-headed Parrot. In the wild, found in northern Amazonia.

Copyright: monacoeye • Do not copy without permission • Mindo, February 2011.

Bird name: Bronze winged Parrot
Latin: Pionus chalcopterus
Other: Loro negro (Es) • Maitaca-asa-de-bronze (Br)
Family: Psittacidae - Parrots
Range: Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador to NW Peru
Similar:

Bronze-winged Parrots were quite conspicuous at the Rio Silanche and Milpe Reserves in northwest Ecuador.

Bronze-winged Parrots are predominantly dusky blue, have yellow bills, bronze on the wings, red and blue under the tail, white eye-rings and white throats.
More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Do not copy without permission • Mindo, February 2011.

Bird name: Red billed Parrot
Latin: Pionus sordidus
Other: Loro sórdido (Es)
Family: Psittacidae - Parrots
Range: Peru, Venezuela, Colombia, Bolivia, Ecuador
Similar:

I saw these Red-billed Parrots at various locations in and around Mindo, Ecuador. They are the only parrots with reddish bills in Ecuador, they also have blue around the throat and red in the tail, which is short. The rest is green.More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Do not copy without permission • San Isidro, March 2011

Bird name: White Capped Parrot
Latin: Pionus seniloides
Other:
Family: Psittacidae - Parrots
Range: W Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, NW Peru
Similar: Speckle-faced Parrot

Just couldn’t get a good view of this White-capped Parrot at San Isidro, Ecuador… Sometimes split taxonomically.

Copyright: monacoeye • Cueva de los Tayos, Ecuador, Feb 2011 • Do not copy

Bird name: Oilbird
Latin: Steatornis caripensis
Other: Guácharo, tayo (Es) • Pássaro-do-petróleo, guácharo (Br)
Family: Steatornithidae • Oilbird
Range: Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Trinidad, Venezuela, Guyana, etc
Similar:

The Oilbird, although related to the nightjar, differs sufficiently to be placed in its own family, the Steatornithidae.

Oilbirds are fascinating birds, living in caves and dark gorges, and usually only exiting to feed at night on the fruits of oil palms and laurels. They navigate with echolocation and make loud clicking noises.

These birds were perched around the steep sides of a pitch-black, narrow, high-walled gully that cut into the mountain, near the Cueva de los Tayos in the Andes, in northern Ecuador. I had to stand in the middle of a small stream with the water flowing over my boots to take these photos - without flash, in order not to disturb the birds. In addition, we didn’t speak or move much, keeping a respectful distance behind a barrier, and only stayed a few minutes.

The day I visited in February, the main caves were inaccessible, as it had rained heavily, but this back-up location still had many oilbirds. Occasionally, one would move from one position on the wet rock walls to another, with great screeching and flapping of wings. But for the most part all the birds remained put, hardly moving, including one perched on a vine, pictured above, in a shaft of light.

More photos...

Copyright: TC/monacoeye • Ecuador, 2010 • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Band Winged Nightjar
Latin: Caprimulgus longirostris
Other: Bacurau-da-telha (Br)
Family: Caprimulgidae • Nightjars
Range: much of South America, including Ecuador, but not Amazonia and similar habitats.
Similar:

Many thanks to Tom for this photo of a Band-winged Nightjar.

Copyright: TC/monacoeye • Ecuador, 2010 • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Ladder Tailed Nightjar
Latin: Hydropsalis climacocerca
Other: Acurana (Br)
Family: Caprimulgidae • Nightjars
Range: Amazonia, including Ecuador, Brazil, etc
Similar: Scissor-tailed Nightjar

Many thanks to Tom for this nice photo of a Ladder-tailed Nightjar - a bird I missed while I was in Ecuador.

© monacoeye • Napo, Ecuador, Mar 2011 • Do not copy

Bird name: Hoatzin
Latin: Opisthocomus hoazin
Other: Stinkbird; Hoacín, chenchena, serere, shansho (Es); Jacu-cigano, cigana (Br)
Family: Opisthocomidae • Hoatzin
Range: Amazonia: Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Venezuela, Brazil, Guyanas
Similar:

The Hoatzin is a very unusual bird, whose taxonomic relationship to other birds remains unknown, although its DNA has been sequenced and is currently being studied. Its closest relatives have been thought to be variously seriemas, turacos or cuckoos, although conclusive proof is still lacking.

Amongst the hoatzin’s unusual characteristics are a bad smell which deters predators, the ability for chicks to swim underwater and climb up into their nests with clawed wings, a diet of leaves and fruit, and a variety of odd noises including grunts and hisses.

The hoatzin pictured above was relatively easy to see and find on Anaconda Island, in the upper Napo, living in a group that never strayed far from the edge of the swamp.

Many thanks to Tom for the photo below of the Hoatzin in flight, taken near Sacha Lodge.
More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • San Isidro, Mar 2011 • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Andean Motmot
Latin: Momotus aequatorialis
Other: Highland Motmot, Blue-Crowned Motmot • Momotus momota aequatorialis and chlorolaemus • Momoto montañero (Es)
Family: Momotidae • Motmots
Range: Andes - north Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, to north Bolivia
Similar: Amazonian Motmot

Andean Motmot is the new name for the Highland Motmot seen here at San Isidro Lodge in the Ecuadorian Andes.

The Andean Motmot, or Highland Motmot, has an electric blue crown, black eye mask and greenish body.

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

Bird name: Pale Mandibled Aracari
Latin: Pteroglossus erythropygius
Other: Arasari Piquipálido (Es) - split from P. torquatus, Collared Aracari
Family: Ramphastidae • Toucans, Aracaris
Range: Western Ecuador
Similar: Stripe Billed Aracari

I had good views of several Pale Mandibled Aracaris, first at the Rio Silanche Reserve, from the observation tower and in the forest, and then again at El Monte Lodge in Mindo.

The Pale Mandibled Aracari, which is split from the Collared Aracari complex, is best identified by its light lower bill, and one black band on the yellow belly with a smudge or dot on the chest.

More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Paz de las Aves, Ecuador, Feb 2011 • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Crimson Rumped Toucanet
Latin: Aulacorhynchus haematopygus
Other: Tucánete Lomirrojo (Es)
Family: Ramphastidae • Toucans, Toucanets
Range: W Venezuela, Colombia, E Ecuador
Similar: Chestnut-tipped Toucanet

Crimson Rumped Toucanets seemed to be one of the most easily seen of the toucan family in Pichincha, northwest Ecuador. First seen at Santa Lucia, then visiting feeders at Paz de las Aves.

Crimson Rumped Toucanets are mostly green, with red bill, rump and tail tip. Base of bill is white.More photos...

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

Bird name: Choco Toucan
Latin: Ramphastos brevis
Other: Tucán del Chocó (Es)
Family: Ramphastidae • Toucans
Range: Northwest Colombia to southwest Ecuador
Similar: Chestnut-mandibled Toucan

I was pleased to see these Choco Toucans in Mindo. They look similar to the Chestnut-mandibled Toucan, although the latter has a brown, not black, lower mandible.More photos...

Copyright: TC/monacoeye • Sacha Lodge, Ecuador, Oct 2010 • Do not copy

Bird name: Many Banded Aracari
Latin: Pteroglossus pluricinctus
Other: Arasari bifajeado (Es) • Araçari-de-cinta-dupla (Br)
Family: Ramphastidae • Toucans, Aracaris
Range: NW Amazonia including E Ecuador
Similar:

Many thanks to Tom for adding his photos of the Many-Banded Aracari to this collection. On my recent visit to Ecuador, I didn’t venture very deep into Amazonia, so missed this beautiful aracari. I believe he saw it at Sacha Lodge in the Lower Napo. The only Ecuadorian aracari with two bands.

More photos...

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

Bird name: White Throated Toucanet
Latin: Aulacorhynchus albivitta
Other: Tucán (Es) • split from Aulacorhynchus prasinus, Emerald Toucanet
Family: Ramphastidae • Toucans, Toucanets
Range: E, C Colombia, W Venezuela, E Ecuador
Similar: Chestnut-tipped Toucanet, Black-throated Toucanet

The guide at San Isidro Lodge called this an Emerald Toucanet, but the complex has now been split and this bird with a white, not blue, throat is now called the White-throated Toucanet by the IOC. I believe the other prasinus split is called the Black-throated Toucanet, which, as its name suggests, has a dark throat.More photos...

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

Bird name: Black Billed Mountain Toucan
Latin: Andigena nigrirostris
Other: Tucán Andino Piquinegro (Es)
Family: Ramphastidae • Toucans
Range: W Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, N Peru
Similar:

I was very pleased to see this beautiful Black-billed Mountain Toucan on the road from San Isidro to Tena. I had come very close to one at the Guacamayos Reserve a few days earlier, after following its call for an hour, but had been unable to see it properly because of the thick fog. Later with Phototoshop I revealed some colour, but at the time all I could see was white.

Prior to that, I had missed Grey-breasted Mountain Toucan at Guango, which others had seen just behind the lodge, so I was pleased to break a losing streak.

The Black-billed Mountain Toucan has a white throat and pale blue underparts.More photos...

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

Bird name: Plate Billed Mountain Toucan
Latin: Andigena laminirostris
Other: Tucán Andino Piquilaminado (Es)
Family: Ramphastidae • Toucans
Range: Southwest Colombia to south Ecuador
Similar:

The Plate-billed Mountain Toucan is an easy bird to identify with a characteristic buff rectangular plate on its bill. A beautiful bird with many colours, seen on several occasions, though usually at some distance, at the Santa Lucia reserve, and then again near Bellavista on the Ecoruta in northwest Ecuador.

The bird pictured may well be a juvenile.

More photos...

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

Bird name: Black Mandibled Toucan
Latin: Ramphastos ambiguus
Other: Tucán mandíbula negra (Es)
Family: Ramphastidae • Toucans
Range: W Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador to C Peru
Similar:

Although a terrible photo, this must be a Black-Mandibled Toucan, as it’s the only toucan in Ecuador east of the Andes with a yellow bib.

In Ecuador, a good sighting - the Upper Napo is one of only two areas where this bird can be found.

Copyright: TC/monacoeye • Paz de las Aves, Ecuador, Oct 2010 • Do not copy

Bird name: Giant Antpitta
Latin: Grallaria gigantica
Other: Gralaria gigante
Family: Grallariidae • Antpittas
Range: Southwest Colombia, north Ecuador
Similar:

Angel Paz started the whole Antpitta craze several years ago by feeding worms to Maria the Giant Antpitta and then bringing birders along to see her.

Unfortunately when I visited his ranch in March 2011, Maria had not been seen for three months, and the assumption was that she must have been eaten.

Angel seemed understandably a little preoccupied by this state affairs - especially as Maria had been bringing in busloads of tourists - but he was working hard on finding replacements: we managed to see a Yellow-breasted and a Moustached Antpitta as well as some other nice birds.

Mid-morning we sat down to a breakfast of coffee and delicious cheese empanadas - one of the culinary highlights of my trip to Ecuador - cooked by his wife.

Many thanks to Tom for these photos of Maria taken in October 2010, just two months before her mysterious disappearance.More photos...

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

Bird name: White Bellied Antpitta
Latin: Grallaria hypoleuca
Other: Gralaria ventriblanca (Es)
Family: Grallariidae • Antpittas
Range: Colombia, Ecuador, northern Peru
Similar:

San Isidro Lodge on the eastern slope of the Ecuadorian Andes is a good place to see the White-bellied Antpitta, which is fed by worms on some mornings.

In the woods below the lodge, we heard many Antpittas calling, but never saw one. Once one approached to a few feet away, and then changed its call, but I was still unable to see it…

More photos...

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

Bird name: Yellow Breasted Antpitta
Latin: Grallaria flavotincta
Other: Gralaria pechiamarillenta (Es)
Family: Grallariidae • Antpittas
Range: Colombia to northwest Ecuador
Similar:

A very nice Yellow-breasted Antpitta, which came to feed on worms at the Paz de las Aves ranch near Mindo.

More photos...

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

Bird name: Moustached Antpitta
Latin: Grallaria alleni
Other: Gralaria bigotuda (Es)
Family: Grallariidae • Antpittas
Range: Southwest Colombia, north Ecuador
Similar:

The only problem with photographing Antpittas at Paz de las Aves was that my camera wasn’t quite up to the job of taking photos in the dark forest without flash.

Still it was great to see a Moustached Antpitta, birds which I’m told rarely respond to playback.

More photos...

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

Bird name: Violet Tailed Sylph
Latin: Aglaiocercus coelestis
Other: Silfo colivioleta (Es)
Family: Trochilidae • Hummingbirds
Range: Colombia, Ecuador
Similar: Long-tailed Sylph

The male (above) Violet-tailed Sylph has this fabulous long violet tail. Guides love to point them out. Look a Violet-tailed Sylph! Thanks, even I managed to recognise that one… Fortunately where I saw them - Santa Lucia, Milpe, Mindo - there appeared to be no Long-tailed Sylphs to confuse the issue (they have green-blue tails). Male Violet-tailed Sylphs (only in NW ?) have purple bibs.

Females (below) look quite different: no long tail, white chest, peach-coloured belly, speckled throat, but same short bill. Some males have shorter tails - there’s an example in more photos.

Violet-tailed Sylphs were quite abundant at feeders in mountainous, forested areas of northwest Ecuador, and also often seen in the forest.

Directly below, a female Violet-tailed Sylph in northwest Ecuador.


Below, a male Violet-tailed Sylph showing purple bib.

More photos...

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

Bird name: Sword Billed Hummingbird
Latin: Ensifera ensifera
Other: Colibri picoespada (Es)
Family: Trochilidae • Hummingbirds
Range: W Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, NE Bolivia
Similar:

There can be no mistaking the Sword-billed Hummingbird with its extraordinary 10 cm bill. Although generally a difficult bird to see it was easily viewed at the last feeders on the Yanacocha trail (3500m altitude), and was an occasional visitor to the Guango Lodge feeders when I visited.

Its bill is adapted to feed on flowers with long corollas such as the those of the passionfruit Passiflora mixta.

More photos...

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 • Paz de las Aves, Ecuador • Mar 2011 • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: White Throated Quail Dove
Latin: Geotrygon frenata
Other: Paloma Perdiz Goliblanca (Es)
Family: Columbidae • Pigeons, Doves
Range: W Colombia, Ecuador to NW Argentina
Similar:

White-throated Quail Doves are not that uncommon, but difficult to see. The first I saw was perched near the ground in dark forest in Santa Lucia, beside a trail. The second was one of a pair walking along the ground in the forest at Paz de las Aves near Mindo.

The White Throated Quail Dove has bright yellow irises, with a dark line on face separating top and bottom halves. Its neck feathers seem to produce a kind of spiral effect.More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Panama, May 2010 • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Grey Breasted Wood Wren
Latin: Henicorhina leucophrys
Other: Gray Breasted Wood Wren (US) • Sotterey Montes Pechigris (Es)
Family: Troglodytidae • Wrens
Range: Mexico to northern Bolivia
Similar: White-breasted Wood-wren

There were several Grey-breasted Wood Wrens in this location in Chiriqui, Panama, and with some patience, we eventually coaxed them out of the gloom of the canopy, for long enough to be visible enough for a photo. As with other wrens, they have an attractive clear song.

The Grey-breasted Wood Wren is similar to the White-breasted Wood Wren, with dark cap and prominent white stripe above eye. The main difference is a grey chest instead of a white chest.

Also seen and heard in NW Ecuador.

More photos...

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

Bird name: Ornate Flycatcher
Latin: Myiotriccus ornatus
Other: Mosquerito Adomado (Es)
Family: Tyrannidae • Tyrant Flycatchers
Range: Colombia, Ecuador, Peru
Similar: Tody Flycatchers

The Ornate Flycatcher was the first flycatcher I photographed in Ecuador, as I walked up the steep slope to the Santa Lucia Reserve. Then seen again in the Milpe Reserve and near Mindo Lindo.

The Ornate Flycatcher is a small bird, quite easily seen on trails, as it will stay still for some time, and is identifiable by its white lores and yellow rump.
More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Paz de las Aves, Ecuador • Feb 2011 • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Dark Backed Wood Quail
Latin: Odontophorus melanonotus
Other: Corcovado dorsioscuro (Es)
Family: Odontophoridae • New World Quail
Range: SW Colombia, NW Ecuador
Similar:

These beautiful Dark-backed Wood-quail came to feed on worms at the Paz de las Aves ranch in Mindo. It has the simplest pattern of the Andean wood-quails, brown with a rufous orange chest.

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 • Santa Lucia, Ecuador, Feb 2011 • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Cloud Forest Pygmy Owl
Latin: Glaucidium nubicola
Other: Cloud-forest Pygmy-Owl • Mochuelo ecuatoriano (Es)
Family: Strigidae • Owls
Range: Colombia and Ecuador
Similar: Andean Pygmy Owl

The guide I was with in Santa Lucia was convinced that the bird above was a rare Cloud-forest Pygmy-Owl. On my first morning’s birding in Ecuador, no less. We had just left the Santa Lucia Lodge and were observing some of the regular warblers and tanagers when the guide homed in on a great commotion of birds in a couple of trees.

He became very excited, believing this to indicate the presence of an owl, and scanned the branches for some time trying to find the bird. Eventually he did locate the small Pygmy Owl, which was sitting calmly on a bough with warblers, tanagers and flycatchers all around, mobbing it.

On examination he believed it to be a Cloud-forest Pygmy Owl, which he had only previously heard once, and never seen. It’s a rare bird, classed Vulnerable on the IUCN 3.1 list, with an estimated population of only a few thousand individuals. It has been recorded in Pichincha.

But although I’m happy to defer to more learned opinion, the photo itself is unlikely to be conclusive proof, as the Andean Pygmy-Owl, Glaucidium jardinii, although scarce, is much more common with larger range, and looks very similar, with longer tail and more extensive pale spotting or barring on back, sides of chest and flanks. So unless an expert weighs in, the bird pictured could probably be either Cloud-Forest or Andean.

The Andean Pygmy-Owl is generally found above 2000m and the Cloud-forest Pygmy-Owl below 2000m - the photo was taken at about 1900m altitude.More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Pichincha, Ecuador • February 2011

Bird name: Pacific Hornero
Latin: Furnarius cinnamomeus
Other: Pale-legged Hornero (Furnarius leucopus)
Family: Furnariidae • Horneros, Ovenbirds, Spinetails
Range: Ecuador, NW Peru
Similar:

The Pacific Hornero was the first bird I photographed in Ecuador, from the taxi, near Nanegal in Pichincha. The taxi driver told me they were common and had entered the area with the roads a couple of decades ago. But this turned out to be the only individual I got a good view of during my stay.

The Pacific Hornero has recently been split from the Pale-Legged Hornero, which is found further east in South America. The Pacific Hornero is an attractive bird, with a pale yellow iris. Conspicuous and vocal.

More photos...

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

Bird name: White Winged Tanager
Latin: Piranga leucoptera
Other: Piranga aliblanca (Es)
Family: Thraupidae • Tanagers - now Cardinalidae
Range: E Mexico, Central America, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia
Similar:

This White-winged Tanager was one of the first birds I saw in Ecuador, in Nanegal.

The male White-winged Tanager is a red bird with two white wingbars on a dark wing. The female is yellow, also with two wingbars.More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Do not copy without permission • Panama, Chiriqui, May 2010

Bird name: Silver Throated Tanager
Latin: Tangara icterocephala
Other: Tangara garganta de plata (Es)
Family: Thraupidae • Tanagers
Range: Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, Ecuador
Similar:

The Silver-throated Tanager is another beautiful tanager. Quite a small bird, and I didn’t see that many of them until I arrived at Los Quetzales in the Chiriqui western highlands of Panama, where they were attracted by the red berries of this fruiting tree.

The Silver-throated Tanager is mostly yellow with green and black markings on back, and distinctive whitish throat, which can look pale turquoise with flash. Throat bordered above with black line.

Also seen at El Monte Lodge, Mindo, northwest Ecuador.

Below, Silver-throated Tanager feeding on berries, Chiriqui, Panama, May.
More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Pipeline Rd, Panama, April 2010 • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: White Whiskered Puffbird
Latin: Malacoptila panamensis
Other: Buco bigotiblanco (Es)
Family: Bucconidae • Puffbirds
Range: SE Mexico through to Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, W Ecuador
Similar:

We saw a couple of White-whiskered Puffbirds while in Panama. They don’t move around much so are relatively easy to photograph.

These were on Semaphore Hill, near Canopy Tower, and Pipeline Road in the canal zone of central Panama.

They have conspicuous white whiskers around the bill, red irises, and a streaked underparts and tawny chest. The lower half of the bill is light yellowish green.

See comments below for an individual in Silanche, NW Ecuador.More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Panama, May 2010 • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Broad Billed Motmot
Latin: Electron platyrhynchum
Other: Momoto piquiancho (Es)
Family: Momotidae • Motmots
Range: E Honduras to Panama to SW Ecuador, W Amazonia
Similar: Rufous Motmot

The green on the lower belly of the Broad-billed Motmot rises up higher than on the Rufous Motmot. A greenish chin is sometimes visible. Otherwise similar, cinnamon head and chest, darker green-blue wings, black mask, and spot on chest.

Also seen in Mindo and Silanche in NW Ecuador.More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Panama, May 2010 • Do not copy without permission

Bird name: Rufous Motmot
Latin: Baryphthengus martii
Other: Momoto rufo (Es)
Family: Momotidae • Motmots
Range: E Honduras to Panama to SW Ecuador, W Amazonia
Similar: Broad-billed Motmot

The Rufous Motmot is larger than the similar Broad Billed Motmot and less green below. Black mask, cinnamon head, chest and belly. The rest is emerald green-blue. Black spot on chest.

Also seen in Mindo and Silanche in NW Ecuador.More photos...

Copyright: monacoeye • Santa Catarina • May 2007 • Do not copy

Bird name: American Black Vulture
Latin: Coragyps atratus
Other: Black Vulture • South American Black Vulture • Urubu (Br) • Zopilote Común (Es)
Family: Cathartidae • New World Vultures
Range:
Similar: Turkey Vulture, Comparison

The American Black Vulture’s range extends from the southern US to the southernmost tip of Brazil. The Brazilian subspecies, Coragyps atratus brasiliensis, is known as the South American Black Vulture.

These photos were taken in Brazil, where the Urubu, as the bird is known locally, is a familiar sight and always to be found on beaches where fisherman operate, as well as rubbish dumps, and just “around town” generally.

American Black Vultures are large birds, with one-metre-fifty wingspans - they are elegant gliders and have a slow and lazy wingbeat. Underside of wings are lightish (but usually look black against the sky) with dark coverts and white wing tips. The uppersides are black with light wingtips (see below in “more photos”).

Not to be confused with the Eurasian Black Vulture.

Photo copyright: monacoeye • Ubatuba • October 2009 • Do not copy

More photos...