Slow and steady wins the race...if there is an award to be won for having the longest delay between blog posts, I want to enter the competition.
Our second day at San Isidro Lodge, we woke at 5:00am and arrived at Guacamayous Ridge at 6:30am where there was a light drizzle and some fog. At the parking area we had Rufus-collared Sparrow, Great Thrush, and Gray-breasted Wood-Wren. Once on the trail it wasn't long until I got my first lifer for the day, an Ash-colored Tapaculo that Andrew enticed into sight using call playback. That bird was quickly followed by my second lifer for the day, a Yellow-bellied Chat-Tyrant, which also responded to call playback, followed by my third lifer, a Spillman's Tapaculo. The next suite of birds were all species we had seen previously, but nonetheless exciting to see: Grass-green Tanager, Saffron-crowned Tanager, Bluish Flowerpiercer, Beryl-spangled Tanager, Black-capped Hemispingus, and Blue-and-Black Tanager.
Now about a third of the way along the trail, Andrew used the call playback to coax out an Ocellated Tapaculo (lifer), and it worked. This bird is spectacular-looking, and the individual that responded put on an amazing display and was very cooperative. Shortly after, Andrew then enticed a Barred Anthrush (lifer) to show itself. This was followed by Green-and-Black Fruiteater, a Sepia-brown Wren (lifer), and Rusty-winged Barbtail (lifer). To round-out our time at Guacamayous, we ended the walk with several more great species, including four additional lifers for me: Moustached Antpitta, Green-fronted Lancebill, Rufous-headed Pygmy-Tyrant, and Variegated Bristle-Tyrant.
Now back at the bus, the rain and fog had improved little, so we decided to make our way toward Narupa to see if things improved weather-wise; they did. At Narupa it was mostly sunny, and considerably warmer. We parked at a small pullout overlooking a little wetland and garden area, and then walked up the road getting glimpses into a mixture of fields dotted with trees and scrub. At the wetland I added one lifer, a Yellow-bellied Dacnis. But it was along the road where things got really interesting. Here I added Chestnut-bellied Seedeater, Swallow Tanager, Black-billed Seed-Finch, Glittering-throated Emerald, Olive-chested Flycatcher, Crested Oropendola, and Violaceous Jay to my life list.
After a pretty good day of birding, we now began to make our way back to San Isidro. Once back at the lodge we walked the road a bit during sunset and I added three more lifers to my list: Long-billed Starthroat, White-eyed Parakeet, and Rufous-bellied Nighthawk.
Total species today: 74
Total cumulative species for the trip: 280
Total lifers today: 21
Total cumulative lifers for the trip: 84
