Ecuador - the Andes & Amazon
Birding with the Hendersons
November 6 to November 20, 2011
Sunday, November 6:
Travel from the USA to Quito, Ecuador. Overnight at Hotel Sebastian.
Monday, November 7:
After breakfast at Hotel Sebastian, we will spend the day in Old Quito and the markets of Guayasamin. Lunch at el Tianguez Restaurant at the base of the San Francisco Church. This day allows us to adjust to the high elevation in Ecuador's capitol city. (You should split your clothing into two bags tonight so you can leave your warm weather clothes for use in the Napo lowlands at Hotel Sebastian during the highland portion of our trip.) Overnight at Hotel Sebastian (BLD).
Tuesday, November 8:
After breakfast, we depart Quito and head west of the capitol to the Yanacocha area and bird along the famous Nono-Mindo road. Picnic lunch along the way. We will check in at Sachatamia Lodge with has an impressive array of hummingbirds at their feeders by the lodge as well as good birding trails. Among birds that can be enjoyed at Sachatamia include the barred forest-falcon, red-billed parrot, black-and-white owl, chestnut-collared swift, tawny-bellied hermit, green violet-ear, green thorntail, Andean emerald, empress brilliant, fawn breasted brilliant, brown inca, velvet-purple coronet, booted racquet-tail, violet-tailed sylph, masked trogon, toucan barbet, and pale-mandibled aracari. Overnight Sachatamia Lodge (BLD).
Wednesday, November 9:
Our destination today is the Milpe area, and lunch at Mirador Rio Blanco. Birds of the area include the ruddy pigeon, maroon-tailed parakeet, smooth-billed ani, rufous-bellied nighthawk, white-whiskered hermit, Choco trogon, broad-billed motmot, Choco toucan, chestnut-mandibled toucan, lineated woodpecker, Pacific hornero, masked water-tyrant, snowy-throated kingbird, Ecuadorian thrush, white-thighed thrush, tropical parula, swallow tanager, and scrub blackbird. Overnight Sachatamia Lodge (BLD).
Thursday, November 10:
The famous Angel Paz Reserve is the focus of this day's outing. The family at this reserve has some of the most cooperative and sought-after birds in Ecuador: the sickle-winged guan, dark-backed wood-quail, purple-bibbed whitetip, brown inca, buff-tailed coronet, velvet-purple coronet, toucan barbet, crimson-rumped toucanet, giant antpitta, moustached antpitta, yellow-breasted antpitta, barred becard, olivaceous piha, Andean cock-of-the-rock, and lemon-rumped tanager. We will also bird the Mindo area in the afternoon. Overnight Sachatamia Lodge (BLD).
Friday, November 11:
Today we depart from Sachatamia and head for Las Termas (hotsprings) de Papallacta. This highland location has many specialties of the Andes: Andean teal, Andean condor, red-backed hawk, puna (variable hawk), aplomado falcon, Ecuadorian hillstar, giant hummingbird, shining sunbeam, mountain velvet-breast, black-tailed trainbearer, long-tailed sylph, bar-winged cinclodes, stout-winged cinclodes, Andean tit-spinetail, white-chinned thistletail, many-striped canastero, tawny antpitta, white-crested elaenia, white-throated tyrannulet, white-tailed tyrannulet, tufted tit-tyrant, brown-backed chat-tyrant, paramo ground-tyrant, great thrush, brown-bellied swallow, spectacled whitestart, black-crested warbler, russet-crowned warbler, cinereous conebill, blue-backed conebill, black flowerpiercer, scarlet-bellied mountain-tanager, buff-breasted mountain-tanager, black-backed bush-tanager, black-capped bush-tanager, plushcap, plain-colored seedeater, paramo seedeater, band-tailed seedeater, plumbeous seedeater, pale-naped brush-finch, and rufous-naped brush-finch. Overnight at Las Termas de Papallacta (BLD).
Saturday, November 12:
After breakfast we depart for a day trip to the tower site in the highlands and Guango Lodge which has many hummingbirds and other species to enjoy. Birds in the vicinity of that lodge include the buff-winged starfrontlet, sword-billed hummingbird, buff-tailed coronet, chestnut-breasted coronet, tourmaline sunangel, white-bellied woodstar, torrent tyrannulet, white-capped dipper, black-crested warbler, bluish flowerpiercer, masked flowerpiercer, beryl-spangled tanager, lacrimose mountain-tanager, grass-green tanager, common bush-tanager, gray-hooded bush-tanager, black-eared hemispingus, and slaty brush-finch. Return to Las Termas de Papallacta for the night (BLD).
Sunday, November 13:
We return to Quito after breakfast along the Old Papallacta Road, birding along the way. We should reach Quito by noon and have the afternoon free to unpack our gear and clothing used in the highlands and get repacked and organized for our trip to the Amazon lowlands the next day. (You should again split your clothing so that one bag with your higher elevation warmer clothes can be stored at Hotel Sebastian while we are in the Napo lowlands.) Overnight at Hotel Sebastian (BLD).
Monday, November 14:
After breakfast at Hotel Sebastian, we depart by plane for the Napo Wildlife Center along the Napo River in the Amazon lowlands. The Napo Wildlife Center has become a mecca for birders in South America. The rivers, lakes, and rainforests of this area are inhabited by many of the classic rainforest species of the Amazon basin. Among the amazing species to be found there include great, cinereous, and undulated tinamous, zigzag heron, rufescent tiger-heron, striated and agami herons, greater yellow-headed vulture, swallow-tailed kite, crane hawk, blue-and-yellow macaw, chestnut-fronted macaw, dusky-headed parakeet, cobalt-winged parakeet, orange-winged amazon, little cuckoo, greater ani, hoatzin, tawny-bellied screech-owl, great potoo, short-tailed nighthawk, lesser swallow-tailed swift, rufous-breasted hermit, great-billed hermit, white-bearded hermit, white-necked jacobin, blue-tailed emerald, black-tailed trogon, Amazonian white-tailed trogon, white-eared jacamar, and white-chinned jacamar.
Other birds are the brown nunlet, black-fronted nunbird, scarlet-crowned barbet, gilded barbet, golden-collared toucanet, channel-billed toucan, white-throated toucan, chestnut woodpecker, long-billed woodcreeper, fascinated antshrike, great antshrike, mouse-colored antshrike, pygmy antwren, black-faced antbird, spot-winged antbird, silvered antbird, plumbeous antbird, white-shouldered antbird, thrush-lilke antpitta, golden-headed manakin, orange-crested manakin, violaceous jay, black-bellied peppershrike, black-billed thrush, Lawrence's thrush, Hauxwell's thrush, black-capped donacobius, rufous-bented euphonia, white-lored euphonia, silver-beaked tanager, masked crimson tanager, scarlet tanager, and red-capped cardinal Overnight Napo Wildlife Center (BLD).
Tuesday, November 15:
Included in our plans at the center are two visits to the treetop observation tower where the vantage point in the canopy provides a wonderful opportunity to see raptors and other birds not easily observed at ground level: slender-billed kite, gray-headed kite, double-toothed kite, plumbeous kite, tiny hawk, slate-colored hawk, black-and-white hawk-eagle, bat falcon, common piping-guan, black-headed parrot, mealy amazon, white-necked puffbird, white-fronted nunbird, ivory-billed aracari, lettered aracari, yellow-tufted woodpecker, black-banded woodcreeper, straight-billed woodcreeper, scale-backed antbird, golden-faced antbird, white-lored tyrannulet, yellow-browed tody-flycatcher, grayish mourner, short-crested flycatcher, black-tailed tityra, plum-throated cotinga, spangled cotinga, purple-throated fruitcrow, black-faced dacnis, blackpoll warbler, turquoise tanager, opal-rumped tanager, paradise tanager, casqued oropendola, crested oropendola, and scarlet-rumped cacique. Overnight Napo Wildlife Center (BLD).
Wednesday, November 16:
Another day in paradise. We will make a predawn visit to the famous parrot and macaw clay licks along the Napo River. These vertical clay banks provide an important dietary component of the foods for birds in the parrot family. The clay serves the role of a parrot's "pepto bismol" and allows digestion of seeds that otherwise are either toxic or unpalatable. Special birds of clay lick vicinity are the black caracara, pied plover, yellow-billed tern, ruddy pigeon, dusky-headed parakeet, scarlet-shouldered parrotlet, orange-cheeked parrot, blue-headed parrot, yellow-crowned amazon, mealy amazon, collared trogon, great jacamar, swallow-winged puffbird, dot-faced antbird, brownish twistwing, wire-tailed manakin, and moriche oriole. Overnight Napo Wildlife Center (BLD).
Thursday, November 17:
More birding at the Napo Wildlife Center, including the Tiputini Rainforest Trail. Birds that can be seen along this trail are the great-billed hermit, black-throated hermit, black-tailed trogon, yellow-billed jacamar, scale-breasted woodpecker, crimson-crested woodpecker, rufous spinetail, wedge-billed woodcreeper, Amazon barred-woodcreeper, dusky-throated antshrike, Yasuni antwren, white-flanked antwren, lunulated antbird, black-faced antthrush, double-banded pygmy-tyrant, rufous-tailed flatbill, citron-bellied attila, white-crowned manakin, blue-crowned manakin, dusky-capped greenlet, white-necked thrush, thrush-like wren, coraya wren, and long-billed gnatwren.
There is much other wildlife to enjoy in this rainforest setting: monk-saki monkeys, dusky-titi monkeys, two-toed sloths, squirrel monkeys, night monkeys, golden-mantled tamarins, red howler monkeys, giant otters, tayras, black river turtles, yellow-spotted turtles, anacondas, caimans lizards, black caimans, poison dart frogs, leaf frogs, and giant earthworms more than a foot long. Overnight Napo Wildlife Center (BLD).
Friday, November 18:
This morning we fly back to Quito and have lunch at the Hotel Sebastian. We have the afternoon and evening free to enjoy the downtown shops and restaurants. Overnight at Hotel Sebastian. (BL, Supper on our own).
Saturday, November 19:
Today we enjoy one last day in the highlands and wetlands in the vicinity of the famous Antisana volcano. Another Andean birding hotspot, we may see the Andean condor, black-chested buzzard-eagle, puna hawk, carunculated caracara, Andean coot, Andean lapwing, Andean gull, black-winged ground-dove, Ecuadorian hillstar, giant hummingbird, tyrian metaltail, bar-winged cinclodes, stout-winged cinclodes, streak-backed canastero, lineated foliage-gleaner, tawny antpitta, tufted tit-tyrant, paramo ground-tyrant, paramo pipit, plain-colored seedeater, plumbeous seedeater, and hooded siskin. Lunch at Hotel Antisana. Farewell dinner at La Ronda restaurant (BLD).
Sunday, November 20:
Transfer out. Return to the US.