Lifer Lancy...ECUADOR (25 Feb.)

After another hearty lunch at Wild Sumaco Lodge, and the exertions of the morning, we opted for a relaxed afternoon with Sumaco's hummers.

The feeders by the magnificent veranda there (glistening after a recent downpour) were alive with hummers, from Napo Sabrewings to White-tailed Hillstars to buff-booted Booted Racket-tails (they have buff rather than white boots on the east side of the Andes) there was never a dull moment. The best of the bunch was arguably this Blue-fronted Lancebill, a lifebird for me. The mass of Golden-tailed Sapphires were much appreciated too, the males impressive with their violaceous hoods, and bronzed tails.

A brief foray along the F.A.C.E trail alone in the late afternoon was generally quite aside from a wonderful Chestnut-crowned Gnateater picked up just before the sun began to sink below the horizon.

More from Sumaco to come...

Easy Antpittas!...ECUADOR (25 Feb.)

We opened the batting at Sumaco that morning with a resplendent Golden-collared Toucanet watching croaking, and dipping, from the balcony of the lodge, and a Black-billed Treehunter hopping around the lodge driveway. Laura and I then waved Betty goodbye, who was by then rooted to the hummingbird feeders (and why not!?), and went off on our mission...A Scaled Pigeon posed above the trailhead and defied the idea that pigeons are dull and boring; this one is not. We then proceeded down the trail and got back on to our mission plan: Antpittas!

Antpittas used to be difficult birds that only the most hardened and dedicated birders could find, through persistence, a hell of a lot of patience, and a decent dose of luck. However, that has has all changed in recent years courtesy of an "outbreak" of antpitta feeding stations that have sprung up in Ecuador, and now neighboring Colombia too. And I for one am happy with this. Formerly dastardly species are now very gettable, like the Plain-backed Antpitta, formerly described by the great Robert Ridgely as the "hardest antpitta to actually see". Now Wild Sumaco have set up a feeding area in the forest, and a short, though slippery, stroll into the forest brought us up close and personal to this formerly elusive antpitta. A little further along the trail, and a good deal of slipping and sliding by Laura and myself, we were lined up for another antpitta. The local guide whistled, the rain fell, and the forest remained still with little sign of movement. Then suddenly, an Ochre-breasted Antpittapopped up and glared at us from its mossy perch. It was going to play after all! In the end a pair came in and gave us "walk away" views.

After all the antpitta action, and being rained on at regular intervals, we made our way back towards the lodge, picking up a Black-mandibled Toucan from a welcome bench, and lookout, near the end of the trail. Realizing that a handkerchief had fallen from Laura's possession and was lying forlorn on the trail somewhere, I backtracked, picked it up and turned around to see a Short-tailed Antthrush slowly creeping away from me-it was obviously not expecting me to return! A nice reward for returning. Once we finally dragged ourselves off the bench we found a pair of Collared Trogons on the way out.

After lunch we were captivated by their hummingbird feeders once more, which even offered me a rather belated lifebird...

Cartoon Bird...ECUADOR (25-26 Feb.)

Betty, Laura and I spent a lot of time over these days admiring the awesome hummingbird activity around the feeders at Wild Sumaco Lodge. They have several sets of feeders there, some buried deep in the forest, and others easily accessible right by their magnificent veranda.

When I last visited there a few years ago the undoubted champion feeders were the ones within the forest that were in the shade and offered little hope for photographers. However, times change and now the "veranda feeders" are amazing, with many species that were rare or absent there just a few years ago now regular and very photogenic indeed...

One such species was the thrilling Wire-crested Thorntail which you needed to hope would visit flowers in the garden before. However, it seems now these incredible hummers have found the feeders, and look set to never leave them. We enjoyed numerous males of these "cartoon birds" with their punky crests, ginger boots, and thorny tails. So as a tribute to this highly entertaining species I putting a special gallery here for them only. I am pretty confident that Betty shared my admiration for this bird, as she could not be torn away from the feeders!

More to come from Sumaco - including more hummers, of course, and the odd antpitta too...

Jewels of the Andes...ECUADOR (25-26 Feb.)

We moved on to the newest lodge in Ecuador, Wild Sumaco famous for hummingbirds and many rare eastern birds. One of the major targets for this tour was to amass a healthy batch of hummingbirds and to this end Sumaco helped immensely. In a few days there the feeders yielded 23 species, including one lifer for me (to come later), and some rarely seen species, such as this Gould's Jewelfront, well-named indeed. The other photo is of the scenic Rio Hollin, near the site of a new Jocotoco Foundation reserve, which we passed en-route to Sumaco.

NEW Ecuador Bird...ECUADOR (24 Feb.)

A final morning was spent in the cloudforest surrounding Cabanas San Isidro on the eastern slope of the Andes. Once again, we awoke to a hive of activity right around the lodge. As with yesterday some of the regulars were there, like the ever-boisterous Inca Jays, (top image) and the stolid Masked Trogon, (second image) along with both Pale-edged Flycatchers (fourth image) and Rufous-breasted Flycatcher, and Slate-throated Redstarts, always pictures of nervous energy (third image).

The now expected family mob of Crested Quetzals regularly appeared, and announced their presence loudly, and a movement in the grass brought me my first Mourning Warbler for Ecuador, a male no less (I had been tipped of of its presence, and was watchful for it if I am honest!).

We took a second shot at seeing the Peruvian Antpitta, (bottom image) and with rain holding off it came in faithfully to its log, where a large leaf laden with juicy worms was hard to resist.

In the afternoon we shed layers as we moved down into the foothills, and the wonderful Wild Sumaco Lodge, where our day closed with a post dinner date with a Band-bellied Owl that displayed its fierce countenance in the spotlight!

Antpittas & Oilbirds...ECUADOR 23 Feb.

We enjoyed breakfast as the sun rose at San Isidro, and then walked out of the restaurant to take in the intense activity around the lodge shortly after dawn. Large lights draw in a myriad of moths during the night, creating a flurry of activity at daybreak as birds come in to pick off the hapless insects which have arrived overnight.

A pair of Masked Trogons were one of the first birds to show themselves, while Olive-backed and Montane Woodcreepers plucked moths from the same telephone pole. Vermilion-rumped Subtropical Caciques and giant Russet-backed Oropendolas were noisy and hard to miss, while more subtle were the Canada and Blackburnian Warblers flitting in the understorey. Many of these were looking pristine in newly gained spring plumage, indicating that it will soon be time for them to head north from the tropics to their boreal breeding grounds. The seemingly resident family "flock" of Crested Quetzals also soon appeared, and peaked at six birds at one time! Flocks in the area also held the dashing Saffron-crowned Tanager, and a very confiding Cinnamon Flycatcher (above) among others.

A special trip was taken to watch a pair of White-bellied Antpittas being fed in the forest behind the restaurant, although as rain fell heavily, the other antpitta we'd hoped for, Peruvian refused to show and we soon retreated for cover from the heavy downpour. Walks around San Isidro completed a brace of quetzals with a male Golden-headed Quetzal also found, a very cute Rufous-crowned Tody-Flycatcher, (above) as well as this confiding Bluish Flowerpiercer (below).

At dusk we positioned ourselves along the road and enjoyed the spectacle of more than 20 Oilbirds passing over as the light faded, with the aid of a flashlight, and later in the evening the striking "San Isidro Mystery Owl" showed up again and glared fiercely back at us.

Next up was a hummingbird bonanza at Wild Sumaco Lodge...

On to San Isidro...ECUADOR 22 Feb.

After a rainy, chilly morning in the temperate zone around Guango Lodge, we moved downhill into the distinctly warmer, and drier subtropics, and Guango's sister lodge, Cabanas San Isidro. En-route to the lodge I was sure to check the numerous rushing Andean rivers for birds, and shortly before turning into San Isidro we managed to find a White-capped Dipper as hoped, dipping conspicuously beside the Rio Yanayacu.

Shortly after, we saw the familiar sign beckoning us to turn into San Isidro, adorned with a large black-and-white owl: the infamous "San Isidro mystery owl" that is regular around the lodge, the precise identity of which is still yet to be confirmed. We were welcomed by a family group of Crested Quetzals (below) around the car park, and the familiar buzz of hummingbirds around their feeders. The shot above shows a Speckled Hummingbird perched impatiently beside the feeders there.

Our day closed with a post-dinner viewing of their famous owl, which teased my by allowing me to walk all around the grounds from the restaurant, only to turn up 40 minutes later right beside the restaurant!

More from San Isidro to come...