Red-hooded Tanager steals the show!
We reluctantly dragged ourselves away from Copalinga Lodge and birded the old Samora road again. Mixed feeding flocks passed through again and the undoubted highlight was having excellent close-up views of Black-and-white Tody-Tyrant, a very localised bird which is hard to see in Southern Ecuador. We also found Rufous-winged Tyrannulet and enjoyed further views of such charismatic species as Vermilion Tanager, Green Jay, Saffron-Crowned Tanager and further views of Lafresnaye´s Picculet. From here we headed off to the Cajanuma entrance of the Podocarpus National Park. Here we climbed up the dirt road to the dead end near the summit and searched for Plain-tailed Wren. We were in luck and quickly located a noisy individual, nothing plain about its song, and with some persistence we also got some pretty good views at close range. We then birded our way slowly back downhill, constantly scanning the treetops below looking for our next target bird. We heard a distant call and with intensified scanning, located a glowing red-and-yellow blob sitting on top of a tree down below us. Through the telescope it transformed itself into a stunning Red-hooded Tanager, what a beauty! Luckily the bird was inclined to show off and we watched it for ages in the bright afternoon sunshine. Other highlights along this track included Bearded Guan, Black-and-Chestnut Eagle which we successfully pished in, allowing Nick to get some amazing close-up photos as it swooped low overhead! A female Masked Trogon added a splash of colour. Leaving the park behind we headed for our lodgings at Madre Tierra at Vilcabamba (the valley of longevity!) and had our Christmas supper of Roast Turkey. We´d just like to take this opportunity to wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy and bird-filled New Year! Bird species total: 4265Posted 24th December, Vilcabamba The Biggest Twitch website will continue to be updated in 2009 with more news about our travels and birding adventures and how we cope with returning to North Wales!