Explorations of an Ecologist: Guatemala 2019, Part 4 : Sierra de Los Cuchumatanes

Part 1: Introduction
Part 2: Thorn forest in the Motagua Valley (January 18-19, 2019)
Part 3: Los Rachitos del Quetzal (January 19-20, 2019)
Part 4: Sierra de Los Cuchumatanes (January 20-21, 2019)
Part 5: Reserva Natural Atitlán (January 21-22, 2019)
Part 6: Volcán San Pedro (January 23, 2019)
Part 7: Cerro Rostra Maya, Los Tarrales Natural Reserve (January 24, 2019)
Part 8: Los Tarrales Natural Reserve (January 25, 2019)
Part 9: Los Tarrales Natural Reserve (January 26-27, 2019)
Part 10: Parque Nacional Tikal (January 28, 2019)
Part 11: El Caoba former airstrip, Tikal former airstrip (January 29, 2019)
Part 12: Parque Nacional Tikal, Uaxactún (January 30, 2019)
Part 13: El Remate and Flores (January 31, 2019)

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January 20, 2019 (continued)

La Sierra de Los Cuchumatanes is the highest non-volcanic mountain range in Central America. With 1,500 square kilometres of mountains situated above 3000 masl, it is the largest highland region in Central America. We were interested in visiting this area due to the presence of one special bird: the Goldman's Warbler. Currently considered a subspecies of Yellow-rumped Warbler, the Goldman's Warbler is a beautiful boldly-patterned bird that is a year-round resident of the chilly highlands of western Guatemala, particularly in the Sierra de Los Cuchumatanes.

We debated whether it would be worth our time to drive all the way out to the Cuchumatanes. However, by completing a big loop it was only a few extra hours out of the way, which made our decision easier. We had booked a place on AirBnB that we found in the town of Todos Santos Cuchumatan for the reasonable price of 13$ for the night.

To obtain access to the national park above Todos Santos Cuchumatan, one must be accompanied by a local guide. We asked the manager at Los Ranchitos if he knew how to arrange this, and he provided us with the contact information of a woman who does research in the area. We called her and she passed on the name and phone number of a local guide. Via Whatsapp the local guide confirmed that a friend would be available the next day and could accompany us for a reasonable price. We were all set as we hit the road.

Our rental truck, between Coban and Huehuetenango, Guatemala

The drive west to Todos Santos Cuchumatan was a long one, and the road conditions made us happy that we had rented a Toyota Hilux with 4WD. Most of the drive traversed mountainous terrain and the first three hours consisted of a windy, pot-holed gravel road. We slowly made progress and by mid-afternoon were only a few hours away.

Unfortunately, our good luck stopped there. We tried to confirm our reservation with the Airbnb host but he would promptly hang up on us shortly after answering our call, this happened several times. We grew frustrated and began looking at other options. Fortunately Dan knew of a ranch called Unicornio Azul, located in a nearby part of the mountains. A quick check of eBird confirmed that there were records of Goldman's Warbler from the ranch, too. As a bonus, it was an hour closer than Todos Santos Cuchumatan. We decided to change course and attempted to arrange a night's accommodation at the ranch since we did not want to risk trying to sort out the Airbnb location. Fortunately, they had one room remaining, so we confirmed. Reluctantly I cancelled our plans with the guide for the next morning since we would not be making it all the way to Todos Santos Cuchumatan. In hindsight, we should have just stayed at the ranch and made the drive to Todos Santos Cuchumatan to look for the Goldman's Warbler and everything else.

The afternoon had been eaten up by the drive but we had added a few birds here and there. Species new for me included Band-backed Wren, while Black-capped Swallow and Brown-backed Solitaire were lifers for both Dan and I.

It was shortly after dark by the time that we pulled into the ranch. We enjoyed a delicious dinner and checked out our room. Somewhere in the distance an Unspotted Saw-whet Owl called - an added bonus that we were not really expecting. We decided that we would head out on foot in search of more owls.

The air was cold but the day's breeze was dwindling as we huffed and puffed up a hillside, moonlight illuminating the path. It would take us a few days to get used to the elevation, that was for sure! At the viewpoint, a Mexican Whip-poor-will fired up but we also heard another Unspotted Saw-whet Owl, in a copse beyond a fence that delineated the property boundary of the ranch. A brief snippet of playback from my iPhone did not entice the owl closer, but it did instigate a second owl to fire up not far from where we were standing! Below is a video I recorded of one of the owls singing.

We attempted to triangulate its location and eventually I spotted the owl, perched above us in an oak. No sooner had I noticed the bird that it flew, and that would be the last we would see of it. Dan and I were pretty thrilled with our luck anyways, since Unspotted Saw-whet Owls have a small range and can be tricky to find.

As we walked back down the hillside to the lodge, we happened to glance up at the sky. Wait a minute, something was wrong with the moon. Was that an eclipse?

It was a surreal moment, watching the total lunar eclipse unfold while we stood there in the darkness, somewhere in the vast Guatemalan highlands. Of course if we had been plugged into social media this would not have been a surprise, but it caught us off guard. Definitely an interesting way to end the day!

The temperatures dropped down to the freezing mark that night, making us thankful for the hot water bottles that the staff had kindly provided to us. As we slept, dreams of Goldman's Warbler and Pink-headed Warbler were in our heads.

January 21, 2019

It was difficult to work up the courage to leave our beds in the morning, but the ardent calls of Steller's Jays provided all the motivation we needed.

Despite the cold temperatures birds were quite active in the morning. Hardly five minutes after stepping outside we had seen our first Pink-headed Warbler! This species is one of four "holy grail" birds targeted by birders visiting the highlands of Guatemala, the others being Horned Guan, Belted Flycatcher and Azure-rumped Tanager. All four of these species are limited to the mountains of southern Mexico and western Guatemala. The Pink-headed Warbler is spectacular to see, with a silvery-pink head contrasted by a deep red body. We did not know this at the time, but these would be the only Pink-headed Warblers we would see all trip.

Pink-headed Warbler - Posada Rural y Ecuestre Unicornio Azul, Chiantla, Huehuetenango, Guatemala

Over the course of the morning we explored a few trails throughout the ranch's property. The viewpoint was absolutely spectacular, and the excellent visibility ensured that we could see for miles across the mountains. We enjoyed hanging out here with the sun shining down as we attempted to warm up. A Black-capped Siskin, one of our main targets, flew over calling but that would be the only sighting of the day. Rufous-collared Robins were quite conspicuous here, as were Guatemalan Yellow-eyed Juncos, a Guatemalan Flicker (Northern Flicker) and a White-eared Hummingbird. A small flock of Bushtits wandered through, while Eastern Meadowlarks sang from a grassy field down the hillside.

Viewpoint at Posada Rural y Ecuestre Unicornio Azul, Chiantla, Huehuetenango, Guatemala

Rufous-collared Robin - Posada Rural y Ecuestre Unicornio Azul, Chiantla, Huehuetenango, Guatemala

Unfortunately the Goldman's Warblers were not playing ball. We hypothesized that during the winter they are likely flocking together with other birds, whereas if we had visited in April they would be singing on territory. We crisscrossed the property and saw quite a few birds and a few mixed flocks, but none contained any Goldman's Warblers.

Posada Rural y Ecuestre Unicornio Azul, Chiantla, Huehuetenango, Guatemala

Hammond's Flycatchers on the other hand were quite common, providing a nice study.

Hammond's Flycatcher - Posada Rural y Ecuestre Unicornio Azul, Chiantla, Huehuetenango, Guatemala

Townsend's Warblers were one of the most common warblers here, but we also found a nice mixed flock that contained a pair of Pink-headed Warblers and a couple of Hermit Warblers (a long overdue lifer for me!).

Hermit Warbler - Posada Rural y Ecuestre Unicornio Azul, Chiantla, Huehuetenango, Guatemala

The bright sunlight caused several butterflies and moths to take to the wing.

Cyanopepla bella - Posada Rural y Ecuestre Unicornio Azul, Chiantla, Huehuetenango, Guatemala

Phyciodes sp. - Posada Rural y Ecuestre Unicornio Azul, Chiantla, Huehuetenango, Guatemala

Soon, it was time to depart the highlands and make our way down to Lago de Atitlán. We reluctantly cut our losses with the Goldman's Warbler, but at least we had found some spectacular species and had had an enjoyable time at Unicornio Azul.

On the drive out, I noticed this hairstreak on the road which I have tentatively identified as Arizona Hairstreak. It reminded me of an Early Hairstreak from North America; turns out, they are very closely related to each other.

Arizona Hairstreak - Posada Rural y Ecuestre Unicornio Azul, Chiantla, Huehuetenango, Guatemala

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Tuesday 26 March 2019

Guatemala 2019, Part 4 : Sierra de Los Cuchumatanes

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