A Spectacular Bear

Since returning from southern Colombia it has been a very busy (but fun!) month for Laura and I. First we enjoyed a week of travel in Quito and Mindo with Laura's father, Mark. Immediately afterwards we were on a flight to Guayaquil, located in the south of Ecuador. Laura and I rented a car for a week with friends David Bell and Siobhan Darlington, and went off in search of Tumbes endemics in areas west of the city. And right after returning to Quito, we hosted two more friends, this time from Ontario. Along with Jeremy Hatt and David Szmyr we completed a whirlwind birding trip that covered the west slopes and east slopes of the Andes. At some point I hope to write blog entries about these adventures.

Laura and I were ready to base ourselves in one location for a while after all of this traveling. This would allow us to catch up on life, as well as feel a little more settled for a period of time. We chose a favourite place of ours - Yellow House in the Mindo Valley - due to their excellent weekly rates, the warm staff, but most of all, the fantastic location as it is set at the base of the misty, wildlife-laden hills. The bird list, according to eBird, is right around 400 species (many of which are actually legitimate records!).

Exploring the Yellow House trails, Mindo Valley, Ecuador

This proved to be a great decision since we have achieved all of our objectives here while also fitting in a ton of birding, herping and mothing.

Following a few busy days of birding with new friends Steph and Tobias from the Bay Area in California, I was ready for a rest day on Monday. Laura also took it easy for the morning, but by 11 AM she was feeling a little restless and decided to hike some of the trails on her own. As you will soon discover why, this will be the last time that I let her go off on her own without me tagging behind!

A couple of hours later my phone was blowing up with missed calls/messages. Unfortunately I had missed her attempts at contacting me (long story) but I called her back as soon as I saw the messages. She frantically exclaimed a stream of profanities and garbled sentences, but I heard the words "SPECTACLED BEAR!". It turns out that she was on her way back down the hill after an awesome few hours of birding. She paused when she heard an animal cracking branches in a nearby tree. She thought that she had finally caught up with the elusive troupe of capuchins that hang out in the area, but was quite surprised to see that the animal was...big and black? The animal turned its head and she saw the curious face of a Spectacled Bear staring back at her. I can only imagine the adrenaline rush that must have been!

When she was finally able to get a hold of me, the bear was no longer around. I felt pretty dejected but I was very excited for Laura all the same. I asked her to wait in the area for a few more minutes to see if the bear would return, and we ended the call. Two minutes later my phone was ringing again, this time with good news!

Spectacled Bear - Yellow House trails, Mindo Valley, Ecuador

I quickly threw on "field clothes", grabbed my camera, and began the arduous uphill climb to the location, all the while spraining my ankle in the process. Adrenaline kicked in, allowing me to run the final stretch. All the while Laura fed me updates via text about the bear, which was beginning to settle in for a nap.

Spectacled Bear - Yellow House trails, Mindo Valley, Ecuador

Luckily the bear remained in place, giving us both great views as it rested on the branch and eventually began to forage. We were ecstatic! We met another three hikers who were also on the trail and there were a lot of smiles to go around as we watched the rare resident of the Andean cloud forests. After 30 minutes of observation, the bear slunk off into the thick forest.

Spectacled Bear - Yellow House trails, Mindo Valley, Ecuador

The next morning Laura and I returned to the Yellow House trails with Steph and Tobias, leaving at 4 AM so that we could hear the forest come alive at dawn. It was their last full day in the Mindo area and so we were hoping to make the most of it!

Epiphile orea - Yellow House trails, Mindo Valley, Ecuador

Our early morning walk was hugely successful and we came across many great birds, some of which Laura and I had never seen before at Yellow House. At dawn we listened to the forest come alive, as the Mottled Owls gave way to the Wattled Guans followed closely by a chorus of Rufous Motmots as the sky was just beginning to lighten. Within minutes the woods were ringing with song, even if it was still too dark to use the binoculars effectively - Plain Antvireos, Pale-eyed Thrushes, Ruddy Quail-Doves, a cavalcade of flycatchers and even a Cloud-forest Pygmy-Owl. Later on, we had cracking views of a male Club-winged Manakin displaying. And through the rest of the morning under clear blue skies, sightings included Andean Cock-of-the-Rock, Choco Daggerbill, displaying Barred Hawks and a nice diversity of tanagers including White-winged, Glistening-green and Metallic-green. We even found a Cerulean Warbler in a mixed flock! It was certainly a morning to remember.

White-winged Tanager - Yellow House trails, Mindo Valley, Ecuador

We were close to the exact spot where Laura had previously found the bear when we found ourselves surrounded by birds, all frantically feeding and moving through the branches. Ahh, mixed flock birding at its finest. The bear was not even on our radar - we assumed that it was certainly long gone.

We passed a couple of young hikers and exchanged pleasantries. They casually mentioned that a Spectacled Bear was just up the path. With our jaws agape in disbelief, the mixed flock was forgotten as we scrambled back down the hill. Tobias spotted the spectacular bear first. There, in the exact same area, was the object of our admiration, staring down at us from only 20 meters away!

Spectacled Bear - Yellow House trails, Mindo Valley, Ecuador

The bear lazily gave us a once-over from its lofty perch, its arms and legs draped around a large branch. Surrounding the bear was a path of destruction that included broken branches and smashed bromeliads - evidence of its breakfast. Spectacled Bears eat up to 95% plant matter, much of it coming in the form of bromeliads and palm hearts, but also orchid bulbs, palm nuts and fruits.

Spectacled Bear - Yellow House trails, Mindo Valley, Ecuador

Nap time was in order and the bear let out a couple of big yawns. Soon, its eyes closed.

Spectacled Bear - Yellow House trails, Mindo Valley, Ecuador

Spectacled Bear - Yellow House trails, Mindo Valley, Ecuador

We could not resist and had to take a "selfie" or two with the bear.

Spectacled Bear selfie - Yellow House trails, Mindo Valley, Ecuador

Spectacled Bear selfie - Yellow House trails, Mindo Valley, Ecuador

A little while later we retreated back up the path to minimize the stress that could be caused by our presence. A friend of a friend, Rebecca, was staying in Mindo and we had been in contact with her about the bear. She was coming up the path and so we gave the bear some space until she was close. Soon, the five of us were observing the bear one final time before heading down the hill.

Spectacled Bear - Yellow House trails, Mindo Valley, Ecuador

All of these photos are from our initial fifteen minutes with the bear, but with Rebecca we watched the bear rouse from its nap, its new objective to rip apart another massive bromeliad to eat the soft juicy bits near the base of the plant.

Spectacled Bear - Yellow House trails, Mindo Valley, Ecuador

Spectacled Bears are one of those species that I never thought I would see in the wild, or if I did, it would be at one of the few reserves where they can be semi-reliably seen for a small part of the year. It is nearly unheard of to just stumble across one in the wild. Part of this is due to the secretive nature and low densities of this species. But it is also due to their global scarcity caused by poaching and habitat loss. Unfortunately, less than 10,000 of these incredible animals remain in the wild, over a huge geographic area from Venezuela south through the Andes to Argentina.

Spectacled Bear - Yellow House trails, Mindo Valley, Ecuador

I guess I can never have Laura go birding by herself again, since the next time she will probably find a Mountain Tapir! This was an experience of a lifetime and a perfect way to close out our time in Mindo.

Spectacled Bear - Yellow House trails, Mindo Valley, Ecuador