Bosque Protector Cerro Blanco, Guayaquil

Bosque Protector Cerro Blanco is a 6,078 hectare reserve that protects a wide swath of tropical dry forest outside of the city of Guayaquil. It is owned by Holcim Ecuador, an aggregates company, and administered by Fundacion Pro-Bosque, a non-profit that protects and rehabilitates the forest. We had heard that the birding here can be excellent with many of the Tumbesian species that rely on tropical dry forest being present. Normally the gates do not open until 8 AM but I requested permission to have access at 6 AM which was granted.

We rolled up at dawn and slowly cruised to the parking lot, excited for what the day had in store. As it was the dry season, bird-song was very low and the dawn chorus was practically non-existent. One of the few species we initially heard was Collared Forest-Falcon, and it provided good, though fleeting views once we began hiking.

Cerro Blanco is touted as a great place to encounter the range-restricted Pale-browed Tinamou but since it was the dry season, our only hope would be to stumble across one in the forest as they would not be vocalizing. Unfortunately this was not the case and the tinamou went down as one of our few misses for this leg of the trip.

 Exploring Bosque Protector Cerro Blanco, Guayaquil, Ecuador

In the first hour of daylight we birded some of the roads near the camping area and some of the buildings. Bird activity was great and more Tumbesian species appeared. Collared Antshrikes proved to be common (though skulky), we saw a few Black-capped Sparrows and Sooty-crowned Flycatchers, and a couple of Short-tailed Woodstars made us break out the field guide to be sure of the identification. While we observed many Short-tailed Woodstars in this part of Ecuador we were never able to get bins on a Little Woodstar. Next time!

female Collared Antshrike - Bosque Protector Cerro Blanco, Guayaquil, Ecuador

Machtima sp. - Bosque Protector Cerro Blanco, Guayaquil, Ecuador

Short-tailed Woodstar - Bosque Protector Cerro Blanco, Guayaquil, Ecuador

Several of these Cracker butterflies (Hamadryas sp.) were found on the trunks of some of the trees; an excellent example of camouflage.

Hamadryas sp. - Bosque Protector Cerro Blanco, Guayaquil, Ecuador

We walked partway up the Higueron Trail over the course of the morning before turning around and backtracking once our stomachs began to grumble. The birding was a little slow at times, interspersed with bursts of frenzied activity. A small group of adorable Ecuadorian Piculets comprised one little flock.

Ecuadorian Piculet - Bosque Protector Cerro Blanco, Guayaquil, Ecuador

The Gray-cheeked Parakeet is currently classified by IUCN as Endangered due to trapping for the cagebird industry coupled with habitat loss (a deadly combo for many Psittacine species around the world). They have declined rapidly in number and are only found in a small portion of the Tumbesian region, mainly in southwestern Ecaudor. Several flew over us during the morning, including this one which came almost close enough for record photos.

Gray-cheeked Parakeet - Bosque Protector Cerro Blanco, Guayaquil, Ecuador

And we found a snake as well! I was not too optimistic at our chances given the dry conditions, but a slithery sound over the dry leaf litter grabbed my attention. Fortunately it remained in place long enough for a few photos. This is Mastigodryas reticulatus, a species of racer found mainly in the Tumbesian region.

Mastigodryas reticulatus - Bosque Protector Cerro Blanco, Guayaquil, Ecuador

We refuelled with snacks and water at the car and continued walking, focusing on some new trails around some of the administration buildings. The birding was a little slow going at times, though we did see a Baron's Long-billed Hermit coming to the feeders at the main admin building, a Crane Hawk perched at the top of a tree and a few small flocks of flycatchers and warblers. We had fun checking out some of the various lizards as well. At least the dry conditions meant that it was easy to hear all of the "scamperers" in the leaf litter!

Crane Hawk - Bosque Protector Cerro Blanco, Guayaquil, Ecuador

Stenocercus iridescens - Bosque Protector Cerro Blanco, Guayaquil, Ecuador

Stenocercus iridescens - Bosque Protector Cerro Blanco, Guayaquil, Ecuador

Boat-billed Flycatcher - Bosque Protector Cerro Blanco, Guayaquil, Ecuador

Sooty-crowned Flycatcher - Bosque Protector Cerro Blanco, Guayaquil, Ecuador

Seven-lined Ameiva (Holcosus septemlineatus) - Bosque Protector Cerro Blanco, Guayaquil, Ecuador

We had an early lunch in the picnic area and added one final new bird species to our lists - a Pacific Elaenia that was singing and that eventually showed itself high up in one of the trees. And with that, we hit the road, aiming for an area of thorny scrub, about an hour and a half west of us - the Atahualpa area.