For my final full day in Ecuador I returned to Rio Silanche. My plan was to watch from the tower again, hopefully seeing many mixed flocks in the process. There are three species that are somewhat regular here that I had never encountered, though all three are still quite difficult to find. They are the Double-banded Graytail, Lanceolated Monklet and Blue-whiskered Tanager. I’ll save you the suspense – I did not see or hear any of these.
That being said it was a very enjoyable morning up on the tower. While I had the tower to myself yesterday, this time I shared it with Charles, a Frenchman who works for the embassy and lives in Quito. He is not a birder per se, but loves nature, and we had a great time observing birds and other wildlife from the tower.
While during the previous morning I added twenty birds to my Ecaudor list, this morning I only added one – Violet-bellied Hummingbird.
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| Violet-bellied Hummingbird - Rio Silanche Bird Sanctuary, Pichincha, Ecuador |
But there were still many highlights. Orange-fronted Barbet was certainly at the top of the list as at least four individuals made the rounds. On a few occasions one or two would stop to feed on some fruits in a tower-side tree. You could not ask for better looks, and Charles and I put our cameras to good use.
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| Orange-fronted Barbet - Rio Silanche Bird Sanctuary, Pichincha, Ecuador |
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| Orange-fronted Barbet - Rio Silanche Bird Sanctuary, Pichincha, Ecuador |
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| Orange-fronted Barbet - Rio Silanche Bird Sanctuary, Pichincha, Ecuador |
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| Orange-fronted Barbet - Rio Silanche Bird Sanctuary, Pichincha, Ecuador |
We heard some Chestnut-fronted Macaws and half a dozen hummingbird species dropped in. The Green Honeycreepers enjoyed the same fruit as the barbets, sometimes jostling with them over foraging rights.
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| Green Honeycreeper - Rio Silanche Bird Sanctuary, Pichincha, Ecuador |
Charles pointed out this anole which I have identified as Boulenger's Green Anole (Anolis chloris). We watched it approach an active ant colony in a cavity on one of the trees. It would very careful tiptoe in and snag an ant carrying a larvae, then quickly run away out of the danger zone to consume the larvae. Very cool!
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| Anolis chloris - Rio Silanche Bird Sanctuary, Pichincha, Ecuador |
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| Anolis chloris - Rio Silanche Bird Sanctuary, Pichincha, Ecuador |
At times, the birding was a bit slow and in these moments I debated leaving the tower for a walk-about. But I was thankful that I had stayed when a massive mixed flock rolled through. For twenty to thirty minutes Charles and I kept busy checking them all out. I remained vigilant for my three target species but they did not appear. Among the species in the flock, some Scarlet-breasted Dacnises and Slate-throated Gnatcatchers were standouts as they are both scarce Chocó species.
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| Slate-throated Gnatcatcher - Rio Silanche Bird Sanctuary, Pichincha, Ecuador |
Furnariids were infrequent in the mixed flock and the hoped for Striped Woodhaunter did not materialize. I really enjoyed watching these Black-striped Woodcreepers. It is quite a striking species, in my opinion.
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| Black-striped Woodcreeper - Rio Silanche Bird Sanctuary, Pichincha, Ecuador |
Most of the interesting tanagers found at the bird sanctuary passed by at eye level including Tawny-crested, Bay-headed, Gray-and-gold and Scarlet-browed. This Bay-headed paused long enough for us to snap off some good pics.
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| Bay-headed Tanager - Rio Silanche Bird Sanctuary, Pichincha, Ecuador |
Masked Tityras were nesting on a dead palm near the tower. Eventually one of the individuals checked out the “barbet tree” to inspect the fruits.
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| Masked Tityra - Rio Silanche Bird Sanctuary, Pichincha, Ecuador |
As it was now approaching 11 AM, I decided to leave the tower so that I could return the car to the airport in time. I had over 100 species on my checklist, not bad considering I had parked myself on the tower for the whole time! It had been a very enjoyable way to spend my last morning in Ecaudor. On the way out, there was a Pearl Kite on a wire along the entrance road (a rarity according to eBird). I dutifully photographed it and then made my way back to Quito.
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| Pearl Kite - Rio Silanche Bird Sanctuary, Pichincha, Ecuador |
I felt sentimental driving down into the valley containing Quito while on my way back to the airport. It had been an awesome three months for Laura and I here in the city and beyond, three months that we will very much look back fondly on. We had come a long way with our Spanish, weathered the strikes that rocked Ecuador, visited some incredible places with friends and family and seen so much of this diverse country. I do not know when, but I will definitely return to Ecuador.
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