Santa Maria - a Gem in the Eastern Andes of Colombia

We left the steamy lowlands of the llanos behind, ready for the cooler temperatures of the mountains once again. The town of Santa Maria was our destination. Located in the eastern Andes at around 900 m in elevation, this pueblo (and surrounding mountains) provides habitat for both Andean and Amazonian species. While the birding (and butterflying, and herping, etc) is excellent here, it has only recently been put on the “birding map” due to the discovery of Spot-winged Parrotlets at the nearly reserve, La Almenara. This species is very thinly distributed in the eastern Andes and is not easy to find anywhere. In fact, there are only four photos of Spot-winged Parrotlets on eBird; a testament to their scarcity (and propensity to never perch in sight of humans). I quite like birding places that are a little bit off the beaten path. And while more and more Colombians are visiting this area, there are still many exciting things to discover. 

Santa Maria, Boyacá, Colombia

Our friend Luis Urueña provided the contact information of one of his friends, a birder and naturalist by the name of Eibar Algarra, and recommended we contact him for information on birding in this area. We got a hold of him through Whatsapp. Eibar helped arrange access for us to visit La Almenara while he also set us up with a guide for both of our days. It is mandatory to have a guide if one wishes to visit La Almenara. If anyone reading this wishes to contact Eibar, let me know via email (joshvandermeulen AT live.ca) and I will pass along his contact information. 

Eibar has been working to establish a network of birding guides in Santa Maria and this initiative is just getting off the ground. Our guide, Sandra, was evidently very new and did not know much about the wildlife we were seeing, but she was pleasant company and had some fun facts. We tried to help her along and teach her a few of the birds that we were seeing, as well as communicate the English names for some of them. It is great to see that local guides are being trained and we were happy to do our part. 

Red-tailed Squirrel (Sciurus granatensis) - Santa Maria, Boyacá, Colombia

Despite it being the dry season, the birding was excellent in La Almenara. A gravel road runs through the reserve, reaching to approximately 1300 m in elevation. The forest here is excellent and we ran into a few nice flocks!

Moustached Puffbird - Santa Maria, Boyacá, Colombia

We discovered several Moustached Puffbirds, each sitting quietly in the lower levels of the forest. Puffbirds are a favourite of mine and I had previously only ever seen one Moustached Puffbird. 

We tried hard for the parrotlets on both of our days visiting the reserve but unfortunately it was not to be. But there were many other “lifers” to keep us occupied. I added eleven life birds in total over our roughly three days in Santa Maria, including Lined Antshrike, Short-tailed Antthrush, Gray-throated Warbler, Black-billed Treehunter, Pectoral Sparrow and best of all, a singing Pavonine Cuckoo on both mornings. Hummingbirds were also well represented, and Green-bellied Hummingbirds in particular were relatively common. Booted Rackettail was the dominant species here; one that is impossible to tire of. 

Booted Rackettail - Santa Maria, Boyacá, Colombia

Forest bird photography can be tough in the tropics and this was the case at Santa Maria as well. But the butterflies on the other hand were quiet accommodating. During the sunny parts of the morning, a tapestry of colours flit alongside the trails. Below are a few of them. 

Ithomia iphianassa - Santa Maria, Boyacá, Colombia

Metalmark sp. - Santa Maria, Boyacá, Colombia

Pyrgus sp. - Santa Maria, Boyacá, Colombia

Heliconius numata - Santa Maria, Boyacá, Colombia

Heliconius heurippa - Santa Maria, Boyacá, Colombia

Arawacus separata - Santa Maria, Boyacá, Colombia

Adelpha sp. - Santa Maria, Boyacá, Colombia

Crocozona coecias - Santa Maria, Boyacá, Colombia

And back to birds for a little bit. Despite the scarcity of the Spot-winged Parrotlets, we found a few other psitticines. My favourite was the flock of Brown-breasted Parakeets that we observed on two different mornings. This endemic species to the eastern Andes of Colombia is one that I had only heard previously. 

Brown-breasted Parakeet - Santa Maria, Boyacá, Colombia

La Almenara appears to hold a significant number of Cerulean Warblers during the northern winter. During one morning I came across five different individuals. Getting photos, on the other hand, was tricky…

Cerulean Warbler - Santa Maria, Boyacá, Colombia

And below are a few additional insects that we found at La Almenara. 

Argia sp. - Santa Maria, Boyacá, Colombia

Eibar was happy to join Sandra, Laura and I on afternoon/evening walks each day. During our first walk with him we explored a part of the reserve called Sector Cachipay. Located at a lower elevation, a gravel road leading to a military base cuts through secondary forest and produces a different subset of species. 

Magpie Tanager - Santa Maria, Boyacá, Colombia

We observed a nice variety of birds, many of which were new for the year. These included Spectacled Parrotlet, Bar-crested Antshrike, Scrub Greenlet, White-thighed Swallow and several others. But it was the insects that really stole the show! Laura and I both got covered in chiggers for our efforts but I think it was worth it. 

Enchenopa albidorsa - Santa Maria, Boyacá, Colombia

Cyphonia trifida - Santa Maria, Boyacá, Colombia

Zelus sp. - Santa Maria, Boyacá, Colombia

Siproeta stelenes - Santa Maria, Boyacá, Colombia

During the second afternoon we explored a finca close to the river that flows beside the town of Santa Maria, as well as a large island in the river. It was a little later in the afternoon when we arrived but the birding was top notch!

We quickly racked up sightings of Rufous-and-white Wren, Spot-breasted Woodpecker, and Chestnut-vented Conebill – the latter being a life bird for me. 

Chestnut-vented Conebill - Santa Marta, Boyacá, Colombia

We kept an eye out on the river for a Fasciated Tiger-Heron, a bird that still eludes us. A little later I followed the mobbing calls of some hummingbirds. My binoculars settled on a round, fluffy lump high up in a tree. A Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl. 

Andean Pygmy-Owl - Santa Marta, Boyacá, Colombia

We also heard a Little Cuckoo (another species that had eluded us in many different locations), but unfortunately, we could not spot it in the thicket. Two Yellow-tufted Woodpeckers were a little bit more confiding. 

Yellow-tufted Woodpeckers - Santa Marta, Boyacá, Colombia

I had ideas the next morning of re-exploring this area since the birding had been rocking in the late afternoon, and Crested Spinetail still eluded me. Laura meanwhile had plans to sleep in, since we had had some early mornings strung together. But Eibar messaged us, saying that he wasn’t going to let us leave without finding Spot-winged Parrotlets and offered to take me out early the next morning for one final search. I could not refuse his offer!

We had an early start and checked several locations for the parrots. Along the way we ran into Fredy Montero Abril, a butterfly expert, along with two of his clients – Eduardo and Joe. The five of us spent the morning searching for the parrotlets and whatever butterflies we could turn up. The whole morning was in Spanish and I think I acquitted myself fairly well. (Baby steps…)

Thesteius meridionalis - Santa Maria, Boyacá, Colombia

Oressinoma typhla - Santa Maria, Boyacá, Colombia

Finally, my luck with the parrotlets began to turn. We heard the diagnostic calls of several individuals fly into some trees high up the hillside but could not find them with our binoculars. And that would be the only sniff of them that we would get! Along the way we enjoyed watching the antics of a pair of White-chinned Jacamars, listening to the Short-tailed Antthrushes and photographing butterflies. I heard some Pectoral Sparrows as well, another new species for me. Despite “only” hearing the parrotlets, our time in Santa Maria was a resounding success, in no small part because of Eibar. Thank you! 

We left the eastern slope of the east Andes behind and continued northwest to the dry valley north of Bogotá, our destination being the city of Duitama. Our explorations in this mountainous area will be the topic of my next post.