November 30, 2021 (continued)
We traveled from one range-restricted species, the Tuxtla Quail-Dove, to another. The Sumichrast’s Wren is one of only two species in the genus Hylorchilus, the other being the Nava’s Wren which I featured earlier. These two wrens occupy similar habitats in central Mexico: limestone cliff faces set within lowland tropical forest.
To break up the drive, we stopped for lunch along a road I had found on eBird, one that passes through pasture and wetland habitats. It seemed that Pinnated Bitterns are often seen along this road. This was a species that Laura had never seen, and I had only crossed paths with once.
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| Camino a Las Barrancas, Veracruz, Mexico |
Despite the heat and wind, we did quite well for birds. Numerous Aplomado Falcons provided a good study, while the wetter patches held decent numbers of heron-types and a few shorebirds. We spotted a single Double-striped Thick-knee though it was a little far for photos. This is the best I could do as a digiscope. It had been nearly two years since we had last seen this species (in Colombia).
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| Double-striped Thick-knee - Camino a Las Barrancas, Veracruz, Mexico |
At this point we had not found any bitterns but the road soon passed a good-looking area with lots of cattails. And we were in luck – two of them were tucked low in the vegetation. This was another situation where I was glad that I had brought the scope, so that the feather details could be properly appreciated. What a cool bird, even if most of it was out of view! Again, I apologize for the poor photo...
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| Pinnated Bittern - Camino a Las Barrancas, Veracruz, Mexico |
Our base for the night was the city of Córdoba. The city (or rather, what we saw of it) was unremarkable, but our hotel for the night sure was.
The room we booked had seemed like a very good deal. For only $25 a night it included a king-sized bed, wifi, private parking, and even a jacuzzi. Laura booked the room without much thought, though on arrival, the style of hotel was made clear. It was an auto-hotel, a type of love hotel, that could be booked for four hours or for a full night. After checking in at the front gate (you don’t have to even get out of the car!) you are assigned a room, you drive your vehicle around the underground parking area, and you have a private garage with an aluminum sliding door. Presumably, this hotel caters to those who want their extra-marital transgressions done discretely (there was even a sign reminding clients to remember their wedding rings upon departing). Needless to say, Laura and I Lysoled all surfaces, though we did not get too close to the sex chair, bolted into the floor!
December 1, 2021
We left before dawn and made the short drive to the town of Amatlán de Los Reyes for a Sumichrast's Wren search. The road was a little dodgy and so we parked by a cemetery and walked the remaining distance to the limestone hills.
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| Amatlán de Los Reyes, Veracruz, Mexico |
Bird activity was at its zenith due to the time of day. We wanted to enter the hills early in the morning to increase our chances at the wren, but this was difficult with all the activity along the entrance road. White-bellied Emerald was a year-bird, while Rusty Sparrow, Blue Grosbeak, and Buff-throated Saltator were some of the other species mixed in with the dozens of Lincoln's Sparrows.
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| Burning Blister Beetle (Epicauta sp.) - Amatlán de Los Reyes, Veracruz, Mexico |
The Sumichrast's Wren was not cooperating at first as we walked up the cobblestone path through a section of woods and into a coffee plantation. A Thicket Tinamou that ran across the path was a nice consolation, however.
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| Amatlán de Los Reyes, Veracruz, Mexico |
Finally, we heard the distinctive song of a Sumichrast's Wren and tracked it down across the plantation. Looks were brief but definitive, though I never managed a photo. At least I managed a few reasonable recordings! Quite a few other bird species were active in this area including Laughing Falcons, Warbling and White-eyed Vireos, an active group of Band-backed Wrens, various warblers and a small flock of Red-throated Ant-Tanagers.
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| White-eyed Vireo - Amatlán de Los Reyes, Veracruz, Mexico |
We slowly made our way back down, not hearing or seeing another Sumichrast's Wren. A Gray Hawk perched in a roadside tree made a nice photo subject.
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| Gray Hawk - Amatlán de Los Reyes, Veracruz, Mexico |
Laura and I drove through the late morning towards the city of Xalapa. We were down to our final few days with the rental vehicle before we needed to drop it off at the coastal city of Veracruz. Our three nights in Xalapa gave us an opportunity to search for the range-restricted Bearded Wood-Patridge, a chance for redemption with the Transvolcanic Jay, and a chance at a few other potential lifers like Botteri's Sparrow, Blue-capped Motmot, Scott's Oriole and Black-crested Titmouse.
We broke up the drive along a quiet beach north of Veracruz, a place known for its diurnal bird migration as well as providing habitat for the Mexican Sheartail. Migration had wound down by December but we were hoping to bump into the sheartail. This species is more common along the north coast of the Yucatan Peninsula - a place we would be visiting in a few days time - but an isolated population occurs along the Veracruz coastline.
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| Playa Juan Angel, Veracruz, Mexico |
You don't even need to walk out the front door to get to the beach!
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| Playa Juan Angel, Veracruz, Mexico |
We ate our lunch by the beach and then went for a stroll in search of shorebirds. Laura's first ever Snowy Plover appeared. I was quite pleased with this sighting too, since it had been over a decade since I had last seen this species.
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| Snowy Plover - Playa Juan Angel, Veracruz, Mexico |
With a little bit of patience I was able to photograph it reasonably well, though it was somewhat wary and prohibited a really close approach.
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| Snowy Plover - Playa Juan Angel, Veracruz, Mexico |
Some of the other shorebirds were fairly accommodating for photos.
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| Willet - Playa Juan Angel, Veracruz, Mexico |
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| Sanderling - Playa Juan Angel, Veracruz, Mexico |
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| Semipalmated Plover - Playa Juan Angel, Veracruz, Mexico |
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| Willet - Playa Juan Angel, Veracruz, Mexico |
A quick check of the river mouth revealed a Reddish Egret as well as a single American Avocet hanging out with the Black-necked Stilt flock.
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| Willet, American Avocet, Black-necked Stilt - Playa Juan Angel, Veracruz, Mexico |
Before leaving the area we quickly stopped in an area of desert scrub just inland from the beach to search for Mexican Sheartails.
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| Playa Juan Angel, Veracruz, Mexico |
Scarcely five minutes into our search, we heard the tell-tale chips of a hummingbird somewhere nearby. Only a couple of species live in desert scrub in coastal Veracruz so our chances seemed good. We soon located the bird - a female Mexican Sheartail. Though she lacks the gorget and long tail of the male, she is still a unique hummingbird with that long, curved bill.
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| Mexican Sheartail (female) - Playa Juan Angel, Veracruz, Mexico |
And with that, we finished the drive to the town of Xalapa, our base for the next three nights.
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