Birding Near The Bolivia Border

January 22, 2023 (continued)

Laura and I left the humid east slope of the Andes behind and worked our way north along the paved highway through the incredible Quebrada de Humahuaca. This valley is famous for its scenery and it was easy to see why. The contrasts, textures and colours were amazing, and we could have stopped every kilometre or two to get out of the vehicle, take photos and marvel at the landscapes. It was simply breathtaking. 

Quebrada de Humahuaca, Jujuy, Argentina

Though the scenes were new to us, there was an air of familiarity to the region. It seems like forever ago, but it was less than half a year ago when Laura and I were visiting similar landscapes in the arid high Andes of southern Peru. Many of the birds found here in the extreme north of Argentina are the same as the ones that we had been targeting in Peru. Having seen most of those species somewhat recently, it was nice to reacquaint ourselves with these old friends. It also meant that our target list was much reduced as we could focus on the small handful of species that would be new for us. 

Abra de Lizoite, Jujuy, Argentina

In truth, we were completing this long drive to the Bolivia border and back for just six bird species, of which we had a reasonable shot at five. Those being the Horned Coot, Brown-backed Mockingbird, Wedge-tailed Hillstar, Citron-headed Yellow Finch, Red-backed Sierra Finch and Boulder Finch. The Boulder Finch would be the trickiest of the group, but the others seemed quite doable. We considered putting in an extra day and seeking out Bolivian Earthcreeper and Bolivian Warbling Finch at the distant outpost of Santa Victoria as well, but its remoteness and the unknown state of the road led us to nix those possibilities. Besides, I'm sure we will look for them one day in the Bolivian Andes. 

Citron-headed Yellow-Finch - Yavi, Jujuy, Argentina

We overnighted at a lovely little hotel (Hostal El Coquena) in the town of Humahuaca for the night of January 22. That evening, we watched an incredible lightning show over the desert followed by a bout of hail. Luckily, there was no damage to the car!

January 23, 2023

Laura and I slept in and enjoyed the hotel's complimentary breakfast before hitting the road. I think I have mentioned it before on this blog, but breakfast in Argentina is a little different than what we are used to in Canada. There is usually no fresh fruit or yogurt, no fried eggs or bacon. Instead, you are given a little basket of pastries and croissants along with butter and jam (and of course, coffee or tea). As much as pastries can be delicious, it is not exactly what I am typically shooting for at breakfast time. However, we have adapted, and it wasn't hard at this hotel since the croissants were freshly baked and still warm. Absolute perfection!

Humahuaca area, Jujuy, Argentina

To break up the drive and to ensure that we fit some birding in during the best hours of the morning, we made a 45-minute stop at a little river valley just outside of town. We were hoping to drum up a Plain-mantled Tit-Spinetail which Laura still needed. Unfortunately, the only one that we could find disappeared before satisfactory views could be had. 

Mountain Parakeet - Humahuaca area, Jujuy, Argentina

The sun was quickly warming the cool, high-elevation landscape and the birds were very active. Both Straight-billed and Buff-breasted Earthcreepers scurried over the rock faces, several different sierra-finches and seedeaters teased us across the valley, and the creaky-door calls of the White-tipped Plantcutters surrounded us. The stars of the show were a small flock of Mountain Parakeets feeding on the seedheads of a type of aster. We enjoyed watching two of them grooming each other.

Mountain Parakeets - Humahuaca area, Jujuy, Argentina

The sexes can be told apart by the colour of their bill. The male has the pinkish one, while hers is dark gray. 

Mountain Parakeets - Humahuaca area, Jujuy, Argentina

With a long drive ahead of us, we pulled ourselves away from the cuteness overload. 

Our destination for the day was a massive salt lake called Laguna de Pozuelo situated well off the main highway and accessed by what we would discover was a washboarded, stoney dirt road. All of the typical high-Andean waterbirds can be found here including three species of flamingos, various coots, shorebirds, gulls and more. We were after the scarce Horned Coot, a species with a very limited range in these high Andes. We knew that thousands of them resided on Laguna de Pozuelo, but none had been seen from the main access points in recent months. 

Abra Pampa wetland, Jujuy, Argentina

Right after we left the tarmac behind, we came across a small wetland chock full of birds. In no time at all we had had a quick fix of many of the common waterbirds of this region, including all three flamingo species. 

James's Flamingo - Abra Pampa area, Jujuy, Argentina

Andean Avocets - Abra Pampa area, Jujuy, Argentina

Puna Teal - Abra Pampa area, Jujuy, Argentina

Andean Flamingo and Andean Gulls - Abra Pampa area, Jujuy, Argentina

We arrived at the southeast corner of Laguna de los Pozuelos an hour later. We checked in with the friendly ranger at the guard house, received our instructions for accessing the reserve, and began the seven-kilometre drive up the entrance road, taking care to open and close each fence that we passed, meant to keep livestock in their respective fields. 

Even though it was approaching noon, the birdlife was very active. We found Gray-breasted Seedsnipes, Andean Avocets, both Puna and Common Miners, Puna Pipits and more, all the while keeping an eye out for Laura's first ever Lesser Rheas. 

Puna Miner - Laguna de Pozuelo, Jujuy, Argentina

Gray-breasted Seedsnipe - Laguna de Pozuelo, Jujuy, Argentina

Andean Lapwing - Laguna de Pozuelo, Jujuy, Argentina

We spotted this adorable little Highland Tuco-Tuco (Ctenomys opimus). The Tuco-Tucos are a family of rodents found mainly in southern South America. They spend up to 90% of their lives in their underground tunnels, and their name apparently originates from the "tuc-tuc" sound that they make while digging their borrows.

Highland Tuco-Tuco - Laguna de Pozuelo, Jujuy, Argentina

Burrowing Owls are widespread in the grassy habitats in Argentina and we spotted a couple of them on the drive towards the lake. 

Burrowing Owl - Laguna de Pozuelo, Jujuy, Argentina

During our time in southern Peru, one of the only birds that we struck out with was the Lesser Rhea. We would rectify that here when we found five of them along the entrance road. A lifer for Laura. 

Lesser Rhea - Laguna de Pozuelo, Jujuy, Argentina

Despite the avian and mammalian distractions, we eventually reached the parking area for the lake. It was still about a ten minute walk to the current waterline as the lake appeared to have receded significantly since the parking area was created. 

Laguna de Pozuelo, Jujuy, Argentina

It was quite an avian spectacle. Thousands of ducks loafed in the shallows, an equal number of shorebirds ringed the lake's edge, and a pink sheen on the far shore turned into flamingos when one lifted their binoculars in that direction. The only thing missing: coots. 

We tried walking for a couple of kilometres around the shoreline where I could see some blurry coots in the heat haze, but with a clearer look we could see that they were all Giant Coots. Still a pretty rad bird, just not the one that we were looking for.

I didn't take many pictures here due to the terrible light, but with the scope I picked out a few interesting species including a pair of Hudsonian Godwits and some Puna Plovers. It was too bad that we were in a bit of a rush since I'm sure there were other interesting things mixed in with the throngs of Baird's and Stilt Sandpipers, Wilson's Phalaropes, Lesser Yellowlegs, Andean Avocets and more. 

Hudsonian Godwit - Laguna de Pozuelo, Jujuy, Argentina

On the walk back to the car, I photographed this small butterfly, which is a type of blue called Paralycaeides vapa. It is a specialist of the dry plains in the high Andes. 

Paralycaeides vapa - Laguna de Pozuelo, Jujuy, Argentina

We may have dipped on the Horned Coot but all hope was not lost. I still had a backup site for the species where numerous pairs had been seen in recent months. And so off we went in our rental car, bouncing along a washboarded gravel road for another hour. 

Andean Flicker - Lagunillas, Jujuy, Argentina

Upon reaching the town of Lagunillas, we navigated along a narrow, rather sketchy rocky path full of very sharp stones that caused me to wince every minute or so, fearing for the car's tires. But we made it to the lake in one piece, stopping only once to open a cattle gate and photograph some very hazy Bright-rumped and Puna Yellow-Finches. 

Lagunillas area, Jujuy, Argentina

Puna Yellow-Finches - Lagunillas area, Jujuy, Argentina

We parked and walked up to the lake's edge, scaring up hundreds of ducks and flamingos in the process. 

Laguna de Lagunillas, Jujuy, Argentina

My heart sank when a thorough scan with the scope revealed hundreds of coots, but none of the "correct" ones. But then, there they were on a distant peninsula. A pair of Horned Coots!

They quickly took to the water and swam out to the exact middle of the lake, but Laura and I didn't care. We had finally found our target bird. The photos were horrible, and the scope views slightly less horrible, but sufficient to see the strange appendage on the top of their bill. I would encourage you to google this species to see what I'm referring to.

Horned Coot (with Crested Ducks) - Lagunillas area, Jujuy, Argentina 

It had been a long day but Laura and I had smiles on our faces as we continued our big loop around Laguna de Pozuelo and headed for the border town of La Quiaca. But our day was about to get longer when we discovered that our car had not been fully spared from the rough road conditions. Luckily, we had caught this flat tire in time and it was just a small puncture that could hopefully be repaired. After changing it, we very carefully drove back to La Quiaca, hoping that the flimsy spare tire would hold. It did, and upon arrival at La Quiaca we quickly found a gomeria (tire repair shop). We dropped it off with instructions to return an hour later, and we found a hotel in the meantime. The tire was ready when we returned, all for the low cost of around 5 dollars! We gave the man a hefty tip, happy to have had that problem sorted so quickly. What a day...

January 24, 2023

We drove east from La Quiaca to the town of Yavi, located perhaps 20 minutes away. This happens to be the best site to search for the range-restricted (in Argentina) Wedge-tailed Hillstar and Citron-bellied Yellow-Finch, while it is also home to Brown-backed Mockingbirds and a nice variety of other species. We had already seen the mockingbird from the car but we had not stopped to appreciate it yet, knowing full well that we would see many more of them in the north. 

Yavi, Jujuy, Argentina

It was a gorgeous morning and Laura and I set off on a gravel path down to the river at the north end of town. The birds were singing and we quickly found some Brown-backed Mockingbirds and our first Citron-headed Yellow-Finches. 

Brown-backed Mockingbird - Yavi, Jujuy, Argentina

Citron-headed Yellow-Finch - Yavi, Jujuy, Argentina

This creek valley proved to be an excellent location to search for mammals. Mountain Viscachas, a species related to chinchillas, were conspicuous on the rock faces across the creek from us. 

Mountain Viscacha (Lagidium viscacia) - Yavi, Jujuy, Argentina

We also found a Mountain Degu (Octodontomys gliroides), a Southern Highland Yellow-toothed Cavy (Galea comes) and another rodent which I haven't figured out yet. 

Mountain Degu (Octodontomys gliroides) - Yavi, Jujuy, Argentina

Southern Highland Yellow-toothed Cavy (Galea comes) - Yavi, Jujuy, Argentina

It took a little while, but we eventually crossed paths with a Wedge-tailed Hillstar. Unlike the other hillstars in Argentina, the female Wedge-tailed Hillstar has a lot of rufous on her underparts. 

Wedge-tailed Hillstar - Yavi, Jujuy, Argentina

Yavi is the easiest site in Argentina to find the Bare-faced Ground-Dove; we found a few of them trying to blend in with the rocky cliffs. 

Bare-faced Ground-Dove - Yavi, Jujuy, Argentina

Despite acquiring our main bird targets, we lingered in the riparian corridor for a little while as the weather was perfect and the birds were active. A small flock of Citron-headed Yellow-Finches fed at arms length, giving us a proper chance to really study them. 

Citron-headed Yellow-Finches - Yavi, Jujuy, Argentina

Citron-headed Yellow-Finches - Yavi, Jujuy, Argentina

Citron-headed Yellow-Finch - Yavi, Jujuy, Argentina

By 9:30, we had our fill and hit the road to head eastwards into the mountains. Below are a few more photos from the morning's walk. 

Spot-winged Pigeon - Yavi, Jujuy, Argentina

Black-headed Sierra Finch - Yavi, Jujuy, Argentina

Brown-capped Tit-Spinetail - Yavi, Jujuy, Argentina

Mourning Sierra Finch - Yavi, Jujuy, Argentina

We followed the rough gravel road eastwards for over 30 kilometres. I was a little bit gun shy when it came to the tire status of our vehicle, having shredded one and punctured another over the previous few days. We were in no rush, however, and made it all the way to our destination - a mountain pass called Abra de Liziote - without any incident. 

Most birders who visit this region target the Diademed Sandpiper Plover that inhabits a particular creek valley around 5 kilometres beyond the pass. Laura and I have seen this species before on numerous occasions and were more interested in the Red-backed Sierra Finch. We hoped to find them at the pass, which would save us the 10 kilometre round trip on rough road. 

Abra de Lizoite, Salta, Argentina

This strategy paid off. Within a minute or so of exiting the vehicle, I found a pair of Red-backed Sierra Finches!

Red-backed Sierra Finch - Abra de Lizoite, Salta, Argentina

They reminded me of the White-throated Sierra Finches that we had seen a few months earlier in Peru (not surprisingly, they are both in the genus Idiopsar). Both of these species are comfortable at high elevations, well above the treeline in the Andes. 

Red-backed Sierra Finch - Abra de Lizoite, Salta, Argentina

A particular scree slope across the hillside had caught my attention. The rare Boulder Finch is known from these mountains, and I thought that this looked like suitable habitat. And so I set off, feeling the altitude a little bit in my lungs as we were above 4500m in elevation. 

Abra de Lizoite, Salta, Argentina

Abra de Lizoite, Salta, Argentina

Not surprisingly, I couldn't dig up any Boulder Finches, but it was a beautiful sunny day with incredible scenery. I took a few photos of Laura on the way back, while I also enjoyed snapping pics of some of the unique high-altitude plants here. 

Abra de Lizoite, Salta, Argentina

Pycnophyllum molle and Oxalis sp. - Abra de Lizoite, Salta, Argentina

Hypochaeris echegarayi - Abra de Lizoite, Salta, Argentina

Several of these Liolaemus lizards were living comfortably at these high elevations. Pretty incredible. 

Liolaemus sp. - Abra de Lizoite, Salta, Argentina

Diversity is obviously much lower at these elevations. Few plant species have adapted to life in these extreme conditions, and consequently insects, fungi and more complex organisms such as vertebrates reflect this lower diversity. We only found a few bird species up here, including a flyover Andean Condor and Andean Swallow, the aforementioned Red-backed Sierra Finches, a few Cream-winged Cinclodes and a Gray-breasted Seedsnipe. Ground-tyrants were relatively numerous and included three species: Ochre-naped, Black-fronted and Cinereous. 

Ochre-naped Ground-Tyrant - Abra de Lizoite, Salta, Argentina

As I had expected, the Boulder Finch was nowhere to be found but Laura and I had found all of our other most-wanted birds in the far north of Argentina. We left this area behind and very carefully drove back westward to Yavi, successfully keeping all four tires un-punctured. We were very happy to find asphalt again, and we rode it south all the way back to Humahuaca where we found a room in the same hotel as two nights earlier.  

January 25, 2023

We slept in a little so that we could partake in the freshly-baked croissants and hot coffee once again. We drove around a bit in the desert, taking advantage of the cool morning hours for some birding, before hitting the road and heading south. The main highlight here for me was improving on my photos of Brown-backed Mockingbird. 

Brown-backed Mockingbirds - Humahuaca area, Jujuy, Argetina

Brown-backed Mockingbird - Humahuaca area, Jujuy, Argetina

The rest of the day was devoted to driving, as we ascended back down the east slope of the Andes, passed by the Potrero de Yala reserve without stopping, and continued around to Jujuy and then northwards to the city of Libertador General San Martin. This would be our base for a few nights as we explored the largest protected tract of humid yungas forest in Argentina: Parque Nacional Calilegua.