Mid-September to mid-October
In August Laura and I quit our jobs, moved our stuff into storage at my grandparents (thanks, Opa and Oma), found a home for our cat, Cendra, with my parents, and prepared for our travels to South America. By September 13 we were on our way with a plan to spend two years in Central and South America.
The first four weeks of our trip were based around Spanish school. For two weeks we studied in Quito followed by two weeks in Otavalo. Laura and I each attended private lessons for four hours from Monday to Friday, leaving our weekends free. Our school and the professors were fantastic, though I have to admit it was a bit of a grind to live in the city and go to class each day. Complicating things further was the strike that rocked Ecuador in early October. Laura and I made the most of our opportunities to travel and see things, even if we were limited to what we could reach on foot. On one weekend while we were in Quito we made it to Mindo, a town in the western foothills surrounded by lush forest (this was before the strike began). This would not be our last time visiting Mindo!
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| Golden-rumped Euphonia - Quito, Pichincha, Ecuador |
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| Narrow-banded Dartwhite (Catasticta flisa) - Quito, Pichincha, Ecuador |
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| Vermilion Flycatcher - Quito, Pichincha, Ecuador |
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| Lago San Pablo - Otavalo, Imbabura, Ecuador |
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| Subtropical Doradito - Otavalo, Imbabura, Ecuador |
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| Cascada de Peguche - Otavalo, Imbabura, Ecuador |
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| White-bellied Woodstar - Otavalo, Imbabura, Ecuador |
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| Homidiana sp. - Mindo Valley, Pichincha, Ecuador |
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| Phobetron hipparchia - Mindo Valley, Pichincha, Ecuador |
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| Sphenorhina nigricephala - Mindo Valley, Pichincha, Ecuador |
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| Graceful Snail-eater (Dipsas gracilis) - Mindo Valley, Pichincha, Ecuador |
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| Blue-gray Tanager - Mindo Valley, Pichincha, Ecuador |
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| Crowned Woodnymph - Mindo Valley, Pichincha, Ecuador |
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| Graceful Snail-eater (Dipsas gracilis) - Mindo Valley, Pichincha, Ecuador |
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| Casuaria sp. - Mindo Valley, Pichincha, Ecuador |
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| Palmar Treefrog (Boana pellucens) - Mindo Valley, Pichincha, Ecuador |
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| Slaty Spinetail - Mindo Valley, Pichincha, Ecuador |
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| Guayaquil Woodpecker - Mindo Valley, Pichincha, Ecuador |
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| Clark's Forest Racer (Dendrophidion clarkii) - Mindo Valley, Pichincha, Ecuador |
Upon finishing Spanish school (and
escaping out of Otavalo) we made our way to the eastern Andes near Cosanga where we found some amazing cabins at the right price. It felt so good to breathe the fresh air, not have to deal with roadblocks, have an opportunity to explore beautiful forest each and every day and set up the moth sheet each night! We spent some time at the famous Guacamayos Ridge as well as Cabañas San Isidro and had a blast.
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| Shining Leaf Chafer Beetle (tribe Rutelini) - Cosanga, Napo, Ecuador |
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| Loxophlebia nomia - Cosanga, Napo, Ecuador |
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| Championica sp. - Cosanga, Napo, Ecuador |
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| Cerodirphia sp. - Cosanga, Napo, Ecuador |
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| Unidentified moth - Cosanga, Napo, Ecuador |
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| Masked Trogon - Cabañas San Isidro, Napo, Ecuador |
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| Andean Guan - Guacamayos Ridge, Napo, Ecuador |
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| Dusky Piha - Guacamayos Ridge, Napo, Ecuador |
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| Rufous-crowned Tody-Flycatcher - Cabañas San Isidro, Napo, Ecuador |
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| Black-streaked Puffbird - Guacamayos Ridge, Napo, Ecuador |
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| Unidentified owlet moth - Cosanga, Napo, Ecuador |
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| White-bellied Antpitta - Cabañas San Isidro, Napo, Ecuador |
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| Chestnut-breasted Coronet - Cabañas San Isidro, Napo, Ecuador |
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| Collared Inca - Cabañas San Isidro, Napo, Ecuador |
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| Laura and a Chestnut-breasted Coronet - Cabañas San Isidro, Napo, Ecuador |
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| Turquoise Jay - Guacamayos Ridge, Napo, Ecuador |
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| Dirphia sp. - Cosanga, Napo, Ecuador |
Late October
In mid-October Laura and I flew to Bogotá, the capital of Colombia, to complete a scouting trip for Quest Nature Tours. Our trip was focused in two provinces in the southern part of the country - Putumayo and Nariño. These areas were heavily affected by the conflicts that were occurring in Colombia at the turn of the century. Peace has finally arrived in these regions and ecotourism is just getting off the ground. We visited a nice cross-section of locations and habitats including the Magdalena River, Amazonian lowlands, Andean cloud-forest, páramo, inter-Andean valley, Chocó foothills and Chocó lowlands. The diversity in this part of the country is off the charts! I can't wait to return...
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| Cetasticta apaturina - Cerro Páramo de Miraflores, Huila, Colombia |
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| Andean Cock-of-the-Rock - Cerro Páramo de Miraflores, Huila, Colombia |
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| Altinote sp. - Cerro Páramo de Miraflores, Huila, Colombia |
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| White-chinned Jacamar - El Escondite, Putumayo, Colombia |
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| Saddle-backed Tamarin - El Escondite, Putumayo, Colombia |
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| Black-fronted Nunbird - El Escondite, Putumayo, Colombia |
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| Common Big-headed Frog (Oreobates quixensis) - El Escondite, Putumayo, Colombia |
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| Flag-footed Bug (Anisoscelis sp.) - El Escondite, Putumayo, Colombia |
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| Lettered Araçari - Río Putumayo, Putumayo, Colombia |
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| Spix's Night Monkeys - Puerto Asís area, Putumayo, Colombia |
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| White-capped Tanagers - El Trampolin de las Aves, Putumayo, Colombia |
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| Gorgeted Woodstar - El Trampolin de las Aves, Putumayo, Colombia |
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| Lemon-browed Flycatcher - El Trampolin de las Aves, Putumayo, Colombia |
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| Slaty-backed Chat-Tyrant - El Trampolin de las Aves, Putumayo, Colombia |
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| Chestnut-bellied Cotinga - Páramo de Bordoncillo, Putumayo, Colombia |
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| Laura and her first caecilian - Finca El Bosque, Nariño, Colombia |
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| Toucan Barbet - Bangsias Bird Lodge, Nariño, Colombia |
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| Scarlet-and-white Tanager - Bangsias Bird Lodge, Nariño, Colombia |
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| Moss-backed Tanager - Bangsias Bird Lodge, Nariño, Colombia |
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| Common Morpho (Morpho helenor) - RN Río Ñambi, Nariño, Colombia |
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| Anolis gemmosus - RN Río Ñambi, Nariño, Colombia |
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| Little Devil Poison Frog (Oophaga sylvatica) - Junín area, Nariño, Colombia |
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| Black-tipped Cotinga - Guayacana area, Nariño, Colombia |
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| Masked Water-Tyrant - Finca Maragrícola, Nariño, Colombia |
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| Colombian Wood Turtle (Rhinoclemmys melanosterna) - Finca Maragrícola, Nariño, Colombia |
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| Hook-billed Kite - Agrosavia, Nariño, Colombia |
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| Dynamine postverta - Finca Las Lomitas, Nariño, Colombia |
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| Harlequin Treefrog (Dendropsophus ebraccatus) - KM 42 Road, Nariño, Colombia |
November
By early November we had flown back to Ecuador, where we would stay until late December. We had three groups of people visit us back-to-back-to-back. First, Laura's dad flew to Quito where we met him for a week of exploring, both in Quito and in Mindo. Next, Laura and I took an internal flight to Guayaquil where we met with friends David Bell and Siobhan Darlington. We rented a car and explored the dry Tumbes bioregion, seeing as many of the specialty birds as possible. We also had the very best mothing of the trip here! And finally, two friends from Ontario - David Szmyr and Jeremy Hatt - flew to Quito for their very first South American adventure. We rented a car and visited the western slope, the páramo, the eastern slope and the Amazonian foothills. They each observed around 300 life birds, not to mention all the herps, moths, cool tarantulas and more.
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| Swallow Tanager - Mindo Valley, Pichincha, Ecuador |
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| Phrygionis polita - Mindo Valley, Pichincha, Ecuador |
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| Cithaerias pireta - Mindo Valley, Pichincha, Ecuador |
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| Fawn-breasted Tanager - Mindo Valley, Pichincha, Ecuador |
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| Flame-faced Tanager - Mindo Valley, Pichincha, Ecuador |
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| White-fronted Capuchin - Mindo Valley, Pichincha, Ecuador |
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| Colombian Screech Owl - Mindo Valley, Pichincha, Ecuador |
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| Cosmosoma sectinota - Mindo Valley, Pichincha, Ecuador |
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| Exploring the páramo with Mark - Telefériqo, Quito, Pichincha, Ecuador |
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| Ecuadorian Hillstar - Telefériqo, Quito, Pichincha, Ecuador |
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| Pacific Parrotlet - Parque El Lago, Guayaquil, Ecuador |
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| Snowy-throated Kingbird - Parque El Lago, Guayaquil, Ecuador |
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| Stenocercus iridescens - Bosque Protector Cerro Blanco, Guayaquil, Ecuador |
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| Seven-lined Ameiva (Holcosus septemlineatus) - Bosque Protector Cerro Blanco, Guayaquil, Ecuador |
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| Pearl Kite - Zapotal area, Santa Elena, Ecuador |
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| Gray-and-white Tyrannulet - Atahualpa area, Santa Elena, Ecudaor |
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| Variable Hawk - La Chocolatera, Salinas, Santa Elena, Ecuador |
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| Gray-hooded Gull - San Pablo, Santa Elena, Ecuador |
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| Roseate Spoonbill - Pacoa salt ponds, Santa Elena, Ecuador |
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| Rothschildia lebeau - Ayampe, Manabí, Ecuador |
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| Andean Snail-eater (Dipsas andiana) - Ayampe, Manabí, Ecuador |
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| Sosxetra grata - Ayampe, Manabí, Ecuador |
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| Rosema sp. - Ayampe, Manabí, Ecuador |
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| Automeris metzli - Ayampe, Manabí, Ecuador |
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| Lesser Nighthawk - Ayampe, Manabí, Ecuador |
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| Blue-footed Boobies - Isla de la Plata, Manabí, Ecuador |
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| Elegant Crescentchest - Ayampe, Manabí, Ecuador |
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| Long-tailed Mockingbird - Isla de la Plata, Manabí, Ecuador |
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| Isla de la Plata, Manabí, Ecuador |
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| Masked Water-Tyrant - Mindo Valley, Pichincha, Ecuador |
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| Bertholdia sp. - Mindo Valley, Pichincha, Ecuador |
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| Tanager Finch - Bellavista, Pichincha, Ecuador |
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| Pamphobeteus sp. - Mindo Valley, Pichincha, Ecuador |
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| Unidentified Orthopteran - Mindo Valley, Pichincha, Ecuador |
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| Ninia atrata - Mindo Valley, Pichincha, Ecuador |
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| Exploring near Calacalí, Pichincha, Ecuador |
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| Rufous-bellied Seedsnipe - Papallacta Pass, Napo, Ecuador |
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| Papallacta Pass selfie, Napo, Ecuador |
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| Masked Mountain-Tanager - Papallacta, Napo, Ecuador |
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| Torrent Ducks - Guango Lodge, Napo, Ecuador |
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| Harvestman (Cosmetidae) - Narupa Reserve, Napo, Ecuador |
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| Leaf Katydid (Pterochrozinae) - Narupa Reserve area, Napo, Ecuador |
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| Rhetus dysonii - Narupa Reserve, Napo, Ecuador |
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| Ninia hudsoni - Narupa Reserve, Napo, Ecuador |
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| Oxyrhopus petolarius - Narupa Reserve, Napo, Ecuador |
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| Oospila sp. - Narupa Reserve area, Napo, Ecuador |
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| Unidentified tussock moth - Narupa Reserve area, Napo, Ecuador |
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| Euglyphis lankesteri - Narupa Reserve area, Napo, Ecuador |
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| Gelanesaurus cochranae - Narupa Reserve, Napo, Ecuador |
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| Paectes circularis - Narupa Reserve area, Napo, Ecuador |
December
Laura and I desired a bit of a slower pace for a few weeks following the busyness of the previous six. We returned to Mindo and rented a cabin at Yellow House for 11 days, giving us a chance to catch up on things while also really getting to know the forest here in one location. The unequivocal highlight of the trip occurred here when Laura found the Spectacled Bear.
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| Spectacled Bear - Mindo Valley, Pichincha, Ecuador |
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| Idalus herois - Mindo Valley, Pichincha, Ecuador |
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| Weevil (tribe Cholini) - Mindo Valley, Pichincha, Ecuador |
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| Ornate Flycatcher - Mindo Valley, Pichincha, Ecuador |
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| Hoary Puffleg - Mindo Valley, Pichincha, Ecuador |
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| Golden Tanager - Mindo Valley, Pichincha, Ecuador |
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| Empress Brilliant - Mindo Valley, Pichincha, Ecuador |
After Yellow House, we bussed over to the eastern side of the Andes to visit two locations. First was Cascada de San Rafael. This massive waterfall is located in the Amazonian foothills and is surrounded by gorgeous forest. Not only were the views amazing, but the birding was also top-notch! Next up was four nights back in Cosanga, a location that we had visited in mid-October. There were still a few birds that I was hoping to catch up with here and I finally knocked off a few nemesis species - Greater Scycthebill and Peruvian Antpitta among them.
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| Cascada de San Rafael, Napo, Ecuador |
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| Speckled Chachalaca - Cascada de San Rafael, Napo, Ecuador |
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| Buff-tailed Sicklebill - Cascada de San Rafael, Napo, Ecuador |
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| Olive-sided Flycatcher - Cascada de San Rafael, Napo, Ecuador |
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| Greater Scythebill - Guacamayos Ridge, Napo, Ecuador |
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| Necyria bellona - Cabañas San Isidro, Napo, Ecuador |
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| Rufous-collared Sparrow - Cosanga, Napo, Ecuador |
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| Dartwhites (Catasticta sp.) - Cosanga, Napo, Ecuador |
Laura had to switch her flights due to visa issues, giving me five additional days to explore on my own. I rented a car from the airport and explored some areas within a few hours of Quito, hoping to clean up any potential new species that I hadn't yet seen. This was a very successful endeavor and a great way to finish the Ecuador leg of our trip. Hasta luego, Ecuador!
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| Many-striped Canastero - Papallacta Pass, Napo, Ecuador |
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| Andean Ibis - Antisana Volcano, Napo, Ecuador |
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| White-tailed Deer - Antisana Volcano, Napo, Ecuador |
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| Sedge Wren - Antisana Volcano, Napo, Ecuador |
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| Yanacocha Reserve, Pichincha, Ecuador |
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| Scarlet-breasted Dacnis - Rio Silanche Bird Sanctuary, Pichincha, Ecuador |
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| Anolis chloris - Rio Silanche Bird Sanctuary, Pichincha, Ecuador |
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| Orange-fronted Barbet - Rio Silanche Bird Sanctuary, Pichincha, Ecuador |
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| Collared Araçari - Rio Silanche Bird Sanctuary, Pichincha, Ecuador |
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