Birding Trip report Southern Ecuador 8 days 2025
- Buenaventura Reserve – Choco Region: (500-1300 m, 1640-4265 feets). Umbrellabird Lodge,
- Remote forest of Cerro de Arcos 3600 m. – 11811 feets. Blue-throated Hillstar.
- Saraguro: Cloud Forets (2400 -3200 m) Acacana Mountain: 3400 m. 11154 feets. Crescent-faced Antpitta
- Tapichalaca Reserve (2500 m – 8200 feets). Casa Simpson Lodge.
- Zamora Chinchipe Province – Bombuscaro River – Podocarpus National Park – Copalinga Reserve (900 m – 2950 feets.). Copalinga Lodge
Tour Overview:
Tour starting from Santa Rosa. June 8 to 16th
Participants_ Leonid and Irina Finkelstein
Local Guide Southern Ecuador: Pablo Andrade.
Itinerary.
June 8. Flight Quito Santa Rosa.
June 9. Coastal Wetlands and Dry Forests: Arenillas Reserve, La Tembladera Lagoon.
First we visited Puerto Jelí and some small ponds in the surrounding area of Santa Rosa, then laguna la Tembladera, Reserva Arenillas, and some small ponds in the surrounding area of Santa Rosa. Chacras near the border with Peru; by the way since in Puerto Jeli is not easy to get a place where to have a breakfast we went to Hosteria, lodge El Chozón, where we had a delicious breakfast after visiting the Arenillas Reserve, which is very close by. In the afternoon head to Buenaventura Reserve.
June 10, 11, 12 Buenaventura Reserve.
We spent three days birding at the Buenaventura Reserve, exploring its lush mid-elevation forests and staying at Umbrellabird Lodge.
June 12: Cerro de Arcos. Saraguro.
We ascended to the high-altitude Cerro de Arcos (3600 m), a remote paramo habitat, in search of the endemic Blue-throated Hillstar.
June 12, 13: Tapichalaca Reserve.
At the Tapichalaca Reserve, we stayed at Casa Simpson Lodge and focused on key montane bird species, including the Jocotoco Antpitta.
June 14, 15, 16, Copalinga Reserve.
Our final days were spent at the Copalinga Reserve and the Bombuscaro sector of Podocarpus National Park, located in the eastern foothills near Zamora (900 m elevation)
Some highlight bird species:
Pale-browed Tinamou (h), Gray Tinamnou, White-cheecked Pintail, Black bellied Whistling-Duck, Fulvous Whistling Duck , Bearded Guan, Rufous- headed and Speckled Chachalacas, Rufous-fronted Wood-Quail, Least, Pied-billed and Great Grebe, Magnificent Frigatebird, Whimbrel, Neotropic Cormorant, Anhinga, Brown Pelican, Rufescent-tiger Heron, Black-crowned, Yellow-crowned and Striated Heron, Great Egret, Snowy Egret, Tricolored, little blue and Cocoi Herons. American White Ibis, Turkey, Black Vultures. Hook-billed Kite, Snail kite, Barred Hawk, Gray-backed Hawk, Roadside Hawk, Harri´s Hawk; Crested Caracara, Black Caracara, Carunculated Caracara, Andean Condor.American Kestrel, Gray-breasted Crake; Common Gallinule, Purple Gallinule, Southern Lapwing, American Oystercatcher, Black-necked Stilt, Jameson´s Snipe, Wattled Jacana, Gray-hooded Gull, Gull-billed Tern, Black Skimmer, Ecuadorian Ground-Dove, Blue Ground-Dove (h), Rock Dove, Band-Tailed Pigeon, West-peruvian Dove, Eared Dove, White-Tipped Dove, Gray-fronted Dove, White-throated Quail Dove (h), Red-masked, gray-cheeked and White-winged Parakeets, el Oro Parakeet, Pacific Parrotlet, Blue-headed Parrot, Bronce-winged Parrot, Groove-billed Ani, Black-and-white Owl, Rufous-banded Owl (h), Andean Pygmy-Owl, Peruvian Pygmy-Owl, Common Pauraque, Gray-rumped Swift, ……
Blue-throated Hillstar, Long-wattled Umbrellabir, Crescent-faced Antpitta. El Oro Parakeet, Spangled Coquette, …………
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