The violet-ear pushed another hummingbird to second on the list: Tino and I enjoyed excellent looks at a female Purple-throated Mountain-Gem below the mirador at Cerro La Gaita; this was the first sighting of this species at this location, although it has been found at Cerro Gaital (to the west) and in the eastern section of Altos del Maria. Other good birds on the day were at least two Brown-billed Scythebills (heard only), two Russet Antshrikes, singles of Barred Forest-Falcon (heard only), Spotted Barbtail, Pale-vented Thrush and White-throated Robin, two migrant Golden-winged Warblers, two Chestnut-mandibled Toucans (new to the area), and multiple Snowcaps, Ochraceous Wrens, and Black-and-yellow Tanagers. I managed to capture some weak audio of a Rufous-browed Tyrannulet near the western edge of Altos; this species is seen with some regularity in the area, but few reports have made their way into the hands of the Central American Bird Records Committee (CABRC). Another personal highlight was a great look at an Eye-ringed Flatbill, a life bird for me. I wound up seeing this species on three consecutive days, on the 8th (with Armodio Rodriguez) at La Zamia Trail, and on the 9th on the grounds of the Canopy Lodge (audio collected). The CABRC lists a sighting from the summer of 2005 as the first record of this species from Coclé Province; this is in error (see the Eye-ringed Flatbill species account for more details), but the flatbill is certainly rare-to-uncommon in the region.

On the ride back to El Valle we stopped in the lovely village of Mata Ahogado (at the western edge of Panamá Province) and enjoyed some fine sightings. We watched a Gray-capped Flycatcher at length; this species is inexplicably known from the region only in this village. A pair of Black-headed Saltators came in while we watched the flycatcher, and I was able to record its vocalization.

Tino Sanchez was kind enough to catch me up on a number of truly remarkable sightings from the last couple of months. The La Mesa area (the plateau below Cerro Gaital) has added Royal Flycatcher (José Perez, early November) and Emerald Tanager (Tino, December 5th) to the area's birdlist; both species were perhaps to be expected in the region based on their previously-documented range. Veraguan Mango was found west of El Chirú on December 6th (Tino Sanchez et al); this Panamanian endemic had been recorded as far east as Penonomé, so it was perhaps only a matter of time before it was found only a few more kilometers to the east. This is the first species from my list of Hypothetical Species for the region to actually be discovered.

From the Altos del Maria area, Danilo Rodriguez and José Perez confirmed the presence of Black-eared Wood-Quail on two occasions in early November. This species was first heard at Altos a few months before by Robert Ridgely. As exciting as this discovery is, Armodio Rodriguez' sighting of a Prong-billed Barbet at Altos in mid-December takes the cake! Armodio (Moyo) is a guide-in-training at the Canopy Lodge; he is an excellent and thorough birder, and also the fellow who found the population of Spot-crowned Barbets near Rio Indio, within striking distance of El Valle. I have no doubt as to the veracity of his report, and it will be exciting to see if future visits to the area will provide more complete documentation of the presence of this species at Altos. Prong-billed Barbet's known range extends only as far east as Veraguas Province, and I have to admit that it was not even on my radar as a possibility in central Panama. Well done, Moyo!

Back to my own sightings: a male Wilson's Warbler near my room at the Canopy Lodge was rare for the region. I had good success working alone on a very foggy morning at Cerro Gaital (1/6). The Purplish-backed Quail-Dove pictured at left was kind enough to walk out onto the trail just below the 2nd Station; only the dark lighting conditions kept me from capturing a better image. I flushed a Black Guan not far away from this spot (a life bird for me); this species is rare but regular at Cerro Gaital, and has also been found by Tino Sanchez at Cerro La Gaita in Altos del Maria. I also found two Orange-bellied Trogons, at least two Black-faced Grosbeaks, and a vocalizing White-throated Spadebill. A week or so later, on January 14th, Carlos Bethancourt and a VENT group found male and female Blue Seedeaters at Cerro Gaital; this tough-to-find species likely breeds in the area.

Back at the Canopy Lodge, at least one (probably two) male Rufous-crested Coquettes continue to frequent the flower gardens. The male pictured at right (still from video) came in to the flowering shrubs near the Lodge's guest rooms on a fairly regular basis, much to the delight of the Lodge's guests and staff alike. These individual birds have become more bold of late, possibly due to the relatively modest numbers of other hummingbird species at the gardens this time of year, and were not so easily chased off by larger, more aggressive species. The stocking of fruit feeders at the Lodge continues to seemingly alter the normal patterns of bird behavior in the area of the Lodge; secretive forest species such as Dusky-faced Tanager and Red-crowned Ant-Tanager are now common at the feeders, and Silver-throated Tanager, normally found at higher elevations, is seen with some regularity on the trails around the Lodge. Green Thorntails were not frequenting the garden at the time of my visit, but they remain in the area, and I found a male along the road passing the Lodge on January 9th.