Photos from Tony Beck, and more...
I received some fine photos from Tony Beck, a brilliant photographer and well-respected naturalist and guide based in Ontario, Canada (do yourself a favor and check out his website). He visited the Canopy Tower and then the remote Darién in late November of this year, as a leader for Greentours, a U.K.-based ecotourism company. Below are two of my favorite shots: at left, a female Great Jacamar, and at right a Semiplumbeous Hawk, both found on Pipeline Road on 11/25 in the company of José Soto of the Canopy Tower. The jacamar is a species that seems to be on the decline in the region, and is not seen very often. Semiplumbeous Hawk is present in the region in only small numbers, although lately everyone seems to be seeing one except for me! Either species is a red-letter bird, and to get such crystal-clear photos of these deep-forest birds is no mean feat!
I must venture outside of this site's coverage area to share this outstanding report and photo submitted by Tony; he and his group, led by the Darién guide, Hernán Araúz,
found this male Western Tanager on the grounds of the Cana Lodge in Darién Province on December 7th. This photo represents, to the best of my knowledge, the
southern/easternmost record of the species. The previous best (again, to the best of my knowledge) was a bird sighted from The Canopy Tower by Carlos Bethancourt et. al. a few
years ago (see how I tie this all together?). This Western Tanager is an extraordinary find, and congrats to all, and especially to Tony for documenting it so well!
Below are a couple of photos of birds that don't fit the profile of "species of interest" for the site, but seemed worthy of inclusion for various reasons. At left is a stunning Capped Heron found by Tony Beck et. al. at the Summit Gardens on 11/23; this species is somewhat uncommon and is missed by many visiting birders. What strikes me about this photo is the rich orange color of the breast; this is apparently a characteristic of birds in breeding plumage, but I have never seen one quite so brilliant before (they are generally a soft cream color on the underparts). At right is a Harpy Eagle found on Pipeline Road in January of 2007, graciously shared belatedly by John Schick of California (he'd lost my card!). This bird is part of an ongoing reintroduction program initiated by The Peregrine Fund, and as such is, strictly speaking, not "listable", but is a splendid sight nonetheless. The project, while laudable in its purpose, is actually the source of some irritation to Panamanian birders; the Peregrine Fund has asked that birders not venture into the project area to prevent the eagles from becoming accustomed to humans (apparently the project staff on their ORV's are invisible to Harpy Eagles). After a group of interested parties agreed on a mutually-acceptable boundary, the Peregrine Fund has been gradually pushing the line back towards the entrance, so visiting birders are now deprived of the opportunity to bird some of the most productive habitat on the road (on my last visit I just kept walking, seeing neither Harpy Eagles nor project staff). Birders visiting Pipeline Road should be warned that one of the Harpies has apparently imprinted too well on humans, and aggressively swoops in for "play" if not carefully watched; at least one Canopy Tower guide received (non-life-threatening) head wounds as a result of this bird's curiosity! Ah, how we suffer for our art!
Finally, I've got a handful of brief reports from the Canopy Lodge. Raúl Arias de Para reports that, as of December 10th, the Rufous-crested Coquette has been more-or-less regular at the Lodge gardens for a couple of weeks. This impossibly-tiny hummingbird seems to be a dry season specialty of the house, although it has been known to linger until May or beyond. Now we just need to find a nest! Moyo Rodríguez led groups of birders to the now-famous Rufous-vented Ground-Cuckoo on 12/18 and 12/22; given that this mystical creature is relatively easier to find in dry season than wet, it seems likely that the Lodge guides can maintain this extraordinary run of sightings! Finally, Danilo Rodríguez reported "good views" of a Black-crowned Antpitta at La Mesa, above El Valle, on 12/7. This huge antpitta is found with some regularity at Altos del Maria (to the east), but is still an exceptionally rare find at La Mesa.
This report will be the last for the year 2007, although I expect that a few sightings for the calendar year may be submitted after the fact. This has been an extraordinary year for bird sightings in central Panamá, and much information has been added to the ornithological knowledge of the region. I thank each and every contributor from the past year, and hope you'll all keep it coming! ¡Feliz Año Nuevo!
