After a brief lull in the busy season for Panamanian birding, a couple of outstanding reports arrived almost simultaneously. First and foremost has to be the discovery of a female Stripe-cheeked Woodpecker at Altos del Maria on February 6th, by Canopy Lodge guide Tino Sanchez and a Field Guides Inc. tour group led by John Rowlett. I await photos and other details as the group completes their tour in the remote Darién Province (a region conspicuously devoid of internet cafés!). Stripe-cheeked Woodpecker is a Panamanian endemic, although it probably exists in the nearby regions of Colombia that are inaccessible due to political strife. Interestingly, Mr. Rowlett and I have been discussing (in the context of recent reports of Blue-fronted Parrotlet at Altos) the possibility of a bird of the foothills and lower highlands of the Darién Massif ranging only as far west as the eastern edge of the Talamanca Range at Altos del Maria. (A number of species, e.g. Rufous-browed Tyrannulet, Black-crowned Antpitta, Emerald Tanager, Yellow-eared Toucanet et. al. wander widely between the two ranges.) Stripe-cheeked Woodpecker seems to fit the bill, but I will await the learned comments of Mr. Rowlett before further discussion! Suffice to say that this is a sighting of the first order!
Carlos Bethancourt, senior guide at the Canopy Tower, weighed in with some more good reports. He shared the photo of the
Pheasant Cuckoo that heads this paragraph, photographed only this morning (2/12) on Plantation Trail; this splendid
bird is a good find at any time of year, but tends to be more vocal and visible at this point in the dry season. I fondly recall
being serenaded by a Pheasant Cuckoo at dusk one morning in January of 2007; the bird was perched only a few feet from the windows
of the Canopy Tower, and its melodic song echoed throughout the common area of the Tower. Of more ornithological significance is
Carlos' report of a Northern Shoveler found at Tocumen Marsh (pictured at right) on February 8th. This dabbling duck is a rare
find anywhere in Panamá. Even better is the discovery of a very vocal White-eyed Vireo near the Gatún Locks spillway
(the Atlantic side of the Canal area) on February 6th; I believe this is only the 10th record of the species from Panamá, unsurprising as many individuals
of this species winter as far north as Texas. Apparently Carlos captured audio recordings of the bird, and I will try to share these
recordings on this website as soon as possible. Interestingly, this seems to be a good year for rare vireos in Panamá, as the
Xenornis website has just published a report of Warbling Vireo from Finca Hartmann
in western Chiriquí, only the thrd record for the country if accepted.
Finally comes a report from Domiciano "Domi" Alveo, a longtime employee but nascent guide at the Canopy Lodge, of a pair of Rufous-vented Ground-Cuckoos found on La Zamia Trail, near El Valle, on February 11th. Domi was in the company of four novice birders, and noted that the sighting of this rare species is a classic example of beginner's luck!
