Things have slowed down in the last couple of weeks, but a couple of interesting reports have trickled in. Most exciting is a report on the Xenornis website of an Orange-breasted Falcon found by Advantage Panama guides Kilo Campos and Ariel Tenorio on April 8th at Birder's View in Cerro Azul. Sr. Tenorio even managed to snap off a couple of surprisingly good photos with his cell phone's camera. This species is one of the rarest raptors in Panamá (I would consider this species, Solitary Eagle, Bicolored Hawk, and Black-collared Hawk to be the Top 4 in this category), so much so that I have not included it on this site's Watchlist of potential vagrants to the region. I will remedy this oversight very soon, as there is another credible record from Cerro Azul from 1970, and recent aerial surveys by the Peregrine Fund revealed nesting sites near El Copé, just to the west of the site's coverage area. It is quite difficult to distinguish Orange-breasted Falcon from the common Bat Falcon, and I must admit that, after careful study of Ariel's photos, I cannot conclusively determine the specific identity of this bird (although the impression in the field of the experienced observers is not to be discounted, and certain features do point to the rarer species). It will be interesting to see if any further details regarding this bird are submitted and posted.
Danilo Rodríguez of the Canopy Lodge reports that the Rufous-crested Coquette was seen in the Lodge gardens on April 12th; this dry-season visitor to El Valle has been somewhat scarce this year. More intriguing is Danilo's secondhand report of a Black-eared Wood-Quail found by Moyo Rodríguez the week before at La Mesa. This reclusive species of the western highlands has proved to be rare but somewhat regular in recent years at Altos del Maria, but this would be a first sighting for the El Valle area, and an unexpected incursion onto the edge of the Pacific slope. I eagerly await details regarding this exciting find.
