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The beautiful Long-tailed Tyrant is almost exclusively a bird of
the Caribbean slope of Panama. The Continental Divide is, of course, just a line on the map and not a solid
wall, but many species in Panama show a remarkable respect for that artificial border. A number of so-called "Caribbean slope"
species that have proven to be fairly common around El Valle (e.g. Black-faced Grosbeak, Black-headed Saltator) are generally
found at the higher elevations above town, i.e. "on the line." Canopy Tower guests have traditionally found Long-tailed Tyrant
on Achiote Road or thereabouts, and recent explorations around El Valle on the part
of Canopy Lodge employees have found this species near the village of Rio Indio in western Panamá (reached by a rugged 4-wheel drive
excursion that is not undertaken by many visiting birders). But it was a total surprise when Tino Sanchez found a Long-tailed Tyrant in the gardens of
the Canopy Lodge on October 24th, 2006. The Lodge is located on the edge of El Valle, comfortably nestled on the downslope of the Pacific side of the Divide.
This sighting represented the first Pacific-slope record for Coclé, and it will be interesting to see if this was a random occurrence
or if Long-tailed Tyrant is expanding its range to the south.
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