Ecuador Hummingbird Extravaganza Mar 22—Apr 01, 2007
Posted by Paul Greenfield
Paul Greenfield
Paul Greenfield grew up near New York City and became interested in birds as a child. He received his B.F.A. from Temple University where he was an art major at the Tyler S...Related Trips
Hummingbirds mesmerize! Their indescribable flight?up, down, back and forth, sideways . . . gone!; their scintillating feathers, flashes of color, and extravagant plumes; their tiny size (well, some); the Neotropics imparts new meaning to these creatures for those who only know them from North America. Some are really big! They are pugnacious and even curious?they check out buttons, ears, camera lenses, scarves, and hats. They never seem to tire and are sometimes even exhausting to watch. They are adorable!
Our March 2007 Ecuador Hummingbird Extravaganza tour overflowed with these fascinating creatures. Not only did we explore a wide range of natural habitats and life-zones on both the eastern and western slopes of Ecuador’s northern Andes, but we also visited no less then ten different hummingbird “gardens” and tallied a whopping 50 species of hummers in our eight-and-a-half-days of birding. We were entertained by some of the most spectacular members of this avian family, along with the world’s largest species and a few that must classify among the smallest. Their names alone evoke images of the fabulous diversity we encountered: White-whiskered Hermit, Band-tailed Barbthroat, Sparkling Violet-ear, Purple-bibbed Whitetip, Empress Brilliant, Green-crowned Woodnymph, Green Thorntail, Western Emerald, Velvet-purple Coronet, Ecuadorian Hillstar, Sword-billed Hummingbird, Shining Sunbeam, Great Sapphirewing, Buff-winged Starfrontlet, Collared Inca, Booted Racket-tail, Gorgeted Sunangel, Tourmaline Sunangel, Violet-tailed Sylph, Rainbow-bearded Thornbill, Black-tailed Trainbearer, Long-billed Starthroat, and Gorgeted Woodstar.
But this was more than just a hummingbird fest. The truth is, it is basically impossible to visit a country with biodiversity as rich as Ecuador’s without getting caught up in it?birds, butterflies, and orchids! Our birding took us to many special places and we found many wonderful species. Some favorites included Black-billed and Plate-billed mountain-toucans, Golden-headed and Crested quetzals, and all those tanagers!
Our arrival at the Río Silanche Bird Sanctuary tower was something else too. As we climbed to the top (not really high), we quickly realized that we were sharing the nearby canopy with a mixed foraging flock?first the threatened Scarlet-breasted Dacnis, then Moustached Antwren, Dot-winged Antwren, Scarlet-browed Tanager, Bay-headed Tanager, Golden-hooded Tanager, Gray-and-gold Tanager, Chocó Toucan . . . it went on and on?and it was so exciting to have so many species foraging right in front of us, not caring about our presence! Both Mirador Río Blanco and Mindo Loma offered similar shows with hummingbirds and tanagers, euphonias, woodpeckers, and even Pale-mandibled Araçaris coming in to feed on plantains set out for them.