Brazil: Carajas Nov 07—18, 2007
Posted by Andrew Whittaker
Andrew Whittaker
Andrew Whittaker has been based in Amazonian Brazil for the last 21 years. Andy's passion for birding and natural history started at the early age of seven in the UK. F...Related Trips
Spellbound, we tried to suppress our collective gasp, as the brilliant scarlet bird alighted on a nearby, sun-dappled horizontal limb. The bird in question was a breathtakingly spectacular male Guianan Red-Cotinga, whose colors nearly glowed in the gloom of the forest understory. Unprecedented close studies revealed an intricate pattern of brilliant colors, the flattened crown of brightest scarlet, the contrasting black wings with velvety-brown highlights, and the melding of red and brown throughout the body that made for a dazzling whole that was greater than the sum of its parts. We had carefully maneuvered ourselves into the center of a lek of four of these phenomenal male cotingas, and were thrilled to observe their poorly-known displays. One male proclaimed his dominance with rich, loud calls, and chased away an intruder while producing an odd, high-pitched wing-whirring (produced by special emarginated primaries).
Returning to Carajás is always a pleasure, and as usual this wonderful Amazonian site did not let us down. However, the region was in the grasp of a strong drought that certainly dampened vocal activity. Despite this, the enormous Brazilian tapirs were out in force, as we notched a trip record of eight individuals seen! Carajás certainly must be one of the better sites in South America to see this sought-after mammal.
Before long, we were enjoying repeated superb studies of the nearly-mythical bird that everyone in the group had dreamt of seeing: a spectacular male Black-chested Tyrant foraging undisturbed within a few feet of us! This year we also had a tremendously tape-responsive pair of Black-and White Tody-Tyrants that allowed prolonged studies from a few feet away. Gaucho, our super CVRD guide, introduced me to a new road which brought us luck in the form of wonderful afternoon scope studies of a family of three Hyacinth Macaws, the world's largest parrot.
Other trip highlights were numerous. With hard work, we eventually got stunning views of the spectacular Black-bellied Gnateater, as well as the endemic subspecies pallida of Chestnut-belted Gnateater. Just one of several cotinga highlights was a very close, displaying White Bellbird, which we were able to observe through the scope as it belted out the odd bell-like advertising calls, and alternated between its two preferred perches. The bird's wattle display was comical, with the long black wattle being visibly erected to about 3.5 inches, and looking like a black worm ringed with tiny, white tufts of feathers that looked like fungus. How this can be sexy to the female bellbirds I have no idea! This isolated, endemic subspecies is named after one of the world's greatest explorers, Alfred Russel Wallace, who visited Amazonia from 1848 to 1852.
During one lunch break, a fruiting tree rewarded us with nonstop action in the form of yet more stunning cotingas, including scope studies of multiple White-tailed Cotingas (several gorgeous males), Purple-breasted Cotinga, Sharpbill, and a crippling male Spangled Cotinga. We found a Blackish Pewee constructing a nest right over the road; this is a localized bird seen by very few birders. Forest puffbirds made a good showing on this trip, with close scope studies of the striking Rufous-necked, Collared, and Striolated puffbirds. A stunning, adult male Opal-crowned Manakin on a song-perch dazzled us with the opal hue of its brilliant crown. Cecropia trees produced well for us, allowing us to observe, in great detail, both the endemic Pearly and Hellmayr's parakeets as they fed on the odd, drupe-like fruits.
Woodcreepers were also noteworthy, with highlights including repeated views of the Curve-billed Scythebill, (with that improbable bill) and superb close looks at two recently described taxa: Brigida's Woodcreeper and the even less well-known Carajas Woodcreeper! Our night trips produced stunning, prolonged scope studies of the rarely seen, forest-dwelling Silky-tailed Nightjar, along with a puzzling screech-owl whose taxonomic affinities remain unconfirmed.
I could not finish the highlights without mentioning the excellent looks we had at the recently described Cryptic Forest-Falcon, the endemic White-crested Guan, Chestnut-throated Spinetail, a Gray Tinamou incubating five beautiful glossy blue eggs, and, of course, the stunning pair of Rose-breasted Chats near their nest. Finally, scope-filling views of perched King Vultures with their brilliantly multicolored heads and odd, pure white eyes were another big treat.
The wonderful display of Brazilian primates in the well-kept, forested zoo facilities was, as always, enjoyed by all, as were the wonderful meals and Kibon ice creams we had in the delightful town. This year's Carajás tour was truly a magnificent trip! A wonderful group of people enjoyed nine days of spectacular Amazonian birding, recording 305 species of birds, including some of the most localized and least-known species of South America.
OUR GROUP'S TOP 5 BIRDS
1- Guianan Red-Cotinga
2- Black-chested Tyrant
3- Gray Tinamou
4- Opal-crowned Manakin
5- Black-bellied Gnateater, Collared Puffbird, White-bellbird, and Chestnut-belted Gnateater tied!