The Magic Jardin...!

We headed up into the hills at 5am, with a Rufous-bellied Nighthawkand Band-winged Nightjarseen on the drive up before reaching the Yellow-eared Parrot Reserve. We stationed ourselves at a particular spot and sure enough we could see flocks of Yellow-eared Parrots heading across the sky, all at some distance. 

Yellow-eared Parrots

Fortunately one group headed our way and we had brilliant views as they flew right over our heads. We decided to linger here and luckily a Chestnut-naped Antpitta began calling and as we tried to work out which direction it was in a second bird ran across the track in front of us. After some careful manoeuvring we laid eyes on a pair that came out onto the verge beside the road and lingered for ages. 

Chestnut-naped Antpitta

Unbelievably this was our 9^th species of antpitta so far. Elated with this we decided to walk down the road a couple hundred metres to where we had heard an Ocellated Tapaculo calling on the drive up. Well, they were still in the same place calling away but it took a lot of persistence to get any sort of view on this notorious skulker. But eventually everyone had tickable views, along with a Tanager Finch initially found by Lia. 

Tanager Finch

With breakfast calling we walked back up the hill, but a few of us stragglers then had crippling views of an Ocellated Tapaculo calling away from an open area of moss-covered trees. Wow! Walking back a Yellow-bellied Chat-Tyrant was also seen. Over breakfast we had a superb Black-and-Chestnut Eagle and a Short-tailed Hawk fly over us, followed by superb looks at a Smoky Bush-Tyrant. 

Ocellated Tapaculo

Smoky Bush-Tyrant

From around 9am the forest became very quiet and for 3 hours until lunch we actually didn’t see anything new although Black-capped Tyrannulet, Lacrimose Mountain-Tanagerand Golden-xx Whitestart etc were seen. So we headed to the other side of the mountain for our picnic lunch at noon and our luck changed. First a pair of Northern Mountain Caciques appeared above us and them Jose picked up the stunning Chestnut-crested Cotinga feeding on berries at the top of a tree below us. We watched this bird for ages before driving lower in search of the endemic Red-bellied Grackle. We made a few stops seeing Yellow-bellied Elaenia, Inca Jay, Russet-backed Oropendola, Scarlet-rumped Cacique and White-capped Dipper. 

Inca Jay

But with time pressing we had an appointment with the local Jardin Andean Cock-of-the-Rock lek and what a great time we had here. There were between 9 and 14 males displaying right in front of us. 

Andean Cock-of-the-Rock

This is one of nature’s most memorable sights and sounds as these bright crimson birds make a variety of pig-like squealing and grunts. It truly is a sight to behold. 

Red-bellied Grackle

Amazingly there were a bunch of Red-bellied Grackles feeding in the garden as well, along with Streak-headed Woodcreeper, Black-winged Saltator, Bay-headed and Scrub Tanagers, Streaked Flycatcher, Western Emerald, and Golden-olive Woodpecker. 

Bay-headed Tanager - common but stunning...

Black-winged Saltator

Walking back to the car a pair of Grey-throated Toucanets and a White-lined Tanager were seen. 

Grey-throated Toucanet - an interesting taxonomic situation

Hacienda El Bosque

We headed back up into the hills this morning and another appointment with a couple of antpittas. This time it was on the grounds of a cattle ranch, where we had a nice breakfast before driving up in a 4-wheel drive through the fields. At the top we saw at least 3 distant Grey-breasted Mountain-Toucans. A short walk down into brilliant cloud forest led us to a viewing area where a Grey-browed Brushfinch greeted us. 

Grey-browed Brush-Finch

After a tense wait a Rufous Antpitta duly appeared and fed for a few minutes before disappearing back into the forest. Wow again! 

Rufous Antpitta

It was a reasonably steep walk back up to the top of the field enlivened by Golden-fronted Whitestart and a couple of Pearled Treerunners at the forest edge. Once at the top we enjoyed closer looks at a Grey-breasted Mountain-Toucan feeding firstly at eye-level and then down the slope below us. 

Grey-breasted Mountain-Toucan

And then it was time for the main event as we walked down some steps to another viewing area where amazingly a pair of Crescent-faced Antpittas appeared almost immediately. This is one hell of a bird and one of the most-wanted Neotropical birds going and we simply lapped up the views as they fed just around 25 feet below us providing incredible views. 

Crescent-faced Antpitta

But that wasn’t all as the hummer feeders attracted 2 Sword-billed Hummingbirds, Buff-winged Starfrontlet, Sparkling Violetear, Mountain Velvetbreast etc. 

Sword-billed Hummingbird

A superb Barred Fruiteater was also seen, along with Paramo Seedeater and White-throated Tyrannulet. Eventually, after repeated views of the antpitta we dragged ourselves away and returned to the main house where a Cattle Tyrant and Purple-backed Thornbill was seen.

Barred Fruiteater

Then we set out on the 7 hour drive to Jardin. Along the way we made a couple of stops seeing the endemic Greyish Piculet, Highland Hepatic Tanager, White-winged Becard, Western Emerald, Ultramarine Grosbeak, Bran-coloured Flycatcher, Red-crowned Woodpecker and Crimson-backed Tanager. A quick lunch stop produced Carib Grackle, Shiny Cowbird and Giant Cowbird. A frustrating drive ensued with numerous roadworks despite our detour but we eventually made it to our lovely hotel in the town square.

Nevado del Ruiz

This morning we headed to the highest altitude of the tour at 4100m and the paramo zone of Nevado Del Ruiz. And boy it was chilly this morning as we began the day with a Paramo Tapaculo being seen by most of us, and a Grass Wren showing well, but Ash-coloured Tapaculowas only heard. We arrived at a small restaurant for breakfast, opposite a lake with Andean Teal, a flyover Black-chested Buzzard-Eagle, with a flock of Plain-coloured Seedeaters in the scrub nearby and some of the friendliest dogs imaginable! 

Nevado del Ruiz

Feeling fortified by some good grub we headed to the National Park in dense mist which inhibited our search for the endemic Buffy Helmetcrest and initially it was seen quite quickly, with the bird was feeding low beneath the bushes before disappearing quickly. A tense wait followed before another bird was found in a much more open area and everyone feasted their eyes on this little stunner. 

Buffy Helmetcrest

We tried a few more side roads but the mist was just too thick and we only saw a close Black-thighed Puffleg feeding beside the road on some flowers. So we changed tack and tried a totally different area that was much clearer and enjoyed fine looks at White-chinned Thistletail and Andean Tit-Spinetail amongst some spectacular scenery with snow-capped mountains dominating the horizon. 

Andean Tit-Spinetail

White-chinned Thistletail

We then drove towards our lunch stop birding along the road seeing Band-tailed Seedeater, Red-crested Cotinga, Stout-billed Cinclodes, Andean Siskin, Brown-backed Chat-Tyrant and eventually a pair of Western Tawny Antpittas that had us hiking up a field to see them and at this altitude we certainly felt alive!

Driving lower we reached the lovely Termas Hotel for lunch, but not before enjoying the delights of their hummer feeders. New for our lists were Golden-breasted Puffleg, Viridian Metaltail, Buff-winged Starfrontlet, numerous Shining Sunbeams, and the star of the show was a female Rainbow-bearded Thornbill. 

Buff-winged Starfrontlet

Golden-breasted Puffleg

Rainbow-bearded Thornbill

Shining Sunbeam

Viridian Metaltail

We also saw another Black-thighed Puffleg, Mountain Velvetbreast, Great Sapphirewing and Tourmaline Sunangel here as well. After a delicious lunch we birded the road below the hotel but it was slow going in the sunshine but we still added Paramo Seedeater, Purple-backed Thornbill, and a Hooded Mountain-Tanagerto our list. There were other birds seen such as Lacrimose and Scarlet-bellied Mountain-Tanagers, and a Spillman’s Tapaculo showed really well. Driving back towards Manizales we saw another Paramo Tapaculo to end a fine day in the mountains.

Rio Blanco and Antpitta Madness!

When a day you have looked forward to for so long finally arrives, you do wonder if it will live up to expectations. Well, I needn’t have worried on that front as this turned out to be the best day of the tour so far. So we began at the main house, which is surrounded by great forest and has hummer feeders that attracted Long-tailed Sylph, Fawn-breasted Brilliant, Buff-tailed Coronet and Bronzy Inca. More birds kept appearing and before we’d eaten our breakfast we’d seen Grey-browed Brushfinch, Mountain Wren, Buff-breasted Mountain-Tanager,Capped Conebill, Black-eared Hemispingus, Bar-bellied Woodpecker, a pair of Barred Becards all passing through the bushes and trees at the edge of the garden and seen from the veranda. There were even some Scaly-naped Amazonsflying over as well. After a great breakfast it was time for the first feeding station, which was just adjacent to the garden. Here we sat on a bench and waited while our local guide, John, threw some worms down and whistled. We waited and waited. And waited some more. Stomachs tightening all the while. Would the bird show? Well, yes it did. An absolutely fantastic Bicoloured Antpitta suddenly emerged from the dense undergrowth and just stood there a few seconds before eating the worms. Wow! It remained on view for several minutes before returning to the gloom. Smiles all round after antpitta no 1. 

Bicoloured Antpitta

We then birded around the gardens for a little while longer before heading uphill to the next feeding station. A row of seats confronted us and no sooner had we sat down and the worms thrown onto the ground than a Green-and-black Fruiteater appeared and promptly began eating all the worms. It flew onto the handrail next to us and even fed from the group’s hand. Outrageous! 

Green-and-black Fruiteater

But just then a Brown-banded Antpitta appeared right beside us, no more than 3 feet away. OMG! And it just stood there, fed a bit, hopped around, fed some more… And just stood there, way too close to get a decent photo. 

Brown-banded Antpitta

This was utterly mind-blowing. As if that wasn’t enough a Chestnut-crowned Antpitta appeared on the other side, and although a little shy it too eventually gave crippling views out in the open some 10 feet away from us. 

Chestnut-crowned Antpitta

And then a male Golden-headed Quetzal put in an appearance in the nearby trees. This was all getting utterly surreal.

We then followed the road along for a bit and bumped into numerous flocks. This was far and away the ‘birdiest’ site we had visited in Colombia so far. We saw a lot of birds very quickly as we jammed into these mixed feeding flocks with species such as the very common Blue-and-black Tanager, Beryl-spangled Tanager, Hooded Siskin, a group of Sharpe’s Wrens, Golden-fronted Whitestart, Pale-edged Flycatcher, Montane Woodcreeper,Lacrimose and Blue-winged Mountain-Tanagers, Pearled Treerunner, Streaked Xenops, and even the rare Slaty Finch. Another male Golden-headed Quetzal was seen, before reaching the next and final feeding station. From a wooden bench we could look down the slope and this time a cool looking Slate-crowned Antpitta was the star of the show, along with another Brown-banded Antpitta. Words fail me!

Slate-crowned Antpitta

 Continuing along the track we had more flocks with Masked Trogon, stunning Powerful and Crimson-mantled Woodpeckers, Streaked Tuftedcheek, Black-capped Tyrannulet, Black-eared and Black-capped Hemispingus, and a Rufous-headed Pygmy-Tyrant amongst others. But our local guide had one more trick up his sleeve as we returned to the first feeding station and took positions along the trail nearby. After what seemed like an eternity a huge Undulated Antpitta appeared and I cannot express the feeling of awe I felt. This bird has only been seen at this site for a couple of weeks here but it was extremely bold and I even went back for seconds over lunch.

Undulated Antpitta

It needed great fieldcraft skills to catch a glimpse of this antpitta!

 After that we returned to the main house for lunch and to watch the hummer feeders where Bronzy Inca showed well. A quick check of the trail led us to a pair of Rufous-crowned Tody-tyrants that performed outrageously. 

Rufous-crowned Tody-Tyrant

After lunch we saw Grey-headed Bush-Tanager, Slaty Brushfinch, Andean Motmot, Oleaginous and Superciliaried Hemispingus, Slaty-backed Chat-Tyrant, Golden-plumed Parakeet, Blackish Tapaculo, Glossy-black Thrush, Metallic-green Tanager, Black-banded Woodcreeper, White-capped Dipper, Choco Daggerbill (split from Wedge-billed Hummer), and a Speckled Hummingbird. 

Black-banded Woodcreeper

Speckled Hummingbird

Wedge-billed Hummingbird now split as White-throated Wedgebill

White-capped Dipper

We had dinner back at the main house but before that we saw a Band-winged Nightjar, but failed at owling with White-throated Screech-Owl and Rufous-banded Owl heard. What an amazing day.