DURATION: 13 Days
DIFFICULTY: Medium
GROUP SIZE: 8 People
ALTITUDE: 3726 meters above sea level
Southern Ecuador contains several restricted ecosystems, ranging from swamps, deserts, arid scrublands, deciduous forests, tropical rainforests, montane cloud forests, high-altitude dwarf forests, to páramo grasslands. Some of these are considered Endemic Bird Areas (EBAs) by Bird Life International, hosting a variety of endemic species from the Tumbes and Chocó regions, such as the Chocó Toucan, Club-winged Manakin, the impressive Long-wattled Umbrellabird, El Oro Parakeet, Gray-backed Hawk, Gray-and-gold Warbler, Royal Flycatcher, and many others. In the Andes, during days 5 and 6, our goal will be the recently discovered Blue-throated Hillstar hummingbird in the Cerro de Arcos area. Around Copalinga, we will look for birds like the White-necked Parakeet, Ecuadorian Tyrannulet, and Coppery-chested Jacamar, as well as various hummingbird species. Finally, at Casa Simpson in the Tapichalaca Reserve, we hope to find the iconic Jocotoco Antpitta.
Highlights
- A great variety of magnificent birds, such as the endemic El Oro Parakeet, Long-wattled Umbrellabird, and Gray-backed Hawk.
- Seeing the recently discovered Andean hummingbird, the Blue-throated Hillstar, and the beautiful Jocotoco Antpitta.
- Visiting beautiful ecological reserves and national parks in southern Ecuador, away from the usual circuits.
Grading and Climate
Grade B: This trip is a dedicated birdwatching tour, somewhat strenuous and adrenaline-filled, suitable for those with an adventurous spirit and a willingness to rise early and spend long days exploring nature in less-traveled routes. Most of the sites on this trip are in high and cool regions where temperatures are pleasant, though it can be hotter, humid, and oppressive near the coast. In this tour, most of the walks are relatively easy, though the terrain will occasionally be uneven in parts (without very steep trails). One or two sites may require a slow uphill walk on a relatively narrow road with little or no traffic. Generally, our birdwatching at all sites will be along roads/jeep tracks. Most mornings we will rise before dawn for early breakfasts (or coffee/tea and snacks followed by packed breakfasts later). Persistent heavy rain is unlikely, but one should always be prepared for rain in the Andes. Sturdy footwear and rubber boots will be required, if necessary, which can be obtained in Ecuador.
Clothing
Please carefully review the suggested clothing list, sent upon booking.
ITINERARY
This block starts in the port city of Guayaquil. We will arrive in the evening and transfer to our hotel where we will spend the night. Guayaquil is located on the banks of the Guayas River and is a vibrant commercial hub. We will have lunch in Puerto Santa Ana where we have a great atmosphere of different restaurants and pubs in front of the river, with a magnificent view.
After an early breakfast, we leave behind the bustling city of Guayaquil and begin our first full day of this block with a journey of just over an hour to the Churute Mangrove Reserve. This 50,000-hectare reserve was established in 1979 in recognition of the importance of the habitat and wildlife it harbors. Mangroves are vital for the health of our planet due to the immense amounts of carbon they can store and because they provide essential support for a wide variety of creatures, including a variety of fish.
Churute Mangroves contains an interesting mix of lagoons, mangroves, and semi-humid forest; we won’t see anything like it elsewhere on the tour. We will spend our time here searching for the endangered “Pacific” Royal Flycatcher along with a range of other scarce species, including Jet Antbird, Common (Mangrove) Black-Hawk, and Orange-crowned Euphonia. We will also have our first opportunity to find some of the more common Tumbes endemics, like Superciliated Wren and Ecuadorian Trogon. Meanwhile, the impressive Horned Screamers can be found in the nearby rice paddies.
Later in the day, we will continue to the Buenaventura Reserve, making a 120-mile journey south, with some stops to stretch our legs and observe shorebirds and aquatic birds on route (depending on water levels). Our goal is to reach Buenaventura – for a 2-night stay- with enough daylight to begin birdwatching at the lodge’s extremely active hummingbird feeders, which attract Emerald-bellied Woodnymph, Violet-bellied Hummingbird, and a variety of other species. A fruit-loaded bird feeder attracts birds like Rufous-headed Chachalaca, Pale-mandibled Aracari, and a variety of tanagers and honeycreepers. A short but steep trail within the forest leads to a Long-wattled Umbrellabird display site, though we may leave this for the next day.
The Buenaventura Reserve was created specifically to protect the largest known population of the endemic El Oro Parakeet, and we have a reasonable chance of finding a small flock during our two full days here. Additionally, there are many other birds, and the activity along the main road of the reserve is dynamic. We will search in these beautiful mist-wrapped forests for an impressive variety of species such as Pacific Tuftedcheek, Ochraceous Attila, Song Wren, Esmeraldas Antbird, Club-winged Manakin, Rufous-throated Tanager, Gray-breasted Flycatcher, and Brown-billed Scythebill, among other more common birds like Bay-headed, Blue-necked, and other Tanagers, Bay Wren, Chocó Toucan, Spotted Woodcreeper, Ornate Flycatcher, Ecuadorian Thrush, and Scarlet-rumped Cacique. Much of the birdwatching will be on the scenic route of the reserve, an old road stopped in time in the middle of the forest that leads from the lower end at 400 meters above sea level to the upper part of the reserve at 1100 meters above sea level. We will look for key mixed feeding flocks but will also take short walks along humid trails, sometimes not very steep. These will be two action-packed days in this fascinating forested area, which is the last outlier of the Chocó region in the south of the country, where it magically overlaps with the surrounding dry forest both below 400 meters above sea level and above 1100 meters above sea level. The Buenaventura Reserve is located in the middle of the transition zone between these two natural regions, Chocó/Tumbes, making it so biodiverse.
After two nights in Buenaventura, we will drive 63 miles towards the páramo of the Chilla mountain range, in the Cerro de Arcos sector, to observe the Blue-throated Hillstar, a spectacular Andean hummingbird recently discovered for science in 2017 by our main guide, Francisco (Pancho) Sornoza. We will arrive at Cerro de Arcos between 1:00 and 2:00 pm and have lunch at the lodge where we will stay at 3400 meters above sea level. After lunch, we will take a moderate walk until 4:00 pm to make our first attempt at observing the Blue-throated Hillstar, with a high success rate (80%). In the area, we may see other bird species such as Mountain Caracara, Black-billed Shrike-Tyrant, Chestnut-winged Cinclodes, and other hummingbird species like Viridian Metaltail, occasionally the Giant Hummingbird, and Rainbow-bearded Thornbill. During the first hour of the night, we may witness the flight display of Jameson’s Snipe, which usually flies over the parking lot and the lodge. The temperature at night drops between 3 and 6 degrees Celsius, so it is recommended to bring suitable clothing for the cold, as well as waterproof pants and jackets. (It’s worth spending a night with a bit of cold in exchange for seeing this spectacular hummingbird). All cabins have heating.
On day 6, after breakfast, we will make the last trip to observe the Blue-throated Hillstar and try to get photographs, then continue our route to Copalinga with a 165-mile journey (with a box lunch).
After a night in Cerro de Arcos, we will drive 165 miles east toward Copalinga, making several stops on route along the old Loja-Zamora road. We expect to see several more common birds during the trip, such as Cliff Flycatcher, Green Jay and Paradise Tanager, although surprises may always appear. In the afternoon we will arrive at Cabañas Ecológicas Copalinga, a lodge located on the northern edge of Podocarpus National Park (a UNESCO-recognized Biosphere Reserve), and settle in for a 3-night stay. Established in 1999, the lodge is located on a beautiful 150-hectare reserve. The lodge grounds are excellent for hummingbirds, with species such as Wire-crested Thorntail, Violet-headed Hummingbird, Violet-fronted Brilliant, Fork-tailed Woodnymph and Spangled Coquette regularly being attracted to the feeders and flowering plants in the gardens around the lodge. Once we have classified the hummingbirds, we can walk along a path to a small hide where you can see the Gray Tinamou, while at night, the Band-bellied Owl often sings near the lodge.
During our stay at Copalinga, we will explore an excellent trail just a short drive away, where we will be looking for many desired and located species, such as Coppery-chested Jacamar, Ecuadorian Piedtail, White-necked Parakeet, Amazonian Umbrellabird, Foothill Elaenia, Olive Finch, Black- billed Treehunter, Blue-rumped Manakin and Equatorial Graytail. Other more common birds we can see are Paradise and Green-and-gold Tanager, Andean Motmot, Green Hermit, Red-headed Barbet, Lafresnaye’s Piculet, Lanceolated Moncklet and Marble-faced Bristle-Tyrant. In the middle of the afternoon, we will return to the lodge, where we can do some relaxed bird watching, or take a short trip to other nearby sites.
Other days include exploring, some slightly higher elevation forest patches that are good for Andean Cock-of-the-rock, Ecuadorian Tyrannulet, Lined Antshrike and Olivaceous Greenlet. Further along this trail, we will look for some rare species from higher elevations, including Vermilion and Blue-browed Tanagers, Chestnut-tipped Toucanet, among others.
After three nights in Copalinga, we head towards the Tapichalaca Reserve, 100 miles away, along a route full of Andean balconies crossing mostly the Podocarpus National Park, both in the province of Zamora Chinchipe and in the province of Loja, to the south. After a spectacular three-hour car trip through these forested Andean balconies, between mountains, rivers and waterfalls, with several stops to observe birds on route, we will arrive at the great Tapichalaca reserve in the middle of the montane forest, escorted by two large national parks (Yacuri National Park and Podocarpus National Park). Here the largest population of Jocotoco Antpitta lives. We will be settling in our cozy lodge (Casa Simpson) for 2 nights.
Although the Jocotoco Antpitta is our main target here, we should see many other wonderful birds along the trails, such as Chestnut-naped, Chestnut-capped, Slate-crowned and Equatorial Antpittas, Chusquea and Ocellated Tapaculos, Golden-plumed Parakeet, Barred Fruiteater, Black-capped Hemispingus, Orange-banded Flycatcher, White-throated Quail-Dove and various mountain-tanagers. Sometimes the reserve rangers know of a daytime roosting site for Andean Potoo.
The hike to the Jocotoco Antpitta feeding area is a spectacular trail that has some short, slightly steep sections, made with flat stones from the area to make the hike easier, much like an Inca trail. Although the walk is not long, we will take our time getting there, since there are many possibilities of spotting birds along the way. However, we will time our arrival at the Jocotoco Antpitta feeding area to be there at the regular feeding time, which is 8:00 am. On this journey we are usually accompanied by one of the park rangers on duty from the reserve that feeds the Jocotoco. This feeder is exclusive to attract Antpittas, but with luck we will be able to see other species of birds.
We will return to the lodge for lunch, and there will be time to see the various hummingbirds that visit the feeders, including Amethyst-throated and Flame-throated Sunangels, Chestnut-breasted Coronet, Collared Inca, and Long-tailed Sylph. In the afternoon, we can bird watch along the lodge road towards the town of Valladolid, where we can occasionally see Chestnut-crested Cotinga, or spend more time around the lodge. Any location chosen will be conducive to bird watching. With a lot of luck, a family flock of the nomadic Andean White-capped Tanager might occur on one of these tours, and there might also be a sighting of Mountain Tapir or Andean Bear.
On our last full day, we will drive about 80 miles north to the dry Catamayo Valley, where we will look for endemic birds such as Chestnut-collared Swallow, Tumbes Sparrow, Elegant Crescentchest, Drab Seedeater, Parrot-billed Seedeater, Band-tailed Seedeater, Band-tailed Seedeater, tailed Sierra Finch and Peruvian Meadowlark, as well as the Fascinated Wren. We will spend our last night in the south in this valley and we may be able to hear the call of the Peruvian Pygmy-Owl.
After breakfast, we will head to Catamayo airport to take our short flight to Quito. Upon landing, we will be greeted and taken to the open fells in the highlands of Antisana National Park (from 9000 feet to over 13000 feet). This is one of the best sites in Ecuador to see some high-altitude birds, such as Andean Condor, Andean Ibis, Silvery Grebe, Giant Hummingbird and Ecuadorian Hillstar. After a lunch of typical Andean food at Tambo Cóndor (restaurant for environmental education of our paramos), we will head to the airport for our international flight back home.