Wednesday 2nd December. Today should have included visiting the Clay licks to see Parrots and Macaws licking the clay to aid their digestion. However there had been so much rain recently that there was little or no activity at the licks, so we explored the Napo River by motorboat, making stops and walking trails along the riverbanks. Many photographs today are purely record shots.
First bird of the day was a Ladder Tailed Nightjar sleeping in a branch near the boat dock. later we were to find a nest site for this species which was simply two chicks lying on a soft patch of sandy ground. The parent bird was close by watching her young so we stayed away to cause minimum disturbance.
First bird of the day was a Ladder Tailed Nightjar sleeping in a branch near the boat dock. later we were to find a nest site for this species which was simply two chicks lying on a soft patch of sandy ground. The parent bird was close by watching her young so we stayed away to cause minimum disturbance.
Ladder Tailed Nightjar
 Nightjar Chicks |  Adult Nightjar watching the chicks |
Here are four record shots of birds photographed on a small river island. Nothing exciting but worth recording.
 Chestnut Breasted Seedfinch  Pied Plover |  Grey Saltator  Lesser Yellowlegs |
I do like the next shot though of a Spotted Tody Flycatcher. It was another of those birds that seemed to glow in the dark. It was in a very dark section of forest but I was very pleased with this shot, much better than expected of a very nice little bird.
Spotted Tody Flycatcher
As we drove down the river there were birds to see in the trees along the banks. This Pergrine Falcon is one of the few familiar birds I saw on this trip.
Peregrine Falcon
Striated Herons were fairly numerous....
Striated Heron
and here are a few more species just for the record. The Brown Jacamar was nice as it is quite rare, the ID is not 100% certain, it could possibly be a White Chinned Jacamar which is equally uncommon.
 Oriole Blackbirds  Brown Jacamar |  Yellow Headed Caracaras |
There is more than just birds to be seen when walking in the forests. Woolly Monkey, Squirrel Monkey, Agouti, Long Nosed Bat, Great Otter, Black Mantled Tamarin Monkeys and Poison Dart Frog are just a few of the other species I can recall.
Wooly Monkey
Squirrel Monkey
Can you see the Poison Dart Frog on the leaf litter below. The forest floor holds tiny frogs almost everywhere in these moist conditions. Some have very exotic shapes and colours. I only carry a birding lens in the forest but thought it worth trying a shot of this little chap as it appeared to glitter in the sunlight. These frogs acquire their toxicity from eating ants and other toxic insects. Only a few species are actually used to coat the native hunters dart tips.
Poison Dart Frog
Black Throated Trogon
My main interest is avian though so I am always pleased to find exceptional species like the Black Throated Trogon above, and the Crested Owl below. The Owl was one of a pair roosting together, a very handsome couple.
Crested Owl
The Great Jacamar was on one of the forest trails, a great bird which was difficult to photograph as the only clear view I could get was from directly beneath it. Still these shots are better than nothing of such a fine looking bird.
Great Jacamar
Great Jacamar
A Black Capped Donacobius made a nice image on a sapling with fresh green leaves. Quite a common bird but I include it as it's a nice image.
Black Capped Donacobius
White banded Swallows
These White Banded Swallows were perched nicely on the riverbank as we slid past. I did not see many of these so was pleased to get a good photo.
 Barred Antshrike |  Blue Crowned Manakin |
Two hard to find birds above, the Barred Antshrike is not uncommon but is very hard to see, it spends it's time skulking in low, dense undergrowth so it is necessary to call it out using playback, which was the case here. This inquisitive male was responding to a recording but he never left his deep cover and the darkness made photography difficult. The Blue Crowned Manakin is similar in that it is quite numerous and widespread but is not seen easily. The Sulphury Flycatcher below is similar to the Tropical Kingbird but I'm pretty sure this is the flycatcher. We saw TKB's everywhere but this bird had a shorter bill and was somewhat stockier.
Sulphury Flycatcher
The Brown Nunlet is an uncommon and hard to find bird so I was pleased to get a half decent shot in some dense forest near the river. It is a species of Puffbird found in Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru in a contiguous range on the eastern slopes of the Andes and the headwaters of the Amazon Basin, but nowhere numerous. This is the kind of photography I enjoy, hunting for rare and/or elusive birds in their natural habitat. More fun than taking pictures of hummingbirds and brightly coloured Tanagers at feeders.
Brown Nunlet
That is why I post images that are often poor or unremarkable, like this Short Crested Flycatcher. It has significance to me. It's not a rare or interesting bird, but I got it.
Short Crested Flycatcher
 Neo-tropical Cormorant |  Anhinga |
These two aquatic birds I have seen many times before, the Neotropic Cormorant and the Anhinga are quite common near any sizable stretch of water in the tropics. Being quite large and conspicuous they are of less interest to me than the little brown flycatcher. They are too easy.
