Day 8: The Quest for the Quetzal, Part II
Monday 2 December 2013
80 °F
Hi all,
Today my dad and I took an intense birding tour with a knowledgable guide in hopes of sighting a Resplendent Quetzal. Here are pictures from the trip, and results from the day can be found at the bottom of this post. Enjoy!
Gray-headed Flycatcher
Baltimore Oriole (male)
Yellow-crowned Euphonia (female)
Blue-gray Tanagers
Blackburnian Warbler (female)
Violet-headed Hummingbird (male)
Tufted Flycatcher
Red-faced Spinetail
Spot-crowned Woodcreeper
Violet-headed Hummingbird (male)
Prong-billed Barbet
Black-and-Yellow Silky-flycatcher
Yellow-thighed Finch
Collared Redstart
So, it was a fabulous day of birdwatching, but the Resplendent Quetzal was a no-show. I will have to come back to Panama again when I'm older.
Here is the bird species list for today.
- **Indicates a life bird
Cattle Egret
Black Vulture
Turkey Vulture
Red-tailed Hawk
- **Barred Hawk
Great Black-hawk
- **Black Hawk-eagle
Ruddy Ground-dove
Green Violet-ear
- **Violet-headed Hummingbird
- **Snowy-bellied Hummingbird
- **Stripe-tailed Hummingbird
- **Purple-throated Mountain-gem
- **White-bellied Mountain-gem
- **Magnificent Hummingbird
Scintillant Hummingbird
- **Prong-billed Barbet
Red-crowned Woodpecker
Hairy Woodpecker
Smoky-brown Woodpecker
- **Red-faced Spinetail
- **Spotted Barbtail
- **Ruddy Treerunner
- **Streak-breasted Treehunter
- **Lineated Foliage-gleaner
- **Spotted Woodcreeper
- **Streak-headed Woodcreeper
- **Spot-crowned Woodcreeper
- **Yellow-bellied Elaenia
- **Paltry Tyrannulet
- **Tufted Flycatcher
- **Dark Pewee
- **Yellowish Flycatcher
Black Phoebe
Great Kiskadee
Social Flycatcher
- **Gray-capped Flycatcher
Tropical Kingbird
- **Brown-capped Vireo
- **Rufous-browed Peppershrike
Plain Wren
House Wren
- **Ochraceous Wren
- **Gray-breasted Wood-wren
- **Black-faced Solitaire
- **Ruddy-capped Nightingale-thrush
- **Mountain Thrush
Clay-colored Thrush
Tropical Mockingbird
- **Black-and-Yellow Silky-flycatcher
Tennessee Warbler
Flame-throated Warbler
Yellow Warbler
Chestnut-sided Warbler
Black-throated Green Warbler
Blackburnian Warbler
Northern Waterthrush
Slate-throated Redstart
- **Collared Redstart
Wilson's Warbler
Canada Warbler
- **Black-cheeked Warbler
- **Common Bush-tanager
- **Cherrie's Tanager
Blue-gray Tanager
Palm Tanager
Silver-throated Tanager
- **Spangle-cheeked Tanager
Red-legged Honeycreeper
- **Slaty Flowerpiercer
- **Yellow-thighed Finch
Summer Tanager
Flame-colored Tanager
Rose-breasted Grosbeak
Baltimore Oriole
Thick-billed Euphonia
- **Yellow-crowned Euphonia
Elegant Euphonia
Yellow-bellied Siskin
- **Lesser Goldfinch
81 species, 41 life birds. This means that I have now identified 418 species of birds in my life, up from 377 yesterday.
So, a great day of birding, and now I will list my nemesis-bird-of-the-day and my best birds-of-the-day.
The nemesis bird for today was definitely the Resplendent Quetzal, with Three-wattled Bellbird, Snowcap, and Long-tailed Silky-flycatcher close behind it as conspicuous no-shows. At least I will get a chance to see the Three-wattled Bellbird in Bocas del Toro.
My best birds of the day were Black Hawk-eagle, Purple-throated and White-bellied Mountain-gems, Red-faced Spinetail, Rufous-browed Peppershrike, Black-and-Yellow Silky-flycatcher, Flame-throated Warbler, Collared Redstart, Canada Warbler, Spangle-cheeked Tanager, Yellow-thighed Finch, and Yellow-crowned, Elegant, and Thick-billed Euphonias.
What a wonderful day of birdwatching.
Stay tuned--tomorrow we travel to our beach house near Bocas del Toro.
Happy birding!
Henry
These birds are beautiful Henry.
by Donna Rowsell