Some birds are particularly thrilling, as a result of they’re so onerous to see. Others are unusually lovely, or maybe, simply plain uncommon. And some are each. (After they truly afford you a complete new weblog topic to jot down about, that’s definitely an additional bonus.)
For years, I had hoped to see a Lesser Floor-Cuckoo, certainly one of Mexico’s extra unique and tough species. And I even had this species on my life listing, however solely as a result of in 2017 I had taken a number of a lot better birders than I to Paso Ancho, and so they heard this chicken’s name within the distance. I keep in mind the girl with the most effective ear saying a number of occasions “I hear _____”, and that I’d reply “oh”. Or one thing equally insightful.
However this Monday, I took my ornithologist pal Jonathan, and three different buddies, again to Paso Ancho. Jonathan hoped the Sinaloa Martins I noticed in July would possibly nonetheless be there. (No such luck; they seem to have already flown south.) However on our second cease, we heard not one, however two Floor-Cuckoos giving their high-pitched buzzy trill calls. One sounded prefer it got here from near our path, so Jonathan prompted it a bit together with his finest imitation. And all of a sudden, there it was! At first, all I may see was its richly coloured stomach. And I’d have thought-about myself lucky to see even that.
After which, one thing miraculous occurred. With no additional prompting, the chicken determined it wanted to come back nearer to us. Floor-cuckoo that it was, it had an odd method of strolling alongside branches, as if on the bottom, somewhat than hopping or flying. All of this was wonderful, as this species is understood for staying on the bottom below deep brush, and freezing when it senses a human presence.
As our chicken got here nearer, our view of it grew to become ever clearer. This allowed us to totally respect these wild colours round its eyes, in addition to the black “eyeliner”, which appeared to come back instantly from the hieroglyphics on the partitions of an Egyptian temple. As Jonathan mentioned, it regarded like Cleopatra.
Our encounter with this ever-so gracious chicken lasted so lengthy that I ended up taking some 150 images. And all of the whereas, it by no means stopped making its buzzy name. I suppose you would say that we heard it… squawk like an Egyptian.
And so, it left.
