The quiet village of Moco-moco in southwest Guyana was probably the most southerly level of our sojourn into the landlocked nation some months in the past. Myself and pricey buddy Leon blitzed throughout the savanna within the pre-dawn pinks and purples en path to this village as I strained my eyes attempting to choose any birds from the panorama. A lot of the land was parched and brown, the vegetation was stunted and windswept. No doubt there have been birds, however aside from a pair of huge and conspicuous Buff-necked Ibis that cooperatively flew previous, I didn’t see a lot.
It was solely after we momentarily stopped to make a cellphone name I started to hear the savanna waking up. A most fantastic, gurgling vocalisation emanating from a close-by tree led us to a pair of Bicolored Wrens. As they postured on twisted boughs, a 3rd fowl joined the fray, they usually appeared to soften into the tree itself, forming a grotesque sculpture in the midst of nowhere.
Bicolored Wren
Whereas my desire was to stay immobile in place whereas the solar gently rose, we had a plan for the morning – one which entailed going additional into the village to a small wetland space.
This substantial flock of round 30 Crimson-bellied Macaws necessitated one other momentary pause, nonetheless.
Upon arrival to our meant vacation spot, it was clear that there was water close by. Snail Kites wafted over open areas, whereas Limpkins focused the identical prey through a special technique. Different traditional wetland suspects lurked in and among the many tangled vegetation: Purple Gallinule and Wattled Jacana. A pair of Muscovy Geese lounged in a distant tree. A White-tailed Goldenthroat, one other wetland specialist, perched close by.
Snail Kite
Muscovy Duck
White-tailed Goldenthroat
This small group of Lineated Woodpeckers have been deeply engaged in some type of dialogue. Over what, I can’t say for positive.
The tough, raking calls of huge macaws then drew our consideration even additional within the distance. Silhouetted over the mountain vary in opposition to the rising solar was a pair of Crimson-and-green Macaws. These large macaws appear to fly fairly lazily, their flapping akin to the laboured crawling of one thing too massive to be shifting. Luckily, they have been headed in my course, so I had the posh of time to ponder all of this whereas ready for them to float inside firing vary.
Crimson-and-green Macaw
Nearer afield there have been a number of smaller birds profiting from lots of the culinary choices obtainable. Seeding grasses attracted Yellow-bellied and Gray Seedeaters, whereas a tree on the other aspect of the highway was within the top of its fruiting part and thus festooned with a cornucopia of frugivores: Blue Dacnis, Burnished-buff Tanager, Palm Tanager, Silver-beaked Tanager, Spectacled Thrush, and even a Tropical Gnatcatcher was seen within the combine. Though admittedly the gnatcatcher was possible not taking part within the berry bonanza however in search of sustenance from disturbed arthropods.
Yellow-bellied Seedeater
Gray Seedeater
Blue Dacnis
A brief stroll additional alongside that highway in the end led to a fateful bend within the highway, past which there was a area of flowering crops which attracted quite a few hummingbirds together with a really acquainted Ruby-topaz Hummingbird, battling with a much less acquainted Glittering-throated Emerald. All this unfolding in entrance of an attentive Blue-tailed Emerald. I do know, it seems like I simply made that complete sequence up.
O! Ye of little religion! Ruby-topaz Hummingbird on the left, Glittering-throated Emerald on the appropriate, the out-of-focus blob within the decrease centre of the body is the Blue-tailed Emerald.
Overhead, a pair of Finsch’s Euphonia perched briefly.
I used to be excited to land my first Laughing Falcon, a charismatic species that I had been drooling over for years.
Our native information at that time proffered a possibility to go to a lek he was accustomed to close by. A lek of which species? Glad you requested – it was a Guianan Cock-of-the-rock lek. A brief drive adopted by a twenty minute stroll; I signed up instantly. Readers of my final publish right here can be accustomed to the author lacking this species after visiting a identified lek. And so we obtained within the car and adopted the instructions supplied.
The roadway finally narrowed, and in the end grew to become reasonably harrowing, with swathes of dust interspersed by massive rocks that appeared as if they’d been thrown into the comfortable soil with nice anger by an abnormally brawny man. Whereas navigating this terrain, we flushed an Amazonian Motmot that was on the highway. After attempting my greatest to {photograph} it within the dimly lit understory, it flew additional away to a better perch. Though I used to be pleased with the images I had already gotten, I seen that it was not alone on the brand new perch.
What’s higher than a motmot? Two motmots, naturally. Amazonian Motmot.
What adopted this sighting concerned clambering over gigantic rocks, strolling calmly on a makeshift bridge over swiftly operating water, and then mountaineering uphill for the allotted twenty minutes. As soon as we arrived on the predetermined location, we obtained comfy – I used to be now accustomed to the process – and waited.
A flash of orange within the distance betrayed the presence of some of the coveted birds on this complete planet. The primary Guianan Cock-of-the-rock of the journey!
The 2 or three males we noticed at this lek have been fairly shy, and largely saved to themselves within the distant tangles of the dry vegetation. I used to be arguably extra lucky, nonetheless, when an grownup feminine confirmed up. I needed to bend mild round a tree trunk to get a transparent view – however there she was in all her chocolate brown glory.
Guianan Cock-of-the-rock – or is it Hen-of-the-rock?
The hills of Moco-moco held one last shock which blew our socks off on the way in which out. As we have been nearly again to the car, we noticed a medium-sized, black and white raptor. Inside moments of being sighted, it took off. We had no clue what it was, as its proportions didn’t match any of the anticipated birds of prey. We looked for a number of extra minutes, however to no avail. As hope was drifting away, we noticed it once more! The fowl had taken to the air, ascending on nice arcs whereas affording us unobstructed views. It was a brand new fowl for the world, not less than for Leon: a Hook-billed Kite.
This Hook-billed Kite made our brains go a bit of quicker than traditional because it was an immature fowl and was not in probably the most distinctive of plumages.
Unbelievably, after seeing over 70 species, it was not but midday. However, we elected to return to our lodge for some shade and a quick siesta earlier than our afternoon session.
