Australia, Cairns to Cape Tribulation & Atherton Tablelands

After visiting Darwin area and the outback in the N.T I went back to Cairns where my wife and daughter had spent the week exploring the Barrier Reef and other star attractions here. Before I went to Darwin I had actually had one evening in Cairns. A local birder called Mikey had promised to meet me at the Botanical Garden after dark. Our mission was to spot the Papuan Frogmouth, which breeds in this area. Following Mikey in the jungle with flashlight was fun and amazing. We didn't see much the first part but just when the trail made a small turn, one Frogmouth was sitting on a vine just over the trail. Imagine we had to walk under it and bow our heads not to touch it and it remained. This photo was taken with my cellphone. Later on we saw one more and also some local and rare bats. He also gave me some directions for other birds which I will describe later in this part. Thank you Mikey.

We stayed one more day in Cairns and at the splendid Esplanade you can see many nice birds. The muddy beach is full of different birds connected to water and the gardens next to is full of Honeyeaters and other good stuff. This Bar-tailed Godwit confused me a lot at first as I resembled a Dowitcher at distance. Breeding plumage and a dirty bill fooled me off at first.

Next to the Esplanade I found this Varied Honeyeater next to this Figbird. On the lawn at the same spot these Masked Lapwings.

Mikey had also told me about a pair of Rufous Owls that were roosting close by. On my first attempt I didn't see them but the second was more successful.

At the northern end of the Esplanade is one of the best spot for Mangrove Robin and when you know the spot you have a good chance to see one. At the lawn next to it was this colorful Straw-necked Ibis.

Next day we took off north towards the jungle. But first a stop north of town where Mikey told was the best spot for my last Fairy Wren. If I managed to see the Lovely Fairy Wren, all of these marvelous group possible in Australia would be on my list. What a mission. I was quite nervous as they are not easy to find when they move around constantly. However, Mikey had given me a spot where he sees them from time to time. I played my recorder and in they came!! 3 of them with one stunning male. Too quick in their moves before they got bored of me I managed to get one good photo of a female. My Fairy Wren-list of Australia was complete.

Time to leave for the rainforest and Cape Tribulation which is just a couple of hours driving north of Cairns. Her you enter crocodile country and you can easily spot some by taking a boat trip at Daintree River. We didn't as we have seen quite a few before. Nature is quite different and the beaches just goes on for miles and miles. Not the typical tourism beach with sun-umbrellas, restaurants etc. No swimming because of potential crocodiles. Just walk and walk and be part of pure nature.

This area is a true spot to see the Southern Cassowary. It's a huge bird and related in some way to the Ostrich family. With 3 toes and the middle sharp as a spear, you should take some care and not approach too close. I saw 3 different birds at two separate locations. This one was crossing the road as we drove by.

There are a lot of other adventures to do here and a popular one is to take night walks in the rainforest. You see lots of insects dragon lizards and spiders. This one was quite large and a nice view in the darkness of the forest.

Walking along the beach does not give that many birds but these two, Easter Reef Egret (Grey morph) and a female Olive-backed Sunbird were kind enough to let me approach.

We stayed in this area for 2 nights and it's highly recommended to go here if you ever visit Cairns. From here we drove back south. About half way towards Cairns you take right inland and up the mountainous slopes. Up here is a completely different nature and some of the birds are endemic to this tiny area. It's a combination of remaining rainforest and much drier country. First 3 nights we stayed at Chamber's Wildlife Lodge. This lodge is in the middle of the "jungle" that in remaining from vulcano activity back in time. At the forest clearing I had this magnificent Victoria's Riflebird and the silent but curious Pale Yellow Robin (race nana). The riflebird is a part of the Bird's of Paradise family which most people relate to New Guinea.

Some other jewels of the deep forest is this Chowchilla (male). Almost like a Pitta in behavior they can be quite vocal. Seeing in when it silently  walks on the rainforest floor is an other thing. I was patient and eventually rewarded. The special Catbird is an other one. Wait til you hear it the first time, you will not believe it's a bird. A very clever name for this bird.

Chamber's Wildlife Lodge is (world) famous for the possibility to watch some very special night animals. At a platform you can sit and wait for these animals to show up during late evening/ early nights. The Sugar Glider and the Striped Possum would be very hard to spot by just moving in the jungle by night as they usually stay high up in the canopy.

The Atherton Tablelands is also one of the absolute best places to spot a wild Platypus. In the small village called Yungaburra, there are a healthy population in the river. They have hides where you can sit or if you want you can walk silently along the river in hope to be lucky. This one really showed well. Swimming and diving just a few meters from us for several minutes. A good one!!

Kangaroos are great to watch. They look so funny when they move and I think even native Australians find them irresistible. At Mareeba Golf Corse there are a big group gathering every day. The management allows you to rent a buggy so you can approach in good manor. First a mother with a grown up Joey and then a proud? male. Just look at his position. 

If you think you have heard it all, there's still one major attraction here. Maybe the easiest way to spot Tree-kangaroos is also not far from here. At a tea estate close by, there is an isolated population of Lumholtz's Tree-kangaroo. They believe this group was cut off back in time when clearing were made and as the patches of forest remaining are so small there is a high chance of spotting them. We saw 4. One mother with 2 Joeys and a male. (Good luck finding these guys in the rainforest where they usually live)

Some birds are easier than others to get decent photos of. This Yellow-breasted Boatbill, which was new on my list was a very speedy and restless bird that never was still for for than maximum one second. These lazy Bush Curlews are the total opposite. Just standing there motionless (wonder what they are waiting for?)

One afternoon we visited a bat hospital! Yes correct, a lady who is now retired has built up this place. They take care of these misunderstood animals. So important for balance in nature and really threatened, she is doing a great work. You will have a "tour" when she explains and show some different species. You now that they hang up side down but did you know they turn (for us) to the right position when the need to "use the toilet". Quite fun actually. First a Tube-nosed Bat (don't remember the species though) and a gorgeous Spectacled Fruit Bat.

In the garden of the bat hospital, there was some action with some great honeyeaters. First the striking Macleay's. Next two a Bridled and a Lewin's.

Our last night was at Granite Gorge. Though not far from the green fields and forest in Atherton this is dry landscape resembling the Outback. Granite rocks with marks of dinosaurs and home to the endemic Mareeba Rock Wallaby. This small kangaroo has become used to humans and you can easily approach them as some people also feed them with nuts. They are very cute and in a way irresistible.

Next to our cabin there were a few dry land birds like this Pied Butcherbird and the Yellow Honeyeater.

At other places the Squatter Pigeon can be hard to see but here it is easy, as a big group live at the camp grounds.

On the way back towards Cairns and the airport I had to stop three times on the road because of snakes. Two of the were already dead. One Carpet Python and what most likely seemed to be an Eastern Brown Snake. The third one was this Carpet Python which was still alive and just warming up from the heat of the road.

This great country has so many fantastic animals, people and views that it's impossible not to love it!

Australia, Darwin to Timber Creek

July 19 I went to Australia for the 5th time. As a pert of the trip I wanted to meet my old friend  Graham Palmer and his wife Liz. These fantastic people have been so generous to my family back in time and seeing them again was great. Graham is suffering from severe Parkinson's but he refuse to give up his birding. Flying in from Cairns, where I had left my wife and daughter they met me at Darwin airport. Without hesitation we started do drive south and made a short stop at Pine Creek and found this lovely Great Bowerbird preparing its bower. Close by a group of Black Fruit Bats made me smile. These gorgeous animals never stops fascinating me. We continued to Katherine for a nights sleep. 

Next morning we began driving early, eager to reach Timber Creek as soon as possible. However, one of my main target birds for this trip, the Red-kneed Dotterel was not far away, at the Katherine wastewater treatment plant. Unfortunately, the gates were closed so I could only witness them through the fence at quite a distant (no use for photos). In the bush, next to it we saw a flock of the stunning Red-shouldered Parrot.

Feeling great to see the red soil and Australian outback, we continued to drive south-west. Next stop was Victoria River Crossing Roadhouse where we had a quick lunch, filled up more petrol and saw some good birds. On the other side of the creek I got some new Honeyeaters on my list but only came close enough for photos to this Australian Kestrel and White-faced Heron.

Continuing towards Timber Creek we made a few more stops looking at spots marked at E-bird. Not so much was seen  but close to the town a group of Black-faced Woodswallows showed well.

Finally, we arrived to the small but quite famous (for birders) little town and checked in at our cabins. I took Graham for a walk in his wheelchair and we saw some of the more common birds here, Brown Honeyeater, White-gaped Honeyeater, Brown Goshawk, Little Corella and the cute Long-tailed Finch.

After a good birding day, sunset finally sets the complete feeling of Australian outback.

Super-target birds for this trip was the Purple-crowned Fairy-wren and the elusive Gouldian Finch. Taking the car by my own as Graham needed to rest I drove out of town to Bradshaw Bridge where the Fairy-wren had been observed. Using my playback, three immediately came in. I had trouble getting focus on these very swift and restless birds trying at the same time to use the speaker. One gorgeous male were among them and one of my most memorable birds for a long time. Not a photo to be proud of but a memory of this event. At the same time I got my first Star Finches.

Back to town I picked Graham and Liz up and we drove to Policeman's Point. This is a stunning place to spend sunset and even if we didn't see any Gouldian's, we had nice views of Black-necked Stork, Paperbark Flycatcher and Double-barred Finch.

Time to go back, we stopped at the Escarpment Walk, next to the Victoria River Roadhouse. Not wanting to let Graham and Liz wait too long, I made the walk in high speed which made me sweat a lot. But worth it no doubt. First I didn't see much but as I moved to the northern side of the flat area at the top I stated to spot many birds. The best highlight was 5 White-quilled Rock-Pigeons. Quite shy, I still managed to get a pick on the edge before it took off. A group of Little Woodswallows also gave me some attention. On the way down something special happened to me. As I started my walk down a big Falcon came out just in front of me 10-15 meters and took speed out from the rock. A Grey Falcon, a very rare bird was on my list. So great to see it also from above at the start.

We returned to Pine Creek, for an other target and lifer for Graham. Around 5 p.m a flock of Hooded Parrots usually show up at the water sprinkler next to Lazy Lizard Motel, where we stayed. Felt great to make Graham get an other lifer sitting in his wheelchair. First the male and secondly a female. This is a rare and difficult bird to see and on many birders wish list. However, if you are at the right spot even rare birds can be easy.

Here also some nice Blue-faced Honeyeaters, Little Friarbird, Yellow Oriole, a few tiny Peaceful Doves and a family of the ever entertaining Grey-crowned Babblers.

Before we took off for Darwin we made a morning visit to the Water Treatment area in Pine Creek. In the dry Outback, these tiny pools attract lots of birds. New bird on my list was the Plumed Whistling-duck. I had hoped to get better views of the Red-kneed Dotterel but no one was present. A group of Black-fronted Dotterels are still a blessing sight. The gates were closed here too but the area is much smaller than the one in Katherine so photos were possible anyway.

On the way towards Darwin we took a detour to the famous Fogg Dam, a wetland area southeast of Darwin on the way to Kakadu N.P. Fogg Dam is a mix of open wetlands and seasonal rainforest. This makes it a spot with many species. The obvious and stunning Rainbow Bee-eater is usually easy to find.

In the forest area, you can find the finest juvel of them all, the Rainbow Pitta. I knew it should be possible and hearing it is usually pretty easy. We we were lucky to have one bird come in decently close to us and in dark forest and 30 meters away it's not easy to get a good photo. I saw this bird in 1997 in Kakadu but this was still a glorious moment to remember. What a cracker!

Other great bird in the forest interior were Yellow-bellied Flycatcher, Arafura Fantail, Orange-footed Scrubfowl, and the very small Green-backed Gerygone.

In the open it was easy to spot different types of herons like this Pied Heron and this Sulphur-crested Cockatoo.

The last day before I went back to Cairns I went with a Birding Pal, John Rawsthorne, who had promised to take me to the mangrove and look for some hard birds in this habitat. I don't have a photo of the White-breasted Whistler but it was great fun to walk bare-footed with him in the tidal mangrove and eventually see a stunning male.

Birds seen and which I managed to get photos of were; Red-headed Honeyeater, Northern Fantail, a proud White-bellied Cuckoo-shrike and the local Yellow White-eye.

In the afternoon Graham; Liz and I went to the coast for some birding and a very nice dinner at sunset. Among the waders seen were this lovely Red-capped Plover and a mixed flock of Great Knots and a few Knots and Ruddy Turnstones.

The Gull-billed Tern in Australia is now a split and is now called Australian Tern (though true Gull-billed could probably show up!). Other birds seen at the beach were these relaxing Masked Lapwings, and hungry (white morph) Eastern Reef Egret and Silver Gull.

I end this blog part with a classic photo of the great entertaining and socializing group of White-breasted Wood-Swallows. I have seen this before but it always a happy moment. They just love to warm up together.

Love you Oz, can't wait to go back!!

The Pantanal-18

This blog about Pantanal is the third part of my trip to Brazil (Itatiaia and Chapada d G Jardim Amazonia are the other two). 
So, welcome to the biggest weatland in the world, famous for all its birds but also as the best place to see Jaguars among other wildlife. As you enter the Pantanal the road turns in to a dirt road. During the northern summer and fall the region is dried out which gives high concentrations of animals. During the other half of the year the area is much flooded and many places hard or impossible to reach by car. It was a great feeling to reach this place after the long drive from Jardim da Amazonia. First stop was Piuval Lodge and included in the price was a Jeep-tour which gave us the first looks of this fantastic place.

A good bird during this car trip was the Red-shouldered Macaw. Macaws are great bird and always nice to see, this one not so common. A bird we thought should be a little bit hard to see was the Sunbittern but we saw quite a few of this special bird.

A true symbol of the Pantanal is the huge Jabiru. Though quite common around, still an amazing view everytime you see it. Here on in flight towards the nest and two just resting.

Piuval is a good place for mammals as well and we saw this cute S.A. Coati and the funny 7-banded Armadillo.

On this tour we also saw our first Great Potoo. What a remarkable bird!!

At nest we also saw this Great Horned Owl and close by the special Guira Cuckoo.

At the lodge itself birding is good and we saw many nice species. Here the quite common Cattle Tyrant, Giant Cowbird (on feral cow!) and the brilliant Yellow-billed Cardinal.

Just a short walk out from the lodge I also found this striking Black-collared Hawk.

Happy after our day at Piuval we now drove towards our next lodge a little bit further south, Pouso Alegre. Piuval is an upscale lodge with pool and other nice facilities. On the (quite long) way in from the Tranpantaneira we saw the hardest of the herons, the Capped heron as well as this pecular male Bare-faced Currasow.

Pouso Alegre is a more rustic and basic place know to be very good for spotting Great Ant-eaters. Birding and other wildlife are excellent too. We had heard that a Great Ant-eater comes inmost evenings to look for food around the lodge which it did our night as well. However, we were lucky to see one out on one of the trails which gave a more natural experince.

This walk also gave us the Undulated Tinamou, a bird much easier heard than seen as well as this handsome Red-throated Piping Guan.

Many lizards were around and one favorite was this robust Black & White Tegu. The lodge has a feeding area which attracts many different species but still surprised to find this elegant Plumbeous Ibis on the roof next to it.

Befor we left this nice place we had a stop at a trail together with the owner. Among some other goodies we found this awesome Helmeted Manakin.

Our next stop was SouthWild. Owned by the person who helped us with the planning and booking and also the company which "rented" the car to us. Situated next to the Rio Sararé in Pixaim area this place is great. An upscale place with a small pool, great feeding areas, complimentary boat trip on the river and a photo hide for Ocelot. We stayed here one night on our way south and two more at the end of our trip. There are extensive trails but I guess you need to have good nerves as referred to on this sign just a couple of hundred meters outside the lodge.

Meanwhile we payed a visit further south, the lodge had a Jaguar crossing its property. When we arrived we saw this cute Marsh Deer which hardly scared us. On our first we didn't see any signs of Ocelots but finally in the evening this beautiful animal showed up. First a little bit shy but soon more active looking for food.

The river tour here is excellent for herons and other water birds. The river Piquiri further south is a much bigger one with sand banks and other vegetation. This river in tiny and gives you the opportunity to come up close bothto birds and reptiles. The Yacaré (Caiman) is very common and we probably saw almost a 1000 of them in total all over Pantanal. Not as powerful as the crocodile species, it is still a beauty to watch.

Herons were so plentiful so you could almost imagine beeing in a restricted zoo area. The "white ones" were the most common but we easily saw Black-capped Night Heron, Boat-billed Heron, Rufescent Tiger Heron and the hard and elusive Agami Heron (why hide when you are the most stunning one of them all??).

Other water birds like this Grey-necked Wood-rail and and the very sought after and difficult Sungrebe kept our smiles going on for hours.

In Brazil there are 5 different kingfishers. We saw them all and here you can see the most common one, the enormous Ringed Kingfisher and the most hard one, the Green and rufous Kingfisher. Also here Nick's favorite bird?? the Black-capped Donacobius!

At the feeding place of the lodge you can easily spend some time resting while you enjoy top class birds. What about this stunner, the Orange-backed Trupial and Yellow-chevroned Parakeet together with the most iconic bird of South America, the Toco Tucan. Quite happy I got a pic when it's on its way to swallow a "fruit" it had thrown up in the air.

We now started our drive towards Porto Jofre and our place Jofre Velho. The road became more and more rough in some places and some of the 120!!! wooden bridges you passon the way south did not look completely safe. Her one which was ok and an other which was quite scary to pass.

On the way we stopped at several places and had good moments like this Crane Hawk (the only one we saw) chased by White-rumped Swallows. Our Duster became more and more dusty!! The rather common Roadside Hawk (here a juvenile) looked rather suspiciously at us and our car!

We finally arrived to Jofre Velho (not well signed) and saw the beutiful ground teeming with birds. Jofre Velho used to be a research station and the rooms are in different status. Still a very pleasant (and much much cheaper) than the other options here. The family took very good care of us and the food was simple but still very tasty and well prepared. Even if we had seen the amazing Hyacint Macaw (the worlds biggest parrot) decently before, we here had smashing views and performances of this absolute marvelous bird.

As a nerd shorebird enthusiast I had big hope in seeing the Pied Plover and the Collared Plover. The Wattled Jacana had been seen previously but great looks were given here. I feel priveleged to have seen these star birds so well.

Two boat trips were included in every nights stay (morning/ afternoon) as even the most avid birder's main choise is the chance of seeing a Jaguar. In Pantanal and especially at the Rio Sao Laurenco/ Rio Piquiri the chances are (very) high to lay your eyes on one. I felt pretty sure we would see one but the question was more how well we would see it. Many times when people see them they just lay down in the shadow which makes the sight quite bad. THis is in some way similar to jeep safaris in East Africa when dussins of jeeps (here fast boats) hurries in on or an other direction in hope to give their customers the best. Our boat was a smaller and not as fast as many of the others which actually proved to be a winning concept. Alone on this part of the river (the others were gone further away) we had our first individual after only 20 minutes. It made some slow walks on the river bank and showed pretty well.

Before we went back we had some nice views of a Capybara family. Obviously they rest at these banks as they need to be cautious to the Jaguars which have the Capybaras and the Yacarés and their main food. These cute Proboscis Bats were resting in a tree we passed. Not beeing the most wanted bird it was nice to have good views of the only pipit in the region, the Yellowish Pipit.

 

Along the river there also some terns (3 species) which are easy to spot from the boat. Here the elegant and specialized Black Skimmer with its scissor like bill and the local Great-billed Tern.

On short walks around the lodge we also had more beauties like this Thick-billed Euphonia, Rufous-tailed Jacamar and the plain but handsome Southern Berdless Tyrannulet.

Next morning was just beautiful and we had good feelings when we entered the boat again. Our guide knew his boat was slower than the others but was calm and polite, knewing what he was doing. Here he is with (from left) Nick (thinking of celebrating with a evening beer?), Jim and Per.

Seeing all the boats we wondered what was happening. It showed up to be a family of Giant Otters. We saw several different groups of these entertaining and special species. They just loved to play with each others.

The other boats took of and again we were alone! Traveling softly I saw something lying on a stretch of beach. Realizing soon what it was I screamed (Yellow) Anaconda! We approached it slowly and had great views of this fantastic creature. After some time the fast boats started to arrive and to my disappointment these people went up on the beach and of course scared it away down to the water. Such rude and bad behaviour both of the boat men and the tourists. This also meant that many people never got the chance to see it.

Well, saving the best till the end of this blog. We had 20 minutes totaly by our own with this male Jaguar (again because the fast boats had chased away again). It came out just in front of our boat and swam just 8-10 meters from the boat. Taking some shorter distances at the edge before going into the water again. We also saw make some attempt to catch a Yacaré. What an absolute wonderful animal it is. So majestic and powerful and yet also proud, relaxed and curious. I've been privileged to see and experince many animals over the world and this really takes a very vey high position.

WE had a safe trip back and some unforgetable memories as well. We saw 415 species of bird of which 337 were new ones for me and also many other excellent animals. What a great trip and place!!

Brazil, Chapada dos Guimaraes and Jardim da Amazonia

Continuing from the Atlantic coast (see that blog) we arrived to the million city of Cuiaba. As fast as possible we were on our way in the rental car towards the small town with the same name as the national park, Chapada dos Guimaraes. This is an arid country with stunning cliffs and superb birds. To make this trip possible financially we had not booked a guide through a company so we were only related to our own skill, pre-resarch on e-bird and other trip reports but also the help of a local guide at the Jardim da Amazonia.The lodge booking/ local guide and boatmen in Pantanal was made by Southwild Pantanal to a very good and competitive price.
Our first stop was at the famous waterfall, Veu de Noiva. The first bird to be spotted was this handsome White-eared Puffbird. At the viewing point we had and absolute awesome sight with this group of Red and Green Macaws and a few of the common Black Vulture.

There are a few fancy lodges around but you can easily stay in a cheaper place in town, like the Hotel Turismo. Here we had some nice views in the evening while having a well deserved beer at the veranda. Pale-breasted Thrush and Red-bellied Thrush having an evening bath.

One of the best place to bird in this area is along the very dirty and dry MT-020 also called Agua Fria Road. Hardly an awesome nature experince with dust flying around when cars come in high speed. However, birding is great and you will put in new bird for every new km you proceed. Some highlights were this Burrowing Owl and Red-pileated Finch. We also saw this Cinnamon Tanager which is not supposed to be here according to the field guide. Last, the quite common Chalk-browed Mockingbird.

Not only arid country, we visited some more grenish places like Vale da Bencao where we had Rufous-tailed Jacamar, Yellow-rumped Cacique. Hardly a good photo but The Sharp-tailed Streamcreeper is not a very easy bird to see and probably the reason why I get so excited about these ground dwelling, skulking juvels. We managed to spot this bird at the bottom of a dark creek.

We were recommended to visit Mirante Morro dos Ventos for nice vistas and good food, which we followed. Here we had som nice and close perched birds as these Crested Black Tyrant and Cliff Flycatcher.

After 2 and a half day we had to continue on our trip. After spending time in more dry and open areas we were now looking forward to experience the Amazonas.

Welcome to "Garden of Eden"
Saved by a true nature lover, named Almor,  Jardim da Amazonia is truly an Amazonian Garden paradise in the middle of logged and farming country. Along this part of a sub-river to the Amazonian complex you will find so many rainforest specialties and still not travel too far north and to a much cheaper cost.
Except for all the wildlife the lodge is unique with all its fish ponds and natural swimming pool. The big fish (over 2 meters) is a Arapayma and the others are Catfish.

On our way in towards the reserve we found this Burrowing Owl. By the look of it, I'm not sure it wanted us around.

In the first evening Almor took us to some lakes just on the outskirt of the property. This paradise has been made by himself to protect the Blue and Yellow Macaws (among other Macaws and Parrots) which use the lake and the cut palms as roosting places each night. Exceptional experince to see all these birds fly in in the evening light "screaming" and calling for each other.

Nick, Jim, me and Almor.

Next to this lake we also had two gorgeous flycatchers, The Vermilion FC and the White-headed Marsh-Tyrant.

The first morning Almor and (South Wild) had helped us to arrange with a local guide. He´s been taken care of by Almor since he was a child and is now educating himself as a professional guide. Already a good birder and of all necessary help to find most of our birds. On your bucket list there's always been to make a boat trip in the Amazonas. Even if Jardim is not in the deepest part of the jungle, the boat trip was still amazing. In first day light we took off in good speed. Our first goal was to look for the rarest of our birds on the trip, the Cone-billed Tanager. This place is maybe the only reliable place in Brazil to see this bird. In a small oxbow lake we found 2 of them together with a beautiful American Pygmy Kingfisher.

At resort area there was a family of Capybaras present every day. Not shy and very proud and integrity looking animals which became a favorite during the trip. Lots of butterflies as well seeking for minerals. This 2 cm Bullet-ant is on of the most fearful animals in this region, known to be the giving the strongest of pains "the pain of a bullet". Not poisonous but with a sting that makes the local people be very careful where they know they can be.

The reserve is of course mostly forestred but there are some open spaces as well, especially where all the different fishponds are. Here we had good and easy observations of Rusty-margined Flycatcher, Straited Heron, Smooth-billed Ani and Southern Lapwing.

There are several trails to walk as well with thick forest/ bush and therefor quite difficult for photos but at the edges of forest (as always) you will find some good stuff. Here a Black-fronted Nunbird, Spotted Puffbird, Blackish Nightjar and a Blue-headed Parrot at nest.

Some of the more memorable birds from this gorgeous place are the Brown Jacamar and the Short-tailed Pygmy-Tyrant. The first with its, compared to the body, huge bill and the latter because it's the worlds smallest passerine.

Everywhere, being a difficult bird to see, Jardim is a reliable spot to see the almost mythical Amazonian Umbrellabird. Again we took off on the river, this time in the afternoon. We headed towards a spot where it sometimes is seen. We fastened the boat to a branch and waited. And waited and waited. The guide blew in a bottle as the sound is just the same as the one you get from a empty bottle. Finally, when it was close to dark, 3 birds appeared in to the big tree on the other side of the river. Even at quite a big distance and in bad light, this was a great event. Here you can also see two very happy twitchers after seeing it.

We also picked up some good woodpeckers, here the handsome Yellow-tufted Woodpecker and also the Ringed Woodpecker.

One of the most funny and spectacular species I saw, was this Monk Sake Monkey in a family of four. Very curiously looking one with its fur a big eyes.

We spent 3 fantastic days here and I really must recommend this oasis of green vegation and great wildlife. From here we drove the long way down to tha Pantanal, the biggest wetland area in the world. Renowned to be the absolute best spot to see  Jaguar and the world largest parrot, The Hyacint Macaw. See this blog.

Itatiaia National Park Brazil July -18

This 3,5 day trip to Itatiaia NP was a part of a longer trip in Brazil (other parts described in other blogs). Itatiaia is Brazils oldest NP and an excellent place to find fantastic birds. In these days we saw 193 species including 18 different Tanagers. We also birded the wetlands just outside the park itself. Our guide Hudson was great! His English needs some improvements but he surely knows his birds. Here the four Gringos (me Örebro, Per Askengren Örebro, Nick Armstrong England, Exeter and Jim Royer USA, California, Los Osos) from a selfie of him.

Hotel Ype where we stay is a very cosy place and highly recommended. The feeders are famous for attracting Tanagers, Hummers, and many others. One of my sought after species was the Frilled Coquette which we only saw briefly once the first hour.

When it comes to Tanagers, this place is just amazing. During the three full days we spent here we saw no less than ... Tanagers. Quite common at the feeders at were these two stunners, Green-headed Tanager and Black-goggled Tanager.

If you are interested in photography, you can easily spend a half day here and just let the birds come to you. Also quite frequent was the Blue Dacnis, here both a male and a female.

Except for the tanagers you will easily find Saffron Finch, Double-colored Seed-eater.

The second day we took the winding Agulhas Negras road towards the top of the mountain at 2400 meters. On the way we stoped for Lesser Yellow-headed Vulture and a group of Red-rumped Warbling-Finch.

Halfway we had a short stop for some shoping and the everywhere excellent Brazilian coffee.The long drive gave us stunning views, crispy air and the endemic Itatiaia Spinetail.

Nick enjoying the great Brazilian coffee.

Me at the top.

One of the starbirds up on these higher levels is the gorgeous Green-crowned Plovercrest. You would probably not find it by yourself but Hudson knew where to stop.

Hotel Ype also has its privileges during evenings and nights. During the last hour of light usually a few Gray-necked Wood-rails emerge from the thickets to feed and stroll at the lawns. Hotel Ype also is a good spot for the Tawny-browed Owl which we had excellent views of in the flashlight. Next to the restaurant I found this great and beautiful Moth Bugmaniac.

Obviously, hummers are a highlight and some of them frequently come in to the feeders. Here a Violet-capped Woodnymph, White-throated Hummingbird and a male and a female Brazilian Ruby constantly observed by the Black Capuchin.

We also explored areas just outside the park as there are plenty of good birding in some of the more open areas around the town and nearby wetlands. We stopped randomly? just in the middle of the small town and I experienced some of the most memorable minutes of the trip. In a tree (which we later called the "crazy tree") we saw Tropical Parula, Southern Beardless Tyrannulet, Purple-throated Euphonia, Narrow-billed Woodcreeper, Hooded Tanager and many more.

Further down close to the wetlands we had these two beautiful hummers, Glittering-throated Emerald  and Glittering-bellied Emerald. As a finish of this fantstic day we experienced super high class birding with the funny performance of a group of Streamer-tailed Tyrants. Something I wish all birders sometimes will be able to see.

Our great birding continued with so many great birds and memories. My number one bird was this Such's Ant-thrush which we waited for about 30 minutes before it arrived. It was at a stake-out and the bird surely knew that Hudson had put out some worms. Unforgettable to hear it coming closer by just walking on the jungle floor!

The last day our great birding continued with so many good birds. What about male and female Surucua Trogon!

If you go here you can also see the "ruins" of the abandoned hotel Simon, which used to be afamous luxury hotel before it was bancrupt. Still it now possible to stroll around and see some good birds like this Variable Antshrike, Sirystes and  White-crested Tyrannulet.

Now we went back to the airport at Sao Paolo for the flight to Cuiaba and more birding at Chapada dos Guimaraes, Jardim da Amazonia and the Pantanal (se these blogs)!!