two Puffbirds (1 Viewer)

Long-distance shots of two Puffbirds for the database. Both of these species are fairly common in the Panama lowlands, though the White-necked is seen more often because it tends to perch high in open trees and snags, while the Black-breasted prefers to stay hidden by foliage in the canopy.

#1360 - Black-breasted Puffbird (Notharchus pectoralis), Pipeline Road, Soberania National Park, Panama, 19 January, 2004, Canon 10D, Canon 100-400 f/4.5-5.6 IS

#452 - White-necked Puffbird (Notharchus macrorhynchos), Metropolitan Nature Park, Panama City, Panama, 22 January 2004, Nikon Coolpix 995, Kowa TSN-824 w/ 20-60xzoom, Kowa TSN-DA1 adapter.

Glen,
I really like the Puffbirds. I saw my first White-necked Puffbird here in Campeche last year. Unlike you, I didn't have my camera 8-(

Yes, they are interesting birds. My wife and I have done a other few birding trips to the neotropics, but this was the first one where we saw any Puffbirds. We also saw White-whiskered, which I got a better shot of that I wil post to the Gallery. Glen

Tell me what Pipeline Road is like now. I hiked down it in 1980 or so, camped at the Limbo Hunt Club, where I had to shoo a Lesser Anteater out of the loo. No traffic and awful rough for a vehicle anyway, but a dream for walking and birding through the jungle. That`s when there was still a Panama Canal Zone, though.

That was my first and only visit to Pipeline Rd, so I don't have any basis for comparison, but I suspect it has not changed much. A good-sized area around the road and to the south along the east side of the Canal was set aside as Soberania National Park when the Canal Zone was returned to Panama. It seems to be pretty well protected, though there is probably some development on the margins. There was a proposal to put a highway from Panama City to Colon on or near the route of Pipeline, but that did not go anywhere. Whether it is still lurking as a threat, I don't know. I believe there are also plans to put a park visitor center at the entrance to the road, but for now, the only evidence of the park is a sign and a gate.

The road is still bad - high clearance 4WD required. A few vehicles passed by while we were there, but not what I would call heavy traffic. Some of them may have been associated with the Peregrine Fund, which has a Harpy Eagle reintroduction program going in the area.

The birding when we visited was fairly good, but not spectacular by neotropical standards. I attribute that to the luck of the draw, since it still has the reputation for the best birding in the area. We didn't get too far up the road, somewhere between 5 and 10 km. Probably the "best" bird we saw was Pygmy Antwren, which was only the second one our guide had seen, and he had birded there many times. Didn't manage any pictures of that one. Glen

Thanks, Glen. It`s good they`ve made a NP. I envisioned its quick conversion to farmland as soon as the US pulled out.