Excellent trip so far - certainly makes me jealous. Started to plan an Argentina trip last year, but sheer cost of everything made me change to South Africa ...car rent alone was astronomical, etc. Next best thing your report...almost 
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NYC, Connecticut and Argentina (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter MKinHK
- Start date
Welsh Peregrine
Well-known member
Happy to confirm the Degu identification.
Excellent trip so far
Love birding in Central Park in April / May and have done well for Warblers and other migrants but that Bittern is a cracker.
Love birding in Central Park in April / May and have done well for Warblers and other migrants but that Bittern is a cracker.
MKinHK
Mike Kilburn
Totally agree about the cactus BBB - absolutely see it in a black border with "Welcome to Uquia" underneath . . .
Thanks for the ID confirmation Welsh Peregrine.
Glad you're enjoying it Jos. It was absolutely not a cheap trip - although given the cost of living in HK it still seemed affordable!
As I've written this up the Bittern is in pole position for bird of the trip!
Cheers
Mike
Thanks for the ID confirmation Welsh Peregrine.
Glad you're enjoying it Jos. It was absolutely not a cheap trip - although given the cost of living in HK it still seemed affordable!
As I've written this up the Bittern is in pole position for bird of the trip!
Cheers
Mike
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MKinHK
Mike Kilburn
Next morning we drove higher – up beyond the cactus zone into the true altiplano, of dry grasslands and bare hillsides showing rocks of colours ranging from iron red through yellows, purples and greys to a soft green. A few of the highest peaks were snow-capped – and some of them were over 5,000m. It was up here saw our first Llamas – first a loose flock strolling along a dry river bed, and then smaller groups in roadside fields.
Over the course of the day we also saw some 200 more slender, less wooly, and genuinely wild Vicunas. One of Argentina’s conservation success stories, a ban on hunting has led to significant increases in the population of Vicuna, plus other quality mammals such as Jaguar and Giant Anteater (but not in this area). Puma, which is found all over the country, has done much better – we heard that the hosts of our accommodation had lost 9 sheep to a Puma. In the evenings and mornings I scanned the ridges above the hotel, but more in hope than expectation – and needless to say – without success.
The main target of the day was the Laguna de los Pozuelos a 16,000 hectare saline lake at around 3,400m. The main purpose was to fulfill my desire to see the three high altitude flamingo species. To be honest I was disappointed as I had expectations of seeing good-sized flocks in close proximity. In the end the larger congregations were distant specks in the heat haze, but we did get within a couple of of hundred metres of six birds, which included four Andean (yellow legs)and two Chilean Flamingos (greenish legs with pink knees).
As we arrived I was astonished to learn from one of the park guards that Argentina’s first Wandering Tattler had recently been found there. I didn’t see it but there was a collection of waders that included several Baird’s Sandpipers – looking just as long-winged and weetabix-y as the only other one I’ve seen (on Porthcressa Beach, Scilly in 1987) – and Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs, Black-naped Stilt, plus the altiplano endemic Puna Plover, and Andean Lapwing, which replaces Southern Lapwing at this altitude. However the undisputed king of the waders here was the wonderful Andean Avocet – pure white except for its black wings and tail and elegantly upturned bill.
Other birds on the lake included a couple of dozen Giant Coot and Silvery Grebes and we saw well over 100 Andean Geese, looking very plumped up, fluffy and short-billed – and every inch the high altitude endemic. The other really good bird up here was one we’d looked out for all day without success, and it was not until we were well on the way back that I was delighted to find a group of four Lesser Rheas standing remarkably unobtrusively in a roadside gully. Puna Miners, which marched about with the diminutive self-importance I always associate with Hume's Groundpecker from the Tibetan Plateau, were one of the few passerines around the lake.
Another stop at a small marsh (on route 7) just to the northwest of Abra Pampa produced another small flurry, with an Aplomado Falcon perched on a fence post, a dark-winged Pinnated Bittern that chose the perfect moment to fly up and away from the roadside, a very confiding Puna Ibis, an Andean Gull, a Crested Duck, and a wonderful male Cinerous Harrier hunting across the grasslands. Other raptors seen during the day included a couple of pairs of Mountain Caracara, and three or four Red-backed Hawks and a couple of American Kestrels.
I did less well for passerines, but at various stops I was able to grab shots of a few finches for subsequent identification. My favourite of these was a Plumbeous Sierra Finch that perched on a fence post with a snow-capped mountain in the background, a Band-tailed Sierra Finch that claimed a different fencepost close to the llamas, a chunky-billed Puna Yellow Finch on a nearby strand of wire, and a female Band-tailed Seed-eater which I found during a rest stop as it fed in grasses above a water-filled roadside ditch, where two dozen Shiny Cowbirds and several Eared Doves were bathing while a Patagonian Mockingbird watched from an overhead wire.
I'll post pix in batches to follow
Cheers
Mike
Over the course of the day we also saw some 200 more slender, less wooly, and genuinely wild Vicunas. One of Argentina’s conservation success stories, a ban on hunting has led to significant increases in the population of Vicuna, plus other quality mammals such as Jaguar and Giant Anteater (but not in this area). Puma, which is found all over the country, has done much better – we heard that the hosts of our accommodation had lost 9 sheep to a Puma. In the evenings and mornings I scanned the ridges above the hotel, but more in hope than expectation – and needless to say – without success.
The main target of the day was the Laguna de los Pozuelos a 16,000 hectare saline lake at around 3,400m. The main purpose was to fulfill my desire to see the three high altitude flamingo species. To be honest I was disappointed as I had expectations of seeing good-sized flocks in close proximity. In the end the larger congregations were distant specks in the heat haze, but we did get within a couple of of hundred metres of six birds, which included four Andean (yellow legs)and two Chilean Flamingos (greenish legs with pink knees).
As we arrived I was astonished to learn from one of the park guards that Argentina’s first Wandering Tattler had recently been found there. I didn’t see it but there was a collection of waders that included several Baird’s Sandpipers – looking just as long-winged and weetabix-y as the only other one I’ve seen (on Porthcressa Beach, Scilly in 1987) – and Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs, Black-naped Stilt, plus the altiplano endemic Puna Plover, and Andean Lapwing, which replaces Southern Lapwing at this altitude. However the undisputed king of the waders here was the wonderful Andean Avocet – pure white except for its black wings and tail and elegantly upturned bill.
Other birds on the lake included a couple of dozen Giant Coot and Silvery Grebes and we saw well over 100 Andean Geese, looking very plumped up, fluffy and short-billed – and every inch the high altitude endemic. The other really good bird up here was one we’d looked out for all day without success, and it was not until we were well on the way back that I was delighted to find a group of four Lesser Rheas standing remarkably unobtrusively in a roadside gully. Puna Miners, which marched about with the diminutive self-importance I always associate with Hume's Groundpecker from the Tibetan Plateau, were one of the few passerines around the lake.
Another stop at a small marsh (on route 7) just to the northwest of Abra Pampa produced another small flurry, with an Aplomado Falcon perched on a fence post, a dark-winged Pinnated Bittern that chose the perfect moment to fly up and away from the roadside, a very confiding Puna Ibis, an Andean Gull, a Crested Duck, and a wonderful male Cinerous Harrier hunting across the grasslands. Other raptors seen during the day included a couple of pairs of Mountain Caracara, and three or four Red-backed Hawks and a couple of American Kestrels.
I did less well for passerines, but at various stops I was able to grab shots of a few finches for subsequent identification. My favourite of these was a Plumbeous Sierra Finch that perched on a fence post with a snow-capped mountain in the background, a Band-tailed Sierra Finch that claimed a different fencepost close to the llamas, a chunky-billed Puna Yellow Finch on a nearby strand of wire, and a female Band-tailed Seed-eater which I found during a rest stop as it fed in grasses above a water-filled roadside ditch, where two dozen Shiny Cowbirds and several Eared Doves were bathing while a Patagonian Mockingbird watched from an overhead wire.
I'll post pix in batches to follow
Cheers
Mike
Attachments
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MKinHK
Mike Kilburn
A few finches:
Band-tailed Sierra Finch
Plumbeous Sierra Finch
Band-tailed Seed-eater?
Puna Yellow Finch
Cheers
Mike
Band-tailed Sierra Finch
Plumbeous Sierra Finch
Band-tailed Seed-eater?
Puna Yellow Finch
Cheers
Mike
Attachments
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MKinHK
Mike Kilburn
Jeff Hopkins
Just another...observer
Great read, Mike. Argentina is on my wish list. I haven't been there since '91, long before I became a birder.
mjh73
Well-known member
Yes, female or immature bird
MKinHK
Mike Kilburn
Not at all sure. I would welcome any guidance as I have no experience whatsoever with S American finches.
Here's a few more pix (not of finches)
Cheers
Mike
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MKinHK
Mike Kilburn
The next morning, before heading back to Salta, the host of Vinas de Uquia who is a birder showed us a beautiful small pond nearby that held a bunch of Common Moorhens and both Yellow-billed Pintails and the smaller and very elegant Speckled Teals, as well as a Black-naped Stilt, and a horse munching its way through the submerged vegetation.
After that we got on the road and made a second and wonderfully successful attempt for the Torrent Duck at the turning for Yala ponds. Instead of peering off the bridge I walked along the banks of the river and quickly picked up a male Torrent Duck perched on a midstream boulder. As the rain came down I made my way upstream on the opposite bank and eventually enjoyed fantastic walk-away views of the red-billed, white-faced duck with a narrow black eyestripe that curled all the way down the side of the neck and into the dark-streaked body asit perched up and swam among the rapids just thirty metres away. While planning the trip this was one of the birds I had most wanted to see, and these views wonderfully exceeded my expectations. Other birds here included Black Phoebe and Great Kiskadee perched on riverside rocks and a showy Painted Redstart in the riverside vegetation.
Our next stop was in the grounds of a hilltop catholic shrine (Santuaria Virgin del Cerro) just to the east of Salta where I found my second Hepatic Tanager, but much more impressively half a dozen Dusky-legged Guans were loafing at eye level very close to the road. Turkeys in Mexico apart, Guans are the nearest thing South America has to pheasants. These were considerably more arboreal, wandering around, arguing and generally hanging out in full view for a good twenty minutes. With the exception of a few bits and pieces in the garden of the hotel they turned out to be the last birds of our time in Salta, and made a fitting finale to a terrific area of which we barely scratched the surface of the birding riches on offer.
Cheers
Mike
After that we got on the road and made a second and wonderfully successful attempt for the Torrent Duck at the turning for Yala ponds. Instead of peering off the bridge I walked along the banks of the river and quickly picked up a male Torrent Duck perched on a midstream boulder. As the rain came down I made my way upstream on the opposite bank and eventually enjoyed fantastic walk-away views of the red-billed, white-faced duck with a narrow black eyestripe that curled all the way down the side of the neck and into the dark-streaked body asit perched up and swam among the rapids just thirty metres away. While planning the trip this was one of the birds I had most wanted to see, and these views wonderfully exceeded my expectations. Other birds here included Black Phoebe and Great Kiskadee perched on riverside rocks and a showy Painted Redstart in the riverside vegetation.
Our next stop was in the grounds of a hilltop catholic shrine (Santuaria Virgin del Cerro) just to the east of Salta where I found my second Hepatic Tanager, but much more impressively half a dozen Dusky-legged Guans were loafing at eye level very close to the road. Turkeys in Mexico apart, Guans are the nearest thing South America has to pheasants. These were considerably more arboreal, wandering around, arguing and generally hanging out in full view for a good twenty minutes. With the exception of a few bits and pieces in the garden of the hotel they turned out to be the last birds of our time in Salta, and made a fitting finale to a terrific area of which we barely scratched the surface of the birding riches on offer.
Cheers
Mike
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Welsh Peregrine
Well-known member
Common Moorhen will be Common Gallinule/Laughing Moorhen - now split from the Old World species by at least some authorities....
MKinHK
Mike Kilburn
Ooh another lifer - it didn't really fit my image of a Moorhen I have to admit. It seemed a bit heftier and less skittish.
Here's one more pic.
Cheers
Mike
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JWN Andrewes
Poor Judge of Pasta.
Best. Duck. Ever.
Seeing my first, a drake, in Ecuador 29 years ago remains an enduring memory. It was on day one of a three month stay, on the river next to the hacienda we would be staying in. The link below is to an old wet film slide taken a couple of weeks later. Not long before leaving I saw one of the ducklings again as a fully fledged immature.
Great trip so far, looking forward to the rest of it. Outstanding part of the world, nice to see you catching up with some of its special birds (I'm looking at you, Andean Avocet).
https://www.birdforum.net/gallery/showphoto.php/photo/409306/ppuser/7131
MKinHK
Mike Kilburn
Have to say I was mighty impressed and green with envy at the thought of spending three months in view of such a cracking species (and everything else that goes with it!)
A great blast from the past picture - the early days must be pretty hairy for young Torrent Ducks.
Cheers
Mike
A great blast from the past picture - the early days must be pretty hairy for young Torrent Ducks.
Cheers
Mike
MKinHK
Mike Kilburn
Have to say I was mighty impressed and green with envy at the thought of spending three months in view of such a cracking species (and everything else that goes with it!)
A great blast from the past picture - the early days must be pretty hairy for young Torrent Ducks.
Cheers
Mike
A great blast from the past picture - the early days must be pretty hairy for young Torrent Ducks.
Cheers
Mike
I agree with Mourning Sierra Finch.
Superb report Mike.
MKinHK
Mike Kilburn
In pursuit of the best breakfast that Puerto Iguazu has to offer we stayed at the Secret Garden B&B. It delivered on the breakfast and the complimentary and very alcoholic caphirinas and indeed on the garden, a small courtyard between the main house and the guest rooms overshadowed by a huge tree and filled with ferns and other plants. Most importantly it also held three hummingbird feeders, and they in turn attracted several hummingbirds. Apart from a few brief views around Salta this was my first real chance to enjoy hummingbirds close-up. Over the course of our stay five different species showed at the feeders with the bronzy green and red-billed Gilded Hummingbird being the most common – and the most aggressive, regularly chasing off its own species and the smallest and more humbly plumaged Versicoloured Emerald. The blue-hooded, green-winged and dramatically large Swallow-tailed Hummingbird claimed the prize as most spectacular, and the white-tailed and white-flanked, but otherwise all black Black Jacobin absolutely surprised me as I thought pretty much all hummingbirds were iridescent green red and gold and the final species the truly lovely Violet-capped Woodnymph – complete with a shimmering cravat of emerald green and the eponymous violet-blue cap. Other birds in the garden included a Creamy-bellied Thrush and the delightful yellow-bellied and humbug-headed Bananaquit, which was as eager to tap the feeders as any of the hummingbirds.
Cheers
Mike
Cheers
Mike
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