magellan woodpecker (1 Viewer)

Where and when are the beat places and times to see them. Thanks

Sarah,
I would say in austral spring (about from mid-September to start of January). The protected zones in which it occurs in Chile are: Nahuelbuta; Vicente Perez Rosales; Torres del Paine; and Puyehue National Parks. In Argentina: Tierra del Fuego NP.

Thanks, So the best time is mid September thru January in Chile not Bolivia. Is it very dificult to see this bird? I ask because I still haven't seen a pileated woodpecker and they are native to my area.

sarahbn said:

Thanks, So the best time is mid September thru January in Chile not Bolivia. Is it very dificult to see this bird? I ask because I still haven't seen a pileated woodpecker and they are native to my area.

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If you are in Ushuaia and want to see the Magellanic Woodpecker (which I assume you are referring to) plan to spend a couple of days in Terra del Fuego National Park. There are birds there but they can be frustrating to find. The wind often howls and you can have a hard time hearing them. Look in the area of big trees, the area around the train is no good. Also check fallen logs and low in the undergrowth, the birds don't seem to hang out high with the winds (which blow alomost constant).

Thank you brighton birder. So it would be best to go to Tierra del Fuego National Park to see this bird. Now is this park in Argentina or Chile?

sarahbn said:

Thank you brighton birder. So it would be best to go to Tierra del Fuego National Park to see this bird. Now is this park in Argentina or Chile?

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It is in Argentina, as noted by Steve. It is no easier (or harder) in Argentina than in Chile. It is a hit-and-miss bird. They are not rare in the right habitat, but as other large woodpeckers they have large territories and occur in low densities. On my first visit to Chile, the very first place where it was a possibility (Termas de Chillan) resulted in a sighting within 30 minutes. A few days later on the same trip I saw a pair on two consecutive days in the Chiloé National Park. On a second trip I spend a total of 7 days at places where they are known to occur, but didn't even hear one, only to see it on the 8th day in Puyehue. It should be mentioned that the list provided in an earlier post is a good selection of national parks where it occurs, but it isn't complete (in addition to Chiloé mentioned earlier, it also occus in e.g. Alerce Andino in Chile and Los Glaciares in Argentina).

Thanks. I would love to see it! They occur in a beech tree forest correct?
Maybe I better work on finding the pileated here first. Then go to Chile

Terra del Fuego NP is easily accessible from Ushuaia, Ushuaia being the southern end of the world. There are lots of taxi operators along the waterfront immediately to the west of the passenger entrance to the docks. Trips out and back are 25 peso and entrance to the park is the same. The trees are southern beech (Nothofagus) not beech (Fagus).

If you are in Ushuaia you must go to the dump for White-throated Caracara. There is one cruising the town this past December and January but at least four are always in the cow filed behind the dump.