Azuero Peninsula (1 Viewer)

[njlarsen]

Hello all,
does anyone have any recent information about birding in the Azuero Peninsula of Panama? Any good locations that does not involve going on a three day expedition?
Niels

 

[THE_FERN]

Not recent and not been there. However, on the western side there's that relatively accessible estancia where you can see the parakeet. I found material about that some where on web (sorry not more concrete). My understanding is you basically have to do the hike to see the hummer (is it really a separate species..?)

Despite appearances, my understanding is the parakeet isn't very divergent from congeners: I think I reluctantly agreed it should be lumped

 

[njlarsen]

Thanks Fern,
I found a hotspot on ebird that seems to be that Finca, and thereafter the company that arranges trips out there (as well as the B&B associated with them). It seems Brown-backed/Azuero Dove is more certain than the parakeet, and as you say, the local Mountain-gem (which I have not heard proposed as a species elsewhere) does need the climb. Most likely, the macaw is the same thing. There might still be a few other species I still lack that can make it worth-while. I will look at prices and see what I think.
Niels

 

[THE_FERN]

Thanks Fern,
I found a hotspot on ebird that seems to be that Finca, and thereafter the company that arranges trips out there (as well as the B&B associated with them). It seems Brown-backed/Azuero Dove is more certain than the parakeet, and as you say, the local Mountain-gem (which I have not heard proposed as a species elsewhere) does need the climb. Most likely, the macaw is the same thing. There might still be a few other species I still lack that can make it worth-while. I will look at prices and see what I think.
Niels

No it's not a mountain gem, it's glow-thoated hummingbird. That place (reserve) is the only one with "reliable" recent reports. From the east I think it's a day (something like 9hrs by boat and walking); it may be possible from the West, the finca. But either way the dove would be nice...

Afaicr, July is peak parakeet time at finca and so a good time to go. Didn't Josh go there (search birds of passage blog). Presume "macaw" is scarlet or great green. Both are easier in other places. You might pm Josh

The other thing to search for at this time of year is the umbrellabird. If you check ebird map you'll find the area of Central PA where it occurs. This would be one to get local knowledge about: get impression it's much reduced in frequency in recent times. Perhaps contact Euclidean Campos or similar...

Edit: yes there is an endemic mountain gem ssp I think but glow-thoated's the main attraction

 

[pbjosh]

I’ve not been since 2013. I did go to the finca for the Parakeets, they’re seasonal I believe there. Going up Cerro Hoya can get you the new Mountain-Gem and maybe Glow-throated Hummingbird.

Mountain-Gem taxonomy is controversial but it is certainly a distinctive bird, just arguable if it is a species or if there should be a couple of big Lampornis lumps.

There is no doubt that Glow-throated is a good species. The idea that it might not be is, in my experience, based upon internet opinions from people without experience with the taxon (most of us, honestly!). At one point a fairly big/known voice in neotropical birding was widely suggesting it wasn’t a species. I thought that was a bold statement so I asked George Angehr (RIP) about it and he had no doubt about the validity of Glow-throated as a species and sent me photos of museum series. I am happy to repost them here later when home, but I was left with no doubt about species status.

However, from what I know, the last few people who have gone up Cerro Hoya have dipped Glow-throated also

A great place to start getting up to date info would be from Kees and Loes at Heliconia Inn, who are also a good choice to organize a trip (highly recommended, also great snorkeling and just beautiful) to Coiba for the Spinetail and Dove.

 

[THE_FERN]

new Mountain-Gem

Has it been proposed / accepted anywhere? Knew it was a distinctive form, but unaware there was a formal split proposal I think.

Last ebird for glow-throated was 2019 and, since it was a female/immature (and these things are quite difficult to ID iirc—depends on good view of male throat or tail feathers: ebird = "Female Scintillant is very similar and may not be separable in the field"), I'd be sceptical that it was definitely this unless we can be absolutely sure things like scintillant can be ruled out. A quick look suggests Scintillant isn't there, but so few people go there, who knows?

Coiba better.

 

[njlarsen]

Thanks, I did notice Glow-throated but again necessitating the climb. It will be august before I am there so what is around may be difficult to know (ebird has very little data).
Regarding the Mountain-gem, these web descriptions of the area is the first time I noticed the form.
Niels

 

[pbjosh]

Just for what it is worth Glow-throated Hummingbird has got to be one of the 5 or so most difficult birds to see in North America (including the Caribbean!)

 

[THE_FERN]

You've probably already found, but a search for "Azuero parakeet july" yielded this, confirming my memory:

http://panama-wildlife.blogspot.com/2015/07/azueros-painted-parakeet.

I'm unclear why it cost so much... ...Also if you've not found josh's yet:

Coiba Island and the Azuero Peninsula

We have not really discussed the macaws here...

 

[THE_FERN]

Just for what it is worth Glow-throated Hummingbird has got to be one of the 5 or so most difficult birds to see in North America (including the Caribbean!)

It's a bit like the toucanet in Peru: tempted to do a trip just for that.

 

[njlarsen]

You've probably already found, but a search for "Azuero parakeet july" yielded this, confirming my memory:

http://panama-wildlife.blogspot.com/2015/07/azueros-painted-parakeet.

I'm unclear why it cost so much... ...Also if you've not found josh's yet:

Coiba Island and the Azuero Peninsula

We have not really discussed the macaws here...

Thanks Fern,
I had found Josh but not the second link you gave. I also found this

Cerro Hoya National Park - Tanager Ecotours

The Cerro Hoya National Park consists of a mountain range on the south-western tip of the Azuero peninsula. The mountains have the same geological origin as Coiba, both were formed at the Galapagos hotspot about 80 million years ago and then slowly drifted towards Panama. The park covers some...

tanagertourism.com

where it states $75 per person (min 2) for the 1 day visit to the farm, which includes guide and lunch and hopefully some money to the owner so that he gets something for keeping it up.

The Macaws there are the Great Green. They seem to be a species where observations are hidden in ebird, so the only thing that is for sure is that they occur in the region.

According to Josh it might be possible to bypass the guiding from Tanager/Heliconia but I am not sure my Spanish is good enough for that.
Niels

 

[THE_FERN]

The Macaws there are the Great Green.

Can't remember where a good place is to see great green in that part of Panama. Perhaps you can get more info from observation.org. I think I have the impression they're easier on the north coast (and obviously Darien). If that's right could try for pygmy sloth and escudo (rufous-tailed) hummer too.

 

[njlarsen]

Can't remember where a good place is to see great green in that part of Panama. Perhaps you can get more info from observation.org. I think I have the impression they're easier on the north coast (and obviously Darien). If that's right could try for pygmy sloth and escudo (rufous-tailed) hummer too.

Seems that Observation has also blurred the location. Given the danger of this becoming a target of the pet trade, I cannot blame them. Costa Rica seems to be a more high volume location for this species by now.
Niels

 

[njlarsen]

Partly related: I would like to visit Cerro Jefe/Cerro Azul on this trip as well. However, given the advice of making sure you have a guide when going there, does any of you have a good contact for one? PM me if this is more appropriate. I have an old email for Kilo, but my feeling is he is no longer associated with the company he worked with about 12-15 years ago.
Niels

 

[njlarsen]

By the way: I assume you guys saw this about Glow-throated:

On the female plumage of Glow-throated Hummingbird Selasphorus ardens Salvin, 1870

Glow-throated Hummingbird Selasphorus ardens is a poorly known trochilid described from the highlands of western Panama. It is documented by no more than 12 putative specimens of which the last was collected in 1924. Most specimens have ambiguous or untraceable localities. There are few recent...

bioone.org

Niels

 

[THE_FERN]

By the way: I assume you guys saw this about Glow-throated:

On the female plumage of Glow-throated Hummingbird Selasphorus ardens Salvin, 1870

Glow-throated Hummingbird Selasphorus ardens is a poorly known trochilid described from the highlands of western Panama. It is documented by no more than 12 putative specimens of which the last was collected in 1924. Most specimens have ambiguous or untraceable localities. There are few recent...

bioone.org

Niels

Thanks. Honestly can't remember if I'd seen that one. It ends with the conclusion that the female is unknown.

I remember a different pdf with line drawings which showed the female tail pattern so perhaps it is known now.

I still really wonder about this one. Given we know hummingbirds are prone to hybridisation, I'm just not totally convinced about species status. I really want to see some DNA work. Either way, results of that will be interesting...

 

[njlarsen]

Feedback now that I have visited the area (but not done the excursion to the top of the mountain which necessitates 2 days and probably knees a bit younger than mine). I did not see the dove, parakeet or macaw. The macaw had been there in early morning but scared away by laughing falcon so had left earlier than normal. Visiting around January should more or less guarantee them is what I was told. The parakeet has been seen each year but this year for a shorter period than usual. June-July seems to be necessary if you are not intending to climb up there. The dove also seems to be mainly higher up than what we were.

Kees stated that the day had been a disappointment for him also. He said he usually saw a lot more species in January than at this time.

If I get back there I will probably make sure I have enough anti-seasick medication to do the Coiba trip.

Niels

 

[pbjosh]

Just seeing this again - sorry I had lost track of it. I’m sorry to hear you missed all your targets!! That is a shame. I am also keen to hike up there some day… two hummingbirds and probably a bit of adventure and perhaps something else awaiting discovery

 

[pbjosh]

Thanks. Honestly can't remember if I'd seen that one. It ends with the conclusion that the female is unknown.

I remember a different pdf with line drawings which showed the female tail pattern so perhaps it is known now.

I still really wonder about this one. Given we know hummingbirds are prone to hybridisation, I'm just not totally convinced about species status. I really want to see some DNA work. Either way, results of that will be interesting...

Several years back, someone else was postulating that GT Hummer might not be a valid species. I emailed George Angehr (RIP) and had a nice discussion with him. He offered a lot of information and sent series of specimen photos. I was left without doubts.

If you are curious I can dig up the email and specimen photos.

 

[TicoTyler]

Thanks. Honestly can't remember if I'd seen that one. It ends with the conclusion that the female is unknown.

I remember a different pdf with line drawings which showed the female tail pattern so perhaps it is known now.

I still really wonder about this one. Given we know hummingbirds are prone to hybridisation, I'm just not totally convinced about species status. I really want to see some DNA work. Either way, results of that will be interesting...

Bumping this old thread as I'm a new user and have an answer to some questions that this thread ended on. I'm currently working on drafting the revision to the Birds of the World entry for Volcano Hummingbird so I've been doing a deep dive on research papers about the Selasphorus members in Costa Rica and Panama.

1. I think you're thinking of Stiles's 1983 paper in The Auk "SYSTEMATICS OF THE SOUTHERN FORMS OF SELASPHORUS (TROCHILIDAE)" where he has extensive drawings of the shapes and color patterns of the tail feathers of the Selasphorus complex.

2. I see you linked the paper by Vallely and Dyer. I got to go out birding with Vallely recently and we discussed this subject. My impression was that he seemed confident that it is a separate taxon but that it also has some problems as the article lays out and more research is needed. For example, specimens of ambiguous origins and some female "specimens" that were examined were Scintallints not Glow-throated. He pointed me to a helpful paper from 2009 by Gilbert Barrantes (The role of historical and local factors in determining species composition of the highland avifauna of Costa Rica and Western Panamá) that helps explain the factors in play for that and other species that have a very limited range in that area such as the Yellow-green Finch (Atlapetes luteoviridis) and Benson's Warbler (Basileuterus melanogenys bensoni).

3. I found another dead thread (Panama new hummingbird) that discusses briefly the potential Lampornis species there. I can't find anything about it online outside of what was in that thread. Perhaps someone here who has visited the area has heard more? I'm reading a 2019 paper right now (and ended up down a rabbit hole that led me to write this post) that stated:

Miller et al. (2015) combined data from five ornithological expeditions conducted in different regions of CHNP over the last three decades, resulting in the first bird species richness assessment (S = 225), and the discovery of a potential new hummingbird species (Miller et al. in prep.)