We spent the morning of Day 4 on our Ecuador Birding Trip at the feeder area of the Sendero Frutti Tour. As previously mentioned we spent most of our time birding at man-made viewing areas and Sendero Frutti was typical of them. As you can see in the picture below a roof protected us from the rain and it looked out on the grounds on three sides. Benches or seats were provided to allow for extended viewing.
A you look out from the observation deck you’ll notice that the area has been partially cleared, but open areas do exist to allow for better viewing. Also look for the horizontal limbs placed about four feet high out on the grounds. These limbs have a notch cut out along their top and bananas are placed in the notch. As you’ll see from some of the photos below, hiding the bananas made for better, more natural-looking pictures of the birds. You might also be able to see below a series of hummingbird feeders just above the rail on the right side – nice and close to the observation area.
An entire bunch of bananas was hung off to the side and some of the larger birds came in to feed there. A Yellow-rumped Cacique came in several time to feed.
An immature White-lined Tanager (it will eventually be all black) came in to feed on the bananas inside one of these horizontal logs out in grounds. A female of the same species watched from a nearby limb.
Here a Dusky-faced Tanager comes in for some banana.
Some grain was spread on the ground and it attracted seed eaters like this Orange-billed Sparrow and Saffron Finch.
We had some excellent looks at a couple of woodpeckers at the feeders, like this Golden-olive Woodpecker.
A striking Lineated Woodpecker (rumored to be the model for the old cartoon character Woody Woodpecker) came in to feed as well.
Everyone was captivated by a Rufous Mot Mot when it came in from the forest to feed.
I enjoyed some of the hummingbirds we hadn’t see yet at the feeders. This Black-throated Mango hovered just off a feeder.
Look what happened to this White-necked Jacobin! It somehow got a moth stuck on its bill and it was flying around with it on; somehow it could still feed.
Here’s another look at a White-necked Jacobin without the bling.
We did see a few birds perched along the way while driving from the Sendero Frutti Tour area to the Sendero Reserve. I couldn’t believe how beautiful this Cinnamon Woodpecker was – my new favorite woodpecker!
We also saw this Hook-billed Kite perched atop a phone line as we drove around.
Once at Sendero Reserve we climbed this tower to look out over the canopy. Unfortunately there weren’t many birds to be seen there.
We had better luck at our lunch spot, which was situated on a bluff overlooking the Rio Blanco. When we first arrived the mist filled the valley and we could only heard the sound of water rushing through the river far below. The mist thinned out at one point enough to see the river.
A couple of Swallow-tailed Kites flew past our vantage point and I was able to get a few hazy shots through the mist.
On the drive back to Sachatamia Lodge Tony spotted a Hook-billed Hawk perched on a telephone line. That’s one fierce-looking bill!
Much more to come! Here are links to previous posts of our Ecuador Birding Trip:
How to prepare for and get the most from your bird tour
Our Ecuador Birding Trip – Preliminary Data
Our Bird Tour In Ecuador – Overview
Birding a City Park in Downtown Quito, Ecuador
Out of Quito to Reserva Yanacocha
Into Mindo Valley – Sachatamia Lodge
Mindo Valley – Reserva Amagusa
Reserva Amagusa – Hummingbirds and Toucanet
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