Diane and I had signed up for birding packages at Canopy Tower and Canopy Lodge. That meant that we birded in groups, but they changed daily as people came and left the lodges. You can sign up to start any day of the week and for any length of time. The constantly changing groups (and guides) made it interesting. We enjoyed meeting other nature enthusiasts and getting to know several of the guides. On what was scheduled to be our last day of birding, we were very pleased that Tino would guide us again. Only one other birder joined our group, so it was great to have just four of us. It’s much easier to see the skulky little birds on the forest floor with a small group.
We had a great day of birding and I saw 10 new birds for Panama. My favorite that day may have been the Orange-billed Nightengale-Thrush. First, how can you not love a bird with a name like that? And, second, it was a lovely bird.
Orange-billed Nightengale-Thrush
Other life birds that day were Spotted Woodcreeper, Chestnut-backed Antbird, and a couple of hummingbirds. We also saw two wonderful butterflies, a Regal Anteros and a Black-bellied Anteros. Tino was really excited when he found them, so I assume that they may not be common. My photo isn’t as clear as I’d like because the butterfly was perched just a little out of reach, but we had great scope views. Note the fuzzy little legs. Isn’t it adorable?
Black-bellied Anteros
We had so much fun that day, the last in our birding package, that we decided to pay extra to go birding with Tino again the next morning. Guests at the Canopy lodges can always select trips “a la carte.”
The next morning, the skies were threatening, but we went out anyway. In Panama, it rains daily in the summer, so they learn to work with the weather. Tino decided to take us back to a place that Diane and I had birded earlier in the week, Sendero Las Minas, a little dirt road with an agricultural field and a chicken farm on one side and forest on the other side. It was especially rewarding to see the Wedge-tailed Grass-Finch perched atop a fence post singing. On our first trip down this road, he hid in the tall grasses and we could barely see him.
Wedge-tailed Grass-Finch
It wasn’t long until it started raining, but we were able to take cover under the eaves of a little abandoned cabin. It felt magical to stand there with our little group of four, protected from the rain, but feeling it all around us. And, of course, Tino continued to find birds while we waited there. Soon, the rain had stopped and we were birding on the road again. We saw wonderful birds – Tawny-crested Tanager, Scarlet-thighed Dacnis, Tawny-capped Euphonia, and many more including some familiar birds like Eastern Meadowlark.
Thick-billed Seed-Finch, also seen along Sendero Las Minas
There were also beautiful flowers along this road. One of our favorites was Psychotria elata, a tropical tree commonly known as Hot Lips or Hooker’s Lips, for the red bracts that resemble luscious lips for a short time before bursting open to reveal the plant’s small white flowers.
Hot Lips, Psychotria elata. Photo by Carole McIvor.
Near the turn-around point at the top of the road, we ran into a small herd of about eight cows, led by a big bull, coming down the road. Tino was familiar with their behavior and didn’t say anything to frighten us, but got Carole and me off the road to allow the cows to pass. Diane was not close enough to hear Tino’s command to make way for the cows and continued slowly walking down the middle of the road with the cows following behind her. Tino was very relieved when we were all together again and then he told us that the cows could have been dangerous.
Coming down the road behind us. Photo by Carole McIvor.
The excitement of the morning was not over yet, though. Tino had hoped to find a Blue-throated Toucanet for us. They are listed on the Canopy checklist as “common,” but we had not seen one yet. And, we did not see one that morning, but just before we got back to our vehicle, Tino found something even better, the rare Yellow-eared Toucanet. We struggled for a view of the bird as it hid in a tree, but it was exciting to see something so special.
Tino’s heavily-cropped digiscope is blurry due to the cloudy weather, but the Yellow-eared Toucanet is clearly identifiable.
That afternoon, April 30, was our last at Canopy Lodge. We enjoyed more free time watching the feeders and sitting on the little balcony outside our room. We finally got quick, but good, looks at the fast little Rufous-crested Coquette as he dashed in for a sip of nectar at the purple porterweed flowers.
The stream by the lodge was a continual source of delight. In the photo below, a Common Basilisk basks in the sun on a rock.
Common Basilisk in the stream by Canopy Lodge
The following day, we had our last looks at the lovely Canopy Lodge birds as we enjoyed a leisurely morning getting ready to leave for Panama City. The Crimson-backed and Flame-rumped Tanagers put on a good show, as always. The female Crimson-backed Tanager was one of my favorites. I thought that she was as beautiful as the male.
Female Crimson-backed Tanager
We never got tired of the common, but gorgeous, Flame-rumped Tanagers.
Male Flame-rumped Tanager
Perhaps the most common feeder bird of all was Thick-billed Euphonia. We enjoyed watching males and females of all ages.
Thick-billed Euphonia (adult male)
Late that morning, our driver picked us up and took us back to the lovely Country Inn & Suites where we had spent our first night in Panama City. We walked the Amador Causeway where we found our last life bird in Panama, a Northern Scrub-Flycatcher. Near the end of the causeway, we estimated over a hundred each of Brown Pelicans and Magnificent Frigatebirds, a wonderful goodbye from Panama.
We had a nice dinner outdoors by the canal and left before dawn the next morning for our flights home. Memories of this amazing trip will stay with us forever.
Magnificent Frigatebird
More photos can be found in the following Flickr albums:
Panama 2017 -Birds
Panama 2017 – Insects (mostly moths & butterflies)
Panama 2017 – Mammals & Herps
Panama 2017 – People & Places
Birding for Life 