Our Pantanal visit continues. We start with the birding along the Transpantaneira, where we spot many interesting birds: Greater Rhea, Southern Screamer, Jabiru, Sunbittern, Grey-cowled Wood Rail, Chaco Chacalaca, Hyacinth Macaw, White Woodpecker and many more.
Our goal for the next two nights was Fazenda Santa Tereza, where we spotted a few new birds at their feeding troughs (like Yellow-billed Cardinal, Purple Jay, Picui Ground Dove, Grayish Baywing, Giant Cowbird, Grey-crested Cacholote and more). We had a bit of rain in the morning, so I stayed at the fazenda and stakeouted the feeders until the sky cleared.
Then I started stalking a Buffy-necked Ibis on the closest pasture, until I heard an interesting call from a large-leafed tree. I went over and managed to find the culprit, a small Mystery Bird that it took me a few years to ID (partly because the resulting photos were bad), it was a Rusty-fronted Tody Flycatcher. It flew off, but I didn't care bcs I spotted a hummingbird feeding from said tree's flowers. That monopolized my focus for quite some time, trying to get photos good enough for ID later on. It was my first Glittering-throated Emerald.
When I felt satisfied with the hummer stakeout, I took a walk along the river trail, and found more birds: Amazon Kingfisher, Ringed Kingfisher, Rufous-fronted Thornbird at their long nest, Greater Thornbird, Barred Antshrike, Bluish-grey Saltator, White-rumped Monjita and more.
We also had a late boat trip on Rio Sararé, which resulted in a few new birds, like Green Kingfisher and Bare-faced Currasow, and a longed-for closer view of Great Black Hawk.
About the Piping Guan at 13:48... In the video I call it Blue-throated, which was the name we had, back then. It was of the subspecies grayi, and the Red-throated was said to not have distribution down here. Alas, when I researched a bit deeper, after I'd already done this video, it seems there has been some taxological changes, and also some new data about distribution of the Red-throated. That one has now been reported from this area, and it crossbreeds with that subspecies of the Blue-throated here. And that grayi subspecies of Blue-throated has now gained species status (White-throated Piping Guan). The photo here is sadly too far away to get the details needed to see what's what. The only sure thing is, nowadays, that it isn't a Blue-throated.
Anyway, I go at it at length in Part 3, when I happened upon it again the next morning, and got a photo that's a bit better/closer.
15 окт 2024
