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| Red-necked Tanager |
In case you missed it:
Northeast Brazil - Part 1
Northeast Brazil - Part 2
Northeast Brazil - Part 3
Northeast Brazil - Part 4
Northeast Brazil - Part 5
eBird Trip Report
Day 19 and 20 - Serra Bonita Reserve. We rolled into the small town of Camacan late in the afternoon of Day 19 for the ride up the mountain to the Serra Bonita Reserve. Our transportation would be a vintage 4WD Toyota Bandeirante (Land Cruiser) for the climb up. The reserve is a large tract of virgin lowland rainforest, one of the largest privately managed remaining in Brazil. For more information, click this link. Nearly 450 bird species have been recorded in the reserve, it's a pretty special place.
The next day we birded from dawn to dusk at the upper reaches of the mountain tallying over 70 species with 29 of those as life birds for Susan and me. We used the big 4X4 to shuttle then walked the road and trails. It was a fantastic day, one I won't forget.
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| Our ride |
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| Some lovely views from the mountain top |
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| Pin-tailed Manakin |
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| Spot-billed Toucanet |
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| Green-headed Tanager |
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| Azure-shouldeded Tanager |
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| Chestnut-bellied Euphonia |
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| Crescent-chested Puffbird |
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| Spot-billed Toucanet |
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| Sharpbill |
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| Salvadori’s Antwren |
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| Striated Softtail |
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| King Vulture |
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| Swallow-tailed Manakin |
Day 21 to 23 - Serra Bonita to Porto Seguro. On our way down the mountain, we made an early stop at a lowland forest part of the reserve. We saw many new species there including the rare Ochre-marked Parakeet. After that, we drove about 3 hours to the coast city of Porto Seguro, our final destination. Even though we were based in a big tourist city, it was only a 30-minute drive to the Veracel Reserve which has a unique lowland Atlantic forest. We had a great time there in our day and a half of birding, even staying out well past dark the first night for owls. This reserve is notable for two difficult to see species of cotinga, Banded and White-winged. We saw both, but only got a flyover look at Banded Cotinga. Too bad, he's a real looker. The White-winged were much more cooperative by perching in a fruiting tree for many great views. So many other species were new to us so it was an excellent finish to the trip.
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| Morning birding in the lowlands of Serra Bonita |
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| The sun sets at Veracel Reserve, and so does our adventure! |
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| Black-capped Donacobius |
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| Caatinga Cacholote |
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| Ochre-marked Parakeet |
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| Ochre-marked Parakeet |
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| Plain Parakeet |
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| White-chinned Sapphire |
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| Violet-capped Woodnymph |
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| Black-capped Screech-Owl |
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| Common Pauraque |
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| White-winged Cotinga female |
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| White-winged Cotinga male |
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| White-winged Cotinga male |
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| White-winged Cotinga female |
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| Red-headed Manakin |
The following morning we were on our way home. But what a fantastic adventure it was. Many thanks to our great friends Nancy and Linda for coming along. And a very special thank you to our guides Ciro and Lucas of Brazil Birding Experts. You guys took such great care of us, found so many amazing birds. and were wonderful to spend three weeks with! Amazing!
What a fabulous group of birds and places to see them. I have really enjoyed your commentary and photos, bringing me along on your awesome adventure in a very interesting part of Brazil. Thank You!
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