Ubatuba Birdwatching Centre

Determined to get away from the daily grind of birdwatching, Elis and I set off for Salvador in Bahia in order to drive to the Chapada da Diamantina, to do some… well…  birdwatching!

We only spent a couple of days there, but using Jeremy Minn’s notes (http://www.rick-simpson.com/jeremy-minns-site-notes/bahia/) and the recent article by Ciro Albano in the Neotropical Bird Club’s (NBC) Tropical Birding magazine in which the information was accurate and informative, we got most of the birds we were after without too much trouble. On the drive down we stopped at a pool by the side of the road (we took the Estrada do Feijão from Feira de Santana; longer, but good birding en route) we saw several interesting  (to us) species including Lesser Yellow-headed Vulture, Black-necked Stilt, American Purple Gallinule, Spot-flanked Gallinule, Caatinga Cachalote, Black-backed Water-Tyrant, Black-throated Saltator, White-winged Swallow and White-throated Seedeater. At another stop we had a huge flock of ‘Misto’ (Grassland) Yellow Finches and White Monjita. Other species seen in transit include White-bellied Nothura, Zone-tailed Hawk, Crane Hawk, Red-cowled Cardinal and Campo Troupial.

As both Jeremy and Ciro (and now we) recommend, we stayed at the Pousada da Geleia in Lençois. The owners José-Carlos and Lia (who makes superb peanut butter – a rare commodity here in Brazil) were very welcoming and, as José-Carlos has an interest in birds and knows many of Brazil’s top birders by dint of the the fact that they too have stayed there, he was most helpful and forthcoming with information. www.casadageleia.com.br , e-mail casadageleia@hotmail.com.

The first morning we birded the road from Palmeiras to Guiné, as per Ciro’s instructions, the route through the town of Palmeiras was not particularly straightforward, but help was always forthcoming from the locals. (If you don’t speak Portuguese it may be a little more tricky I think.)

As we got out of the car just past the bridge as per Jeremy’s and Ciro’s notes, we found, in the tree above us, a Speckled Chachalaca, along the road we heard a couple of Great Xenops, but didn’t actually see one! We did however see some of our target species such as Cactus Parakeet, Broad-billed Hermit, Silvery-cheeked Antshrike and Caatinga Antwren. In addition to these Caatinga specialists we saw other species that do not occur here in Ubatuba like the Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl, Narrow-billed Woodcreeper,  Planalto Antshrike, Black-bellied Antwren, Yellow-breasted Flycatcher, Pearly-vented Tody-Tyrant, Grey-eyed Greenlet and Tropical Gnatcatcher, as we returned to the car, we saw another target species, the São Francisco Sparrow. We first heard its very faint and high pitched song and eventually found it turning over leaves on the ground looking for food.

On the way back to the pousada we saw Black-chested Buzzard-Eagle and Biscutate Swift. After a rest and a chat with José-Carlos and Lia we headed back towards the Morro do Pai Inácio stopping just short and heading into the scrub. Here we got excellent views of a pair of Sincorá Antwrens, a species only discovered in 2007, an obliging male Rufous-winged Antshrike and a pair of Stripe-tailed Yellow-Finches.

The next day saw us back at the previous day’s morning destination. We were particularly after the Great Xenops and Spotted Piculet that we had missed the day before. We got the Spotted Piculet reasonably easily, amazing considering we didn’t even hear it call the day before, but the Great Xenops stayed out of view. We had it calling really close to us, but it remained out of sight. Birds that we didn’t see the day before also included White-lined Tanager, Black-tailed Flycatcher and Flavescent Warbler.

We then drove to the Morro do Pai Inácio, we saw the Hooded Visorbearer but unfortunately not well enough to photograph. This White-vented Violetear was rather more obliging as were the Plain-crested Elaenia and Buff-throated Pampa-Finch.

After a wash and brush-up at the pousada we headed for Salvador again. In transit we stopped at a roadside pool and found a Solitary Sandpiper, Black-necked Stilt, Wing-barred Hornero, White-cheeked Pintail and Least Grebe.

At night we went for a stroll along the promenade in Salvador and were surprised to see two nighthawks feeding low over the sea. We couldn’t be certain in the low light levels but we think they were Least Nighthawks. The following morning on the way to the airport we stopped to look at some terns that turned out to be Roseate and Common Terns feeding on fish scraps, as were two Striated Herons plus a Tropical Mockingbird.

All photos on this post © Elis Simpson.