Ubatuba Birdwatching Centre

On a visit to the top of the Serra, Rick and Elis Simpson and Oliver Simms documented two new species for Ubatuba and got photographs of a species hitherto only voice recorded. The first bird was the Speckle-breasted Antpitta which was heard singing and Elis managed to get a recording of its voice. Sadly it was not seen as it stayed resolutely hidden. A Rufous-crowned Greenlet was photographed however, and this represented the first in Ubatuba, despite the bird being fairly common at the top of the hill.

Rufous-crowned Greenlet © Elis Simpson

A completely new species for the list was White-browed Foliage-gleaner. This has never been seen or reported before in the municipality. It was Oliver that actually saw it first and drew the others attention to it, and he even got the first photograph of it.

White-browed Foliage-gleaner © Oliver Simms

White-browed Foliage-gleaner © Elis Simpson

The documented list for Ubatuba, with the addition of these two species, now stands at exactly 400!

Also seen at the top of the hill was this magnificent Surucua Trogon.

Surucua Trogon © Elis Simpson

On the way down to town we came across this Short-tailed Hawk, not a common bird in the area by any means.

Short-tailed Hawk © Elis Simpson

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Although this is far from the first record, it is always good to see this bird in Ubatuba. When we see one of these ‘white-tailed’ hawks it is most often the White-necked hawk, which shows a distinct black sub-terminal band on the tail.

Mantled Hawk over Folha Seca © Elis Simpson

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Here are some photographs of a number of interesting birds to be found in Ubatuba.

The Robust Woodpecker is to be found in the forested areas, its distintive rapid two-beat drum is more often heard than the bird is seen.

Female Robust Woodpecker © Elis Simpson

São Paulo Tyrannulet, a busy little bird that is an Atlantic Forest endemic.

São Paulo Tyrannulet © Elis simpson

Most often encountered soaring over the forest, one has to be lucky to come across a Black Hawk-Eagle perched.

Black Hawk-Eagle © Elis Simpson

Rarely seen or heard in Ubatuba the Sharpbill is a good bird to catch up with.

Sharpbill © Elis Simpson

Chestnut-vented Conebill is also seldom encountered in Ubatuba and until recently unphotographed.

Male Chestnut-vented Conebill © Elis Simpson

Serra do Mar Tyrant-Manakin, also not photographed until recently, is a bird of the higher altitude montane forest above 900m. It can be seen at the top of the Serra do Mar range in Ubatuba.

Serra do Mar Tyrannulet © ElisSimpson

Sharp-billed Treehunter is another highland specialist but can occasionally be encountered at lower levels in winter.

Sharp-billed Treehunter © Elis simpson

Tropical Peewee is not such a rare bird but is predominantly recorded in the winter months.

Tropical Pewee © Elis Simspon

Black-backed Tanager is a rare winter visitor from the south. It is usually encountered at feeders. This is the first photograph of a bird taken away from feeding areas in a mixed flock comprising mostly tanager species, predominantly Red-necked Tanger, at Folha Seca.

Male Black-backed Tanager away from the feeders © Elis Simpson

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