Info about Mindo - Ecuador (1 Viewer)

[BirdsPeru]

I would like to know if anybody can give me some information about birding in Mindo-Ecuador.

I will be in Quito and plan to visit Las Gralarias in Mindo and would like if someone can tell me the best places around there to go bird photographing.

Best regards,

Alejandro

 

[Vectis Birder]

Mindo is just excellent. You can walk along the Mindo river and the birds are everywhere. There is an orchid garden in Mindo, they have feeders up and there are plenty of tanagers and hummingbirds around. You can have a coffee and watch and photograph the birds.
If you go to Los Bancos, further west from Mindo, there's a restaurant called Mirador Rio Blanco and they also have feeders, with more hummers, tanagers, plus aracaris, Red-headed Barbets and so on. Good for photography.

 

[xav]

Hello Alejandro

There're lots of great birding sites near Mindo:
- Cascada de Nambillo (approx. 10 km from Mindo). The cascada itself is a good site for White-tailed hillstar, Olive finch, Torrent duck (early morning), White-capped dipper, Cock-of-the-rock (nesting there),... It's also worth birding along the road, especially the section after the "parking" for the cascada: good forest and nice birds (Black solitaire, Masked trogon, Broad-billed & rufous motmots, Choco & Chestnut-mandibled toucans, Capped treehunter, Metallic-green tanager, Russet-backed oropendola,...)
- Sachatamia lodge/reserve (entrance: 3 $ / approx. 7-8 km from Mindo, in direction of Quito) is a great place for photos; Toucan barbets, tanagers, euphonias,... are coming to the feeders (+ hummingbirds feeders). And I saw the Crimson-bellied woodpecker in the forest.
- Septimo Paraiso lodge/reserve (entrance: 5$ for 2 days / approx. 5-6 km from Mindo in direction of Quito) has great hummingbirds feeders (lots of birds & lots of species).

Close from Mindo (10-15 minutes by foot), there're some small rivers where you can see the Sunbittern & Fasciated tiger-heron (I can send you the indications to go to the site if you want).

It's also worth visiting the Pas de las Aves reserve (10 $) where you can get really nice views of the Giant & Yellow-breasted antpittas (+ Moustached if you're lucky). It's at (approx.) 45 minutes-1 hour by car from Mindo (if you want to go, you must call the Pas brothers before 'cause they don't leave there). There's also have a Cock-of-the-rock lek in the reserve and you can see the Orange-breasted fruiteater, Black-chinned mountain tanager, lots of hummingbirds (White-bellied woodstar, Booted racket-tail, Empress brilliant, Fawn-breasted brilliant, Violet-tailed sylph, Purple-bibbed whitetip, Brown inca,...),...

Xavier

 

[BirdsPeru]

HI Xavier and Vectis Birder,

Thanks a lot for the information, I am leaving to Mindo Tonight so will spend saturday and sunday there before coming back to Quito to work on monday.

All you information was helpfull and appreciated,

Alejandro