Aracari
Birding in Brazil
While this was not a "vacation" to me I think this is the best forum to post this report since it's not a weekend spot for 99% in here.
Just spent 3 and a half days at Parque do Zizo (www.parquedozizo.com.br), a private natural reserve located south of the small town of São Miguel Arcanjo, São Paulo state, right on the largest reminiscent of Atlantic Rainforest. This huge forested area is the same of the neighbor Carlos Botelho State Park and the more famous Intervales. The park average altitude is of 600 meters and the terrain goes up and down, cut by crystalline water mountain creeks and gorgeous waterfalls.
Here's a report from my rather limited birding experience.
After about 2 hour easy drive between São Paulo and São Miguel Arcanjo I met Chico, the owner of the lodge. I initially followed him in my car through a dirty road that passes through farms and pastures and saw the usual species of these areas: Smooth-Billed Ani, Guira Cuckoo, Chalk-Browed Mockingbird, Fork-Tailed Flycatcher, Rudy-Ground Dove, Southern Caracara, Southern Lapwing, etc. I guess that for people that have never been to South America, the trip starts here.
At a certain point the road gets narrower and in worst condition. I leave my car at a property where Chico recommends and says is safe and go the rest of the trip in Chico’s car. The road gets really worse and muddy as it enters into the lush rainforest, it’s totally impassible with regular traction cars. You need a sturdy 4x4 to pass here. This road is intentionally left in this very poor state, as this keeps the invaders away. That’s fine by me…
The agricultural scenery quickly changes to a rich humid rain forest, we are getting there. The entrance of the park is a wooden bridge crossing a beautiful creek and there is a sign indicating, “Parque do Zizo – RPPN (Private Reserve of the Natural Heritage)”. The park is at the end of the road and very isolated, there are no other properties nearby.
I leave my stuff in my room, grab my photo gear and go walk the access road, hopeful to see something before the day is gone. Immediately I hear the constant loud metallic “banging” of Bare-Throated Bellbirds but can’t see it, it’s high in the canopies above. There’s a tiny pond beside the lodge where a bunch of Red-Rumped Caciques have made theirs hanging nests. Rufous-Bellied Trush, Great Kiskadee and Rufous-Collared Sparrow are always around too, as well as some flycatchers I couldn’t identify. I see a few Slaty-Breasted Wood-Rail ahead on the road, but they soon vanish into the forest. I also see a group of seedeaters in some bushes alongside the road, they are Uniform Finch and Buff-Fronted Seedeater. Ahead I see a female Black-Throated Trogon, White-Rimmed Warbler and White-Throated Spadebill.
I was advised by Jorge, one of the caretakers of the lodge, that there is a lek of Blue Manakins alongside the road, to the right. And he couldn’t be wrong, there was a nice lek of them, constantly dancing for the female. These gorgeous birds stays there all the time and I have plans to make better photographs of them... just wait. B
It was getting dark so I returned to the lodge. The lodge itself is rustic yet very comfortable and in tune with the nature around. It’s literally surrounded by rainforest and is run in a very ecological way. I love it and hopefully other lodges will take that as an example. The food is excellent and made by Chico himself. The rooms are comfortable and the shower has hot water! There's no electricity at the lodge though (to keep it as ecologically correct as possible) so bring spare batteries and flashlights.
The next day was very hot and sunny, a combination I don’t like for birding or photography. But in the early morning I did see quite a few birds, with the help of Jorge, that came with me. We did the Rio Ouro Fino trail and saw Ferruginous Antbird, Squamate Antbird, Green Barred Woodpecker, Lineated Woodpecker, White-Throated Woodcreeper, Lesser Woodcreeper, Black-Goggled Tanager, White-Shouldered Fire-eye, Buff-Fronted Foliage Gleaner, and some others I could not identify, mainly flycatchers and stuff…
This trail is quite difficult, lots of steep areas (both up and down), but it’s highly recommended… the scenery is breathtaking, the forest here is of a very good quality and the Ouro Fino river valley is gorgeous, not to mention its two waterfalls. This is where we saw a group of 7 Muriqui Monkeys. These are the largest primates in the Americas and highly endangered (estimated a little more than 500 in the wild), so it was pretty cool seeing them.
With the help of Jorge, I finally see a Bare-Throated Bellbird… and two of them! What an effort they seem to do to make that powerful call… with mouth agape pointing high in the sky, specially during the 20 to 30 sec non-stop sequence... bang, bang, bang, bang....... !!
In the afternoon we tried another trail but it was so hot that we see virtually nothing, except a bunch of fleering and very scared of some kind of small tinamou, probably brown. I hope for clouds the next day.
My wish was prompted, but with a little exaggeration. It’s raining and very cold! What a difference from yesterday! With this weather I can’t go out and risk my photo gear, so I set my tripod and flash under the roof of an open area of the lodge next to the trunk where they place banana for the birds. Many tanagers come, here’s the list: Green-Headed Tanager, Blue Dacnis, Azure-Shouldered, Sayaca (kinda unusual for a place this far into the jungle), Golden-Chevroned, Black-Goggled (only once and briefly), troops of Olive-Green, Ruby Crowned, the fantastic Magpie and Palm tanagers. A pair of very colorful Yellow-Fronted Woodpeckers also comes in often.
After the lunch I go to Rio Quebra Coco trail. The 1st part of it is great and passes through a rare type of forest, the Atlantic Rainforest of lowlands. Very rich and humid forest. I focus on landscape photography so I don’t see much, but on the way out I do see up close a male Giant Antshrike… no wonder they have this name, these birds really are giant, definitely not your usual antbird! There are loud calls of Spot-Winged Wood Quail nearby.
Next day I wake up with the sound of a Motmot singing in the forest behind my room, I don’t see it though. It’s still very cold and drizzly, but I go out anyway. Climbing up the mountain I see a Cinnamon-Vented Piha right above me, eating a bug, it was my first. I managed to get some rather poor photos of it. A little higher I stumble upon a large Solitary Tinamou (heard many times before) and get ridiculously close to it, showing that this area is not hunted at all… but it was raining hard at the time and my photo gear is inside my backpack! Well, it was a great sight. Later on I see Red-Crowned Ant-Tanager, Rufous-Capped Spinetail, White-Collared Foliage Gleaner, White-Eyed Foliage-Gleaner, Scaly-Headed Parrot and some others I’m not sure.
Next day I see, near the lodge, a Plain Antvireo attacking and trying to eat a leaf-hopper too big for him. It was quite funny, he sure was pissed-off and with its mind set! At one point he was almost at arms length. Then I saw, Tropical Parula, Black-Tailed Flycatcher, Gray-Hooded Attila, White-Necked Trush, Southern House Wren, Euler’s Flycatcher and a very close view of a Tawny-Throated Leaftosser (again, no camera!).
I'm sure I would have seen much more with an experienced birding pal and just for birding, and not photographing too. But it was a great trip and highly reccomended place. Below are some photos taken:
Primary forest that covers most all of the park
Typical trail up one of the hills
Blue Manakin
Magpie Tanagers
White-Eyed Foliage-Gleaner
Yellow-Fronted Woodpecker
Plain Antvireo
Cinnamon-Vented Piha
Thanks for looking
Just spent 3 and a half days at Parque do Zizo (www.parquedozizo.com.br), a private natural reserve located south of the small town of São Miguel Arcanjo, São Paulo state, right on the largest reminiscent of Atlantic Rainforest. This huge forested area is the same of the neighbor Carlos Botelho State Park and the more famous Intervales. The park average altitude is of 600 meters and the terrain goes up and down, cut by crystalline water mountain creeks and gorgeous waterfalls.
Here's a report from my rather limited birding experience.
After about 2 hour easy drive between São Paulo and São Miguel Arcanjo I met Chico, the owner of the lodge. I initially followed him in my car through a dirty road that passes through farms and pastures and saw the usual species of these areas: Smooth-Billed Ani, Guira Cuckoo, Chalk-Browed Mockingbird, Fork-Tailed Flycatcher, Rudy-Ground Dove, Southern Caracara, Southern Lapwing, etc. I guess that for people that have never been to South America, the trip starts here.
At a certain point the road gets narrower and in worst condition. I leave my car at a property where Chico recommends and says is safe and go the rest of the trip in Chico’s car. The road gets really worse and muddy as it enters into the lush rainforest, it’s totally impassible with regular traction cars. You need a sturdy 4x4 to pass here. This road is intentionally left in this very poor state, as this keeps the invaders away. That’s fine by me…
The agricultural scenery quickly changes to a rich humid rain forest, we are getting there. The entrance of the park is a wooden bridge crossing a beautiful creek and there is a sign indicating, “Parque do Zizo – RPPN (Private Reserve of the Natural Heritage)”. The park is at the end of the road and very isolated, there are no other properties nearby.
I leave my stuff in my room, grab my photo gear and go walk the access road, hopeful to see something before the day is gone. Immediately I hear the constant loud metallic “banging” of Bare-Throated Bellbirds but can’t see it, it’s high in the canopies above. There’s a tiny pond beside the lodge where a bunch of Red-Rumped Caciques have made theirs hanging nests. Rufous-Bellied Trush, Great Kiskadee and Rufous-Collared Sparrow are always around too, as well as some flycatchers I couldn’t identify. I see a few Slaty-Breasted Wood-Rail ahead on the road, but they soon vanish into the forest. I also see a group of seedeaters in some bushes alongside the road, they are Uniform Finch and Buff-Fronted Seedeater. Ahead I see a female Black-Throated Trogon, White-Rimmed Warbler and White-Throated Spadebill.
I was advised by Jorge, one of the caretakers of the lodge, that there is a lek of Blue Manakins alongside the road, to the right. And he couldn’t be wrong, there was a nice lek of them, constantly dancing for the female. These gorgeous birds stays there all the time and I have plans to make better photographs of them... just wait. B
It was getting dark so I returned to the lodge. The lodge itself is rustic yet very comfortable and in tune with the nature around. It’s literally surrounded by rainforest and is run in a very ecological way. I love it and hopefully other lodges will take that as an example. The food is excellent and made by Chico himself. The rooms are comfortable and the shower has hot water! There's no electricity at the lodge though (to keep it as ecologically correct as possible) so bring spare batteries and flashlights.
The next day was very hot and sunny, a combination I don’t like for birding or photography. But in the early morning I did see quite a few birds, with the help of Jorge, that came with me. We did the Rio Ouro Fino trail and saw Ferruginous Antbird, Squamate Antbird, Green Barred Woodpecker, Lineated Woodpecker, White-Throated Woodcreeper, Lesser Woodcreeper, Black-Goggled Tanager, White-Shouldered Fire-eye, Buff-Fronted Foliage Gleaner, and some others I could not identify, mainly flycatchers and stuff…
This trail is quite difficult, lots of steep areas (both up and down), but it’s highly recommended… the scenery is breathtaking, the forest here is of a very good quality and the Ouro Fino river valley is gorgeous, not to mention its two waterfalls. This is where we saw a group of 7 Muriqui Monkeys. These are the largest primates in the Americas and highly endangered (estimated a little more than 500 in the wild), so it was pretty cool seeing them.
With the help of Jorge, I finally see a Bare-Throated Bellbird… and two of them! What an effort they seem to do to make that powerful call… with mouth agape pointing high in the sky, specially during the 20 to 30 sec non-stop sequence... bang, bang, bang, bang....... !!
In the afternoon we tried another trail but it was so hot that we see virtually nothing, except a bunch of fleering and very scared of some kind of small tinamou, probably brown. I hope for clouds the next day.
My wish was prompted, but with a little exaggeration. It’s raining and very cold! What a difference from yesterday! With this weather I can’t go out and risk my photo gear, so I set my tripod and flash under the roof of an open area of the lodge next to the trunk where they place banana for the birds. Many tanagers come, here’s the list: Green-Headed Tanager, Blue Dacnis, Azure-Shouldered, Sayaca (kinda unusual for a place this far into the jungle), Golden-Chevroned, Black-Goggled (only once and briefly), troops of Olive-Green, Ruby Crowned, the fantastic Magpie and Palm tanagers. A pair of very colorful Yellow-Fronted Woodpeckers also comes in often.
After the lunch I go to Rio Quebra Coco trail. The 1st part of it is great and passes through a rare type of forest, the Atlantic Rainforest of lowlands. Very rich and humid forest. I focus on landscape photography so I don’t see much, but on the way out I do see up close a male Giant Antshrike… no wonder they have this name, these birds really are giant, definitely not your usual antbird! There are loud calls of Spot-Winged Wood Quail nearby.
Next day I wake up with the sound of a Motmot singing in the forest behind my room, I don’t see it though. It’s still very cold and drizzly, but I go out anyway. Climbing up the mountain I see a Cinnamon-Vented Piha right above me, eating a bug, it was my first. I managed to get some rather poor photos of it. A little higher I stumble upon a large Solitary Tinamou (heard many times before) and get ridiculously close to it, showing that this area is not hunted at all… but it was raining hard at the time and my photo gear is inside my backpack! Well, it was a great sight. Later on I see Red-Crowned Ant-Tanager, Rufous-Capped Spinetail, White-Collared Foliage Gleaner, White-Eyed Foliage-Gleaner, Scaly-Headed Parrot and some others I’m not sure.
Next day I see, near the lodge, a Plain Antvireo attacking and trying to eat a leaf-hopper too big for him. It was quite funny, he sure was pissed-off and with its mind set! At one point he was almost at arms length. Then I saw, Tropical Parula, Black-Tailed Flycatcher, Gray-Hooded Attila, White-Necked Trush, Southern House Wren, Euler’s Flycatcher and a very close view of a Tawny-Throated Leaftosser (again, no camera!).
I'm sure I would have seen much more with an experienced birding pal and just for birding, and not photographing too. But it was a great trip and highly reccomended place. Below are some photos taken:
Primary forest that covers most all of the park
Typical trail up one of the hills
Blue Manakin
Magpie Tanagers
White-Eyed Foliage-Gleaner
Yellow-Fronted Woodpecker
Plain Antvireo
Cinnamon-Vented Piha
Thanks for looking
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