Rancho Pica-Pau
Watching Buff-throated Purpletuft. Photo copyright Rick and Elis simpson.
This recently discovered gem is essentially a camping site. During the Christmas and New Year period it is full of happy holidaymakers. However, I have found that it is THE place to find Buff-throated Purpletuft. There is a large open area set aside for camping and around its edge excellent forest. These forest edge trees are suitable look-out points and song posts for the purpletufts. Just listen for their distinctive, if quiet, call. There are also other good birds to be seen here. Being a fairly open area, at the foot of some well forested hills, it is an excellent place to look for raptors, especially the Black Hawk-Eagle. At the forest edge there are a couple of Fork-tailed Tody-Tyrant territories and with a bit of patience and playback you should get them.
Along the approach road to the rancho there is good birding and the list below includes birds seen along it. As this is a recently discovered site and few birders have visited it, the list is still quite small, but it is set to grow as the place gets more visitors.
There is no restriction on birders visiting the site, but out of courtesy please make yourself known to the owners when you arrive and there is a nominal fee of R$10.00 per person.
Male Buff-throated Purpletuft. Photo ₢ Cláudia Komesu.
Fork-tailed Tody-Tyrant. Photo ₢ Cláudia Komesu.
Birds to look out for include: Rufescent Tiger-Heron, Striated heron, Whistling Heron, Rufous-thighed Kite, Roadside and Short-tailed Hawks, Black-and-White and Black Hawk-Eagles, Southern and Yellow-headed Caracaras, Aplomado Falcon, Slaty-breasted Woodrail, Pale-vented and Plumbeous Pigeons, Maroon-bellied and Plain Parakeet, Blue-winged Parrotlet, Scaly-headed Parrot, Squirrel, Dark-billed and Striped Cuckoos, Pauraque, White-collared, Sick’s and Grey-rumped Swifts, Saw-billed, Scale-throated and Rddish Hermits, Sombre and Swallow-tailed Hummingbirds, Black Jacobin, Black-throated Mango, Festive Coquette, Glittering-bellied, Glittering-throated and Versicoloured Emeralds, Violet-capped Wodnymph, White-chinned Sapphire, White-tailed Trogon, Rufous-capped Motmot, Saffron Toucanet, Red-breasted and Channel-billed Toucans, White-barred Piculet, Yellow-fronted, Blond-crested and Robust Woodpeckers, Rufous-capped and Spix’s Spinetails, Orange-eyed Thornbird, Ochre-breasted Foliage-gleaner, Plain Xenops, Spot-breasted and tufted Antshrikes, Plain and Spot-breasted Antvireos, Star-throated, Rufous-winged and streak-capped Antwrens, Ferruginous, Scaled and Squamate Antbirds, White-shouldered Fire-eye, Rufous-capped Antthrush, Rufous and Black-cheeked Gnateaters, Spotted Bamboowren, Bare-throated Bellbird, Blue and White-bearded Manakins, Black-crowned Tityra, Greenish Mourner, Buff-throated Purpletuft, Chestnut-crowned, White-winged, Black-capped and Crested Becards, Planalto, Grey-capped and Yellow Tyrannulets, Grey Elaenia, Sepia-capped and Grey-hooded flycatchers, Fork-tailed Tody-Tyrant, Yellow-browed, Long-tailed and Cattle tyrants, Masked Water-Tyrant, Piratic, Boat-billed, Variegated and Fork-tailed Flycacthers, White-thighed Swallow, Long-billed Wren, Lemon-chested Greenlet, Purple-throated, Violaceous and Chestnut-bellied Euphonias, Flame-crested, Ruby-crowned, Brazilian, Sayaca, Azure-shouldered, Golden-chevroned, Palm, Green-headed, and Red-necked Tanager, Green Honeycreeper, Swallow Tanager, White-bellied Seedeater, Sooty Grassquit, Saffron Finch, Black-throated Grosbeak, Red-rumped Cacique and Crested Oropendola.
