Peru days 2-6: Tarapoto > Pongo de Caynarachi >Yurimaguas

I’ll try and keep the blog ticking over the next month while I’m based in Tarapoto on the eastern slope of the Andes/edge of the Amazon Basin. I’m doing field work with Jaewoo Chung, Mathieu Joron and Lisa da Silva for studies on evolutionary/ecological genetics of mimetic Heliconiinae and Ithomiinae butterflies. The birds out here a very exciting and I’ll post some notes from dawn walks up the Rio Shilcayo and interesting sightings while chasing butterflies further afield. We are living in the El Achual district of Tarapoto this time. For a list of species noted here in previous years see:

www.fssbirding.org.uk/elmiradortarapotopatch.htm

We made a four day trip over the Sierra Esaclera (the last ridge of the Andes) to the edge of the Amazon Basin to collect Heliconius numata samples for breeding experiments. This road to Yurimaguas used to be a rough track but is now being surfaced with tarmac. As a result the road is only open during the hours of darkness which means there has been more armed robberies lately. I wasn’t keen to take my Leica bins and DLSR so I didn’t actually identify that many birds. Best were Amazonian Pygmy Owl, Chestnut-eared Aracari, Cuvier’s Toucan, White-winged Shrike-Tanager, Amazon Kingfisher, Spix’s Guan, King Vulture, Swallow-tailed Kite, Red-throated Caracara, Yellow-headed Caracara, Blue-cheeked Jacamar, Undulated Tinamou, Spot-winged Antbird, White-headed Marsh Tyrant and Ferruginous Pygmy Owl. A quick look a the dock on the Rio Hulllaga at Yurimaguas (where boats leave for Iquitos) produced Black Skimmer, Hoatzin, Spotted Sandpiper, Rufescent Tiger-Heron.