Masked Water-Tyrant – Fluvicola nengeta
“I never for a day gave up listening to the songs of our birds, or watching their peculiar habits, or delineating them in the best way I could. ” John James Audubon
Poza Honda Ecuador – These highly-active and perpetually-happy Masked Water-Tyrants served as good-will ambassadors in every location I’ve lived in Ecuador. Attired year ’round in crisp white and black/brown, they chirp, chatter, dance and build nests – always near the water. At Casa Loca along Rio Jama, they foraged along the mud flats at low tide; in Mindo they nested in locations just above the water, and now at Poza Honda they thrive in an ever-changing playground of water hyacinths.
While I worked on the Common Tody Flycatcher study, the Water-Tyrants tolerated my presence; ignoring the artist, they frolicked and provided ample poses for my growing collection of photos. Painting these birds would be challenging yet rewarding.
Masked Water Tyrants – Watercolor in progress by Lisa Brunetti
Working at night from reference photos, I also worked during the day by the water’s edge. The bi-polar moods of the weather often sent me scampering up the hill to protect the painting!
Just as I began the watercolor wash, the skies began to baptize the painting!
Within a week, water levels leaped to maximum levels, which brought those handsome birds (and the invasive water hyacinths) closer and closer to the human’s turf. They provided a grand assortment of poses – as if to benefit no one except the human that studied them! Enjoy watching these handsome birds via this slide show:
Between dancing and gleaning insects, one pair flits from the water’s edge to the hyacinths to overhanging branches and back to the water. Flying inches from the water, they sometimes venture to floating islands of hyacinths in the middle of the reservoir.
Searching for insects, they dart from cluster to cluster then race back to home base. Two to four other birds sometimes join them, and the chattering and dancing intensifies – representing the joys of friendship or perhaps the insecurities of territorial quarrels! 
After researching via the WWW, I realized how lucky we are in Ecuador to observe this precious little species:
“This bird has possibly the most disjunct range in South America. It occurs on opposite ends of the continent, with one race in eastern Brazil and the other mostly restricted to Ecuador west of the Andes….The great similarities in plumage and voice make it unlikely that the two races will be split despite their disjunct ranges.” – Nick Athanas – www.antpitta.com
Check out the IUCN RED List map.
Another map/info: Neotropical.birds.cornell.edu https://neotropical.birds.cornell.edu/Species-Account/nb/species/mawtyr1/overview
In honor of World Water Day, I returned to the water’s edge and joined the Water Tyrants, Anis, butterflies and dragonflies in quiet celebration.
The 3:00 pm World Hour for honoring the water was spent at the dam, the only stop between home and the cyber! Now- with election weekend in progress – the cyber is about to close….
Today is also a celebration of our precious natural resource of water. Where some experience drought, others endure hurricanes, torrential rains and flooding. May we find ways to put our planet’s health back in proper balance.
Masked Water Tyrants – almost finished – Watercolor by Lisa Brunetti
The cyber is closing; he’s waiting on me to hit the publish button! Thanks for your support of ‘One Bird at a Time.’ — See you next week! Lisa
“Once upon a time, when women were birds, there was the simple understanding that to sing at dawn and to sing at dusk was to heal the world through joy. The birds still remember what we have forgotten, that the world is meant to be celebrated.”
― Terry Tempest Williams.
Zeebra Designs & Destinations 
Absolutely beautiful both in life and in art.
Thank you Paul! It always helps when one is familiar with species – and I studied these birds a lot. Now if we can find a way to deal with the water hyacinths!
Your work makes us see more than the photographs show us — as it should!
Thank you Hugh. I learned a lot while studying those birds The curator of my show said that I’m teaching the locals how to view what they have with new eyes. Let’s hope it works!
It’s amazing how much more one sees when studying anything. We were talking about bird identification, and it’s always fuzzy for me with not-often-viewed species, but once one draws/paints those details, it’s nailed/glued for-EVER! I’m glad that my studies also help others to see a bit more! Thank you Hugh!
Beautifully scripted and displayed! lovely photos and words
Thank you, Eddie. They truly are beautiful birds, and they allowed me to get close for good reference photos. They were a joy to paint.
I thought of you today when I spent time in my friends’ garden in the cloud forest. Everything was sl beautiful; I took 4G worth of photos!
I’ve never heard of these beautiful birds before, Lisa, but your words, photos, and painting brought them to life for me. Thanks for brightening my Saturday morning!
janet
I meant to tell you I thought of you a few days ago when I got the latest Donna Leon book. As her protagonist shares your last name, it always brings you to mind and her when I’m here. 🙂
I’m an avid reader, but it’s not often that new titles cross my viewing field. Would you believe that I’ve never held one of those books/the series in my hands?! I’m going to have to change that status!
What a kind and thoughtful comment! Thank you!
It was a joy to paint those birds, and they seemed to enjoy playing and dancing nearby – while i painted.
I have seen those birds in so many places in Ecuador – that I assumed they lived i a much-larger area. It’s great to give them a voice, and a slightly-larger circle of admirers! Thank you for your kind feedback!
Fantastic Lisa. Have you updated your camera? The pictures are exceptionally clear. It is to your credit that you have even made the dull colored ani look interesting and attractive. The way you captured the tyrants AND the dragonflies in the same photo is a tribute to your skill. Really, really good stuff. I think that you are going to have to do a show that combines your paintings and photography. Wow.
Hey Stephen! Same camera as last year, and no – the cataracts on the inside of the lens affects many imaged. If one takes a zillion photos, however, some will turn out well! I’m glad you like the photos of the birds and dragonflies – not sure it was skill – but luck!
Not confirmed but most likely the next show will be in manta, and most likely there will be photos. Thanks for your feedback.
John Jams Audubon would be delighted. I’m celebrating World Water Day with you. I am committed to participate in this urgent and essential dialogue:
Thanks for your thumbs up, and for the Vimbeo — really sweet video, and that skyline is stunning!
It’s fun to learn about a bird you’ve known in each place where you lived….they seem slightly top-heavy to me – an oddly shaped songbird. Their coloring is so very handsome. But oh those butterflies – seen full-screen, that made my mouth water. I bet it made the water tyrant’s mouth water too. 🙂 I gasped when I saw the water drops on your painting, but you’re a pro so I assume you fixed the problem. Oh, and there’s our ani again, showing off his groove! 😉 Happy World Water Day to you, Lisa!
You gave me a chuckle about the ‘gasp’ reaction to the rain drops on the painting. I knew that there would be many layers of colors so it was doubtful that the splotches would show in the finished art. I was lucky that nothing hit those extreme dark areas on the birds – that would have made a mess!
The birds were making a nest about three feet above the water, and then they started taking it apart and building a new one – same scrub tree but on another side and slightly higher. About two days later we received some intense rainfall, and the water level leaped higher. The birds made a very wise move – so how did they know that their nest might be destroyed?
gorgeous…love the masked water tyrants..
Thank you, Gwen! They are beautiful little birds!
Is this bird really a tyrant?
You have a gift for giving us unexpected smiles!
It’s usually happy, but I suspect it can be a true tyrant when protecting its nest!
And what an excellent watercolor you’ve created.
Thank you!
Water is more than a usual concern here just now, as a recent industrial fire released a lot of unhappy things into the San Jacinto river, some bayous, and perhaps even the bay.
The benzene is gone, but the fire-fighting foam that was used apparently doesn’t degrade — ever. It stays suspended in the water column, moving in and out with the tides. I’m waiting for the report from the Galveston Bay Foundation on exactly what the consequences are going to be, but I suspect it won’t be any better long term than it is short term. It’s such a shame, because so much good work has been done over the past twenty years to clean up both the water and the air. The emphasis in the media has been on the safety of the drinking water — no problems there — but there are other issues being skirted.
The bird and your portrayal are lovely. I especially enjoyed the quotation about the world being celebrated. I read that this morning while listening to my mockingbird sing in the still-darkness, and smiled.
When ‘extreme’ rains caused the water level to leap, which put the reservoir level one to two meters above the dam, our water-hyacinth problems pounced on the communities downriver. I looked toward the top of the surrounding peaks and thought, ‘we don’t know what chemicals they are using on the pastures and fields at the top… and it trickles down to us.. and our problems trickle down to others —‘ so many times people don’t care about those who are downstream, and those downstream only find out about larger problems when things go out of control.
The foam problems must be painful to see and to ponder the short and long-term effects on all living things. As you sate, ‘there are other issues being skirted.’
I am in the cloudforest and spent a large slice of time with friends on their property yesterday. The seedeaters were especially happy, and their sweet songs were the perfect soundtrack for our visit. I told her that since the 2,4-D was applied last May, the areas along the pastures remain almost void of seedeaters and ground doves. It’s painful to contemplate – and the land owners don’t realize that anything has changed. I contemplate, “Am I witnessing Rachel Carson’s fears?”
On a fun note, I heard a Band-backed Wren’s frantic chattering last week, and I turned to look/confirm the species. It was a lovely Yellow-tailed Oriole, and I think it was taunting a wren, which was out of sight but chattering back in proper syntax!
I have never come across a Masked Water Tyrant, but they look beautiful. And so does your watercolour of two of them.
Thank you, Otto! I thought of you yesterday while ambling through a friend’s very-large garden. (Possibly 3 hectares?) I used almost 4g of memory on the card, and wondered if you would counsel me to be more selective. But (pero-) there were beautiful specimens everywhere I looked, many for reference photos. In one area they took me to an alley of old citrus trees – draped in healthy mosses, lichens, etc – and beautifiul golden orchids were cascading down from all heights. It was a fantasy lane, and very difficult to capture via camera. Your guidance there would have been greatly appreciated!
I would generally not advice any to hold back during the shooting process. Rather be more strict in the editing process. 🙂
The joys of using digital vs paying for expensive 35 mm film and processing! A bit like the joy of using a keyboard vs old typewriters and carbon copies! Thanks, Otto!
Masked Water-Tyrants as goodwill ambassadors! Love that. Sweet birds.
Thank you Emilie! Your comment warms my heart!!!
So loved your narrative here Lisa, The weather indeed has been Bi-Pola. your artwork just wonderful to see.. And your Masked Water Tyrants painting is beautiful.. ❤
So sorry to be so late with this reply, but thank you so much for leaving your comment. Sending warm greetings across the pond/ and equator!
Enjoyed the slide show and the beautifully done water colour painting!
Thank you so ch!!! They are lovely birds, so it was an easy task to try to capture their likeness!