SHHHH! Bird Specialists in Training! (Part One)
(Poza Honda Reservoir – Manabi Province, Ecuador) Just past ten in the morning, our birding party of three peered beyond the rustic bamboo corral in hopes of identifying the raucous oropendolas that had been playing hide and seek with us for the past two hours. Luis Saltos – bird guide from Chone and Mindo – and I were guests of “Don Jorge” Arnet, owner of a lovingly-tended tract of land at Poza Honda. (Jorge also owns the house that I rented for the past two years before I moved to Portoviejo.) The three of us were conducting an all-day census of bird species in the area with hopes of the area being approved for Audubon’s 2020 Christmas Count. We had been birding since 6 A.M. in intermittent drizzle.
A few hours earlier that morning, two birds buzzed us, and we exclaimed, “What was THAT?” as I snapped two out-of-focus images of the rapidly-vanishing birds. “Oropendola?” I looked at Luis for confirmation. “That whooshing sound?”

Left: “Jorge” Arnet, owner of Casa Poza Honda and coffee/cacao farm; Right: Luis Saltos, bird guide from Mindo and Chone.
We consulted several books and hoped to see those birds again. The (McMullan/Navarrete) Fieldbook for the Birds of Ecuador places all species of oropendolas in other areas of the country. This particular elusive group of birds must have taken a holiday vacation to Poza Honda, and we were trying to decide, “Russet-backed or Chestnut-headed.” Two years ago my friend Xiomara and I saw and photographed one Chestnut headed Oropendola, so my bets were on that species. Photos are oh so important in documenting out-of-range species, even if the photo is a bad one.

I waited at the next curve and watched Oropendolas fly towards my friends. “Did you see them?” I exclaimed later, “Yes!” they replied, “Lots!”
There were fleeting glimpses of ‘a lot’ half an hour later – then another viewing half an hour later near the bamboo corral. The Oropendolas were out of sight, but my drizzle-baptized camera managed to document one Rufous-headed Chachalaca in the distance, one Tropical Gnatcatcher way up high, and a Long-billed Hermit inspecting flowers along the living fence.

‘Don’t forget about me,’ says the Golden-olive Woodpecker!

States the mule: “A year ago there was one lone human staring at the birds. Now there are four!”
The last thing I expected to see was another human on the seldom-traveled road and staring at the three of us. A tall, lean and well-scrubbed young man, he wore an expression of curiosity as if observing Santa Clause placing last-minute gifts beneath a tree – or gnomes and fairies in another realm. I was not surprised that Jorge recognized him, called him by name and asked about his health. Ah-ha – recovering from recent surgery, his outing was doctor ordered – yet he was comfortable and at peace in his neighborhood environment.
After introductions, Jorge explained our day’s itinerary and our hopes of recording an accurate census of birds of the area. We showed ‘new-friend Jariel’ the field book, discussed several just-seen species, then continued our walk toward his little village. Happy to accompany us, Jariel shared information about birds near his house and pointed to a location where ‘the Caciques have nests.’ “Yellow or Red?” I asked.
“Yellow,” he said. We noted the dangling nests near the main road as we began walking up a steep and seldom-used side road. The drizzle resumed, I decided to retreat and try to locate the Cacique nests. “See you back at the intersection!”

Meanwhile back at the intersection…
Jariel was right! Yellow-rumped Caciques were in an avocado-loaded tree, as were Scrub Blackbirds, one red-eyed Giant Blackbird and a jackpot of OROPENDOLAS! Four nests dangled from open branches of a nearby tree, and the oropendolas ferried across the airspace for the next half hour!
The oropendolas and Caciques share the same yellow-against-dark coloration on their tails, and the former were in perpetual motion! From the tree to the nests, around, inside, out, then soaring to out-of-sight destinations and returning minutes later – how does one know how many birds are constructing the nests?
The most-rewarding sight, however, was seeing our ‘First Apprentice/Specialist in Training’ when he returned with my friends! He raised the binoculars, on loan from Luis, and focused on the Oropendola nests. Documenting and counting the birds was an important event, but the true beauty of the day was witnessing an unexpected candle being lit in Jariel’s new world of Aves.
Just before departing, we collectively admired a dozen or more Pale Mandibled Aracaris that paused for refreshments in another avocado tree.

“BIRD SPECIALIST IN TRAINING” – Jariel, Our first Apprentice!
True to the theme of the just-released documentary about the Galapagos, there is Hope for the Future. At Poza Honda, it’s one bird at a time and one apprentice at a time.
How exciting, both with regard to the birds found and to the making of a novel birder.
There was a second very-interested person, and that end-of-the-day encounter will be the next post. Thank you – Did you participate in a circle?
I look forward to reading about it. I participated in two Christmas bird counts near where I live. There are many more each year, and I might try to do a few more next year.
Sorry that I missed seeing this comment, but thank you for the follow-up! How great that you’ve enjoyed two Christmas counts, and we hope that at some point a new circle in this section of the country will help spread ‘birding fever’ to many more!
No problem. I hope with you that birding fever will spread. It might be the only way to assure that people care enough about birds to actually do something to try to protect their habitat.
Nice Lisa. Happy New Year.
Igualmente, Stephen! Wish you and Xio were here to help.. You both would have been extremely helpful!
My wife is an expert birder. I am merely an apprentice, driver, and holder of binoculars.
The birding part was lovely, but the data part was a lot of work.. Took us days! You’d be a great help with the organizing of data and helping research various species!!!
edmund and I have such fun on our little bird expeditions…and we love adding to our growing list of what we see here in NC
birds are amazing. There is a great website put out by friends of ours that we thought you would enjoy called Flying Lessons: What the birds teach us….it is excellent. check it out.
love and blessings in the new year.
Thank you for that info, Gwen, and I look forward to seeing ‘Flying Lessons.’ Hope that this year is a good one – and no bad weather!!!
Flying Lessons: What the birds are teaching us…is what it is called sorry for the wrong name above
I was excited when I saw you had gone birding! It truly is the most illuminating (not sure that’s the word), calming and inspiring thing to do. Inspired both by the birds and by the humans you share the experience with. I am going to share this with my BirdLife Jamaica friends…It’s especially great to see young people birding! You have probably seen my recent posts about our 2019 excursions! Sending warm wishes for the New Year from Jamaica!
Twas a hard-but-rewarding day, and we tallied about 90 birds for that one-day search for all species possible, plus 11 or 12 more (to supplement that list) on the following two days.
There was a second young man who took that book in hand and was enthralled by the knowledge at his fingertips. I’ll write about Antonio in the next post!
Thank you for sharing!
That’s wonderful! Our group is seeking to recruit more young members. Boys seem to be especially keen. What a fantastic tally of birds though! ❤️
You play a very important role in mentoring others, and your love for the birds is so very visible and poetic!
Thanks so much! I get a little passionate…
Where can I sign up!!
Clanmother Rebecca – come on down! You are the NEXT apprentice/especialista at Poza Honda!
Beaming over now!!! Hear we go….
I finally identified the bird I’ve been seeking for months and months — it turned out to be a Carolina wren. Who knew such a tiny bird could sing such a loud, resonant song? And I have another gem who lives very, very near to me, in a big live oak tree. It took a while to find him, too, although the signs were quite different. As soon as I have a couple of presentable photos, I feature that cutie in my next Lagniappe post.
I probably mentioned that I got to see a pied-billed grebe in flight. That was unexpected. Even some experienced birders who spend every day in the field have seen that only rarely. What a Christmas (season) gift!
Oh the Wrens! They can have such explosive sounds as well as soothing and comforting melodies. The Carolina Wrens are cute, so your senses are thriving as you discover your new backyard!
We are lucky at Poza |Honda to have the Pied-billed and Lesser Grebes – almost every time I visit the water’s edge or stop at the dam, those little birds are dabbling around. They are so cute, but they’re also very skittish and don’t allow me close enough for really good photos. The Lesser has these amazing golden eyes and a pointed bill.
Yes, a Christmas gift that keeps on giving!
The mention of a wren reminds me of this by Edward Lear:
There was an Old Man with a beard,
Who said, “It is just as I feared!—
Two Owls and a Hen, four Larks and a Wren,
Have all built their nests in my beard.
Oh, the joy of enjoying a well-written and witty poem! This makes me smile – thanks, you’re an artist at prompting smiles from your readers!
And now I’m recalling a poem often recited to me by an older mentor. I often shadowed him on the farm/woods – like a second parent to me. The poem was a bit different from the original Mother Goose version, but close: “Little Tommy Tittlemouse .. he lives in a little house – he catches fishes out of other men’ s ditches…’
I should also have included the drawing that came with the limerick:
http://www.lear200.com/there-was-old-man-beard-0
Let’s how that brings out another smile.
A happy story, Lisa, and wow, he’s handsome! 😉 We do need to pass the love on to the younger generation, otherwise, it’s a lost cause. Just happening to come across the three of you must have been the perfect scenario for taking Jariel’s interest to the next level. I love that he showed you guys the Oropendola nests (and they are such fantastic nests). And I assume the site was approved for the CBC? Or you haven’t heard yet. Good luck!
I suspect that ‘we’ have many more hoops and hurdles to clear to be accepted – mainly b/c a circle is quite large, so there’s the task of lighting many candles, putting materials in the locals’ hands – bird identification, etc, — and finding experienced birders to help mentor, etc… the benefits are huge, mainly to witness an area wean from destroying their environment to being sensitive to the wildlife that depends on the natural habitat… and to witness people staring at the canopy in search of favorite birds – or of new species. Jariel would make a good ‘area coach’ and I suspect he will dive into any material we can provide. I’m working on a photo ‘guide’ of every species they might see so that they have ‘something in hand’ if not a real field guide book.
Someone named Saltos is a good person to take some jumps into nature with.
There you are prompting smiles again!
I promptly jumped at the chance.
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