Photos with this report (click to enlarge) | |||
 Harpy Eagle |
 Harpy Eagle |
 Harpy Eagle |
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 Harpy Eagle |
 Rufous Potoo |
 Peruvian Antpitta |
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With rumors going around that Harpy Eagles were nesting at
I have been living in Ecuador for over a year now and this was my first real chance at seeing these legendary, giant raptors. Typically associated with deep jungle and occupying huge home ranges (20 sq km +), unless there is a nest 'staked-out', they can be a real challenge to see. While there have been well-publicised, accessible nests in both Brazil and Venezuela in recent years, in Ecuador Harpies are still very much a big deal. Speaking to indigenous bird guides who have lived and guided in the Amazon for most of their lives, most of them spoke of only a handful of sightings in their lifetime (and many of these frustratingly brief or distant). We simply had to try and see them. We picked the only weekend that we could all do it and began planning in the hope that the rumors were true. At that most opportune of moments Michael Sauer (one of the people who runs Gareno), rang our office with the unforgettable words 'do you know we have a pair of Harpy Eagles down here at the moment'! He followed this well with the news that the adults were showing exceptionally close right now. The trap was set and we were in.
We headed down there from Quito in a van, hoping to get some daylight birding in on arrival, however some unforeseen roadworks cost us a delay of over two and a half hours and led to a night arrival. We retreated to bed and agreed to head off early, straight to the nest. However, the 3-4 km trail to the Harpy Eagle nest runs through superb terra firme forest that has plenty of avian distractions along the way, not least an army antswarm complete with an array of antbirds in attendance including some of the 'professional' ant followers like the awesome White-plumed Antbirds, vying for position in the swarm with Sooty Antbirds and Bicolored Antbirds, in company with Scale-backed Antbird, Black-faced Antbird, and even a Reddish-winged Bare-eye put in an appearance. Even this classic Amazonian experience was hard to remain focused on, as in the midst of the action a Pavonine Quetzal called tantalisingly close enough to drag us away from the action, giving us great views that would have ordinarily made this a red-letter day at some of the other more well-visited Amazonian lodges in Ecuador. Although at Gareno this superb and normally scarce Trogoniform is strangely abundant. Other interesting birds along the trail included great views of the attractive Yellow-browed Antbird and an Undulated Antshrike was coaxed in nice and close. Worried that the action was going to leave us with precious little time at the main attraction - the Harpy Eagle nest - Steve and I pressed on with our local guide Pedro (in hindsight a slight mistake as we missed a showy Ash-throated Gnateater along the way!) On arrival Pedro gestured towards a very close tree and peering through the foliage we saw a massive bundle of sticks that made up the Harpy nest, but no sign of any Eagle!!! Having taken all morning to get there with all the action on the trail, we were a little worried to say the least that we were in for a long, nail-biting wait. We asked him what stage the birds were at and he replied that he believed they were currently incubating. (This indicates these Harpy Eagles should be 'available' for some time yet as the birds spend around 52 days incubating, the chick fledges after a further 6 months or so, and even then the adults continue to feed them in the vicinity of the nest for a further year). Thoughts of hours waiting for an adult to emerge were soon put to bed however, when a giant crested head suddenly appeared above the rim of the nest and almost immediately this huge raptor flew up to some higher well-exposed branches at which point Steve and I exploded into a stream of expletives at the sight of this enormous and extremely impressive raptor right there in front of us just meters away, completely unalarmed by our presence (if anyone there was intimidated, it was not the Harpy Eagle!) Pedro simply laughed knowingly at our reactions, seeming to completely understand our thoughts, as even an old jungle pro like him was still clearly getting a kick out of seeing one of the true kings of the Amazonian jungle. This is one of the most powerful birds of prey in the World weighing around 9kg, it has an enormous 7 foot wingspan and possesses deadly talons that are as big as the claws on a Grizzly Bear! We watched the bird for well over an hour perched brazenly in the open at close range, with Nick and Jose both agreeing these were the best views they had ever had of Harpy Eagles (and both had seen them at other nests previously in Brazil and Venezuela, so this was high praise indeed). Quite frankly the range at which this adult was seen and the unhindered views were exceptional and the best that could ever be hoped for. It was a really, really memorable experience for everyone, including the guys who had seen them previously. We then headed back to Gareno Lodge for some great and well-earned food, and talk of our other 'target bird' for our weekend 'twitch' to Gareno.
After a good lunch, complete with a typically brilliant Ecuadorian soup, we headed towards an indistinct forest trail close to the lodge itself for the other main bird. As the trail abruptly ended and merged into the forest our guide motioned towards the greenery ahead of us and there sat completely in the open at a nice height for viewing was one very obvious Rufous Potoo, another of Gareno's specialty birds that is extremely difficult/impossible at some of the other Amazonian lodges in Ecuador. As we reeled off a bunch of photos and video, we watched as the bird swayed slowly back and forth to further it's impressive impersonation of a hanging, dead leaf, possibly as a nervous reaction to our initial appearance at its regular day roost.
A bunch of antbirds, including the incredible White-plumed attending a frantic feeding frenzy at an antswarm, an adult Harpy Eagle perched brazenly in the open by its huge nest, a Rufous Potoo swaying in broad daylight and a Pavonine Quetzal thrown in for good measure. This was truly one of those unforgettable days that only the Amazon can provide. We retired to the lodge elated, although we could not resist looking for a few owls, and promptly saw Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl, Tropical Screech-Owl and the impressive Spectacled Owl with little effort and all within easy reach of the lodge, before we relaxed with a few beers and a few toasts to one of our best days birding ever! The next morning we needed to head back to Quito early, (sadly as with a little more time we could have searched for some other Gareno specialties like the extremely rare Fiery Topaz or Nocturnal Currassow), leaving little time for birding although we picked up some widespread, interesting Amazon birds like Rufous-capped Antthrush, White-eyed Tody-Tyrant, Double-banded Pygmy-Tyrant, White-eared & Brown Jacamars and White-necked Puffbird, along with the rarely illustrated pale, juvenile form of the scarcely seen Bicolored Hawk. All in all, a great 24 hours birding, and a highly successful twitch for one of the greatest of all raptors, and arguably one of the best Amazonian birds period.
It begs the question has there ever been a better time to visit Ecuador? What with a bunch of Antpittas being tame and easy to see at Paz de Aves near Tandayapa (all of them rare Choco specialties including Giant, Moustached & Yellow-breasted Antpittas - see trip report by Sam Woodsor Mark Gurney's recent trip report), Peruvian Antpittas being more regularly seen and available than ever before at San Isidro in the east (4-5 sightings in the last few months of this rare species that was formerly considered 'virtually unknown in life' when the Ecuador field guide was published), Harpy Eagles nesting and easy to see at Gareno along with an 'almost guaranteed' day roosting Rufous Potoo, while Waved Albatrosses are now due to begin nesting on the Galapagos, it would seem there is no better time to visit this small, but incredible country for birds!
If anyone wishes to visit Gareno Lodge please e-mail Michael Sauer or Roland Van Lede, who can arrange bookings there including transfers from Tena (the nearest large town to the lodge). Alternatively if you need to arrange a visit there as part of a longer trip in Ecuador visiting other areas as well, please contact Tropical Birding, (a Quito based international bird tour company), who can arrange all aspects of your trip (including guides, drivers and bookings for all areas in Ecuador).
SAM WOODS, UK (now based in Quito, Ecuador)