Birding Factoids

1,564 species
in 67 families

9 +25 Galapagos endemics
40 + 10 speciality species
51 endangered species
including 13 endemics
3 week trip expectation -
600 + species

    Ecuador
    Hotspots
Travel AdvisoryChecklist of Ecuador BirdsConservation, Biodiversity and the EnvironmentTours and GuidesEco-LodgesSpeciality BirdsMap and General Country Information
......
Click here to see Martin Reid's marvellous Birds of Ecuador, or the Bellavista Bird Gallery.
For more Ecuador photos, and an Ecuador Trip Report, see Peter Jones' Ecuador Gallery
Tropical Birding has posted a number of excellent Ecuador Photos
as has Mindo Bird Tours, in their excellent Photo Gallery
Steve Nanz has an Ecuador Nature Gallery
Cliff Buckton has been there too - see his Ecuador  Bird Photos.
More great birds at Guiliano Gerro and Silvio Sommazzi's Ecuador Birds and Galapagos Birds sites
See also Tom Davis's Galapagos Birds 1994 and 1997 or the Birds of the Galapagos
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Ecuador Specialities
(Pause your cursor on the photo to see the species name.....)
Andean Condor - Ecuador's National Bird - Photo by Martin Reid
Photo copyright Martin Reid
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Galapagos Dove - Photo copyright Marcus Martin
Photo copyright Marcus Martin
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Smoke-colored Pewee - Photo copyright Martin Kramer
Photo copyright Martin Kramer
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Waved Albatross - Photo copyright Jeff Blincow
Photo copyright Jeff Blincow
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Gray-backed Hawk - endemic to Chile - Photo by Allen Chartier
Photo copyright Allen Chartier
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Wire-tailed Manakin - Photo copyright Ruth Traynor
Photo copyright Ruth Traynor
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Turquoise Jay - Photo by Martin Reid
Photo copyright Martin Reid
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Ecuadorian Hillstar - Photo copyright Allen Chartier
Photo copyright Allen Chartier

Black-spotted Barbet - Photo copyright Marcus Martin

Photo copyright Marcus Martin
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Plate-billed Mountain-Toucan - ENDANGERED - Photo copyright Tandayapa Lodge
Photo copyright Tandayapa Lodge
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Yellow-rumped Cacique - Photo copyright Ruth Traynor
Photo copyright Ruth Traynor
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Black-thighed Puffleg - THREATENED - Photo copyright James Ownby
Photo copyright James Ownby
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Lava Gull - endemic to the Galapagos - Photo copyright Jeff Blincow
Photo copyright Jeff Blincow
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Torrent Tyrannulet - Photo copyright Jeremy Barker
Photo copyright Jeremy Barker
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Rainbow Starfrontlet - Photo copyright Allen Chartier
Photo copyright Allen Chartier
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Flightless (Galapagos) Cormorant - Photo copyright Marcus Martin
Photo copyright Marcus Martin
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Barred Puff-bird - Photo by Allen Chartier
Photo copyright Allen Chartier
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Giant Conebill - Photo by Martin Reid
Photo copyright Martin Reid
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Coppery-chested Jacamar - ENDANGERED - Photo coyright Tropical Birding
Photo copyright Tropical Birding.
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Toucan Barbet - Photo copyright Jeff Blincow
Photo copyright Jeff Blincow
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Grey-cheeked Parakeet - ENDANGERED - Photo copyright Allen Chartier
Photo copyright Allen Chartier
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Glittering-throated Emerald - Photo copyright Neotropical Journeys
Photo copyright Neotropical Journeys

Black-cheeked Woodpecker - Photo copyright Jean Coronel

Photo copyright Jean Coronel
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Southern Lapwing - Photo copyright Centro de Estudos Ornitológicos
Photo copyright Centro de Estudos Ornitológicos
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Beutiful Jay - THREATENED - Photo copyright Tropical Birding
Photo copyright Tropical Birding
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Swallow-tailed Gull - Photo copyright John Parr
Photo copyright John Parr
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Medium Tree-Finch - ENDANGERED - Photo copyright Allen Chartier
Photo copyright Allen Chartier
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Giant Hummingbird - Photo copyright Jeremy Barker
Photo copyright Jeremy Barker

Naxca Booby - Photo copyright Marcus Martin

Photo copyright Marcus Martin
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Brown Inca - Photo copyright Allen Chartier
Photo copyright Allen Chartier
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Spangled Cotinga - Photo by Martin Reid
Photo copyright Martin Reid
    ....
    Explanation of icons....La Selva Lodge - "Quite simply, one of the world's top birding sites" ....
    ....An Ecuadorian Birding Page - by Mark Mulhollam - this site provides
      trip checklists, maps, and 11 trip reports from Ecuador.
    ....
    ....Adventure in Ecuador and the Galapagos - this site provides a brief
      description of a number of key ecological areas in Ecuador, including:
      • The Coastal Lowlands
      • Guayaquil
      • The Central Highlands
      • Cotopaxi National Park
      • Chimborazo National Park
      • The Oriente Rainforest
      • Cayamba-Coco Ecological Reserve
      • Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve
      • The Galapagos Islands
    ....
    ....Birding the Tandayapa Valley - The Tandayapa Valley is a prime
      example of an insufficiently documented, yet often birded site 1 ½ hours northwest of Quito, on the well-known Old Nono-Mindo Road.For the new birder to the Neotropics, this is an excellent place to first experience the marvel of the Andean mixed species feeding flocks. For the more experienced birder who wants to see rare and range restricted species, the valley holds huge potential for locating Chocó endemics. To date, 21 Chocó endemics have been seen in the valley, six of which should be seen almost daily. See also the excellent information contained in the Reports and Birdlists for the Tandayapa Valley
    ....
    ....Ecuador - A Little Gem - by Jeff Blincow. A month in Ecuador would
      give any birdwatcher a real flavour of the ornithology of the whole of the Neotropics. The variety of habitats is amazing if you only consider travelling in a straight line from the west coast to the eastern border with Peru.
    ....
    ....Birding Ecuador - by Lou Jost, illustrator of Common Birds of 
      Amazonian Ecuador, 1997. This site provides information on the major ecological zones and their birds. For birding purposes, Ecuador can be divided into eight faunal zones:
      • Amazonian Lowlands
      • Northwestern (Choco)
      • Lowlands Southwestern
      • (Tumbesián) Lowlands
      • Subtropics
      • Eastern Subtropics
      • Temperate
      • Paramo
      • Galapagos Islands
      See also Giant Raptors in Ecuador, also by Lou Jost.
    ....
    ....Earthwatch in the Cloud Forest, 1977 - Banding Birds in the  ....
    ....Condor Bioreserve - Preserve Profile - Composed of three adjoining
      protected areas (Cayambe-Coca Ecological Reserve, Antisana Ecological Reserve, and Cotopaxi  National Park), the 1.6 million-acre Condor Bioreserve offers sanctuary for the largest remaining population of Andean condor, the majestic national symbol of Ecuador.
    ....
    ....The Nondo-Mindo Road and Mindo - "This road and the area
      around the town of Mindo, just 84 km. northwest of Quito, is one of the best birding sites in South America. Some 430 species have been recorded, including 370 around Mindo alone. The best time to visit is July, although any time of year can be good.  Although accomodation in the town is quite basic, the trails are conveniently close and varied, making Mindo a very pleasant place to 'stay a while'.... Also, the quiet old road southwest from Quito to Santo Domingo traverses the west Andean slope, passing through some large tracts of temperate and subtropical forests which support similar birds to the Mindo area. Torrent Duck and Andean Cock-of-the-Rock occur at the bridge where this road meets the new road to Santo Domingo." - from Where to Watch Birds in South America - by Nigel Wheatley.
    ....
    ....An Update to the Ecuadorean Experience - Scott Connop
      from Birding Around the World. Published originally in Birder's Journal, Vol. 4, #2, April/95
    ....
    ....Cotopaxi National Park - The Cotopaxi volcano, located in the 
      Eastern Range of the Andes at 5,900 meters of altitude (19,500 feet) is the world's highest active volcano. Limpiopungo lake has a large reed formation where Andean Gulls nest. Here you will be able to watch ducks, coots, sandpipers, plovers, the Andean Lapwing and a wide variety of other birds.. 
    ....
    ....Podocarpus National Park - by Julian Smith - May 1998
      Ecuador's southernmost national park is a hidden gem. Large tracts of virgin forest shelter a bewildering array of climates and residents; some of the most spectacular scenery lies within easy access of Loja and Vilcabamba. Even as poaching, illegal colonizing, and especially mining take their toll on Podocarpus, the relative few tourists that visit come away knowing they've seen something special - whether it's the fairy-tale high-altitude forest or one of the flashier of the park's hundreds of bird species. "This huge park is one of the richest in the world for birds. Some 540 species have been recorded so far, but many areas have yet to be fully explored, and the potential list could be as high as 800, which could make it second only to Manu NP in Peru." from Where to Watch Birds in South America - by Nigel Wheatley.
    ....
    ....Reserva Rio Alambi - Alambi is a new Irish-run forest eco-reserve 
      just one hour, 35 miles or 55 km, from Quito, right on the main road to the port of Esmeraldas. Accomodation includes a comfortable guesthouse, dorm-style building and camping area, all situated at about 5000 feet above sea level and enjoying a pleasant year-round climate of 60-80ºF (16-25ºC). There is no malaria or yellow fever in the area. The forest, most of it primary, ranges from 4785 to 7000 feet (1450-2200m) in altitude. The Mindo-Tandayapa-Nono area is one of the most bio-diverse regions of the world, regularly taking the world record in birdcounts. The area is also famous for its orchids and bromelaids. Alambi complies with the ideals of eco-tourism - low impact tourism that brings real benefit to local communities. For example, although the reserve is Irish run, the landowners are rural Ecuadorians, all born within five miles of the reserve. There are also both research and reforestation programmes at the reserve. Both English-speakers and Spanish-speakers are present at the reserve at all times.
    ....
    ....Galapagos Birding - by Jeff Blincow - The Galapagos Islands straddle
      the equator 600 miles west of Ecuador.My strongest memories of Galapagos will undoubtedly be the effortless Frigatebirds that were always on patrol and seemingly over see everything that goes on. I have recorded 55 species of bird in a week, including most, but not all of the endemics. Perhaps I might go back some day to see the Flightless Cormorant that unfortunately only frequents the most western islands.
    ....
    ....Galapagos Islands - The native avifauna includes 57 residents, of
      which 26 (46%) are endemic and 31 are regular migrants
    ....
    ....Sangay National Park - Some 400-500 bird species
      may be present, although comprehensive inventories have not been compiled. The park contains two Endemic Bird Areas, the Central Andean páramo, home to ten bird species of restricted range, and the Eastern Andes of Ecuador and northern Peru, home to 15 restricted-range species.
    ....
    ....Birding in Ecuador - This commercial site has organized its 
      information on birding locations in Ecuador by the target bird you wish to see, but it is certainly worth perusing the entire list to identify the many key birding areas (and the birds they contain).
    ....
    ....Ecuador Birder's Resource Centre - visit this location to obtain 
      full trip reports, site guides and a huge range of logistical information for birdwatching in Ecuador.
    ....
    ....Ecuador - Directory of Wetlands of International Importance
      includes information on all Ecuador's Ramsar designated sites, including:
      • Manglares Churute
      • Machalilla 
    ....
    ....Ecuador Trip Reports: from a series of Tropical Birding tours, 
      including:
      • Southern Ecuador (with 2 days in the Tandayapa Valley), 15 - 28 February 2003. This was one of the most enjoyable and interesting tours that I have ever done. Between the spectacular and varied scenery, the camaraderie with the participants,

      • the great birds, and the flawless arrangements by our office staff, we had a superb overall trip. Jim and Hardy were great fun and always willing to tackle the next mountain and chase the next antpitta.
      • Western Ecuador: Quality, not Quantity in the Tumbesian and Choco. 21 - 29 November 2002. Most of the participants in this tour had already made numerous trips to South America and Ecuador with other companies. They were searching for species they had missed on previous tours, rather than trying to see as many species as possible. This is certainly a hard-core target species tour and should not be used as an

      • indication of a more general birding trip. 
      • Northwest Ecuador: In Search of Choco Endemics, 24 May - 6 June 2002. What can I say; doing trips like this one hardly feels like work at all. The tour was a small one with two English guests and an old birding friend. The mood for the trip was set at dinner on the 24th when Ann suggested that we just go after the hard endemics, and the easy stuff will look after itself. 
      • Northern Ecuador: 13 February - 01 March 2002. Another fun trip to Northern Ecuador with Tropical Birding. Three good friends from Norfolk joined us for a fortnight of great birds, the best lodges, and lots of good food. Even though it rained part of every day of the trip, the birding was generally excellent, with some nice highlights!
      • Ecuadorian Amazon: 16 January - 26 January 2002. This was Tropical Birding's inaugural Ecuadorian Amazon tour. 
      • Northern Ecuador: 16 November - 7 December 2001. This was Tropical Birding's most successful tour yet! Four adventurous lads left behind a dreary English November and came to a

      • birder's paradise for three unforgettable weeks.  They saw a combined 640 species, a Tropical Birding record, but its not just the numbers that will be remembered! Lots of photos!
    ....
    ....Ecuador Trip Report: Sani Lodge, Ecuador, August 2004, by 
      Mark Gurney. I spent six days at Sani Lodge ( www.sanilodge.com), birding with Domingo, one of the local guides. As I have seen a lot of Ecuador's Amazonian birds before, we concentrated on those species that are not easy to find, especially at the other lodges closer to Coca, but we still saw 222 species, including four Napo endemics. 
    ....
    ....Ecuador Travel Diary - April 1 - 21, 2002, by James Ownby. 
      Somewhere in the world there may be an easier place than Tandayapa Bird Lodge to photograph birds, but I've yet to see it.  Located at 5700 ft in the cloud forests of northwestern Ecuador, it's a cool contrast to the hot dry Pacific coast of Mexico. One of the nice things about Tandayapa is that you don't have to plod up the mountain for the birds - here they come to you. A remarkable 30 species of hummers have been recorded at the feeders.  If you don't see 20 species in a day or two, you just aren't trying.
    ....
    ....Trip Report: Northern Ecuador:   Dec 29, 2001 to Jan 13, 2002
      - Todd Pepper & Geoff Post. Our trip to Ecuador was to last 18 days.  Our goal was to see 400 species by visiting 4 areas: west slope, east slope, high Andes and Amazonia. Our final tally: far exceeding our goal, we had seen 472 species. We shared a bottle of good Chilean wine to celebrate.
      ....
    ....Trip Report: Galapagos - June 25 - July 5, 1999. By Allen & Nancy
      Chartier. This trip was offered by Field Guides, Inc. and was led by Mitch Lysinger, whom we had birded with in 1996 so we were expecting a fun, and excellent trip. We weren't disappointed, and the tameness of most of the birds, and their abundance, offset the low number of species seen on the trip.
    ...
    ....Trip Report: Ecuador and the Galapagos, 3rd October – 18th October
      2002 by Steve Bird. Great company, excellent bird sightings with everything seen well by everyone and all backed up by very good weather and fantastic scenery. A Birdseekers Tour Report.
    ....
    ....Trip Report: Northern Ecuador - November 2001. By Rob and Evelien
      Goldbach. Despite its relative small size (for a South American country) Ecuador hosts more than 1200 bird species, and this great biodiversity is due to the country’s location right at the Equator and its variation in habitats. It encompasses both high elevation areas (the Andes) as well as a vast area of Amazonia ("the Oriente"). Due to time limits we focused to the northern part of Ecuador, making visits to both the western (Tandayapa lodge) and the eastern slope (San Isidro lodge) of the Andes, combined with a stay in Amazonia (Yarina lodge, west of Coca). 
    ....
    ....Ecuador Trip Report (incl. a few sites in coastal Peru) - by Frank E.
      Rheindt. From May through August 2001, I spent 2 ½ incredible months in Ecuador, seeing many unique birds in a vast array of different habitats. I started from Lima, working my way north along a handful of Peruvian coastal sites and got to Ecuador within 10 days. From the adjacent (southwestern) part of Ecuador (El Oro), I pursued a circular counterclockwise route, birding the Loja-Zamora area and from there visiting Andean and Eastern foothill sites on my way north to the lowland rainforests along the Napo River. By the time I had reached the northern Andes and their western foothills, I ran into some serious time problems, so that there was not as much time left for the Chocó Region and the Mindo area as I would have liked to have. Indeed, the last couple of weeks I was basically just running from site to site trying to see as much as possible within such a short period. 
    ....
    ....Ecuador Trip Report - October 2001. By Ian and Ruth Traynor. 
      This is not a website about birdwatching in Ecuador! It is a personal account of two English birdwatcher's birding trip to this delightful and bird-rich South American country in October 2001. This site contains information on the itinerary, the diary (the heart of this site,with information sorted by habitat), trip lists and a wonderful section on advice.
    ....
    ....Trip Report: Ecuador and the Galapagos, November 28, 2000 to 
      January 13, 2001. By Michael Mills. This trip was fairly complex, regarding the participants and their enthusiasm for birds. I birded in Ecuador from the 28th Nov 2000 to 13th Jan 2001. Peter Osborn, a friend from England, joined me between 28 Nov and 16 Dec 2000. My family, of which my father is the only "real" birder, joined me from 6 to 28 Dec 2000. Birding plans over this period had to accommodate non-birders. 
    ....
    ....Ecuador Trip Report - January 29 - March 4, 2000 - by Greg Roberts.
      We have previously done numerous trips unguided, but opted for a guide this time. The difficulty was deciding who to go with. You pay a lot for the better known expatriate guides, but if you’ve done your homework, it may not be worth it.
    ....
    ....Ecuador 2000 and Ecuador 2001 - These pdf format trip reports  ....
    ....Trip Report: Bilsa, Northwest Ecuador - 30 September to 5 October
      1999. By Niels Poul Dreyer. I went to Bilsa Biological Reserve at the end of September 1999. The 3000 hectares large reserve is found in the Mache-Chindul mountains 20 km from the Pacific in the province of Esmeraldas. Although Bilsa is located between the Tumbesian and the Chocó Endemic Birding Areas, its habitat consists mainly of Chocó forest.
    ....
    ....Birding trip report Southern Ecuador: Aug./Sep. 1998 - by John van 
      der Woude. This extensive trip report with maps and sound files (among other things) relates the experiences of a private birding trip to Southern Ecuador, as a follow-up of our trip to Northern Ecuador in 1995. Southern Ecuador has an outstanding diversity of habitats. Cajas and Podocarpus National Parks are famous mountain destinationsThe humid to dry hills and plains in the Southwest have the Tumbesian endemics and many other species. See also John's 1995 Northern Ecuador Trip Report.
    ....
    ....Birdwatching in Ecuador & Galapagos Islands Aug.-Sep. 1992, 
      Erik Mølgaard, Niels Krabbe, Jesper Meedom & Ulrik Andersen. (NOTE: this is a downloadable report in WORD format from the Danish Ornithological Society´s website). In August-September 1992, the excursions committee of the Copenhagen department of the Danish Ornithological Society (DOF) carried out its first tour to South America. The destination was Ecuador and the Galapagos islands. The tour was designed to give the participants a thorough coverage of the Galapagos islands and a good impression of the enormous biodiversity of the South American continent. The tour was organised in 3 parts: part 1 (10 days) covering the Galapagos islands, part 2 (13 days) covering Southern Ecuador plus Quito and part 3 (14 days) covering the Amazon as well as the upper tropical zone on both slopes of the Andes. Parts 1 and 2 constituted the base package with part 3 offering an optional extension. Most participants were with us on the entire tour, lasting 5½ weeks. The number of bird species recorded was very impressive. The base tour total ended at 498 species. With an additional 393 species on the extension trip, the grand total was 891 species, an unofficial world record for an organised tour.  See also Erik Mølgaard's 1994 Ecuador Trip Report.
    ....
    ....Trip Report for Ecuador July 13-29, 2000. The trip was arranged by
      Roger L. Boyd through Mercedes Revadeneira at Neblina Forest. There was a total of 8 of us from Kansas and one from Colorado in our group. We were very pleased with our experience, accommodations, food, driver, and most of all, our guide Lelis Navarrete.  We also had a very knowledgeable local guide at Sacha: Oscar Tapuy.  This was, by far, our best trip (out of 5) ever to South America.  We highly recommend Neblina Forest to you.  We located 568 species of which 66 were only heard.  Included in this list were 76 tanagers and allies, 70 flycatcher and 48 hummingbird species. 
    ....
    ....Ecuador Trip Report - 28 January - 28 April 2000 - by Patrick O'Donnell.
      I worked as a volunteer at Bellavista for a little more than 1 month from February until March, and then visited a variety of places up until my departure date. In all, I ended up recording 718 sp., 671 of which were seen, 133 of which were lifers. 
    ....
    ....Trip Report - Ecuador,  September 1999 - by Larry Gardella. From
      September 12 to September 25, Milton Levy, Andrea Menyhert and I went on an Ecuador tour with Neblina Forest, an Ecuadorian bird tour company. Most days we began birding at dawn and continued until dusk, with a break for lunch either at a hotel or lodge or in the field.  We found most species the old fashioned way: by looking for them, including amongst the birds of mixed species flocks. In thirteen days of birding, we saw more than 465 birds and heard another 50.  We had 42 hummingbirds, 6 barbets, 32 furnarids, 63 flycatchers and 73 tanagers.
    ....
    ....Ecuador Trip Report - Mostly Podocarpus National Park - September
      25 – October 19, 1999 - by Ottavio Janni. I had about a month off in late September. – October 1999 and decided to spend it in Ecuador where I had done quite a bit of birding on previous trips. As I was on my own and the trip was a little last-minute with not much time for planning, I decided to spend most of my time in Loja where I have friends, and where I had previously helped local NGO Fundación Arcoiris with bird surveys in Podocarpus National Park.
    ....
    ....Birding in Northern Ecuador - July 21 - August 17, 1998 - by Barry
      Wright. In 1998 as part of a five-month trip to South America, Keith Turner, Neil Bostock and myself visited a few sites in northern Ecuador in search of very specific birds. Overall the trip was successful, though we did miss a few hoped for key species.
    ....
    ....Ecuador Trip Report: Big Day and Big Week in Birdland - Ecuador.
      Robert Jonsson and Charlie Vogt of Avestravel decided to undertake a Big Week in Ecuador during the first week of May 2001. The object was to see as many birds as possible over a seven day period starting in the Amazon, working our way over the Eastern and Western Cordilleras of the Andes and finishing in the western lowlands. 
    ....
    ....Birding report from Ecuador, October 2001 - by Rick Waldrop. 
      I thought that some of you might enjoy a birding report from me, since I have been mute here in Ecuador for some twelve weeks now and am just over the half-way point of my time before  returning to Tennessee in December. I have been birding in Ecuador for short periods of time (a week or less) off and on for the past 10 ten years and arrived here on July 24, 2001, having seen about 1,000 of the approximately 1,600 species that occur here, with about 600 of  those seen in Ecuador itself.
    ....
    ....Trip Report: Ecuador Trip Report - Mostly PN Podocarpus - 
      September 25 – October 19, 1999. By Ottavio Janni. I had about a month off in late September – October 1999 and decided to spend it in Ecuador where I had done quite a bit of birding on previous trips. As I was on my own and the trip was a little last-minute with not much time for planning, I decided to spend most of my time in Loja where I have friends, and where I had previously helped local NGO Fundación Arcoiris with bird surveys in Podocarpus National Park. I added a short stay at Sacha Lodge where I had not been before, and hired drivers for two free days in Quito and Guayaquil.
    ....
    ....Trip Report: Birding in Northern Ecuador - July 21 to August 17, 1998.
      By Barry Wright, Neil Bostock and Keith Turner. In 1998 as part of a five-month trip to South America, Keith Turner, Neil Bostock and myself visited a few sites in northern Ecuador in search of very specific birds. Overall the trip was successful, though we did miss a few hoped for key species. Keith and myself had visited Ecuador a few years before and this time we decided to visit sites difficult to do on a short trip due to lack of flexibility and logistics of reaching the sites. The trip was reasonably tough requiring good physical fitness and a lot of determination in the often-inhospitable conditions. 
    ...
    ....Trip Report: Peru, Ecuador, and Colombia - 6 June – 5 August 1999. 
      By Samuel Hansson with Mathias Bergström. Mathias and I had only met once before, very briefly, when we decided to make this journey together. As Mathias only had 4 weeks of vacation to spare, I decided to continue on my own after he'd gone home. South America is fantastic and the birding unrivalled! As long as you keep yourself well informed about where it's safe to go and not, and as long as you use your common sense, you should be safer in Peru, Ecuador, Colombia or any other South American country than in many European or American cities.
    ...
    ....Ecuador Trip Reports - over 40 additional Ecuador trip reports are
      available from Blake Maybank's "Birding the Americas: Trip Report and Trip Planning Repository". 

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Conservation, Biodiversity

and Environment

...
Tanager Finch - ENDANGERED - Photo copyright Tandayapa Lodge
Photo copyright Tandayapa Lodge
....Galapagos Hawk - ENDANGERED - Photo copyright Allen Chartier
Photo copyright Allen Chartier
....
Grey-breasted Mountain-Toucan - ENDANGERED - Photo copyright Martin Reid
Photo copyright Martin Reid
....
Bearded guan - ENDANGERED - Photo copyright Allan Chartier
Photo copyright Allan Chartier
....
Great Green Macaw - ENDANGERED - Photo copyright Loro Parque Fundación
Visit the Parrot conservation activities of the Loro Parque Fundación
....
Galapagos Petrel - ENDANGERED - Photo copyright Marcus Martin
Photo copyright Marcus Martin
    ....Open Letter to help preserve the Cloud Forest of The Iliniza Ecological
      Reserve, Cotopaxi Province, Ecuador - Join Michelle Kirby & Andres Hammerman in their attempts concerning a unique eco-system in 
      Ecuador. This is the sad, but common story about the destruction of an old growth forest. Because of its location and unique climate, this forest houses species unknown in any other part of the world.
    ....
    ....The Yellow-eared Conure Project, Ecuador - funded by the Loro
      Parque Fundación. A co-sponsor venture with Fonds für Bedrohte Papageien involves the protection of the critically endangered Yellow-eared Conure. This conure of stunning appearance is now only known from two sites within its previous broader geographical range, one in Ecuador and the other in Colombia. For more information, contact Yves de Soye/Loro Parque Fundación
    ....
    ....Fundación Jocotoco, Ecuador - The 1997 discovery of the Jocotoco
      Antpitta by Dr. Robert Ridgely of the Academy of Natural Sciences has sparked an important bird conservation effort in Ecuador. Over the past several decades, Ecuador has moved to protect large representative areas of its major biomes as national parks and ecological reserves protecting many of the country's 1,600 or so bird species. But some other species - the Jocotoco Antpitta, El Oro Parakeet, and Pale-headed Brush-Finch, to name a few - have fallen between the cracks. The Antpitta is now the flagship species for Fundación Jocotoco, a local organization dedicated to protecting Ecuador's most imperiled bird species and their habitats through the establishment of a system of private nature reserves. Founded in 1998, Fundación Jocotoco has made great progress acquiring critical bird habitat at four sites in southern Ecuador. It plans a network of as many as eight reserves, the management of which would be funded partially through ecotourism. Fundación Jocotoco is a model for other tropical countries and a way for donors to leave a legacy of bird protection in the world's most bird-rich areas. Funds are presently required to develop reserve management capacity and step up the purchase of additional critical parcels. For more information on how to help this project contact: Mike Parr mparr@abcbirds.org
    ....
    ....Great Green Macaw Project, Cerro Blanco, Ecuador - A program to
      conserve the Great Green Macaw in the Cerro Blanco protected forest, western Ecuador. The project is being carried out by Fundacion Pro-Bosque and will establish an education center and program for local schools, evaluate artificial nest box designs, conduct  aerial surveys to identify areas suitable for nesting macaws, monitor and protect nests, and sample macaw DNA to clarify the population status. Park guards can lead groups of 2-4 people to observe macaw nest sites between July and October (depending on accessibility of nests). Funds raised for this project will be matched by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation. To find out more, also visit the Loro Parque Fundaciónwebsite, which also funds this project, or contact Yves de Soye/Loro Parque Fundación. The other beneficiary of LPF funding is the Sozoranga Forest Project
    ....
    ....Conservation Education Program for Podocarpus National Park,
      Ecuador  - Fundacion Arcoiris is working in Podocarpus National Park, one of the most biologically interesting and valuable sites in Ecuador. The conservation organization specializes in environmental education, and is working on a major outreach campaign in the surrounding communities focusing people's attention on the interconnectedness between people and birds. The project will help both Latin American endemic species such as the globally threatened White-breasted Parakeet, the spectacular Grey-breasted Mountain Toucan, and neotropical migrants such as the Cerulean and Blackburnian Warblers which spend the northern winter in the Andean cloud forests. The project involves the printing and distribution of a cartoon book featuring the Cerulean Warbler and other neotropical migrants, to raise awareness of conservation and the need to work internationally to protect migrants.For more information on how to help this project contact: Mike Parr mparr@abcbirds.org

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Tours and Guides

See DISCLAIMER
>>>
birdingpal.com...>> A Birding Pal is not a paid guide, but someone who likes to help out of town visitors. You can become a Birding Pal today! Help someone to enjoy your local birding spots and find a pal to help you when you travel. Click here for Ecuador Birding Pals, or join to be a Birding Pal!
...
Galapagos Penguin - endemic - Photo copyright Jeff Blincow
Photo copyright Jeff Blincow
....
Red-footed Booby - Photo copyright Tom Davis
Photo copyright Tom Davis
....
White-bearded Manakin - Photo by Martin Reid
Photo copyright Martin Reid
....
Galapagos Heron - Photo copyright Allen Chartier
Photo copyright Allen Chartier
....
Booted Racket-tail - Photo copyright Peter Jones
Photo copyright Peter Jones
....
Scarlet-belllied Mountain-Tanager - Photo copyright Vaughan Ashby
Photo copyright Vaughan Ashby
...
White-vented Storm-Petrel - ENDANGERED - Photo copyright Allen Chartier
Photo copyright Allen Chartier
    **..South American Tours with Tropical Birding. Our trips are generally 
      for keen birders, both experienced and inexperienced. It is not necessary to be an expert or a super-lister to enjoy yourself. Our tours are designed for enthusiastic travellers who enjoy spending most, if not all, of their holiday time birding. Our goal is to get birders to the world's most amazing places, seeing the world's most amazing birds, in as much comfort as possible. Our trips range from shorter day-trips out of Cape Town to intensive three-week birding safaris throughout the continent and we offer both set departure and custom-made tours.
    ...
    **..Galapagos Tour with Birdseekers - October 2 - October 17, 2003. 
      Our superb tour starts with a full 10 days cruise aboard our exclusive "first class" motor yacht the "Fragata" which was built specifically to cruise the Galapagos. We will visit all the most important islands giving us the best possible opportunities to look at some of the tamest wildlife imaginable, from the 26 endemic birds species to spectacular seabird colonies, Giant Tortoises, Marine Iguanas, whales and dolphins. This will prove to be an unforgettable experience! If you’ve ever wanted to visit these magical islands then this tour will live up to all your expectations. To finish off our holiday we will spend the last five days in an exquisite cloud forest lodge in Ecuador, where you have the chance to explore the extensive trails looking for a wealth of tropical bird species, or just relaxing while hummingbirds visit the feeders outside your own private balcony.
    ...
    **..Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands with Kolibri Expeditions
      April-May 2001. Up to 34 days. Galapagos can be an extremely expensive birding destination, and most set itineraries do not offer a complete tour for birds. Kolibri Expeditions can offer a very good price for Galapagos during one week, which will virtually be a clean-up. 1997 we made a tour similar to this and we saw all the endemic birds on Galapagos. Yuturi lodge is excellent for Black-necked Red-Cotinga, Agami Heron, army ant following antbirds and Harpy Eagle, all seen in 1997.You can choose to only take part of the Galapagos-crusie if you want do to mainland Ecuador on your own. Kolibri Expeditions is based in Lima, Peru. On all trips the focus is off the beaten track to give you all possible endemics and specialties of the particular area you are in. There is usually a bias on quality of unique birds rather than overall numbers. Then again, visiting areas where the endemics are, usually gives a large final overall list.
    ....
    ****Mindo Bird Tours - Mindo Bird Tours (MBT) was hatched in Mindo,
      Ecuador, one of the world's most famous birding sites. Mindo and northwest Ecuador, remain our special area of expertise while our business has grown to include birding tours throughout Ecuador, and even elsewhere in South America. We are a company of serious professionals dedicated to providing you with the best possible tour. Our English-speaking guides have extensive experience and are enthusiastic birders as well as highly competent leaders. Our drivers are also dedicated and experienced professionals. We strive to be the best by providing you with the best. 
    ....
    **..Ecuador Birding with Neotropical Journeys - The tours and programs
      offered by Neotropical Journeys are designed to visit destinations with rich avifaunas, outstanding wildlife, wilderness and cultural significance at their seasonal best. Neotropical Journeys is actively involved in regional and local conservation projects and organizes tours aimed to raise funds for bird and nature conservation. 
    ....
    **..Ecuador - with Birdfinders Holidays. January 12 - 27, 2003 (with an
      extension to February 3) or August 3 - 18 (with an extension to August 25) South America boasts more bird species than any other continent: a third of the world's total, including some of the most colourful and spectacular birds on Earth. Some countries in South America are, however, either difficult to visit, dangerous or both! Ecuador, with its extraordinary variety of habitats, good infrastructure and friendly people, is an exception. It is only half the size of Texas, yet has a species list of about 1550, over half of the South American total. This is because of the great variety of habitats, from lowland tropical rainforest to the Paramo high up in the Andes and from the Pacific coast to the temperate sub-tropical forests. 
    ....
    **..Avestravel - Specializing in customized birding tours in Ecuador. 
      AVESTRAVEL is based in Ecuador and managed by a resident Swedish family. They specialize in customized bird and natural history tours for individuals and small groups and the emphasis is on professionality, reliability and personal attention. AVESTRAVEL's program is available throughout the year and flexible to accommodate your special needs. Whether you are a beginner or an expert birder, we at AVESTRAVEL will do our utmost to provide you with the necessary services to make your holiday a supreme birding/nature experience.
    ....
    **..New Year in Ecuador: Amazonia with Victor Emanuel Nature Tours
      (VENT) - Spending all of our time at two rich locations (Tiputini Research Station and Sacha Lodge) will enable us to relax and get to know the abundant avifauna of these regions. The sounds of the forest will be with us from the time we wake up until we go to bed. It also means that we will have the opportunity to locate and see some of the more secretive and/or rare species. What a great way to ring in the New Year! 
      • New Year in Ecuador - December 27 - January 06, 2002 (11.0 days - Limit 14) with leaders Peter English & Victor Emanuel
      VENT offers nearly 140 tours to over 100 land-based destinations each year and is the largest tour company in the world specializing in birding and natural history.
    ....
    **..Ecuador: the Andes with Victor Emanuel Nature Tours (VENT) -
      Magnificent, spectacular, majestic–such adjectives seem almost trite when applied to the Andes Mountains, one of the most beautiful regions on earth. No less incredible is the bird life therein, and the Andes harbor the richest montane avifauna anywhere. Tiny Ecuador is now the place to see these birds, and this tour is designed to do just that. Covering a remarkable cross section from the foothills to far above timberline, we will visit some of the best-preserved and most accessible areas in the entire mountain range and see a remarkable array of Andean birds. 
      • Ecuador: the Andes - September 26 - October 09, 2001 (14.0 days - Limit 14) with leaders David Wolf & Mimi Wolf
      • See also the Mindo Extension October 09 - October 14, 2001 (6 days - Limit 14) with leaders David Wolf & Mimi Wolf

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Eco-Lodges

See DISCLAIMER


Masked Booby - Tom Davis
Photo copyright Tom Davis
....
Crimson-Mantled Woodpecker - Photo by Martin Reid
Photo copyright Martin Reid

Buff-tailed Coronet - Photo copyright Peter Jones

Photo copyright Peter Jones
    Explanation of icons....La Selva Lodge, Ecuador- situated high on Lake Garzacocha, 
      deep in the Ecuadorian Amazon region, we offer you the ultimate in luxury jungle experience. Ours is a very special way to visit the Amazon rainforest, and we hope that this web page will answer many of your questions about how to visit us. "Quite simply, one of the world's top birding sites" - from Where to Watch Birds in South America - by Nigel Wheatley.
    ....
    **..Bellavista Cloud Forest Reserve - Cloudforest reserve and ecolodge
      in Ecuador, only 2 hours from Quito. The British-run Bellavista Reserve is located in the spectacular cloud forests of northwestern Ecuador, on the edge of the Choco bio-region, one of the most biodiverse areas in the world.
    ....
    **..The Tandayapa Valley Bird Lodge - Lying just 1 & 1/4 hours from 
      Quito and exactly on the Equator, the Tandayapa Valley is the most accessible area of extensive lower to mid montane cloudforest in Ecuador. The valley extends for 6 km along the old Nono-Mindo Road from 1650m to 2350m elevation and is about 70 percent forest cover with the remainder being pasture, old regrowth, and extensive reforestation projects. The lodge is a very comfortable and affordable place perfectly situated with the valley for the exploration of this habitat. The lodge is located 50 metres from the edge of the forest in a regeneration area, allowing maximum visibility of animal species in a highly accessible locality. We have created extensive, very comfortable, dry, open and flat trails around the lodge for short trips and for birding. 
    ....
    np..Los Cedros Biological Reserve - Birding in the center of tropical
      Ecuador... There can be few experiences as wildly enchanting as waking up that first morning in the cloud forest. First the low guttural moan of the howler monkey draws you out of your sleep, the jungle alarm clock! And then your ears and imagination are overwhelmed by the morning crescendo of hundreds of delightfully different and new bird calls.
      ....
    .p..Botanical Reserve and Eco-Lodge San Jorge - Stretching from the 
      High Barren Plains to the Subtropical Rainforest, San Jorge is pleased to offer their six private birding reserves for your enjoyment and exploration. Kept in their rich, natural state, all of our exclusive reserves offer the chance to fully immerse yourself in all that is Ecuador, mainly the diverse array of flora, fauna, climate regions and hundreds of beautiful species that await you. Over 750 possible bird species may be reached by way of The Magic Birding Circuit, offering the perfect chance to combine nature, culture and birding at its best.

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Endemics and Specialities

in Ecuador

El Oro Parakeet - endemic to Ecuador - ENDANGERED - Photo by Allen Chartier
Photo copyright Allen Chartier
Information on endemics and specialities is derived from Sibley & Monroe checklists and bird distribution lists in Thayer's Birder's Diary - Version 2.05, supplemented by material found in Where to Watch Birds in South America - by Nigel Wheatley. South American speciality birds, while not endemic, are those that can only be found in three or less countries of South America. Information on endangered birds is derived from the IUCN Red List, Birdlife International, and supporting data bases developed by Ian Patton, of Merlin Species Watcher.  The endemic, endangered and speciality birds may be uncommon, extremely rare vagrants, may be extirpated in the country now or may only be present in migration. However, documented sightings of each species noted below have been made in Ecuador. 
...
Endemics in Ecuador
___ Black-breasted Puffleg
___ Ecuadorian Tapaculo
___ El Oro Parakeet
___ Esmeraldas Woodstar
___ Pale-headed Brush-finch
___ Pale-mandibled Aricari
___ Saffron Siskin
___ Violet-throated Metal-tail
___ White-necked Parakeet
....
Endemics in the Galapagos Islands

___ Charles Mockingbird
___ Common Cactus-Finch
___ Flightless Cormorant
___ Galapagos Dove
___ Galapagos Flycatcher
___ Galapagos Hawk
___ Galapagos Heron
___ Galapagos Mockingbird
___ Galapagos Penguin
___ Galapagos Rail
___ Hood Mockingbird
___ Large Cactus-Finch
___ Large Ground-Finch
___ Large Tree-Finch
___ Lava Gull
___ Mangrove Finch
___ Medium Ground-Finch
___ Medium Tree-Finch
___ San Cristobal Mockingbird
___ Sharp-beaked Ground-Finch
___ Small Ground-Finch
___ Small Tree-Finch
___ Vegetarian Finch
___ Warbler Finch
___ Woodpecker Finch
........
Endangered Birds in Ecuador (including the Galapagos)
(endemics are printed in bold italic)

Breeding Birds

Non-Breeding Birds

___ Banded Ground-Cuckoo
___ Baudo Guan
___ Bearded Guan
___ Bicolored Antvireo
___ Black-breasted Puffleg
___ Blackish-headed Spinetail
___ Brown Wood-Rail
___ Charles Mockingbird
___ Chestnut-bellied Cotinga
___ Coppery-chested Jacamar
___ El Oro Parakeet
___ Esmeraldas Woodstar
___ Galapagos Cormorant
___ Galapagos Hawk
___ Galapagos Penguin
___ Galapagos Petrel
___ Giant Antpitta
___ Golden-plumed Parakeet
___ Grey-backed Hawk
___ Grey-breasted Flycatcher
___ Grey-headed Antbird
___ Henna-hooded Foliage-gleaner
___ Lava Gull
___ Little Woodstar
___ Long-wattled Umbrellabird
___ Mangrove Finch
___ Military Macaw
___ Masked Mountain-Tanager 
___ Ochraceous Attila
___ Ochre-bellied Dove
___ Orange-throated Tanager
___ Pacific Royal Flycatcher
___ Pale-headed Brush-Finch
___ Plumbeous Forest-Falcon
___ Red-faced Parrot
___ Rufous-headed Chachalaca
___ Rufous-necked 
___ Foliage-Gleaner
___ Rusty-faced Parrot
___ Saffron Finch
___ Saffron Siskin
___ Scarlet-breasted Dacnis
___ Spot-winged Parrotlet
___ Tanager Finch
___ Turquoise-throated Puffleg
___ Violet-throated Metaltail
___ Wattled Curassow
___ White-chested Swift
___ White-necked Parakeet
___ White-tailed Shrike-Tyrant
___ White-vented Storm-Petrel
___ Yellow-eared Parrot
___ Yellow-green Bush-Tanager
___ Markham's Storm-Petrel
___ Ringed Storm-Petrel
___ White-chested Swift
....
Other Speciality Birds in Ecuador
(from Where to Watch Birds in South America - by Nigel Wheatley.)

___ Andean Condor
___ Andean Cock-of-the-Rock
___ Banded Ground-Cuckoo
___ Black-billed Mountain-Toucan
___ Black-necked Red-Cotinga
___ Caranculated Caracara
___ Chestnut-bellied Hummingbird
___ Chestnut-bellied Gnateater
___ Cinereous Finch
___ Cocha Antshrike 
___ Fiery-breasted Fruiteater
___ Golden-collared Honeycreeper
___ Golden-crowned Tanager
___ Grass-green Tanager
___ Great Green Macaw
___ Grey-backed Hawk 
___ Grey-breasted
___ Mountain-Toucan
___ Imperial Snipe
___ Long-tailed Potoo
___ Long-wattled Umbrellabird
___ Masked Mountain-Tanager
___ Maranon Crescent-chest
___ Maranon Spinetail
___ Neblina Metaltail
___ Noble Snipe
___ Ocellated Tapaculo
___ Orange-breasted Fruiteater
___ Orange-crested Manakin
___ Peruvian Pigeon
___ Peruvian Thick-knee
___ Plate-billed Mountain-Toucan
___ Purple-throated Cotinga
___ Scarlet-breasted Fruiteater
___ Toucan Barbet
___ Turquoise-throated Puffleg
___ White-capped Tanager
___ White-chested Swift
___ White-eared Jacamar
___ Yellow-collared Chlorophonia
___ Zig-zag Heron
....
Other Speciality Birds in the Galapagos Islands
(from Where to Watch Birds in South America - by Nigel Wheatley.)

___ Blue-footed Boobie
___ Brown Noddie
___ Dark-rumped Petrel
___ Masked Booby
___ Nazca Booby
___ Paint-billed Crake
___ Red-billed Tropicbird
___ Red-footed Booby
___ Swallow-tailed Gull
___ Waved Albatross
___ Wedge-rumped Storm-Petrel

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Links checked November 27, 2000