Barred Parakeets in Santa Fe

The highlight of the Audubon Panama fieldtrip to Santa Fe, attended this year by Rosabel and Karl Kaufmann, Vivian Díaz, Olmedo Miró and Darién Montañez, was repeated encounters with flocks of Barred Parakeets, approximately 25 individuals each time. The first sighting was on Saturday, July 17 at about noon, as we began walking the 3 Cascadas Trail. The first section of trail now passes through a grove of young melastome trees that were all loaded with ripe berries and parakeets. After a few seconds they grew nervous and flew into a taller tree, and then flew off into the distance. That afternoon we ran into more (perhaps the same flock), again on berried melastomes on the road to the left past the Alto de Piedra school. On Sunday midmorning the parakeets were again at the beginning of 3 Cascadas Trail.

Other notable birds seen included a few Crimson-collared Tanagers, a male Snowcap harassing a Double-toothed Kite, male and female Green Thorntails at blooming Inga trees, Black-headed Antthrush (voice only), and a pair of American Kestrels that by date should be of the South American denomination.

On our way back we stopped at the El Chirú cemetery to try for Grassland Yellow-Finch with no success. We did hear a very vocal Gray-breasted Crake, though, which may be a first Coclé record.