Xenornis

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-he...

Ken Wysocki and Steve Huggins, visiting birders from Chicago, and Darién Montañez discovered an adult European Starling in winter plumage at Fort Sherman, Colón. The bird was first seen at 2:30 P.M. on the grass just beyond the Shimmy Beach fence behind the last of the row of houses. The bird was walking near (but not with) a few Great-tailed Grackles, and was observed both on the ground and in flight for about 20 minutes. Apart from its white spots, the smaller size, shorter tail and more vertical stance gave it a completely different jizz from that of any other Panamanian bird, making it almost impossible to misidentify, and it should be easy to pick out from even the biggest blackbird flock. This is only the second report of Starling in Panama, the previous one being of another single adult seen twice at Albrook in February of 1979. This bird did not seem to be particularly tame (it flew off when approached) or starved (it did not rush to feed on the Pringles offered by the observer...

An adult Ornate Hawk-Eagle was seen on Achiote Road, Colon, between the first and second bridge. Also of note that day was a male American Kestrel on the fields past the Gatun Spillway. On sunday, october 24th, Rosabel and Karl Kaufmann and Darién Montañez went over to the Atlantic Side to add birds to our NTT world bird count list. The Snail Kites were at their usual haunt on the pond by the railroad crossing past the entrance to Ft. Davis, perched on the fenceposts next to the water. The grassy fields on the earth dam past the Gatun Spillway produced a male American Kestrel, also perched on a small post. But the bird of the day was, without a doubt, an adult Ornate Hawk-Eagle seen soaring over Achiote Road at noon. Our first guesses ranged from Gray Hawk to Hook-billed Kite (which we were desperately seeking for the count). Its broad, rounded wings and longish tail were barred black and white, and the white breast had bold black splotches. The throat was white and the sides of the ne...

Another pair of American Kestrels was reported, this time standing on a light pole on Loma La Pava, near La Locería, right in the middle of Panama City. They were observed carefully through a spotting scope and seemed to be of the isabellinus race of northern South America, as the male had no spots in its underparts. Also, the female showed only a small amount of streaking on the flanks.

The Audubon fieldtrip to Cerro Campana found a pair of American Kestrels close to the mirador by the visitor center.