Xenornis

Björn Anderson photographed this male Blue Seedeater this morning, while visiting Cerro Gaital in El Valle with Ken Allaire. Also photographed, a Black-crowned Antpitta.

The best find in August was a Grayish Saltator found on the grounds of Villa Marita in Boquete on 8/13. I was hanging out waiting for a ride when I spotted this bird (there may have been two on the grounds) - I was quite surprised, and chased it for well over an hour before I finally collected a little evidence; a still from video is attached. I believe this is a first record for Chiriquí; given the location, I suspect this bird(s) came from the Pacific slope of Costa Rica, rather than crossing the Continental Divide from Bocas. Another highlight of the day was a Pearl Kite seen quite well from the bus on the way in. On 8/9, on the grounds of the Canopy Lodge in El Valle, I found Black-throated Mango (unexpected at the elevation), Rufous-vented Ground-Cuckoo, Sepia-capped Flycatcher, and Eye-ringed Flatbill. On 8/14 I found Yellow-margined Flycatcher and Wedge-tailed Grass-Finch on private property north of La Estrella, east of Boquete. On 8/16, at Finca Lérida above Boquete, h...

Michael Gaston Harvey sent in additional information on the El Valle Blue Seedeaters: The Blue Seedeaters have been seen only at the trail up Cerro Gaital from La Mesa. From the main road through El Valle, follow signs to Chorro Macho. Pass Chorro Macho and the Canopy Adventure and continue up the road (now dirt) to La Mesa. Pass the first set of chicken farms and take a right at the fork. Follow this road for a bit until the next major fork just before another group of chicken barns. Take a right at this fork and follow it briefly until you see a small building next to a gated trail and sign for Cerro Gaital Natural Monument. Park here and walk up the trail through the gate. At the top of the grassy portion of trail, ascend a small set of stairs. Here you must decide between the right and left trails. Both have good stands of bamboo which attract the seedeaters and both probably should be covered in a search for that species. The left trail has been more productive for the seedeaters ...

Michael Gaston Harvey sent in the following report: I'm not sure if anyone still recieves these reports, but I thought some sightings from the last few months in El Valle/Altos del Maria would be of interest. I, along with Danilo Rodriguez and various other people, have found several unexpected species to be present and even common in the right habitat in this area. Barred Hawk, Black Guan, Purplish-backed Quail-Dove, White-tipped Sicklebill, Green Thorntail, Rufous-crested Coquette, White-tailed Emerald, Snowcap, Purple-throated Mountain-Gem, Orange-bellied Trogon, Tody Motmot, Blue-throated Toucanet, Red-faced Spinetail, Spotted Barbtail, White-throated Spadebill, White-thighed Swallow, Ochraceous Wren, Pale-vented Thrush, and Blue Seedeater all seem to be present fairly reliably, many of them in numbers. Other species seen on occasion include Rufous-vented Ground-Cuckoo, Black-crowned Antpitta, and Rufous-browed Tyrannulet. The Mountain-Gem, Snowcap, Spinetail, Barbtail, and Wre...

Dannie George et al saw the male Blue Seedeater at Cerro Campana. A pair of White-tailed Hawks and a few warblers were also reported. Our crew of four went to Cerro Campana on Saturday, September 5, looking for the Blue Seedeater, migrant warblers, the Wedge-tailed Grass-Finch, and the red-crowned Ant-Tanager. The latter species was on Mark Letzer's hit list. Mark was visiting from Baltimore, and has birded extensively in Panama, but had never seen the tanager. The others in the party included Maria Allen, Sue Follett, and Daniel George, the undersigned. The real objective of the trip was the Blue Seedeater, last spotted by Sandy and Wally Murdoch, and Maria Allen, Saturday afternoon, August 8, 1998, along the road beyond the INRENARE office. This was the weekend of the PAS fieldtrip to Cerro Campana. The group was also armed with information from the former Fieldeditor, Dodge Engleman, with precise instructions where to find the Blue Seedeater in the park gardens. His instructions...

On their drive up Cerro Campana, María Allen and Wally and Sandy Murdoch encountered a pair of Blue Seedeaters right by the road.