Xenornis

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...

Ken Allaire sent in the highlights of his first month in Panama: On July 4th I found a Sapayoa on the upper reaches of the Río Blanco, below Peña Blanca in Omar Torrijos N.P.. I was with a local guide named Santana. The bird called in a very appropriate spot (a lushly-vegetated spot where a wash met the river.) I recognized the call and got a brief but good look at the bird before it flew off. I tried playback, and the Sapayoa responded but did not return. I know this is an unusual locale for the species but I am confident in the i.d.. On July 5th I found a Plumbeous Hawk along La Rana trail. The bird perched several times and was seen quite well. The next day, also on La Rana, I had a mixed flock that included a Lineated Foliage-Gleaner, Spotted Barbtail, and a probable Streak-breasted Treehunter (the last bird was seen briefly and I could not confirm my initial impression.) This is a low elevation for all three species. On July 14th I found a Grassland Yellow-Finch in the grassla...

Canopy Lodge's Tino Sánchez and visiting birder Vince Parslow found a Scaled Antpitta at a large army ant swarm at the Canopy Adventure trail in El Valle. Unable to resist the temptation to see this bird, Sam Britton and Canopy Tower's Carlos Bethancourt visited the antswarm two days later, but all they saw was Rufous-vented Ground-Cuckoo and Tody Motmot.

Delicia and Darién Montañez acompannied Bill Porteous on a productive, week-long expedition to the Fortuna area. On Tuesday, July 17th, after a slow day on the Continental Divide and Río Hornito Trails we spent the later part of the afternoon at La Verrugosa Trail, where two Black-headed Nightingale-Thrushes were seen, one in response to a tape of its song and the second one as we climbed up to the cars, singing from the railing on one side of the trail. Also, we saw a female White-crowned Manakin. On the 18th, after being rained on on many different locations, we also spent the late afternoon at La Verrugosa, where we finally had a flock of 3 or 4 Ashy-throated Bush-Tanagers near (but not with) a mixed flock: olive crwons and backs, gray cheeks and throats and lighter gray vents separated by a yellow-olive chest, olive flanks. I managed to catch a glimpse of a Chiriquí Quail-Dove as it walked into the undergrowth and away from the trail. Rosabel and Karl Kaufmann joined us on Thursday...

Bill Adsett sent a report of a Scaled Antpitta seen briefly on Xenornis trail at Cerro Vistamares. I have not reported sightings for a while. Some of the following may be of interest. The last one definitely will be! While at Nusagandi on Carnival weekend, ........... reported a Rufous-vented Ground-Cuckoo sitting in a tree just below the kitchen area, moaning! By the time we got there, it had gone (of course). We (Geoff ...., Jim White and myself) also found a male American Kestrel on the last big finca past Nusagandi, and apparently it is of the isabellinus race from Colombia (like the ones on Cerro Azul). We had very few other sightings worth reporting, although we flushed a pair of Great Curassows close to the Headquarters and the male stayed for several minutes in full view in a tree. On the trip to Cana with Donal and Katie O'Brien, Maria Allen and Ida Herrera, on ...........we saw many of the good species one expects there. Its difficult to pick out what might be of interest...