Bolivia
August 28 - September 12, 2004

Bolivian Andes from the jet

Without a doubt, South America is the birding continent and it does not take too much bribery to get me on a plane to head south. Chris and I recently returned from a 2 week birding and exploratory trip to Bolivia. Birding is not what one normally thinks first when Bolivia springs to mind. I tend to think of a fairly volatile government, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, cocaine and a country that lost its only stretch of seacoast to Chile in a past war. But Bolivia is much more than those somewhat misguided ideas. We discovered a country diverse in habitat. From marshes and high desert to dry forest and rich lowland forests, the landscape we saw in Bolivia was outstanding in its stark beauty and richness. We found small, inexpensive yet very comfortable hotels, good food, a relaxed attitude and a people that went out of their way to help us. All of this was in direct contrast to preconceived notions. But how were the birds? We started our journey by renting a car near the La Paz Airport and driving roughly in the direction of Lake Titicaca. As well as being the highest navigable lake in the world at an average elevation on 14,000 feet, this azure colored lake is home to the Short-winged Grebe, a bird that whose total world range is restricted to 2 lakes in the Bolivian Andes. As well as enjoying the Incan sites we had come to see, I really wanted (or was that needed?) to see this grebe. I need not have worried at all, as it was not that difficult a bird to see. Our walk along the shores of Lake Titicaca on the way to the Isle of the Sun produced over 20 individuals. I was quite happy! The high Andes are not particularly bird-rich and aside from the water birds on the lake, there was not a great variety to see. However we did see such highland species as Cinereous Harrier, Slender-billed Miner (a rather strange looking ground bird) and a wide selection of finches. Things changed once we flew to Santa Cruz, Bolivia's second largest city down near the border with Paraguay. The habitat here is comprised of dry forest with grasslands and scrub. Once we landed in this part of the country, we realized that the birding was going to be quite different from the highlands. Parrots screeched overhead and several species of hummingbirds buzzed around the abundant flowers. It really was great to be back in the tropics again - it certainly is my favorite type of birding. We made a special excursion out to a rather strange area of sand dunes in search of a bizarre crane like bird called a Seriema. Alas, despite a repeat visit (in 50 mph winds), we never did find our target bird. That will have to wait for another visit. However, our consolation was equally as good and we are not complaining. We found exquisite White Woodpeckers in an old orchard, Campo Flickers feeding on the lawn of a nearby ranch and a mixture of Black-necked Stilts, Southern Lapwings and Lesser Yellowlegs in a slow moving stream. It was a real surprise to see that northern migrants, such as the yellowlegs, had already made it down this far in South America. After a road trip of several days higher into the mountains towards Cochabamba, we finished the trip with a very healthy bird list of over 300 species. It seemed good to be to start with, but then I realized what we had missed and decided that another trip, maybe more, to Bolivia was definitely on the cards. Maybe next year!

Lake Titicaca

Isle of Sun

Chris at Lake Titicaca

Simon at Lake Titicaca

Short-winged (Titicaca) Grebe at Lake Titicaca

Boats at Lake Titicaca

Mountain Caracara

Gates of the Sun, Tihuanaco

Puna Grassland

The Gang

Amboro National Park

Moss Forest

Rufous Hornero at nest

White-fronted Woodpeckers

Red-crested Cotinga

White-tipped Plantcutter

Giant Hummingbird