Lady of the Jungle
Lady of the Jungle
3-Day
Expedition to
La Chunga, Darien, Panama
December 12 - 14, 2004
Harpy Eagle and Happy Birders Watching the Harpy!
After our week at the very comfortable Canopy Tower in the Canal Zone, two of us embarked on a 3-day foray into the rainforests of Darien Province. Flying down to Sambu was like going back in time; pouring rain on the jungle airstrip and having to shelter under the plane's wing with luggage and freight being off-loaded by wheelbarrow. After birding around the airstrip and watching the Black-capped Donacobius in the nearby marshes, we were soon on our way down river in a snazzy motorized dugout. There are no roads here and all transportation is either by river or plane. We spent 2 nights in the very pleasant and friendly Embara village of La Chunga sleeping comfortably under mosquito nets in native huts. Despite the rain, we were able to do some birding around the village and found our first Black Oropendolas of the trip - a Darien specialty. A very early start the next morning was in order for our trek through the rainforest to the site of a Harpy Eagle nest. Thanks to our local guides from La Chunga, we had great views of a well-grown (6 month) "chick" that was clutching the leg of its previous dinner - a Three-toed Sloth. This and stunning views of Great Jacamars made up for the atrociously muddy conditions, heat and general discomfort of constant sweating. In all, we hiked for 10 hours and ended up completely covered in mud and totally wet - but for great views of a Harpy eagle, one has to suffer just a little bit! Our tap shower in the village was certainly welcome that evening. Other birds seen on our forest trek included Black Antbird, Black-tailed Flycatcher, Yellow-backed Tanager, Long-tailed Woodcreeper and a rowdy group of very noisy Red-throated Caracaras that did not approve of us being in their forest. Our final morning was spent heading back up river to Sambu and enjoying the airport "waiting room" - a couple of benches under a mango tree before we took the Twin Otter back to Panama City!
Simon and Lenare Thompson
Great Jacamar & Heliconia
| Little Tinamou (H) | Checker-throated Antwren |
| Neotropic Cormorant | White-flanked Antwren |
| Tricolored Heron | Dot-winged Antwren |
| Little Blue Heron | Dusky Antbird |
| Snowy Egret | Jet Antbird (H) |
| Great Blue Heron | Chestnut-backed Antbird |
| Great Egret | Spotted Antbird |
| Cattle Egret | Purple-throated Fruitcrow |
| Yellow-crowned Night-Heron | Red-capped Manakin |
| White Ibis | Golden-headed Manakin |
| Black Vulture | Golden-collared Manakin |
| Turkey Vulture | Black-headed Tody-Flycatcher |
| King Vulture | Paltry Tyrannulet (H) |
| Osprey | Yellow-crowned Tyrannulet |
| Mangrove Black-Hawk | Forest Elaenia |
| Gray Hawk | Southern Bentbill (H) |
| Roadside Hawk | Olivaceous Flatbill |
| Short-tailed Hawk | Yellow-margined Flycatcher |
| Harpy Eagle | Black-tailed Flycatcher |
| Black Hawk-Eagle (H) | Eastern Wood-Pewee (H) |
| Ornate Hawk-Eagle (H) | Acadian Flycatcher (H) |
| Red-throated Caracara | Long-tailed Tyrant |
| Barred Forest-Falcon (H) | Bright-rumped Attila |
| Collared Forest-Falcon (H) | Dusky-capped Flycatcher |
| Bat Falcon | Panama Flycatcher |
| Purple Gallinule | Great Crested Flycatcher |
| Wattled Jacana | Tropical Kingbird |
| Spotted Sandpiper | Boat-billed Flycatcher |
| Least Sandpiper | Streaked Flycatcher |
| Southern Lapwing | Rusty-margined Flycatcher |
| Rock Pigeon (I) | Social Flycatcher |
| Pale-vented Pigeon | Gray-capped Flycatcher |
| Ruddy Ground-Dove | Lesser Kiskadee |
| Blue Ground-Dove | Great Kiskadee |
| White-tipped Dove | Thrush-like Schiffornis (H) |
| Orange-chinned Parakeet | Cinnamon Becard |
| Brown-hooded Parrot | White-winged Becard |
| Blue-headed Parrot | Masked Tityra |
| Red-lored Parrot | Black-chested Jay (H) |
| Yellow-billed Cuckoo | Lesser Greenlet |
| Squirrel Cuckoo | Black-capped Donacobius |
| Greater Ani | Black-bellied Wren |
| Smooth-billed Ani | Plain Wren (H) |
| Common Pauraque (H) | Buff-breasted Wren |
| White-collared Swift | House Wren |
| Band-rumped Swift | Scaly-breasted Wren (H) |
| Short-tailed Swift | Tawny-faced Gnatwren |
| Lesser Swallow-tailed Swift | Long-billed Gnatwren |
| Band-tailed Barbthroat | Tropical Gnatcatcher (H) |
| Long-tailed Hermit | Mangrove Swallow |
| Stripe-throated (Little) Hermit | Gray-breasted Martin |
| Black-throated Mango | Southern Rough-winged Swallow |
| White-necked Jacobin | Barn Swallow |
| Violet-bellied Hummingbird | Tennessee Warbler |
| Sapphire-throated Hummingbird | Yellow Warbler |
| Blue-chested Hummingbird | Chestnut-sided Warbler |
| Rufous-tailed Hummingbird | Bay-breasted Warbler |
| White-vented Plumeleteer | Northern Waterthrush |
| Slaty-tailed Trogom (H) | Bananaquit |
| Black-tailed Trogon (H) | Yellow-backed Tanager |
| White-tailed Trogon | Grey-headed Tanager |
| Ringed Kingfisher | White-shouldered Tanager |
| Amazon Kingfisher | Summer Tanager |
| Blue-crowned Motmot (H) | Crimson-backed Tanager |
| Great Jacamar | Flame-rumped Tanager |
| White-necked Puffbird | Blue-gray Tanager |
| Pied Puffbird | Palm Tanager |
| White-whiskered Puffbird | Thick-billed Euphonia |
| Collared Aracari | Fulvous-vented Euphonia |
| Keel-billed Toucan | Plain-colored Tanager |
| Black-cheeked Woodpecker | Golden-hooded Tanager |
| Red-crowned Woodpecker | Purple Honeycreeper |
| Red-rumped Woodpecker | Blue-black Grassquit (H) |
| Lineated Woodpecker | Variable Seedeater |
| Plain-brown Woodcreeper | Buff-throated Saltator |
| Long-tailed Woodcreeper | Crested Oropendola |
| Olivaceous Woodcreeper | Black Oropendola |
| Cocoa Woodcreeper | Yellow-rumped Cacique |
| Plain Xenops | Yellow-backed Oriole |
| Fasciated Antshrike (H) | Orange-crowned Oriole |
| Great Antshrike | Baltimore Oriole |
| Black Antshrike | Red-breasted Blackbird |
| Western Slaty-Antshrike | Giant Cowbird |
Darien Jungle
Flooded Forrest
Expedition Start
La Chunga
The Trail Ahead