YUCATAN : Felipe Carillo Puerto – Parrots, Pauraques and Puma

Day 3 / March 3 – The town of Felipe Carrillo Puerto served as our home base for two nights, while we birded in this Mayan heart of Quintana Roo. We focused on the Vigia Chico Road, starting at the edge of town and working our way through tropical, semi-deciduous forest which hosts a high diversity of species.

We began at first light and stopped often, finding plenty of activity along an 8km stretch of dirt road.  Yucatan Parrots, White-fronted Parrots and Olive-throated (Aztec) Parakeets (above) screeched from the treetops, competing with noisy Brown Jays, Green Jays and Plain Chachalacas.

We enjoyed great looks at Mangrove Vireo, Black-headed Saltator, Olivaceous Woodcreeper and Black Catbird.  A pair of Collared Aracaris caught our attention overhead, taking us away from examining a bell-shaped beehive at eye level just off the road.  We followed 5 Yucatan Woodpeckers moving quickly from tree to tree, distinguished from the closely related Golden-fronted Woodpeckers by smaller size and yellow tufts at the base of the bill.  In a second-growth clearing, a pair of Barred Antshrikes (above) circled us noisily, followed by Yellow-billed Cacique and Squirrel Cuckoo.

We enjoyed a great hummingbird show, with Cinnamon Hummingbird, Wedge-tailed Sabrewing, White-bellied Emerald, and Canivet’s Emerald building a nest (above) with complete disregard for a nearby ranch with several barking dogs.  We got fleeting looks at a Turquoise-browed Motmot and elusive White-browed Wren (similar to our Carolina).

After a hearty Mexican lunch, we ventured back onto Vigia Chico Road, focusing on kilometers 8 through 14 for the afternoon.  We got good looks at Black-headed, Collared and Gartered (Violaceous) Trogons. Debbie attempted to share her enthusiasm with some local kids on bikes by pointing out a lovely trogon, and was dismayed to catch a glimpse of one of them pulling out a slingshot and peering into the area where the bird had been perched a moment ago.  This reminded us that local people still hunt for subsistence, and cured us of pointing out any more wildlife!

Some butterflies danced around the canopy, while one Dark-spotted Polythrix (above) posed nicely.  A pocket of treetop activity featured Rose-throated Tanager, Yellow-backed Oriole, Rose-throated Becard, Northern Beardless Tyrannulet, Yellow-throated Vireo, two female Red-legged Honeycreepers, Yellow-throated Euphonia, Northern Parula and Black-and-white Warbler.

Across the track, a calling Northern Bentbill brought our attention to an extensive antswarm attracting Black-throated Shrike-Tanager, Red-crowned Ant-Tanger, Red-throated Ant-Tanager, White-bellied Wren, Spot-breasted Wren, Long-billed Gnatwren, Gray-throated Chat (below), Green-backed Sparrow, Hooded and Kentucky Warblers.  We spent a long time enjoying this wonderful tropical experience.

Sunset found us at the edge of an open field dotted with palms sporting several Black-cowled and Hooded Orioles.  A Gray Hawk flew to its nest high up in a tree, calling for its mate.  Our first Gray-crowned Yellowthroat jumped from shrub to shrub, approaching us curiously.

As light faded, the deep bark of a Mottled Owl joined the calls of a nearby Ferruginous Pygmy Owl, and we caught sight of a Yucatan Nightjar hawking insects from the dirt road.  Driving back in darkness, we encountered a Gray Fox walking towards us, then, to our amazement, a Puma sauntered alongside the road before turning silently into the forest.  We stopped the car to examine a large hairy spider in our headlights, noting that she was carrying thousands of spider babies on her back.  A Common Pauraque swooped before us as we emerged into the agricultural plots on the edge of town, ending another wonderful day in the Yucatan.