Day 15 - Boa Nova to Serra Bonita (17Feb2026)

Day 15 was mostly a repositioning day but there was always some goodies planned along the way.  Based on my eBird checklists, it looks like we followed the highlighted path below.

Chestnut-capped Blackbirds were common even at roadside rest stops.

As were Gray-breasted Martins.

Our first planned stop was a place called Mata do Cruzeiro to look for another very range restricted endemic.  It ended up being super fruitful.

Pink-legged Graveteiro!!  

It's alarming how many of these types of endemics are now restricted to a tiny sliver of land.  Go get em before they are gone!

Lineated Woodpecker

Spotted Piculet

Hooded Tanager

Black-eared Fairy

Green-headed Tanager

Tropical Parula

Chestnut-crowned Becard

Sibilant Sirystes

Sibilant Sirystes

Violet-capped Woodnymph

Moustached Wren

Tropical Parula

Planalto Slaty-Antshrike

Blue-chinned Sapphire

White-chinned Sapphire

Scalloped Antbird!!  A very bad picture of an excellent bird.

The range of this endemic is ridiculously restricted although it is in several different patches.

Long-billed Gnatwren

After a long drive we ended up at the foot of the mountain we would be heading up in 4x4s.  This spot at the foot of the mountain is known as Fazenda Paris which is pretty much the only place to hope to see a Banded Cotinga.  Banded Cotingas are super rare and beautiful.  There are probably less than 1000 left in the world.  Part of the reason they are so hard to see is that they have no known vocalizations so you have to luck into them.  Spoiler alert - this was literally the only target bird we dipped on the whole trip.

Yellow-fronted Woodpecker

Red-rumped Cacique

Green-backed Trogon

Piratic Flycatcher

Black-necked Aracari

Cream-colored Woodpecker

Golden-capped Parakeet - A Brazilian endemic, but we ended up seeing quite a few.

Black-capped Donacobius  - a species I was able to crush in the Pantanal.  

Yellow-rumped Cacique

By the time we made it to the top of the mountain where we would be staying two nights, it was dark so we were done birding.  However, there was some great Mothing if your into that thing.

I will spare you most of my moth pics, but this one was good enough to post.

Next day we would spend exploring Serra Bonita.