The Northern White-fringed Antwren is in the Formicivora genus of Antwrens. There are 8 genera altogether so this is a big sub-family within the Antbirds Family. This particular species inhabits much of coastal forests of Colombia and Venezuela as well as some of the offshore islands like Tobago. Most Antwren sightings are fleeting and through the underbrush, but this one in Colombia posed nicely for me.
The Large-billed Antwren is one of the 17 species in the genus Herpsilochmus (Antwrens). They have a fairly large range smack dab in the center of South America in Brazil and Bolivia. We had ours in Chapada dos Guimaraes, just north of the Pantanal in Brazil. This one is the female and it was moving quickly in the twigs making my sensor go crazy hence the in-focus twigs but out of focus bird. Many of these birds have a Least Concern status per IUCN but many times that is just the range being large. Certainly they are threatened by habitat loss.
The Antvireo genus (Dysithamnus) contains 8 species and the Plain Antvireo has an additional 18 sub-species! As you can imagine with so many sub-species this bird has a huge range. This little gal was seen in the Atlantic Forest near Sao Paulo. The species is sexually dimorphic with the females more olive and refuse and the males more sooty looking.
The Russet Antshrike is found from Mexico all the way down to Peru in lowland and montane forests. Within this vast range there are 6 sub-species with varying degrees of differences in plumage. These photographs were taken on my second trip to Colombia. As with most Antshrikes they skulk in the undergrowth and you need to be quick if you want a pic. Depending on the authority, this genus (Thamnistes) has either one or two species in it with the Rufescent Antshrike sometimes being split from the Russet in Peru.
The Black-backed Antshrike is a monotypic species meaning there are currently no sub-species identified. It is part of the genus Thamnophilus which is comprised of 30 species of Antshrike. It ranges on the Caribbean slope of Colombia to Venezuela. We saw only one on my first trip to Colombia in the Santa Marta mountain range.
The Uniform Antshrike has a name completely based on the male plumage which is fairly uniform (one-color). The female, on the other hand, has variations of color on the face, back and breast. Both of these birds were photographed on my latest trip to Brazil. The first picture is a male with a dark gray plumage all over. The second is the female with a gray face, dark brown back and light brown breast. I was lucky to get any photos really as they were super skulky. This species is part of the large 30 species genus Thamnophilus, but also part of a smaller subset of three sister species within that group. It has a fairly large range across the Pacific and Eastern slopes of the Andes in Colombia, Ecuador and Peru.
The Variable Antshrike is super interesting because as its name implies, it has such variable plumage between the male and female (sexual dimorphism) but also within all the sub-species that can be found across much of South America. So this is one I was relying on our guide to help with ID. My only sighting/picture was in the Atlantic Forest of Sao Paulo but we did hear them again later on the trip. I hope to improve on pics soon, and perhaps by then they will split this species into birds with names that help to identify them based on plumage differences.
This Brazilian endemic was created as a split of 6 species from the Slaty Antshrike. Although it is endemic to Brazil, it does cover a very large area within Brazil and consequently enjoys a IUCN status of Least Concern. We saw several on my trip through the Pantanal. The first couple pics are the male and the last is the female.
Like many of the antshrikes in the genus Thamnophilus, they are heavily sexually dimorphic with the males being mostly black-and-white and the females chestnut-and-black-and-white. We saw both the male and female on my last trip to Colombia but I only captured the female and with a stick in her face so I am eagerly awaiting another opportunity. They are only found in Colombia and Venezuela but have a pretty wide range.
Rufous-winged Antshrikes are another one of the 30 antshrikes that make up the genus Thamnophilus. These ones are generally uncommon but reliable in some areas. They do cover a wide range across southeast South America so they are listed as Least Concern on the IUCN but as with many species, they are believed to be on the decline. We had this one in Chapada dos Guimaraes in Brazil.
The Barred Antshrike is probably one of the most common species of the genus Thamnophilus which includes 30 antshrikes. They are found across a wide area in Central and South America. I have seen them in Colombia and Brazil. The first few photos are from Brazil in the Pantanal. The last one is from my first trip to Colombia.
The Great Antshrike has a massive range covering much of Central and South America. That being said I have only seen a couple of them and my photos leave more to be desired. This truly is a great Antshrike, being huge and cool looking. They are sexually dimorphic with the males being black-and-white and females rufous-and-white. This one was photographed at Pousada Aguape in the southern Pantanal.
We only had one day of birding near Sao Paulo before we flew out to the Pantanal but we did get a nice taste of the Atlantic forest of Brazil. This Spot-backed Antshrike is one of the inhabitants of that amazing place. It used to have a IUCN status of Near Threatened but has been moved to Least Concern, probably owning to its relatively large range even though population estimates are unknown. It is the only member of its genus.
I was super chuffed to see this rare Parakeet in the Psittacara genus this past year in the Dominican Republic. There is estimated to only be 1500 to 7000 individuals left of this parakeet which is listed as Vulnerable on the ICUN list. I missed the Hispaniolan Parrot or Amazon which actually has more individuals left, so I will have to go back at some point.
This is probably the most widespread of all the Psittacara Parakeets and also the only one that is seen in the Pantanal in Brazil which is where we saw these. ID in places like Florida can be challenging because they seem to have 3-4 of the species in this genus which all look similar. I probably saw them in Florida too, but it is difficult to separate them from the Mitred Parakeets not to mention the Red-masked.
The Red-masked Parakeet is normally found in Ecuador or Peru but there are feral populations established from escaped or released birds in various cities around the world including Miami in Florida which is where I saw them. This species can also hybridize with Mitred Parakeets which can make ID tricky, but I found some that have very full and clean looking red masks which means they are most likely Red-masked.
Here is a species I have only seen as a feral population in Florida, and to be honest it can be difficult to know for sure if they are hybrids with some of the other red-faced conures like the White-eyed, or Red-masked Parakeets which are also found in Florida. No one had attempted to correct my eBird checklist after all these years so I am going with Mitred. The reason I went with Mitred was that the red on the forehead is limited and there are flecks of red randomly around its head including over the ear.
There is not a ton of information on this scarce and disjunct Parakeet of Colombia and Venezuela. They are listed as Near Threatened by the IUCN. We only saw a brief fly-by on my second trip to Colombia. I suppose I should be happy with getting any shot at all, but I certainly would like to meet these guys again.
Red-shouldered Macaw is the smallest of the mini-macaws with a range across north and eastern South America. We only encountered them once on my first trip to Brazil in the Pantanal and it was just as the sun was setting so the light was not ideal. These are about the size of many Parrots and really the only difference between a macaw and a parrot is the bare facial skin around the eye of a macaw.
This Colombian endemic Parrot was thought to be extinct until 1999 when a group of researchers found a flock. It's currently listed a Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List. Its precipitous downfall was mainly attributed to habitat loss but also cutting down of wax palms for use in Palm Sunday celebrations. I normally don't like to judge people for their beliefs, but this is probably one of the most dumb reasons for killing off a species that I had ever heard. Giant wax palms are cut down just so the fronds can be waived around for religious processions and then just tossed aside. These wax palms are a cornerstone species providing food and shelter for an abundance of species. Conservation efforts have been started to save habitat and also to stop the use of wax palms for Palm Sunday and this species is now on the rebound.
All my photos were from a great distance but I was able to get some half decent shots.
Golden-plumed Parakeets are in a monotypic genus (Leptosittaca) and inhabit high elevation Andean forests of Colombia, Ecuador and Peru. They tend to hang out in areas with wax palms and apparently podocarpus trees but we saw them in habitat that didn't fit either of these so go figure. I only saw these once in my second trip to Colombia.
This gorgeous large Macaw is second only to the Hyacinth in total length. At first glance it looks similar to the Scarlet Macaw but that species has a yellow upper wing covert while this one has a green one. The Red-and-green Macaw has a large range over much of the northern half of South America but has been impacted by the illegal pet trade. We saw ours in the southern extent of its range in the northern Pantanal near Chapada dos Guimaraes. The setting was amazing because they were flying around a huge gorge in front of an amazing waterfall. Unfortunately I was not fast enough to get them photographed with the waterfall in the background.
Here is one of the Macaws I have not seen in its natural range yet, which is northern South America. However there is a feral population in Florida which I have seen and where this photograph was taken. The latin name and the nickname (Severe Macaw) is mainly due to their gregarious disposition making them difficult to tame and very noisy. Perhaps that is why they ended up being released from someone's aviary in Florida.
Even though the Hyacinth Macaw was the showstopper at our Pousada (hotel) in the southern Pantanal during my first trip to Brazil, the Blue-and-yellow Macaw was a close second. We had a pair of them nesting in a broken palm smack dab in the middle of the Hotel property. This species is another large Macaw and has a wide range across South America including some feral populations in Puerto Rico and Florida.
The Yellow-collared Macaw is one of the "mini-macaws" and is found primarily in the Pantanal region of South America, mostly in Brazil where I saw these. There are only 3 species of min-macaws in the genus Primolius.
