This is an old report, but I want to put it on just in case it can be useful to someone.
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Shanklands Rainforest Resort
January 11-14, 2005
My goal on this trip was to get 20 lifers including a Black Nunbird. I went with my family and two other families; my brother was the only other birder that came.
Tuesday, 11th January:
We left Georgetown by car and arrived at Parika in an hour and a half. A boat from Shanklands was there waiting for us. We loaded our luggage and set off down the Essequibo River. Along the way I saw a group of Greater Ani on the edge of an island. When we arrived at Shanklands an hour later, a truck was waiting to take us up the steep hill that Shanklands is situated on. I chose to walk and I saw a few Silver-beaked Tanagers on the way up. When we reached the top, I followed a call to a nearby tree where I saw my first lifer: a Piratic Flycatcher. These proved to be quite common and were nesting in a small tree near the dining area. There was also a pair of active Bat Falcons nesting in a large tree by the road. Just before lunch, I found a Buff-throated Saltator singing in a nearby tree.
After lunch a short walk yielded many common birds: Variable Seedeater, Common Tody-Flycatcher, Yellow Warbler, Yellow-bellied Elaenia, Yellow-rumped Cacique, Rusty-margined Flycatcher, Lesser Kiskadee, House Wren, Orange-winged Parrot, Roadside Hawk, Crested Oropendola, Tropical Kingbird, White-tipped Dove, and Yellow-headed Caracara.
It then started to rain, so I headed back to our lodging. As I stood on the porch, about six Black Caracaras flew by and landed in a tree near the river. As my brother and I were watching them, we noticed a large bird in a nearby tree. I turned out to be a Red-billed Toucan; a really neat bird that I had only seen once before. I found it to be a common bird for the few days I was there. It would often sit in the tree tops; tossing its head and making its characteristic yelping sound. Just then, I noticed some birds soaring off to my right. I quickly looked over and saw two beautiful Swallow-tailed Kites just before they flew away. As the rain was lessening, my brother and I decided to investigate a Trogon that we had seen fly past earlier. We went to the area where we had seen it, and soon we found a male and female White-tailed Trogon. They sat still for a long time, and my whole family got to enjoy these wonderful birds with their long tails, yellow bellies and iridescent blue backs. These were the only birds that I tried to photograph, but none of the pictures turned out good because of the overcast skies.
As dusk was approaching, I was wandering around on the lawns looking for birds, when I noticed a big bird sitting in a dead tree at the edge of the forest. My initial thought was that it was a Red-throated Caracara, but, looking carefully, I decided that it was a Guan. At the time I was not sure what kind of Guan it was, but I later found out that it was a Spix’s Guan. I watched it preening for a few minutes and then it flew over my head and landed in a fruit tree that was next to me. Another one soon joined it and they clambered around in the tree eating the fruit.
Wednesday 12th January:
I awoke at 5 AM and got ready to meet the guide at 6. I went out before 6 to see the large flocks of Orange-winged Parrots flying around. As I was watching them, a raptor flew over and landed in a large tree. It was still too dark to identify it, but I decided it must be some kind of kite. My guide (Felix) then arrived, toting Steve Hilty’s “Birds of Venezuela”. I told him about the kite and he quickly ID’d it as a Plumbeous Kite. I saw it frequently after that, and it appeared to be making a nest in the same tree as the Bat Falcon.
Felix took me and my brother around showing us some more of the common birds. My brother told me that a large bird was flying over. I identified it as a Cocoi Heron; the first time Felix had seen one. As breakfast time approached, I saw two birds that I had only seen once before: a small flock of Golden-winged Parakeets, and a pair of Cayenne Jays.
After a delicious breakfast, we all boarded the boat and headed further down the river to visit a waterfall. After stopping at a few historical attractions, we arrived at the falls. There was a trail leading in to the falls from the river, and on the way in, I saw a Lineated Woodpecker and a possible Cream-colored Woodpecker. We finished at the falls and headed back to the boat. A small bird that flew over the trail and landed in a distant tree turned out to be a Blue Dacnis.
When we arrived back at the resort, I spotted a female Amazon Kingfisher perched on a fallen tree in the river. We took a walk into the forest and quickly found a few lifers. A pair of Black Nunbirds, though slightly distant, was a welcome sight. Following a call, my brother and I found a beautiful Black-tailed Trogon perched high in a tree. We went back to the house to see if anyone else wanted to see the birds. My Dad and sister came along hoping to see them. When we got back, neither of the birds were there, but another Trogon perched above turned out to be a Violaceous Trogon. Just then I saw the guide motioning for us to come. We hurried over and he showed us a Black Nunbird, this one much closer. I then saw a woodpecker on a nearby tree, which, after close inspection, we identified as a Yellow-throated Woodpecker.
The guide offered to take us deeper into the forest, and we agreed. As we walked, he showed us some of the more interesting kinds of trees that were along the path. We took a small side trail to examine a tree with very large buttresses. As we were standing, admiring the tree, some strange calls alerted us to a very fascinating bird. A male White-crowned Manakin hopped onto a small tree nearby, jumped around for a few seconds and flew away. We proceeded on our walk without seeing many birds. After about 15 minutes of no birds, Felix told us that he heard some Golden-headed Manakins calling. We searched the trees and finally spotted two stunning male Golden-headed Manakins sitting together on a branch.
When we got out of the forest, the guide offered to show me a pond which holds a mother Spectacled Caiman and her babies. I accompanied him and I counted five babies either swimming or resting on the logs. Felix was making sounds to attract the mother, and finally her two eyes and nose stuck up out of the water and remained incredibly motionless. Felix told me that it was at this pond that he regularly sees a Sunbittern. I made a mental note to check the pond every time I passed. A short time later, the guide and I were standing on the lawn, talking about the birds and admiring a Plumbeous Kite perched up in a high tree, when a gorgeous bird landed in a tree close at hand. As soon as I saw it I exclaimed “Tityra”, although I did not know what kind it was. It quickly took off and landed in a large tree a short distance away. We hurried over, and found an incredibly beautiful, male Black-tailed Tityra sitting high in the tree.
Thursday 13th January:
I awoke to the sound of many Little Chachalacas calling from the forest. I met up with Felix, who decided to take us on the trail to the nearby village. Just as we left, I spotted my only lifer of the morning; a male Scaled Pigeon. We passed through the village and took a shortcut through the woods to get back in time for breakfast. Just as we got back onto the main trail, Felix told us that he heard a Black-headed Parrot calling. My brother quickly spotted it sitting on a distant dead tree. This was only the second time that I ever saw one.
After breakfast, Felix said that he would take us on a trip to an area nearby that has different soil and, therefore, different vegetation. My brother and I piled into a very old Land Rover and we set off. We passed through the village, and entered an area of scrub and scattered trees. My brother pointed out a bird on a distant treetop. When we got closer, I found it to be a Swallow-wing. We found quite a few more in the surrounding trees, and we watched them doing their unique aerial displays. We then entered into an area of sand-mud soil with many bumps and holes in the road. We were going along fine until we got to a wet spot were the Land Rover could not pass. Our guide had wanted to take us much further in where the soil changed to sand, and there was different vegetation. We set off on foot, avoiding the quick sand and mud puddles. We were hearing many Screaming Pihas calling on both sides of the trail, but, sadly, we did not see any. After a long, extremely hot walk, we reached our destination, but, by this time, it was almost time to go back. We found a bird in a nearby tree which we identified as a Flame-crested Tanager. The trees were now over the trail so it was much cooler. Slightly disappointed, we headed back to the Land Rover. I’m sure that if we would have had a little more time we would have seen quite a few birds, but the Flame-crested Tanager was still great. On the way back, Felix pointed out some jaguar tracks on the trail.
Friday 14th January:
I awoke, determined to find three more lifers before we left at 9 AM. Disregarding the rain, I went with my brother to the pond. As we approached, we saw a large bird disappear in the trees at the edge of the pond. I told my brother to look from one angle and I would look from another. He soon called me over and showed me very welcome sight: a Sunbittern perched in a tree above the water, calling softly. We watched it for a while, but soon headed out to try to find two more lifers.
We entered the forest and were following different calls around for about an hour without seeing much. We were standing still on the trail when I heard a small sound nearby. I glanced in the direction of the sound and I saw a very rufous hermit hovering nearby. From where I was standing, it was partially hidden, but my brother had a better view of it and he saw a black breast band which made it a Reddish Hermit. It was nearly time for breakfast, but I decided to stay in the forest for as long as I could. A large bird landed high in a tree a ways down the trail. I went to investigate, and, to my delight, I found a Green Oropendola high up in the treetops; my 20th lifer.
A list of the birds I saw:
69
Little Chachalaca (Ortalis motmot)
Spix's Guan (Penelope jacquacu) *Lifer*
Yellow-throated Woodpecker (Piculus flavigula) *Lifer*
Crimson-crested Woodpecker (Campephilus melanoleucos)
Black-necked Aracari (Pteroglossus aracari)
Red-billed Toucan (Ramphastos tucanus)
Black Nunbird (Monasa atra) *Lifer*
Swallow-wing (Chelidoptera tenebrosa) *Lifer*
Black-tailed Trogon (Trogon melanurus) *Lifer*
White-tailed Trogon (Trogon viridis)
Violaceous Trogon (Trogon violaceus) *Lifer*
Amazon Kingfisher (Chloroceryle amazona)*Lifer*
Green Kingfisher (Chloroceryle americana)
Smooth-billed Ani (Crotophaga ani)
Red-bellied Macaw (Orthopsittaca manilata)
Red-shouldered Macaw (Diopsittaca nobilis)
Orange-winged Parrot (Amazona amazonica)
Golden-winged Parakeet (Brotogeris chrysopterus)
Black-headed Parrot (Pionites melanocephala)
Blue-headed Parrot (Pionus menstruus)
Reddish Hermit (Phaethornis ruber) *Lifer*
Scaled Pigeon (Columba speciosa) *Lifer*
Pale-vented Pigeon (Patagioenas cayennensis)
White-tipped Dove (Leptotila verreauxi)
Sunbittern (Eurypyga helias) *Lifer*
Swallow-tailed Kite (Elanoides forficatus)*Lifer*
Plumbeous Kite (Ictinia plumbea) *Lifer*
Roadside Hawk (Rupornis magnirostris)
Black Caracara (Daptrius ater) *Lifer*
Yellow-headed Caracara (Milvago chimachima)
Cocoi Heron (Ardea cocoi)
Great Egret (Ardea alba)
Cattle Egret (Bubulcus ibis)
Striated Heron (Butorides striatus)
Black Vulture (Coragyps atratus)
Common Tody-Flycatcher (Todirostrum cinereum)
Lesser Yellow-headed Vulture (Cathartes burrovianus)
Yellow-bellied Elaenia (Elaenia flavogaster)
Short-crested Flycatcher (Myiarchus ferox)
Tropical Kingbird (Tyrannus melancholicus)
Rusty-margined Flycatcher (Myiozetetes cayanensis)
Piratic Flycatcher (Legatus leucophaius) *Lifer*
Lesser Kiskadee (Philohydor lictor)
Great Kiskadee (Pitangus sulphuratus)
Black-tailed Tityra (Tityra cayana) *Lifer*
Golden-headed Manakin (Pipra erythrocephala) *Lifer*
White-crowned Manakin (Pipra pipra) *Lifer*
Cayenne Jay (Cyanocorax cayanus)
Pale-breasted Thrush (Turdus leucomelas)
Tropical Mockingbird (Mimus gilvus)
House Wren (Troglodytes aedon)
White-winged Swallow (Tachycineta albiventer)
Yellow Warbler (Dendroica petechia)
Flame-crested Tanager (Tachyphonus cristatus) *Lifer*
White-lined Tanager (Tachyphonus rufus)
Silver-beaked Tanager (Ramphocelus carbo)
Blue-grey Tanager (Thraupis episcopus)
Palm Tanager (Thraupis palmarum)
Turquoise Tanager (Tangara mexicana)
Blue Dacnis (Dacnis cayana)
Variable Seedeater (Sporophila americana)
Chestnut-bellied Seedeater (Sporophila castaneiventris)
Buff-throated Saltator (Saltator maximus) *Lifer*
Greyish Saltator (Saltator coerulescens)
Crested Oropendola (Psarocolius decumanus)
Green Oropendola (Psarocolius viridis) *Lifer*
Yellow-rumped Cacique (Cacicus cela)
Moriche Oriole (Icterus chrysocephalus)
Shiny Cowbird (Molothrus bonariensis)
Jacamar,
Thanks for posting this. It will be helpful for someone planning a trip to the area. And I enjoyed seeing your bird list from that trip. Lots of them that I would love to have.
Great report, Chris! I know from experience it's hard to get birding done with the family around, but it seems you did more than fine!