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The Republic of
Panama, a tropical country with a large variety of easily accessible
habitats, is a great place not only for an introduction to the birds
of the American tropics, but is also one of the best birding place in
the world.
The typical neotropical families, like trogons, antbirds, and tanagers
are well represented, some, like the tyrant flycatchers, by a hundred
different species, and others by just a few. The avid birder will find
the total number of bird species found in Panama, about 950, delightfully
large, especially when considering the relatively small surface of the
country. Some 150 of these are neotropical migrants that only occur
in the country from September until April. It is not rare to see more
than twenty different migrant warblers and vireos on a good morning
on spring or fall migration, and that added to fifty or sixty resident
species.
This variety in bird species is partly explained by the fact that Panama
is a land bridge between North and South America. Therefore, Panama's
resident avifauna is composed of a mix of birds from both North and
South America.
In Panama it is possible to find species typical of Central America
like Passerini's Tanager, Green Shrike-Vireo, and Resplendent Quetzals,
as well as their South American Counterparts: Flame-rumped Tanager,
Yellow-browed Shrike-Vireo, and Golden-headed Quetzal.
As it would be expected, the South American birds are easier to find
on the eastern portion of the country, while the Central American species
are found west of the Canal Area. The birds of the central part of the
country, the area surrounding Panama City, include species from both
ends.
Eastern Panama, San Blas and Darién, are generally inaccessible, and
visiting requires extensive planning. However, it is well worth the
hassle, especially if you really need a Speckled Antshrike on your life
list. In Eastern Panama you'll also have a better chance of seeing the
Harpy Eagle, Panama's National Bird. There is a road out in that direction,
but the best way to get there is by plane. There is regular service
to a few small towns in the lowlands, like El Real, but to get to Cana
and the foothills you'll have to either charter a flight or hike all
the way up. The foothills is where the endemics are: Green-naped Tanager,
Pirre Warbler, Beautiful Treerunner, Tacarcuna Wood-Quail, etc. A lot
of the Darién specialties can also be found in the lowlands. A few species
can only be seen in the lowlands, like Black Oropendola, Spectacled
Parrotlet and Black Antshrike.
Central Panama has the most easily accessed forests of Central America,
and birding is easy and productive. Some species are very common throughout
the city, and a few hours of birding in any city park can produce a
long list of birds. Tropical Kingbirds, Social Flycatchers, Clay-colored
Thrushes and Blue-gray, Palm and Crimson-backed Tanagers are hard to
miss, as is the ubiquitous Great-tailed Grackle. The dry forests of
the Metropolitan Nature Park, which is right next to Panama City, are
typical of the Pacific Slope. On a morning walk of any of its trails
you may find Lance-tailed Manakin, Slaty-tailed Trogon or a Pheasant
Cuckoo. The Rosy Thrush-Tanager is very common here, and you'll certainly
hear, if not see, one or two.
Closer to the Caribbean Sea, the forests get more humid. Pipeline Road,
which starts at the town of Gamboa next to the Panama Canal, passes
through 28 kilometers of forest protected by Soberanía National Park,
and is a world-renowned birding destination. If you want to see forest
birds, like Rufous-breasted Ground-Cuckoo, then Pipeline Road is the
place to go. You'll certainly see a lot of Atlantic Slope birds and
you may even find some foothill species like Tawny-crested Tanager or
Sirystes. But to really experience the Atlantic Slope and its birds
you need to go to Achiote Road, in the Province of Colón. It's the best
place to see White-headed Wren, besides Darién, and Montezuma Oropendola,
besides Bocas del Toro. Dusky-faced and Sulphur-rumped Tanagers are
seen regularly, and it's usual to see a gorgeous male Blue Cotinga perched
in full sunlight on an exposed branch by the road.
The easiest way to get to Western Panama is by plane, but you can also
use the Inter-American Highway, which reaches all the way to the Costa
Rican border. In the way you'll pass mostly savannas and small patches
of second growth, prime raptor habitat. Crested and Yellow-headed Caracaras
are very common, but you can also see Pearl Kite and Aplomado Falcon.
During the boreal winter look for White-tailed Hawk. There's virtually
no forest left in the Pacific Lowlands of Western Panama, so the best
birding is in the highlands. According to BirdLife International, the
western highlands, from Cerro Campana all the way to Costa Rica, are
a one of the areas with the highest levels of endemism in the world.
Species like Black Guan, Dusky Nightjar, Fiery-throated Hummingbird
and Bare-throated Umbrellabird are found there and nowhere else. Most
of these species are also found in adjacent Costa Rica but a few, like
Yellow-green Finch and Glow-throated Hummingbird, are only found in
Panama. Unlike Eastern Panama, traveling in Western Panama is easy:
the roads are in generally good condition and there are plenty of places
to stay. Getting to good forest is easy, and some species are very common.
In the towns of Boquete and Cerro Punta you can find Band-tailed Pigeons,
Rufous-collared Sparrows and Blue-and-white Swallows, but the best birding
is along the roads that go up into the mountains. Even second growth
forest can produce good results, especially during spring or fall migration,
when our flocks of resident warblers and redstarts are joined by their
northern counterparts. When you reach real forest look for treerunners
and other furnariids, but don't forget to check the undergrowth for
skulking Wrentrhushes and Silvery-fronted Tapaculos.
Panama provides you with some of the world's best bird watching opportunities,
no matter how long your life list is or how into birding you are. Whether
you go out on just a morning bird walk on Summit Gardens or in a trek
up Volcán Barú in search of Volcano Junco and Timberline Wren, you'll
certainly have a lot of fun. For further information, write to the Panama
Audubon Society, Box 2026, Balboa, Republic of Panama, or send E-mail
to audupan@pananet.com.
For details on the latest sightings of rare birds in Panama, visit Xenornis
at www.geocities.com/xenornis. Birding resources First published in
1976, "A Guide to the Birds of Panama" by Robert S. Ridgely and John
A. Gwynne set the standard for a new generation of field guides, and
is still one of the best of the whole region. A copy of this book may
be all you need, apart from binoculars, to begin identifying birds in
Panama.
At first, you may be overwhelmed by the endless list of possibilities,
like everyone is when they first turn to the plate that illustrates
the virtually identical woodcreepers; but things get better after a
few tries, especially once you start to understand each species' range
and distribution. Of great help in this matter are the three regional
checklists prepared by the Panama Audubon Society. Each volume, covering
Central, Eastern or Western Panama, lists only the birds found in that
region, with a separate column indicating the abundance of each species
in different sub-regions. They're a great way to get ready for a trip
to some unfamiliar region or for quick reference while in the field.
Written by Mr.
Darién Montañez from the Panama Audubon Society
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