By Pier Luiggi Maquilón Lipari
On December 17 and 18, the 1st Christmas Bird Count was held in the La Prosperina Protective Forest, an event promoted by the Probosque Foundation that sought to determine the populations of bird species in the Forest and surrounding areas (Puerto Hondo Mangroves and El Lago Park).
Polytechnic students who are members of the EcoClub, along with other Biology students from the University of Guayaquil, led the nearly 9-hour walk through various sections of the forest.
The Count began on Friday 17th at 6:00 pm, with the removal of camp and a talk about the methodology to be carried out (counting nocturnal birds). A persistent rain and the noise caused by the end of year festivities delayed the start.
The count is done by identifying the sounds of the birds. The unrecognized songs were recorded for later identification; and the nightjars, unfortunately, were not included in the results because although we saw them flying close to our heads, we were not able to photograph them to later recognize their gender and species.
The night count revealed environmental problems, the main one being poaching, both in protected areas of the Cerro Blanco and La Prosperina BPs. The night count ended around 02:00.
The next day the daytime count began at 05h30 with a light drizzle and 8/8 cloud cover. We were amazed to see a flock of about 250 swifts flying over the lake feeding. The appearance of a snake-necked swift was something exceptional, it is difficult to see this aquatic bird.
Then, from the lake we advanced to the "antenna edge" sector, along the way we found Pacific owls, savannah finches, colembas, striped wrens, ovenbirds and vermilion flycatchers. This journey was difficult, because due to the rain, the ground was muddy and accumulated on our shoes, putting more weight on our efforts to climb the steep slope. Woodpeckers, euphonias and bluebirds made their appearance.
It was a pleasure to see a Baron's Hermit feeding on the nectar of flowers while we were climbing. This species of long-tailed hummingbird was not included in the bird inventory of the BP La Prosperina kept by the EcoClub. There are areas where herbaceous and grassy areas predominate, which favours the presence of seedbeds.
At 08:47 we observed two rufous-headed chachalacas resting in a tree. This is good news because there was concern that since the area was affected by a forest fire, the noisy song of the chachalacas could no longer be heard.
We continued walking. At 08h56, we reached the Monkey Wall, one of the best preserved parts of the Forest. The influence of the wall, which provides humidity to the place, creating a semi-deciduous forest, provides ideal conditions for the presence of birds of prey. A few minutes later, a sparrowhawk sang… then it showed itself. It was a grey-backed sparrowhawk (a species threatened with extinction). As we continued, we observed an event that very few can see in person. Sparrowhawks are solitary species, they are only seen in pairs during courtship, and that was what we saw.
High above was the female Grey-backed Warbler circling, rising and falling. Nearby, the male was being closely evaluated, testing his flying skills, trying to imitate the female's flight in order to be accepted and be allowed to mate with her. If the female accepts him, they will mate and she will lay an egg... she usually does this every year, sometimes two or even three, it all depends on how quickly the last chick she had fledges.
A few metres further on, we could see another endangered species. It was about 10 individuals of the Saffron Goldfinch. Females, males and juveniles were feeding on a nettle plant. And overhead, a Snail-eating Kite was flying over, heading to a place unknown to us, probably heading to look for food in the lake or in the streams and water channels.
We arrived at a viewing point at 10:00. We took a short break to regain our strength and then returned to camp. At 11:00 we arrived at the lake dock, got into the boat and went out to sea. Gabriel and Leonardo rowed. Gabriel gave direction, Leonardo gave impetus. An osprey appeared trying to find food, although a green kingfisher was luckier when it dived in and caught a small fish. Ruddy wigeons, black-bellied wigeons, jacanas and white-faced ducks predominate in this area.
Almost at noon, close to finishing the count, a White-tailed Magpie announced itself. I missed it because despite being a common species that I had seen many times in the places we visited, it had not shown up for the count.
We landed and finished the count. More than 40 species, a few still to be identified. We await with great anticipation the official report and the results of the counts carried out in the other places. Surely, due to the results of this first bird count within the La Prosperina BP, the forest will capture the attention of the country's scientific community.
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