Birding Iguazu Falls

So moving on in Argentina we went to Iguazu. Primarily this was to visit the amazing waterfall but we are trying to birdwatch everywhere too as each new area has some new birds. So we booked one day with Pocho of Birding Iguazu. Pocho was a lovely guy and a super-skilled guide who really knew his local patch – very happy to recommend him if you are wanting to go birding in this part of Argentina.

Iguazu Falls themselves are stunning – see photos – and well worth visiting.

We started birding early on Ruta 101 a dirt track a bit beyond the falls. The primary habitat here is Atlantic Forest so we were going to see some new birds as this was our first time in this habitat.

Very quickly we were seeing new birds. The Atlantic Black-Throated and Surucua Trogans were lovely birds offering confiding views. A Variable Antshrike is a bird I have heard before but never seen well and here it was very friendly, offering great photo chances. The Swallow Tanager had a beautiful colour-scheme, simple but bold, whilst the Fawn-Breasted Tanager and Black Goggle Eyed cousin also entertained.

Moving a bit further down the road a family of Blue-Naped Chlorophonia kept us entertained feeding around a tree and returning to a nearby nest. They were always moving and in the early morning light I struggled to get a clean shot. Long-Tailed Tyrants sat in a high tree making frequent forays for insects and returning to the same few perches. An Ochre-Breasted Foliage Gleaner worked the nearby bushes whilst a female Swallow-Tailed Manakin sang its song and allowed me to get a few good shots.

Sometimes you have to pause from the birding and appreciate the wider nature on show. Here there were hundreds of butterflies flying about and taking salts from the road. I was particularly struck by the butterfly with the number 88 on its wings. Numbered like a sleek formula 1 car. Beautiful.

Whilst I was distracted with the butterflies a Blackish Rail put in a couple of brief appearances, darting from cover before running back. Woodpeckers and Woodcreepers were also about with the Olivaceoius Woodcreeper and Yellow-Fronted, White-Spotted and Blond-Crested Woodpeckers all putting in strong appearances.

Other lifers we saw in this area (but didn’t photograph) included Purple-Crowned Plovercrest, Rufous-Capped Motmot, Rufous-Margined Antwren, Eared Pygmy-Tyrant, Yellow Tyranulet, Purple-Throated and Chestnut-Bellied Euphonias, Golden-Winged Cacique, Ultramarine Grosbeak, Chestnut-Headed and Ruby-Crowned Tanagers. But our last lifer here was the Long-Tailed Potoo which I absolutely loved and obviously was easy to photograph as it was sleeping whilst pretending to be a tree. This bird is a relatively new breeder in Argentina which is on the very south of its range.

---

We drove back to the start of Ruta 101 stopping to see a Red-Rumped Cacique nesting colony. Probably about 20-30 pairs were nesting in this one tree making a real active scene with birds coming and going all the time and many bring nesting material to strengthen their nests.

---

After a bit of a queue we entered the actual falls site to take a walk on the Macuco trail. This was a quieter time of day as it was particularly hot and the birds were mainly staying quiet due to the high temperatures. Saffron Finches picked food from the grass. Grey-Breasted Martins and Blue and White Swallows picked insects from the sky or rested on the nearby trees. A Giant Cowbird offered close views from the ticket barriers. Noisy Plush-Crested Jays allowed us to get close (probably because tourists feed them here albeit they shouldn’t). A female White-Bearded Manakin was spotted through the leaves.

Things were quiet at this point but all of a sudden we had a quick rush of activity. First a couple of Blue Dacnis were spotted in the trees but things soon got more interesting when a Band-Tailed Manakin showed up followed almost immediately but a very obliging Ochre-Collared Piculet. This tiny woodpecker allowed some great shots as it worked a nearby bush. Another lifer for me was the Tropical Screech Owl at a roost known to Pocho. I really should have had this bird further north in Latin America but it had alluded me so I was very pleased to put that right here.

---

After this we headed back to Iguazu town to some feeders at Pocho’s home to end the day. Here there were some good photo opportunities for some fruit eaters such as Blue Dacnis, Pale-Bellied Thrush and Sayaca Tanager.

But the principle target here were new hummingbirds. Here we added Gilded Hummingbird, Swallow-Tailed Hummingbird, Versicoloured Emerald (all photographed) and Violet-Capped Woodymph. We had hoped to see the Planalto Hermit too but it didn’t show and we gave up and went to leave at which point it appeared! A welcome final bird of the day.

Altogether, we had 32 new lifers with Pocho of Birding Iguazu and left Argentina with 181 species of which an impressive 101 were lifers.