Ecuador: Eastern Slope of the Andes

 

Cloud Forest Sunrise.
Cabanas San Isidro, Ecuador

Our intrepid group of birders made a transect of Ecuador, from the high mountains and its tundra-like páramo, down the eastern side of the Andes to the Amazon rainforest.  On the eastern slope we encountered two types of montane forests, the mist shrouded cloud forest and the rainforest.  Each has abundant rainfall, but the cloud forests are found at higher elevations where clouds brush into the peaks and rain falls often.  The rainforests occur at lower elevations, and the rain is heavy and frequent. Descending the Andes we saw stunning landscapes, brilliant plant life and diverse animals including mammals and birds.  

Landscapes

Cloud Forest.
El Quetzal Bosque Protegido, Ecuador.

Rain in the rainforest.

Wildsumaco Lodge, Ecuador.

Rainforest view.
Sendero Jumandy, Ecuador.
Photo courtesy of  Ms. Diane Coggin.

 Plants

Epiphytic bromeliad (Tillandsia sp.)
Cabanas San Isidro, Ecuador.

Hanging Lobster Claw (Heliconia rostrata).
Cabanas San Isidro, Ecuador.

Chinese lantern (Abutilon pictum),
Cabanas San Isidro, Ecuador. 

Mammals  

Mountain Tapir (Tapirus pinchaque). This endangered
mammal is one of he largest in South America. 
Papallacta Pass, Ecuador.

Black Agoutis (Dasyprocta fuliginosa) are large rodents
that feed on fruits and nuts in the understory of the forest.
Cabanas San Isidro, Ecuador. 

Birds 

Band-bellied Owl (Pulsatrix melanota).
Amarun Pakcha Reserve. 

Golden-headed Quetzal (Pharomachrus auriceps).
Cabanas San Isidro, Ecuador.

Female Masked Trogon (Trogon personatus).
Cabanas San Isidro, Ecuador. 

Andean Motmot (Motmotus aequatorialis).
Cabanas San Isidro, Ecuador. 

Montane Woodcreeper (Lepidocolaptes lacrymiger).
Cabanas San Isidro, Ecuador. 

Male Andean Cock-of-the Rock (Rupicola peruvianus) 
displaying at a lek.  Leks are areas where multiple males court females. 
The Andean Cock-of-the-Rock's leks are in the cloud forest canopy. 
Amarun Pakcha Reserve, Ecuador. 
Photo courtesy of Dr. Richard Pockat. 

Male Andean Cock-of-the Rock at a lek.
Amarun Pakcha Reserve, Ecuador. 
Photo courtesy of Dr. Richard Pockat. 

Dusky Piha (Lipaugus fuscocinereus).
Sendero Jumandy, Ecuador. 

Green Jay  (Cyanocorax yncas yncas).  This subspecies of the Green Jay is also
called the Inca Jay. It is distinct from other subspecies of the Green Jay
and is considered its own species by some authorities.
El Quetzal Bosque Protegido, Ecuador. 

Mountain Wren (Troglodytes solsititialis).
Cabanas San Isidro, Ecuador.

Barred Becard (Pachyramphus versicolor).
Sendero Jumandy, Ecuador. 

Pale-edged Flycatcher (Myiarchus cephalotes).
Cabanas San Isidro.

Cinnamon Flycatcher (Pyrrhomyias cinnamomeus).
Cabanas San Isidro, Ecuador. 

Golden-bellied Flycatcher (Myiodynastes hemichrysus).
Cabanas San Isidro, Ecuador. 

Russet-backed Oropendola (Psarocolius angustifrons).
Cabanas San Isidro, Ecuador. 

Hooded Mountain Tanager (Buthraupis montana).
Sendero Jumandy, Ecuador. 

Lacrimose Mountain Tanager (Ansiognathus lacrymosus).
Sendero Jumandy, Ecudor. 

Slate-throated Redstart (Myioborus miniatus).
Cabanas San Isidro, Ecuador. 

The most striking thing about descending the Andes is how quickly the environment changes with altitude.  Traveling just a few miles and losing a few thousand feet can reveal a whole new environment with a new set of plants and animals. Many of these plants and animals are restricted to a narrow band on the the mountains and are found nowhere else. In the next blog we will continue to descend to the Amazon basin where new wonders await.