Birding In Argentina"s Atlantic Forest
Birding Misiones - Argentina's Upland Atlantic Forest
Misiones - Argentina's Atlantic Forest province - has much more in store for the visiting birder than the Toco Toucans waiting at the Iguazu Falls National Park main entrance.
Home to a rounded six hundred bird species and located in the northeast corner of the country, the Atlantic Forest of Misiones is Argentina's high diversity hotspot. But what many birders don't know is that, in the interior of the province south of the spectacular waterfalls, there are other delights hidden away such as giant tree fern groves,
Araucaria trees and a whole different avifauna associated with the upland Atlantic Forest.
Atlantic Forest and Upland Araucaria Forest - Facts and Figures
The Atlantic Forest, also known in Argentina as Selva Paranaense, is one of the most fragmented and endangered ecosystems on Earth. Situated between the Atlantic coast of southern Brazil and the tri-border Iguazu Falls area of Brazil, Argentina and Paraguay, a calculated 2.55% of the original 470 000 km2 forest cover remained in 2004, approximately half of this in the Province of Misiones, Argentina.
Misiones boasts several well-known Atlantic Forest protected areas such as Iguazu National Park and Urugua-i Provincial Preserve in the north of the Province, and Yaboti Biosphere Reserve in the south. With a total of over 600 bird species, 25 of which are critically endangered and several already nationally extinct, the Atlantic Forest of northeastern Argentina is incontestably one of the most critically threatened conservation hotspots in South America. Given the widespread destruction of this biome in Brazil and Paraguay, the Misiones forests are of worldwide importance if this unique habitat is to be preserved.
Two hundred and fifty million years ago, before the time of the dinosaurs, all the world was covered with Araucarias and their understorey of mysterious, feathery tree ferns. Today in Misiones, only two thousand hectares of old growth upland forest remains, so it's no surprise the birds which live here are becoming scarce.
San Pedro - Araucaria capital of Misiones
Surrounded by an impressive array of reserves and protected areas, the small town of San Pedro is the ideal place to discover the little-known birds of this critically endangered ecosystem. Plan for about four days birding here and you'll take in some of the best and most distinctive birding spots in all of Argentina.
San Pedro is about four hours by road from Puerto Iguazu; either take a long-distance taxi or hop on a bus. You may have to change in Eldorado as there is currently only one through bus daily.
Woodpeckers in Cruce Caballero
(600ha) 26 km east of San Pedro
Housing a treasure-trove of old growth Araucaria and tree fern habitat, Cruce Caballero Provincial Park is the best, and one of the last, places in Argentina where you'll find the upland rarities unique to the Atlantic Forest biome. Solitary Tinamou, Rusty-barred Owl, White-browed Foliage-Gleaner, Sao-Paulo Tyrannulet, Planalto Tapaculo, Black-billed Scythebill and Green-chinned Euphonia are all good possibilities, and you may be lucky enough to see Helmeted Woodpecker, a critically endangered species in Argentina under study here since 2010.
In late November 2011, Martjan Lammertink of Cornell found a nest of this species, the first in Argentina since 1984, only to have the young bird leave the nest 17 hours later. A juvenile Helmeted Woodpecker was sighted and photographed together with an adult male by a visiting British family a few hundred metres from the nest site a month later, suggesting the young bird survived its first month of life. With luck the bird will survive to adulthood and this successful breeding event will be the first of many in Cruce Caballero for this attractive and threatened species.
Parrots in the Park
Parque Provincial Las Araucarias
San Pedro's own reserve is right in town. At 99 ha Las Araucarias is not that large, but it receives a steady stream of enthusiasts as it's home to some good-sized Araucaria trees and is also one of the best places to see Canebrake Groundcreeper and Araucaria Tit-spinetail. Other regulars are Red-breasted Toucan, Vinaceous-breasted Amazon, Azure Jay and there are occasional records of Helmeted Woodpecker.
A great way to see Vinaceous-breasted Parrot is to visit their roosts in Las Araucarias at sundown.
Kaa Yari Provincial Park
(236 500ha) 75 km sw San Pedro
This reserve, part of the Yaboti Biosphere mosaic, was put on the birding map when Black-capped Manakin, new for Argentina, was found here in 2004. Soon after, researchers found breeding evidence and ever since, along with other Kaa Yari specialities like Brown-breasted Pygmy-Tyrant, Thick-billed Saltator and Rufous-tailed Antthrush, the locality has deservedly attracted the attention of international birding groups in growing numbers.
The birds
Because many of the rarities here are bamboo specialists, you may be spending a lot of time on your knees peering hopefully into impenetrable Chusquea thickets. But when a Canebrake Groundcreeper finally skips by and you actually see it, you know you are one of a select group of people who have had the patience and good fortune to catch a glimpse one of South America's least seen arch-skulkers. So secretive is Canebreak Groundcreeper that a nest has never been found, and it is one of the twenty-five or so rare or threatened species surviving in Misiones' upland forests. Others include birds associated with the diminishing Araucaria stands include Vinaceous Parrot, Azure Jay and Araucaria Tit-Spinetail, and other bamboo birds are Ocellated Bamboo Wren, Drab-breasted Bamboo Tyrant and White-bearded Antshrike. Others include Helmeted Woodpecker, Solitary Tinamou, Black-fronted Piping-Guan, Rusty-barred Owl, White-browed Foliage-Gleaner, three Phylloscartes tyrannulets; Sao-Paolo Tyrannulet, Bay-ringed Tyrannulet and Southern Bristle-Tyrant. Creamy-bellied Gnatcatcher, Thick-billed Saltator, Blackish-blue Seedeater and Green-chinned Euphonia.
Misiones - Argentina's Atlantic Forest province - has much more in store for the visiting birder than the Toco Toucans waiting at the Iguazu Falls National Park main entrance.
Home to a rounded six hundred bird species and located in the northeast corner of the country, the Atlantic Forest of Misiones is Argentina's high diversity hotspot. But what many birders don't know is that, in the interior of the province south of the spectacular waterfalls, there are other delights hidden away such as giant tree fern groves,
Araucaria trees and a whole different avifauna associated with the upland Atlantic Forest.
Atlantic Forest and Upland Araucaria Forest - Facts and Figures
The Atlantic Forest, also known in Argentina as Selva Paranaense, is one of the most fragmented and endangered ecosystems on Earth. Situated between the Atlantic coast of southern Brazil and the tri-border Iguazu Falls area of Brazil, Argentina and Paraguay, a calculated 2.55% of the original 470 000 km2 forest cover remained in 2004, approximately half of this in the Province of Misiones, Argentina.
Misiones boasts several well-known Atlantic Forest protected areas such as Iguazu National Park and Urugua-i Provincial Preserve in the north of the Province, and Yaboti Biosphere Reserve in the south. With a total of over 600 bird species, 25 of which are critically endangered and several already nationally extinct, the Atlantic Forest of northeastern Argentina is incontestably one of the most critically threatened conservation hotspots in South America. Given the widespread destruction of this biome in Brazil and Paraguay, the Misiones forests are of worldwide importance if this unique habitat is to be preserved.
Two hundred and fifty million years ago, before the time of the dinosaurs, all the world was covered with Araucarias and their understorey of mysterious, feathery tree ferns. Today in Misiones, only two thousand hectares of old growth upland forest remains, so it's no surprise the birds which live here are becoming scarce.
San Pedro - Araucaria capital of Misiones
Surrounded by an impressive array of reserves and protected areas, the small town of San Pedro is the ideal place to discover the little-known birds of this critically endangered ecosystem. Plan for about four days birding here and you'll take in some of the best and most distinctive birding spots in all of Argentina.
San Pedro is about four hours by road from Puerto Iguazu; either take a long-distance taxi or hop on a bus. You may have to change in Eldorado as there is currently only one through bus daily.
Woodpeckers in Cruce Caballero
(600ha) 26 km east of San Pedro
Housing a treasure-trove of old growth Araucaria and tree fern habitat, Cruce Caballero Provincial Park is the best, and one of the last, places in Argentina where you'll find the upland rarities unique to the Atlantic Forest biome. Solitary Tinamou, Rusty-barred Owl, White-browed Foliage-Gleaner, Sao-Paulo Tyrannulet, Planalto Tapaculo, Black-billed Scythebill and Green-chinned Euphonia are all good possibilities, and you may be lucky enough to see Helmeted Woodpecker, a critically endangered species in Argentina under study here since 2010.
In late November 2011, Martjan Lammertink of Cornell found a nest of this species, the first in Argentina since 1984, only to have the young bird leave the nest 17 hours later. A juvenile Helmeted Woodpecker was sighted and photographed together with an adult male by a visiting British family a few hundred metres from the nest site a month later, suggesting the young bird survived its first month of life. With luck the bird will survive to adulthood and this successful breeding event will be the first of many in Cruce Caballero for this attractive and threatened species.
Parrots in the Park
Parque Provincial Las Araucarias
San Pedro's own reserve is right in town. At 99 ha Las Araucarias is not that large, but it receives a steady stream of enthusiasts as it's home to some good-sized Araucaria trees and is also one of the best places to see Canebrake Groundcreeper and Araucaria Tit-spinetail. Other regulars are Red-breasted Toucan, Vinaceous-breasted Amazon, Azure Jay and there are occasional records of Helmeted Woodpecker.
A great way to see Vinaceous-breasted Parrot is to visit their roosts in Las Araucarias at sundown.
Kaa Yari Provincial Park
(236 500ha) 75 km sw San Pedro
This reserve, part of the Yaboti Biosphere mosaic, was put on the birding map when Black-capped Manakin, new for Argentina, was found here in 2004. Soon after, researchers found breeding evidence and ever since, along with other Kaa Yari specialities like Brown-breasted Pygmy-Tyrant, Thick-billed Saltator and Rufous-tailed Antthrush, the locality has deservedly attracted the attention of international birding groups in growing numbers.
The birds
Because many of the rarities here are bamboo specialists, you may be spending a lot of time on your knees peering hopefully into impenetrable Chusquea thickets. But when a Canebrake Groundcreeper finally skips by and you actually see it, you know you are one of a select group of people who have had the patience and good fortune to catch a glimpse one of South America's least seen arch-skulkers. So secretive is Canebreak Groundcreeper that a nest has never been found, and it is one of the twenty-five or so rare or threatened species surviving in Misiones' upland forests. Others include birds associated with the diminishing Araucaria stands include Vinaceous Parrot, Azure Jay and Araucaria Tit-Spinetail, and other bamboo birds are Ocellated Bamboo Wren, Drab-breasted Bamboo Tyrant and White-bearded Antshrike. Others include Helmeted Woodpecker, Solitary Tinamou, Black-fronted Piping-Guan, Rusty-barred Owl, White-browed Foliage-Gleaner, three Phylloscartes tyrannulets; Sao-Paolo Tyrannulet, Bay-ringed Tyrannulet and Southern Bristle-Tyrant. Creamy-bellied Gnatcatcher, Thick-billed Saltator, Blackish-blue Seedeater and Green-chinned Euphonia.
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