Completing our trilogy of reports from Mexico - Mountains and Mangroves.
Towards the end of our Mexico adventure, we were each asked in turn to name our most memorable sighting for the trip. Without hesitation I named Vermillion Flycatcher as my choice, which given we had just recently been watching hump back whales, dolphins, monarch butterflies etc, may have seemed an off the wall selection; but there is history. A decade ago when undertaking the first of our long distant explorations, we found ourselves hiking around the rim of Volcan Sierra Negra on Isobela, an island of the Galápagos archipelago. On that day our guide, barely out of nappies it seemed to me, dangled the carrot of a possible encounter with a Vermillion Flycatcher, a species I was quite keen to connect with. Over the next several hours I was keeping one eye alert for any sign of a bright red blob amidst the luxuriant foliage around the crater edge, but to no avail. No flycatcher showed itself that day. Scroll forward a decade and within minutes of our first tentative stroll into a Mexican dawn we had a pair of these rather beautiful birds hopping around in full view. A target bird ticked so easily, and putting to rest 10 years of mild frustration. What a corker!
Later in the week en-route to San Blas, our final port of call, we stopped at Mirador de las Aves, a lagoon upon which many birds were feeding. Here, as dusk closed in, we were able to see some interesting water birds at close quarters - as well as basking crocodiles.
From San Blas we had two consecutive early morning trips to the high hills to the east of the resort. Several endemic bird species inhabit these forest clad slopes as well as many species of colourful butterflies.
The finale to our amazing trip was a boat ride through the lush mangrove swamps where brightly coloured kingfishers adorned the overhanging twist of dense foliage. Many other species of bird were making good use of the bountiful habitat to catch their supper, while yet others flocked to roost in the safe, undisturbed thickets. In terms of the latter we came upon groups of Black Vultures, Great Egrets, kingbirds and flocks of Great-tailed Grackles and Bronzed Cowbirds.
As dusk cloaked the narrow channels we found a small group of Boat-billed Herons emerging from their daytime slumber, and then in full dark spotlighted another member of the nightshift, the rather weird looking Northern Pootoo. These extraordinary nocturnal birds gave themselves away via their eyeshine and perched atop a convenient bare branch allowed very close approach. What large eyes they had, bright yellow and standing proud from the side of their head. All the better for seeing in the dark of course, but the couple we found still seemed half asleep and in no hurry to set about demolishing the local population of flying insects. A memorable and fitting end to what had been a wildlife packed 9 days.
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