I have left the city and exams behind for a more peaceful local, namely Tambo Condor and the Antisana Ecological Reserve.
The sunset view from the front of my cabin at Tambo Condor. You wouldn’t know it, but Quito is in that valley down there.
In the mornings or afternoons (depending on my work schedule for the), I’m greeted by these little fellas (if you count the largest hummingbird in the world as a “little” fella).
Sparkling violetearBlack flowerpiercer. Normally, it steals nectar from the bottom of flowers, but hummingbird feeders work too.That would be the giant hummingbird, which is about the size of a sparrow.
What exactly am I doing up in this mountainous area? I am assisting in research on the Andean ibis.
That would be a pair of Andean ibis.
While first recognized as a species by French biologists back in 1894, the Andean ibis has since been considered a subspecies of the buff-necked ibis and then the black-faced ibis. It wasn’t until this year that the IUCN and BirdLife International recognized the Andean ibis as a full species. (Source). In Ecuador, they live near two volcanoes: Antisana and Cotopaxi.
AntisanaCotopaxi
While listed as NT (near threatened) worldwide, the population of Andean ibis in Ecuador is critically endangered, with about 100 individuals estimated in 1999.
But that was 15 years ago. The data for the last fairly comprehensive study on these birds was done near Antisana in 2000, and even after that no one knows where the population near Antisana nests. While we’re still trying to figure that out, we have confirmed a roosting spot.
Puma Pacha. See that little hole in the cliff face? Ibises roost there.A close up of the roost area.
Yes, these birds roost behind a waterfall (well, two of them do.)
While the ibises are my primary focus, there are other birds to be seen up in the páramo, such as condors and other raptors.
Juvenile condorJuvenile variable hawkThe same variable hawk chasing after an adult condor. Note the size difference.Carunculated caracara, locally known as a curiquingue. While related to falcons, they are essentially the crows of Antisana; they eat just about anything and will bully ibis to get access to food.Genciana sedifolia
The plant life in the páramo is as beautiful (and sometimes alien) as ever.
Clubmosses growing within a mass of cushion plantsA strange yellow patch within a cushion of Distichia muscoides
While it may look like fun and games from these photos, the páramo is darn cold. It’s one thing to visit for a day and half as I did a little over a month ago, but being out for six hours at a time can be a little chilly. This is especially true since our observations either start in the early morning or last until sunset.
Yep that’s snow. Yes, I’m basically on the Equator.
However, staying out while the temperature is hovering around freezing does have some perks, namely incredible views of Antisana.
Up next: Do ibises react to paper mache doppelgangers? I don’t know the answer either, but we’ll hopefully find out next week!
It’s been about two weeks since I last set foot in Galapagos, and almost three weeks since my last post, and I apologize for that. There are pesky things called papers, field notebooks, and final exams that got in my way. But those are over now! So here are a lot of pictures of (and facts about) the Galapagos.
Let’s start with some geology! And by geology I mean “look at those clouds spilling into that crater!”
Sierra Negro Volcano on Isabela Island.
Isabela Island, like almost all of the Galapagos Islands, is of volcanic origin. Such origins create cool formations such as lava tunnels, which occur when hot liquid lava continues to flow underneath hardened, cooled lava.
Los Tuneles, remnant of old lava tunnels.
South Plazas is one of the few islands that is not of volcanic origin, but nevertheless the scenery there is quite spectacular as well.
Me watching shearwaters (seabirds) from the cliff on South Plazas.
Remember how I said in my last post I would get better photos of pelicans, frigatebirds, and boobies in Galapagos? Well I missed the pelican, but…
Magnificent frigatebird on our boatFrigatebird flaring its tailBlue-footed booby flockBooby staredownBlue-footed booby with chick.A Nazca booby. There are actually five species of booby in the world, and three nest in Galapagos.
I also managed to spot three waved albatrosses, but I didn’t photograph any of them (at least not well). They are big birds, with 8 foot wingspans. The closest I got this shot of an Elliot’s storm petrel, a robin-sized cousin of the albatross (both have tubular noses that help them sniff out prey and excrete excess salt, since they drink salt water).
The Galapagos also has flamingos, which eat tiny pink brine shrimp from brackish wetlands. The pigments from the shrimp color their feathers. This specific flamingo species (American flamingo, Phoenicopterus ruber) is originally from the Caribbean and some how managed to arrive in Galapagos. This same species occasionally pops up in the Everglades.
In addition to these birds, the endemic bird life (i.e. native to only also proved quite photogenic.
A common cactus finch eating cactus fruit while perching on a cactus. Aptly named I would say. This is one of the species of Darwin’s finches.The Galapagos subspecies of the striated heron, often called the lava heron due to its camouflaged plumage. The same species in the mainland is brown and striped, as the name suggests.One of my favorite Galapagos birds, the swallow-tailed gull. It’s the only nocturnal gull species in the world and breeds only in Galapagos and on one island near Colombia. Its main food source is nocturnal squid. Source.Galapagos penguin, the only penguin found north of the Equator (unless you count zoos and aquariums).
“But what about the tortoises?” you may ask. Don’t worry, I have pictures of literal piles of tortoises.
This is a tortoise nursery on Isabela island, not the wild!
And tortoises eating.
There are actually two main types of tortoise in Galapagos. The dome-shells (above) live in the moist highlands, where much of the food is close to the ground. The saddle-shells (below) live in the desert-like lowlands, where they need to reach for their food (e.g. cactus).
Other endemic reptiles include land iguanas, marine iguanas, and lava lizards.
Land iguanaMarine iguana with a lava lizard hat. The lava lizards sometimes eat parasite off the iguanas.A crossing of marine iguana tracks in the sandGalapagos sea lion chilling with a marine iguana. Two iconic animals in one photo!
Speaking of sea lions, October happens to be pupping season for much of the Galapagos, so we go to see a lot of sea lion pups. These sea lions are actually descended from California sea lions and not South American sea lions, which are found as close as Peru.
“Don’t you mess with me!”
While Galapagos doesn’t have the tidepools of Ecuador, colorful Sally Lightfoot crabs line the shores.
Under the water, the Galapagos is incredible, seeing as it has currents coming from the north, east, south, and west bringing spectacular sea life from many corners of the Pacific. I could only photograph a few species, seeing as I only had a barely function underwater disposable camera. Also, the lens of said camera was exactly where I wanted to put my finger when taking a shot.
Reef manta ray (and my finger). I don’t think that counts as a selfie.Whitetip reef sharks swimming in the sky above a marine iguana (just kidding, the iguana’s on a cliff).
This could be my last post for a while, seeing as I’m headed back to the paramo of Antisana to research the endangered Andean ibis. The goal is to find a nest of this bird, which is something that has not yet happened in Ecuador. Wish me luck!
That glacier-covered mountain is not only a site of snow and ice very close to the Equator, but it is also an active volcano. Its name is Antisana and is the mountain which Antisana Ecological Reserve is named after. See that little shack in the foreground? That was a home of the famous naturalist Alexander von Humboldt.
Laguna Micacocha, an important source of water for the city of Quito.
The name for this type of habitat is páramo, which essentially means “tropical alpine grassland and scrubland. While the landscape may look a little bleak, there is actually some really cool plant and animal life hidden away in the grasses and shrubs
Flower of the Puya, an alpine member of the pineapple family and source of nectar for the giant hummingbird.Purple gentians growing near tussock grasses and cushion plants.Individual plants from a cushion plant colony. Cushion plants retain dead organic material below ground to soak up water and preserve nutrients.
Some of the wildlife isn’t necessarily hidden. It’s pretty hard to hide when you have a ten foot wingspan.
That would be an Andean condor, Ecuador’s national bird. The IUCN classifies the worldwide population of this bird as “Near Threatened” and estimates that its population is declining (Source.) Fewer than 100 condors remain in Ecuador, making them endangered in this country. Condors face a variety of problems, including cattle ranchers killing them due to the belief that they eat cattle, lack of food, and habitat loss. Condors principally eat carrion and only take live prey (such as newborn livestock) rarely (Source). In order to provide food for the condors, the Hacienda Hosteria Guáytara, a private ecological area near Antisana, sacrifices cattle to provide food for these gigantic birds, thus aiding in their conservation in Ecuador.
Speaking of Guáytara, its land has hundreds (or potentially thousands) of chuquiragua flowers, which are a favorite food of a very special hummingbird.
The Ecuadorian hillstar is found in no other place but the Ecuadorian Andes. At night it nearly halts its metabolism by going into a state called torpor, which allows it to survive frigid páramo nights (Source). Other hummingbirds also enjoy chuquiragua nectar, including the black-tailed trainbearer.
While found in Quito, Guáytara is simply swarming with them. You can hardly go a minute walking the trails without hearing a male sing.
If you want more information on Guáytara, check out their website. The accommodations are quite nice and the wildlife is spectacular. I saw four condors during breakfast one morning, and you can reportedly see over fifteen at a time on a good day.
Well, it might be a while before I post, since I’m off to the Amazon on Friday and will be staying there for a whole week. I’ll be sure to update if I do anything cool in the next few days, but if I don’t expect another post in a couple weeks!
Well, I had a day to explore the botanical gardens, but right now my program, SIT Ecuador: Comparative Ecology and Conservation, has a officially started. I can’t say I’m complaining, though: I get to basically go birdwatching (and listening) as an assignment, and tomorrow we’re off to Yanacocha Forest Reserve, a.k.a. a place with so many hummingbirds I might faint from excitement.
A little bit about this program: we get to travel all over (Amazon, Galapagos, cloud forest, mountains), and our classes (Spanish, ecology, conservation, and research methods) all blend together. They are taught both in the field and at a place called the Experiment in Intercultural Living (EIL). Here’s some great views of Quito from the top story of the EIL.
That white mountain you see in the second picture is the volcano Cotopaxi, which is actually not covered in snow but in glaciers. I get to visit it (but not climb it, that requires training, a guide, and ice axes) at some point, and there’s supposed to be Andean condors there. For the unfamiliar, Andean condors are gigantic mountain-dwelling vultures, weighing a whopping 33 pounds and having wingspans of 10 feet. I hope to get a photo to share eventually, but for now here’s National Geographic’s pictures and info.
I’ve been starting to dive into the local fruit, having had batido de guanabana (soursop smoothie), various juices, and this grandilla.
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In English you would call this a yellow passionfruit. The inside is fully of juicy seeds that are very sweet and almost bubble gum-tasting; the hard portion of the seed providing a nice, light crunch. It tastes nothing like the purple passionfruit juice you get in the US, which I’m honestly not very fond of.
Well, that was a brief post, but believe it or not I have work to do to plan out my ornithology project. I’ll put up another post on Yanacocha within the next few days.
An Iowan on the Equator 