Colombia, Day 11, 31 July 2011 - Nuqui Village (Choco)

We awoke to another humid morning and after breakfast at the lodge it was time to get moving - we had a busy day of travelling ahead and our boat was already waiting. With luggage packed in bin bags again we made our way out along the large inlet but instead of heading back to Bahia Solano we were flying out of the Choco region from the even smaller airport at the village of Nuqui. The boat trip to Nuqui wasn't without its seabird highlights. We had loads of Brown Boobies, a handful of Blue-footed Boobies and several menacing Magnificent Frigatebirds en-route and as we reached the land near Nuqui Brown Pelican, Little Blue Heron, Snowy Egret, Great White Egret, Striated Heron and a Yellow Warbler. Nuqui village proved to be a real grubby one-horse town which we had the misfortune to have to stay in for several hours due to flight cancellations. In between visits to 2 cafes and the airport waiting area we did manage to winkle out a few birds. Variable Seedeaters, Bananaquits, Lemon-rumped Tanagers and Tropical Kingbirds were common and we also added new birds in the form of Rusty-margined Flycatcher and Grey-breasted Martin plus Barn Swallow, a Yellow-faced Tyrannulet and a distant King Vulture.    

Lemon-rumped Tanager

Nuqui airport!


Nuqui village

Rusty-margined Flycatcher 

Variable Seedeater

Our plane out of Nuqui 

The remainder of the day was spent flying from Nuqui to Medellin, then a dash in Diana's minibus from one Medellin airport to the other and then a panic that we were going to miss our final flight of the day onto Bogata. Happliy it was delayed due to the same weather that had delayed our flight from Nuqui so we were able to make it back to the capital where we transferred to a rather luxurious hotel for our final night. 

The following day we 'enjoyed' flights back to the UK via Newark, New York. Despite an overnight flight and a therefore missed nights sleep I just about managed to stay awake on the drive back from Heathrow to Norfolk!    

Colombia, Day 10, 30 July 2011 - Parque Nacional Natural Utria (Choco)


Utria lodge

Common Black Hawk


Choco habitat

Paul gets on with it while others complain and dither... 

Choco habitat


Yellow-crowned Night Heron

Great Antshrike


Pacific Antwren

Common Black Hawk

Bay Wren

Yellow-collared Manakin

Double-toothed Kite

Double-toothed Kite

Birding the Choco at Utria

Colombia, Day 9, 29 July 2011 - Parque Nacional Natural Utria (Choco)

Blue and Yellow Macaw

Bahia Solano Airport

Our 'bus' Bahia Solano

Southern Rough-winged Swallow

Tropical Kingbird


El Valle village

Lunch in El Valle!

El Valle

Our boat, El Valle


Isabel and Paul, Choco boat trip El Valle - Utria 

Sergio, Sveta and Vaughan, Choco boat trip El Valle - Utria 

Utria lodge, Choco region

Stripe-billed Aracari

Yours truly, Utria, Choco region

Colombia, Day 7, 27 July 2011 - Reserva Natural de las Aves El Dorado, upper slopes

Santa Marta Parakeet (endemic)

Sierra de Santa Marta

Yellow-billed Cacique

Santa Marta Bush Tyrant (endemic)

Collared Trogon

Birding the Sierra de Santa Marta

Golden-bellied Grosbeak 

Transport Sierra de Santa Marta

local bus Sierra de Santa Marta

Yellow-crowned Whitestart (endemic)

Slaty-throated Whitestart

Paul and Sam, El Dorado Lodge

Colombia, Day 8, 28 July 2011 - Reserva Natural Mamancana & Isla de Salamanca

Roadside Hawk
Chestnut Piculet

Southern Beardless Tyrannulet

Panama Flycatcher

Birding Mamancana

Common Ground Dove

Red-headed Woodpecker

Pearl Kites

Scaled Dove

Breakfast at Mamancana 

Yellow-headed Caracara

Chestnut-winged Chacalaca (endemic)

Magnificent Frigatebird

Large-billed Tern

Large-billed Tern

Yellow-billed Terns

Hudsonian Whimbrel

Roseate Spoonbill

Cocoi Heron

Sapphire-bellied Hummingbird

Pied Water Tyrant

Yellow-chinned Spinetail

Yellow-chinned Spinetail

Isla de Salamanca

Ringed Kingfisher


Pied Puffbird

Ruddy Ground Dove

Russet-throated Puffbird

Wattled Jacana

Groove-billed Ani

Pied Water Tyrant

Baranquilla floods!