Birding in Colombia #11: In the Jungle

Strong-billed Woodcreeper

After reuniting with Hernan and departing Pueblo Rica, we had a two-hour drive south and then east to the outskirts of Pereira where we would be staying the night for our visit the next day to Otún Quimbaya Flora and Fauna Sanctuary and Parque Regional Ucumari.

We made a stop at bridge spanning the Otún River, hoping to find some Torrent Ducks and White-capped Dippers. We did not succeed, but we did encounter a couple of old friends …

Blue-headed Parrots

Broad-winged Hawk

Black-billed Thrush

Rusty-margined Flycatcher

The River was beautiful, rushing past us as it sliced through thick jungle. 

One side of the bridge ...

... and the other

It was hard to imagine that we could even find ducks there. See it here.

We stayed at the small Kumanday Lodge in the small town of La Florida ("Florida," referring to flowers, is a common name in Colombia).

Our accommodations; Photo: Kumanday Lodge

Heather and I were assigned to rooms in a second “cabin” that had a room with bath (Heather) and a room without a bath next to a bath (me) separated by a large kitchen/dining area.

Our private cabin

Bob, Enid, Alejandro and Hernan were in the main lodge. I never saw their rooms. But, the hotel was lovely. And, the dinner, served by the lodge’s hostess and chef, was delicious.

They also run a restaurant across the parking lot and had to carry everything from that building to ours (I am not sure why we didn’t eat there), but it was a fabulous dinner. I didn't take photos.

The lodge has bird feeders onsite, but we weren’t there during much daylight and the birds we saw were ones we had seen before.

Blue-gray Tanager and Thick-billed Euphonia

We got up early the next morning and made another stop on the Otún and this time we were successful with both our targets. I even got photos, despite it being rather dark and misty.

We saw a pair of Torrent Ducks moving from boulder to boulder. Although we saw them briefly in the water, most of the time was on the rocks.

The male is gray, black and white; the female is shades of rufous

A resident in the Andes, Torrent Ducks nest in small waterside caves and other sheltered spots by fast-flowing mountain rivers, usually above 4,900 feet. They are powerful swimmers and divers even in white water and can climb remarkably well over slippery boulders.

But, they seldom fly more than short distances

I wish I could have gotten video of them fighting the current. But, do not fear, I found one on YouTube. 

In addition to the very cool Torrent Ducks was a white (probably domestic) Muscovy Duck just standing on a boulder. Yearning to be a much more sought-after Torrent Duck? Landed on a boulder and couldn’t figure out how to get off? Just enjoying a pretty morning? Who knows?

Muscovy Duck trying to be something else

It got its moment of fame with us ...

Our second target bird at the bridge was closer, but more secretive, choosing to remain in the shadows rather than the rising sun. The White-capped Dipper is semi-aquatic, living and feeding on fast-flowing mountain streams with clear water and, often, rocky outcrops or cliffs. 

White-capped Dipper contemplating a jump

Many of its waterways flow through forest, but at higher elevations the rivers it chooses flow through more open landscapes.

Found throughout the Andes in Colombia, White-capped Dippers generally live between1,600 and 13,100 feet. They forage singly or in pairs along the edges of streams for aquatic invertebrates (mainly fly larvae), sometimes wading or swimming and sometimes walking on submerged rocks. 

They do not dive like other Dippers but dip their heads underwater to capture prey

We also met a local resident just cruising by ...

We saw lots of dogs, but very few cats

Otún Quimbaya and Parque Regional Ucumari

Our next adventure had us walking along a gravel/dirt road through the jungle of Otún Quimbaya Santuario de Fauna y Flora (Flora and Fauna Sanctuary) up to the edges of Parque Regional Ucumari. 

Birding the Sanctuary and Parque; Photo: Heather

I honestly couldn’t tell you where one started and another ended. No matter; it’s all the same habitat.

The two areas are along a straight, shaded roadway that ends at a trailhead

Otún Quimbaya is a 1,200-acre protected nature reserve about 14 miles east of Pereira, which is a relatively good-sized town (population 488,000).

The proximity to town means that there are local buses that travel the road. In many communities in Colombia, the chiva buses are paid for and managed by community groups rather than the local government. 

That’s what we saw as we walked the track: coming ...

... and going

Otún Quimbaya is a renowned eco-tourism destination, famous for its high-altitude sub-Andean forests, rich biodiversity and outstanding birds. 

The sub-Andean jungles are filled with oaks, wax palms and bromeliads

The jungle hosts about 300 species of birds, lots of butterflies and (allegedly, we didn’t see or hear any) Howler Monkeys and Tapirs.

These statues were a tease

The 9,850-acre Parque Regional Ucumari also has an abundance of flora and fauna representative of the Andean rainforest. 

Dense foliage is tricky for birds (they like it, birders don't)

This includes a variety of bromeliads, mosses, lichens, fungi and herbaceous plants that thrive there because of the high humidity, creating a cloud forest and serving as a key factor in regulating water resources.

Water, water everywhere

The Parque follows along the Otún River. The altitude here was between 5,700 and 7,500 and it was warmer and more humid than we had been experiencing.

The foggy morning gave way to sun

People go to Otún Quimbaya and Ucumari to see the rare and endemic Cauca Guan, the endemic Multicolored Tanager and the Red-ruffed Fruitcrow and Chestnut-breasted Wren. We were successful on three of the four and I got photos of two.

Cauca Guan in a tree

The Cauca Guan, which we saw several times flying from one side of the jungle to the other over our heads and sitting high in the trees, was, at one time, declared extinct. 

Us, joining the relatively small group of people who have seen them

But, small surviving populations have since been found in Cauca, Valle del Cauca, Quindío and Risaralda. 

They were very active here

Cauca Guans are still highly threatened because of isolation of the species into small populations split apart by deforestation and habitat fragmentation and from hunting and poaching.

Right now, the Otún Quimbaya Cauca Guan is considered to be stabilized

These chunky birds live between 3,000 and 8,000 feet above sea level in humid primary and secondary forest, forest edges and tree plantations. 

The jungle provides so much nourishment

They forage for food in shrubs and trees, typically between six and 65 feet above the surface, often in family groups ranging from three to 30 individuals and sometimes in mixed flocks with Sickle-winged Guans, Red-ruffed Fruitcrows, Andean Cocks-of-the-Rock, Inca Jays, Crimson-rumped Toucanets and Emerald Toucanets. 

Cauca Guans primarily dine on fruit and, to a lesser degree, on leaves and flowers

Generalists, they have been known to eat 89 species of fruit, 11 species of flowers, 11 species of leaves and invertebrate prey, including Army ants.

An impressive bird

The Multicolored Tanager is a gorgeous target bird and I was (briefly) sad to miss getting a photo. But, Alejandro told us not to worry, we would have another chance.

Spoiler alert! We did

We never saw the Chestnut-breasted Wren, but I think we heard it. To tell you the truth, I had trouble seeing all the Wrens we encountered.

We saw lots of brief glimpses of Red-ruffed Fruitcrows as they darted through the canopy above us.

Red-ruffed Fruitcrow

The most amazing thing about them was the sound! Rather than a melodic tune, the male's song consists of a striking, hollow "booming" or "bell-like" sound sometimes described as a low-frequency "womp" or "clonk." I thought it sounded like someone blowing across the top of a bottle. You can hear recordings here.

You feel it as much as you hear it as it creates a low rumble through the forest. Males utter these booms, sometimes accompanied by lower grunts and whistles, to defend territory and attract females during the breeding season. The song carries for long distances through dense forest vegetation.

A better look; Photo: eBird

A large Cotinga, the Red-ruffed Fruitcrow is primarily found in humid highland forests, but is also found in forest borders, Amazon lowlands and in slightly drier forest. Cool sighting.

I picked up photos of a number of lifers, including three Woodcreepers, a variety of generally brownish birds that are from five to 14 inches long and maintain an upright vertical posture, supported by their specialized stiff tails. They feed mainly on insects taken from tree trunks. 

Montane Woodcreeper

Strong-billed Woodcreeper

Olive-backed Woodcreeper

They can be difficult to identify because there are more than 50 species that look so much alike. Bill shape, spots, streaks and calls are useful ID aids.

Most of my lifers were just brief glimpses with no photos: Rusty-winged Barbtail; Black-banded Woodcreeper; Variegated and Marble-faced Bristle Tyrants; Rufous-breasted and Pale-edged Flycatchers; Black-capped and Fawn-breasted Tanagers and a Tropical Parula (I got one later).

In one of the open areas along the road, we saw a couple of Southern Lapwings with a new chick …

Just a tiny thing

And, another Black Phoebe

I saw another 18 species that I didn’t photograph, but none are really worth discussing here. And, this time, I didn’t miss any lifers!!!

As one would expect for a warm, moist forest, we had a number of insect sightings ... 

Familiar Bluet Damselflies ...

... and their host, Bob

Green Scarab Beetle

Riffle Bugs walking on water

Medora Mimic White Butterfly (Female)

I particularly liked the Multicolored Monkey Grasshopper, which was similar to the “Spiderman Grasshopper” I showed you in an earlier blog. 

Many of the 200 species of Monkey Grasshoppers are wingless

Sometimes called Monkeyhoppers or Matchstick Grasshoppers, they have thin legs, heads held at an angle, three segmented tarsi and a short antenna with a knob at the tip. Most species inhabit the tropics, with a greater diversity in the Neotropics. 

On a small fern-covered cliff-side seep, we saw a large white Aperostoma Snail. 

It was about two inches long

Found primarily in humid tropical forests across Central and South America, these unique gastropods are known for having an "operculum," a hard, trapdoor-like structure used to seal their shells for protection. 

You can see the trapdoor in the left photo

Despite being land-dwellers, Aperostoma Snails have retained gills from their sea-faring ancestors. Their eyes are at the base of their tentacles rather than on the tips like most snails.

After lunch back at the lodge, we headed off to our next destinations, spending the night in an actual hotel in an actual town. 

The historic Hotel Guadalajara in Buga

The hotel featured traditional Spanish architecture, beautiful grounds and a swimming pool (which we had no time for). It is close to the famous Basilica of the Lord of Miracles in Buga (we didn’t do that, either).

The on-site restaurant was lovely and the shower was hot! We missed out on the full-service spa, hair salon, sauna, steam room and fitness center. You can’t squeeze those things in when you arrive around dinner time and leave at sun-up. 

Next, we're going to a lake

Tour dates: March 7-28, 2026