Andean Condor Visits Pululahua

Our home, The Pululahua Geobotanical Reserve, has changed our life and our ways of living. We have become nature lovers, ecologists, birders, lodge owners, and every day we discover something new. We have been surprised with the most beautiful flowers, orchids, birds, mammals, and people. As a matter of fact my first date with my wife was at the edge of this volcano near the mirador, and on our second date we had a picnic inside the caldera. Now we have a wonderful life inside this volcano and feel very lucky and blessed by the beauty that surrounds us.

Yesterday we had a new blessing with the visit of the Andean Condor and we manage to see it and photograph it from our backyard. This inspired me to begin this new blog which is exclusively dedicated to birds so we can present the beauty of Pululahua and Ecuador.

This female showed up at around 10:30 am from the north, our employee Victor spot it and called us to see a large volture with white wings!

This large vulture with white wings flew from the north and swooped down inside crater untill it reach El Chivo (shown in the background).

Her majestic wings spread open as to catch as much air as posible for the next beat.

It circled low and beat her wings twice with great force to pickup some altitude.

It passed in front of us continuing her cicle to gain altitude.

It circled again and again infront of El Chivo lava dome, each time climbing higher.

Once it reached certain height she stoped beating her wings and continued circling around a thermal current to gain great altitude.  The condor rose above us and left toward the south where it dissapeared on its way to bless someone else.
My first photos started at 10:30 am and my last photo was taken at 10:37 am.  These seven breath-taken minutes marked my first encounter with a condor in flight.