Pululahua Geobotanical Reserve - Birding Inside a Volcano

The Pululahua Geobotanical Reserve is our home and provides excellent birding for those looking for birds in the Inter-Andean valleys.  In the past, these valleys where filled with forest but the heavy population density have destroyed them since the Spanish arrived.  The Puluahua Reserve is home of a small piece of that forest that disappeared long ago.  There are many birds found in this area that are difficult to find elsewhere but specifically our Rusty-breasted Antpitta steals the show.  This special bird can be found in southern Ecuador and only in the Pululahua Volcano on the northern side of Ecuador.  Some people have commented that this bird needs to be reclassified since it appears to be different of the other Antpittas found in Bolivia, Colombia, Peru, and Venezuela.  Here are a few birds found during this years birding tours:

The Rusty-breasted Antpitta - Grallaricula ferrugineipectus

The Rufous-chested Tanager - Tlypopses ornata

The Golden-crowned Tanager - Iridosornis rufivertex
























The Cinereus Conebill - Conirostrum cinereum

The Plushcap - Catamblyrhynchus diadema
























The Red-headed Cotinga - Ampelion rubrocristatus

And here is an amazing picture of FIGHT-IN-FLIGHT of two visitors the Variable Hawk and the Caranculated Caracara:

The altitude variation in the reserve range from 1800 meters to 3200 meters so there is a large bird list to work with and many places within the reserve have different birds.