Crimson Passion Flower

Rufescent Tiger-Heron Tigrisoma lineatum Photo by David Tipling The Rufescent Tiger-Heron is one of several beautiful and iconic herons of the Neotropics.  At 68 cm tall, this fairly large heron has a bittern-like appearance, with a wide neck, heavy bill and short stubby tail.  It is distinguished from the other species of tiger-herons by its rich rufous-chestnut head and neck with very fine barring near the body and a conspicuous white stripe from the throat to belly, gray-brown back and wings with fine vermiculations, buffy-brown belly and vent, and barred white-and-black flanks.  Males and females are not sexually dimorphic.  Immatures are heavily barred with black and buff showing a “checkerboard pattern”, especially on the lower neck, back and wings.  Immature Rufescent Tiger-Herons and immature Fasciated Tiger-Herons, their close relative, are almost identical, and habitat is the best way to distinguish the young birds (the latter is more common along moving streams in the foothills). Adult plumage is attained at 4 or 5 years of age. The Rufescent Tiger-Heron is generally solitary and inconspicuous.  It spends most of its time staying very still and is a patient predator—standing and waiting until an unsuspecting prey comes close when it will lash out its long neck and grab its prey with its powerful, spear-like bill.  Its prey consists of aquatic animals—fish, crustaceans, arthropods—and it is often seen catching its favorite food, freshwater eels.  It gives a low hooting call, a pair of notes, often at night. Rufescent Tiger-Herons are found in forested streams, lake edges and wetlands such as ponds, swamps and marshes.  They are found in the lowlands up to 550 m elevation.  The Rufescent Tiger-Heron ranges from Honduras to northern Argentina, and in Panama is found along the entire Caribbean Slope as well as the Pacific Slope in eastern Panama.  Although

Shining Honeycreeper Cyanerpes lucidus Photo by Rafael Lau The Shining Honeycreeper is a vibrant member of the tanager family. It is a small (10 cm), plump honeycreeper with a long, thin decurved bill and short tail. This spunky little bird lives up to its name—males are purplish-blue with black throat and chest patch, black wings and vibrant yellow legs with starkly contrasting black toe nails. Females are equally beautiful, green with a distinct blue malar stripe and blue streaking on the breast, and a buffy throat. Shining Honeycreepers live in the upper levels of the forest and forest canopy. They feed on fruits, insects and nectar. They glean arthropods from vines and twigs, and will also sally for flying insects and probe in dead leaves for hiding insects. They typically forage in pairs or small groups, and often associate with mixed flocks of tanagers and other fruit and insect eating birds. They can be fairly aggressive, and often displace the larger Red-legged Honeycreeper from food sources. They will also come to hummingbird feeders for nectar. When it comes time for breeding, the female constructs a shallow, thin cup nest of fibers, attached at the rim to slender twigs. She lays 2 eggs, rather dark in color; eggs can often be seen through the thin nest design. The female incubates the eggs for 12-13 days. Nestlings are fed by both male and female, a diet predominantly of insects; however, older nestlings are fed berries and fruits as well. Young fledge at 13-14 days of age. The Shining Honeycreeper ranges from southeastern Mexico to northwestern Colombia. In Panama, this species is fairly common in the foothills up to 1600 meters on the Caribbean slope, and also along the Pacific slope from the Canal area eastward. They are common at feeders in Cerro

Barred Puffbird Nystalus radiatus Photo by Uwe Speck Puffbirds are well-named for their puffy appearance. As relatives of kingfishers, they have big heads, short necks, large bodies, large bills for catching insects and relatively short, thin tails. Unlike most of Panama’s more common puffbirds that are primarily black and white, the Barred Puffbird is rich shades of ochre—darker on back and creamier below, with narrow black barring overall, a broad buff collar, greenish-gray bill and yellow eye. Like other puffbirds, they sit in an upright posture and remain motionless for long periods of time. They are similar in appearance and coloration to the female Fasciated Antshrike, but Barred Puffbirds are larger, paler and perch vertically. Barred Puffbirds live in the lower and middle levels of forest, open woodland, secondary growth, forest edge and adjacent clearings with trees. They sit motionless, often in pairs, and are most often first detected by their distinctive call, a long, drawn-out “wolf whistle.” They can be quite predatory, feeding on large insects, small lizards and frogs, and even other birds. Like kingfishers, motmots and some other puffbirds, the Barred Puffbird nests in a burrow in a bank. The nesthole is a long, narrow tunnel, 1 m in length, in an exposed bank, but often hidden behind hanging vegetation. The entrance hole is 7 cm in diameter. At the end of the tunnel is the nest chamber, 16 cm in diameter and lined with a bed of dead leaves. This style of nest is unique to Nystalus puffbirds; the other Notharchus (black and white) puffbirds nest in arboreal termite nests. Little is known otherwise about the breeding habits of the Barred Puffbird. The Barred Puffbird is fairly range-restricted and uncommon, and is only found from central Panama to western Ecuador, primarily in the lowlands up to

Dot-winged Antwren Microrhopias quixensis Photo by David Tipling This warbler-like, charismatic antwren is one of the most energetic birds in the rainforest! The Dot-winged Antwren is one of the most widespread and well-known members of the antbird family. Almost always found in pairs or small groups, males and females are very distinct from each other—males are jet black with a wide white wing bar and conspicuous white spots on the wing coverts. Females have the same white wing markings, but have dark gray to black upperparts and bright chestnut underparts. Both male and female have a long, tapered tail with white spots on the tips, which they often flare when foraging. Young birds are brown above and cinnamon below. The Dot-winged Antwren is the only member of the genus Microrhopias, and there are 10 recognized subspecies, differing widely in plumage, especially the females. Two subspecies are found in Panama. Seemingly always active, Dot-winged Antwrens are frequently found in mixed feeding flocks in Neotropical forests, and often associate with White-flanked and Checker-throated antwrens. They are found in the middle levels of humid forest and woodlands, and also like to forage in vine tangles and dense growth, where they glean small insects and arthropods from the foliage. They prefer areas of secondary growth, and are rarely found in primary forest. They can also be found foraging at forest edge. Dot-winged Antwrens are quite vocal; their song is a series of sharp notes that ascend in pitch then descend more rapidly. Like some other antbirds, when startled or excited, they flare a large, bright white patch on their back as a display of aggression, which could also be done during courtship display. In Panama, Dot-winged Antwrens breed from February to July. The female lays two white eggs with brown spotting. Like many other

Yellow-rumped Cacique Cacicus cela Photo by David Tipling The Yellow-rumped Cacique is a very attractive and gregarious bird—at nearly a foot in length, it is a large member of the blackbird family. Like other caciques, it has mainly black plumage and a large, pale bill; it shares the Scarlet-rumped Cacique's pale blue eyes. It has a bright yellow lower back, rump and vent, with yellow “epaulets” or shoulder patches. Males and females have similar plumage, although the male’s plumage is brighter and the male has a short, thin crest. There is a pronounced size difference between males and females—males are significantly larger than females. Juveniles have dark eyes and a brown bill base. Yellow-rumped Caciques can be found in the middle and upper levels of forest, woodlands and open areas with large trees, riversides and along lakes and fields. They are a lowland species, found from sea level to 700 meters. They are very social and garrulous birds; they forage in groups and nest in colonies, often with closely-related oropendolas (especially Chestnut-headed Oropendolas). Yellow-rumped Caciques feed on insects and fruit, also nectar and seeds. They are often detected by their calls, giving a wide variety of vocalizations including liquid whistling, burbling calls, churrs, squeaks and ear-piercing sharp notes. On occasion, they will even mimic other birds. Colonies share 5-7 song dialects which vary colony to colony. Their vocalizations also vary geographically. Males are territorial and counter-sing to establish dominance. Read more about the Yellow-rumped Cacique’s complex vocalizations and interesting vocal facts here. The Yellow-rumped Cacique has three recognized subspecies. Yellow-rumped Caciques are polygynous, meaning males mate with multiple females; thus, females are responsible for building the nest, incubation and caring for young and males take no role in any aspect of parental care. Yellow-rumped Caciques make complex, hanging woven nests,

Royal Flycatcher Onychorhynchus coronatus Photo by Rafael Lau This well-named, medium-sized forest flycatcher is a most-wanted bird on many of our guests' lists! It is known for its spectacular long, fanned, red and blue crest, which is almost always held down, giving the Royal Flycatcher a distinct hammerhead appearance. It is brown overall with a bright buffy, long tail, and has small buff spots on the wings. It has a long bill with conspicuous rictal bristles. With its big size and unusual crest, the Royal Flycatcher is an unmistakable bird. The Royal Flycatcher is inconspicuous and usually solitary, and can be found in the forest understory, often near streams. It can also be found in mature secondary growth and forest edges. It does not join mixed feeding flocks. It is overall relatively quiet, but occasionally announces its presence by giving an abrupt, sharp and clear two-note call, kwee-up! Its song is a series of high, sharp notes, often followed by a series of descending whistles. It forages in the understory of the forest for ticks, leafhoppers, small cicadas, butterflies, dragonflies and grasshoppers, capturing its prey by sallying flights from a perch. It perches upright with its tail vertical, and spends more time perched and visually searching for prey than sallying out to catch insects. The Royal Flycatcher is best known for its incredibly ornate crest, which is rarely seen under natural conditions. When it displays, it raises and extends its crest, fanning it laterally, and rhythmically and slowly twists its head from side to side, opening and closing its bill. This is most often seen in the hand in mist net captures, but has been observed in the wild when preening, in courtship displays, after mating and as a territorial display. Both males and females have the elaborate crest, but