CORANI & LIST (KM72 Villa Tunari & Cochabamba)
BOLIVIA
COCHABAMBA (Compass)
Lat:00o00´S/00o00´W ha topography msl
Protected/registered status
Best Time for visit (5th-6th January, 2006)
Birding Site Guide
This spot on the new highway between Cochabamba to Villa Tunari is easily reached by public transport. One can either take a Villa Tunari bus from Oquenda and 9 de Abril in Cochabamba (2 hours, Bs12) or a communal taxi to Colomi and another to Corani Pampa from there (an hour and a half, Bs 6 + 6). The advantage is that taxis leave earlier (eg. 5am) rather than than 7am for the bus. The bus driver dropped me at the turn-off for the Corani Hydroelectric dam at km 77.4. This road actually turned out to have good birding (Plushcap, Scarlet-bellied Mountain-Tanager and Rufous-breasted Chat-Tyrant) but I was turned back by road-workers after a while. The walk back along the main road also had good birds including Andean Guans perching near the road, Black-and-blue Tanager and Pearled Treerunner. There are several trails running from this stretch of road which may be worth exploring. The best spot to get off though is at the unmarked km72. There is a turn (on the left coming from Cochabamba) downhill to Tablas Montes and a big sign here reading 'Locoto'. The track winds downhill from here and had many good birds including Olivaceous Siskin, Bolivian Tyrannulet, Barred Fruiteater and Blue-winged Mountain Tanager. The best place though is a inconspicuous track leading from the other side of the road about 50m back towards Cochabamba. This leads to a dead end finally but has amazing birding. Birds seen here included Black-throated Thistletail, 4 species of flowerpiercer, Long-tailed Sylph, Collared Inca, Black-hooded Sunbeam, Light-crowned Spinetail, Yellow-billed Cacique and Stripe-headed Woodquail heard. This area is firly high altitude and can have a lot of rain and mist. I saw 45 species including 34 lifers.
Species seen
- Roadside Hawk Buteo magnirostris
- Andean Guan Penelope montagnii Possible seen
- Stripe-faced Wood-Quail Odontophorus balliviani Heard
- Picui Ground-Dove Columbina picui Photographed
- Scaly-naped Parrot Amazona mercenaria
- Black-hooded Sunbeam Aglaeactis pamela Endemic Photographed
- Collared Inca Coeligena sp Possible seen
- Tyrian Metaltail Metallura tyrianthina
- Long-tailed Sylph Aglaiocercus kingi Photographed
- Golden-olive Woodpecker Piculus rubiginosus Possible seen
- Crimson-mantled Woodpecker Piculus rivolii
- Azara's Spinetail Synallaxis azarae Possible seen
- Light-crowned Spinetail Cranioleuca albiceps
- Black-throated Thistletail Schizoeaca harterti Endemic
- Pearled Treerunner Margarornis squamiger Photographed
- Undulated Antpitta Grallaria squamigera Heard
- Rufous-faced Antpitta Grallaria erythrotis Endemic Heard
- Barred Fruiteater Pipreola arcuata
- White-crested Elaenia Elaenia albiceps
- Bolivian Tyrannulet Zimmerius bolivianus
- Rufous-breasted Chat-Tyrant Ochthoeca rufipectoralis Photographed
- Blue-and-white Swallow Notiochelidon cyanoleuca
- Mountain Wren Troglodytes solstitialis
- Great Thrush Turdus fuscater Photographed
- Glossy-black Thrush Turdus serranus
- Spectacled Redstart Myioborus melanocephalus Photographed
- Pale-legged Warbler Basileuterus signatus Possible seen
- Citrine Warbler Basileuterus luteoviridis
- Common Bush-Tanager Chlorospingus ophthalmicus
- Rust-and-yellow Tanager Thlypopsis ruficeps
- Slaty Tanager Creurgops dentata Possible seen
- Blue-capped Tanager Thraupis cyanocephala
- Scarlet-bellied Mountain-Tanager Anisognathus igniventris Photographed
- Blue-winged Mountain-Tanager Anisognathus somptuosus
- Fawn-breasted Tanager Pipraeidea melanonota
- Blue-and-black Tanager Tangara vassorii
- Plush-capped Finch Catamblyrhynchus diadema
- Rusty Flowerpiercer Diglossa sittoides
- Gray-bellied Flowerpiercer Diglossa carbonaria Endemic
- Bluish Flowerpiercer Diglossopis caerulescens Possible seen
- Masked Flowerpiercer Diglossopis cyanea
- Bolivian Brush-Finch Atlapetes rufinucha Endemic
- Rufous-collared Sparrow Zonotrichia capensis
- Yellow-billed Cacique Amblycercus holosericeus
- Olivaceous Siskin Carduelis olivacea
Other Fauna
A total of -- species of mammals.
There are -- recorded species of amphibians and reptiles.
Flora
Author: Charles Hesse
www.birdingsiteguide.com