CARPISH TUNNEL
PERU
HUANUCO (Compass)
Lat:00o00´S/00o00´W ha topography msl
Protected/registered status
Best Time for visit (3rd June, 2006)
Birding Site Guide
This great birding site is very easily reached from Huanuco, a large city with good facilities. Take one of the many colectivos leaving for Tingo Maria. They will try and charge you the full fare of 15s but you should only pay 6-7s. The ride takes about 50 minutes. Get off before the tunnel and explore some of the forest nearby. There is a open area on the left here with a nice view over the forest. From here you can also get down a narrow trail to a little stream and beyond. Further down the road, there is a right bend at a small stream. This was mentioned in Valqui, but the trail along the stream is overgrown and the first part has been used as a toilet by motorists. By far the best area around here was a trail starting on the left just before tunnel. This goes up into a open grassy slope full of Black-and-white Seedeaters. Stick to the right of this area and follow the trail up. As you reach the trees, there is a fork. The right goes further up to another fork, both ways leading up to 2 large electricity pylons. After exploring these, take the first left fork which goes on for a long way through good scrub and secondary forest crawling with birds. If you continue along here, you finally get to a house after which the trail curves to the right and goes along to the other side of the tunnel. At this curve, there is also a trail leading straight on which I didn't go down but looks like it might lead through good habitat. I saw 35 species including 4 lifers.
Species seen
- Andean Guan Penelope montagnii
- Violet-throated Starfrontlet Coeligena violifer
- Amethyst-throated Sunangel Heliangelus amethysticollis
- Tyrian Metaltail Metallura tyrianthina
- Rufous Spinetail Synallaxis unirufa
- Azara's Spinetail Synallaxis azarae Heard only
- Pearled Treerunner Margarornis squamiger
- Streaked Tuftedcheek Pseudocolaptes boissonneautii
- White-throated Tyrannulet Mecocerculus leucophrys
- Sulphur-bellied Tyrannulet Mecocerculus minor
- White-banded Tyrannulet Mecocerculus stictopterus
- Ochraceous-breasted Flycatcher Myiophobus ochraceiventris
- Cinnamon Flycatcher Pyrrhomyias cinnamomea
- Peruvian Chat-Tyrant Ochthoeca spodionota Endemic
- Rufous-webbed Tyrant Polioxolmis rufipennis
- Barred Becard Pachyramphus versicolor
- Blue-and-white Swallow Notiochelidon cyanoleuca
- Andean Solitaire Myadestes ralloides Heard only
- White-eared Solitaire Entomodestes leucotis Heard only
- Great Thrush Turdus fuscater
- Spectacled Redstart Myioborus melanocephalus
- Citrine Warbler Basileuterus luteoviridis
- Blue-backed Conebill Conirostrum sitticolor
- Grass-green Tanager Chlorornis riefferii
- Superciliaried Hemispingus Hemispingus superciliaris
- Blue-capped Tanager Thraupis cyanocephala
- Lacrimose Mountain-Tanager Anisognathus lacrymosus
- Yellow-scarfed Tanager Iridosornis reinhardti Endemic
- Chestnut-bellied Mountain-Tanager Delothraupis castaneoventris
- Blue-and-black Tanager Tangara vassorii
- White-browed Hemispingus Hemispingus auricularis Endemic
- Black-and-white Seedeater Sporophila luctuosa
- Moustached Flowerpiercer Diglossa mystacalis
- Masked Flowerpiercer Diglossopis cyanea
- Slaty Brush-Finch Atlapetes schistaceus
Other Fauna
A total of -- species of mammals.
There are -- recorded species of amphibians and reptiles.
Flora
Author: Charles Hesse
www.birdingsiteguide.com
