YACAMBÚ NATIONAL PARK
VENEZUELA
LARA (Sanare), (Compass)
Lat:00o00´S/00o00´W 14,580ha, 500-2300m, humid and wet premontane and montane forests
Protected/registered status
Best Time for visit (21st-22nd September, 2006)
Birding Site Guide
This national park is accessed from the small town of Sanare. Sanare is reached from Barquisemeto. Buses leave irregularly from this dangerous city. I was told it is dangerous even inside the terminal although I didn't find it too bad. I was told a bus left for Sanare at 6pm but it finally left at 6:30 and took about an hour and a half. Sanare has a hotel charging 30,000B. I found a slightly cheaper Posada for 25,000B. There are a few shops and hot dog stands around and even internet. There is no public transport to the national park. You have to hitch, or hire a taxi. The taxi driver quoted me 20,000. It's about 30 minutes to get there; maybe about 15km. From the plaza follow the signs to El Blanquito. If you are hitching, find the stop after the last junction and try to flag down a car. I got a ride as far as the junction for Caspo. Here the forest starts and good birding. Just after here in the morning I saw a flock of Blood-eared Parakeets. A little further on is a sign reading 'La Cima'. Here is an only derelict building where I saw Long-tailed sylph feeding on flowers in the garden. The run goes up and down a couple of times, and after the last pass look out for a small grass-covered lay-by on a right turn just before a hairpin left turn. The forest there (around 1,900m) supposedly has Great Antpitta although I was unable to find them. Further down at 1,800m I had Band-tailed Guan, at 1,740m Scaled Fruiteater in a mixed flock and 1,620m Red-headed Barbet. The road continues down and there is a turning for A small lake called 'El Blanquito. Here I had Caribbean Coot and Rusty-flanked Crake. The latter is responsive to Playback. I had good views by cutting down to the lakes far edge from the entrance road and using playback at a little boggy area behind the long grass. I saw 101 species including 13 lifers.
Species seen
- Little Tinamou Crypturellus soui
- Least Grebe Tachybaptus dominicus
- Neotropic Cormorant Phalacrocorax brasilianus Photographed
- Cattle Egret Bubulcus ibis
- Black Vulture Coragyps atratus
- Turkey Vulture Cathartes aura
- Yellow-headed Caracara Milvago chimachima Photographed
- Rufous-vented Chachalaca Ortalis ruficauda
- Band-tailed Guan Penelope argyrotis Photographed
- Rusty-flanked Crake Laterallus levraudi Endemic Endangered
- Caribbean Coot Fulica caribaea Near-threatened Photographed Recorded
- Southern Lapwing Vanellus chilensis
- Ruddy Pigeon Patagioenas subvinacea
- Ruddy Ground-Dove Columbina talpacoti
- Scaled Dove Columbina squammata
- White-tipped Dove Leptotila verreauxi
- Scarlet-fronted Parakeet Aratinga wagleri Photographed Recorded
- Red(Blood)-eared Parakeet Pyrrhura hoematotis Endemic
- Smooth-billed Ani Crotophaga ani
- Chestnut-collared Swift Streptoprocne rutila Possibly seen
- Gray-rumped Swift Chaetura cinereiventris
- Green-tailed Emerald Chlorostilbon alice Endemic Photographed
- Violet-crowned Woodnymph Thalurania colombica
- Speckled Hummingbird Adelomyia melanogenys
- Booted Racket-tail Ocreatus underwoodii Heard only
- Long-tailed Sylph Aglaiocercus kingi
- Rufous-shafted Woodstar Chaetocercus jourdanii Photographed Recorded
- Collared Trogon Trogon collaris
- Masked Trogon Trogon personatus Photographed
- Red-headed Barbet Eubucco bourcierii
- Scaled Piculet Picumnus squamulatus
- Golden-olive Woodpecker Piculus rubiginosus
- Stripe-breasted Spinetail Synallaxis cinnamomea Possibly seen
- Crested Spinetail Cranioleuca subcristata
- Pearled Treerunner Margarornis squamiger
- Montane Foliage-gleaner Anabacerthia striaticollis
- Buff-fronted Foliage-gleaner Philydor rufus Photographed
- Plain-brown Woodcreeper Dendrocincla fuliginosa Photographed Recorded
- Streak-headed Woodcreeper Lepidocolaptes souleyetii
- Plain Antvireo Dysithamnus mentalis
- Immaculate Antbird Myrmeciza immaculata Photographed Recorded
- (Merida Tapaculo) (Scytalopus meridanus) Endemic Recorded
- Scaled Fruiteater Ampelioides tschudii
- Golden-faced Tyrannulet Zimmerius chrysops
- Scale-crested Pygmy-Tyrant Lophotriccus pileatus Heard only Recorded
- Cinnamon Flycatcher Pyrrhomyias cinnamomea
- Smoke-colored Pewee Contopus fumigatus
- Black Phoebe Sayornis nigricans
- Cattle Tyrant Machetornis rixosus
- Great Kiskadee Pitangus sulphuratus
- Rusty-margined Flycatcher Myiozetetes cayanensis
- Social Flycatcher Myiozetetes similis
- Golden-crowned Flycatcher Myiodynastes chrysocephalus
- Variegated Flycatcher Empidonomus varius
- Tropical Kingbird Tyrannus melancholicus
- Chestnut-crowned Becard Pachyramphus castaneus
- Blue-and-white Swallow Notiochelidon cyanoleuca
- Barn Swallow Hirundo rustica
- Black-capped Donacobius Donacobius atricapilla
- House Wren Troglodytes aedon
- Gray-breasted Wood-Wren Henicorhina leucophrys
- Scaly-breasted Wren Microcerculus marginatus Possibly heard
- Tropical Mockingbird Mimus gilvus
- Andean Solitaire Myadestes ralloides Heard only
- Yellow-legged Thrush Platycichla flavipes
- Black-billed Thrush Turdus ignobilis
- Brown-capped Vireo Vireo leucophrys
- Blackburnian Warbler Dendroica fusca
- Black-and-white Warbler Mniotilta varia Photographed
- American Redstart Setophaga ruticilla
- Slate-throated Redstart Myioborus miniatus
- Three-striped Warbler Basileuterus tristriatus
- Bananaquit Coereba flaveola
- Common Bush-Tanager Chlorospingus ophthalmicus
- Fulvous-headed Tanager Thlypopsis fulviceps
- Guira Tanager Hemithraupis guira
- White-lined Tanager Tachyphonus rufus
- Silver-beaked Tanager Ramphocelus carbo
- Blue-gray Tanager Thraupis episcopus
- Golden Tanager Tangara arthus Photographed
- Saffron-crowned Tanager Tangara xanthocephala
- Speckled Tanager Tangara guttata
- Bay-headed Tanager Tangara gyrola
- Burnished-buff Tanager Tangara cayana
- Blue-necked Tanager Tangara cyanicollis
- Black-capped Tanager Tangara heinei
- Black-headed Tanager Tangara cyanoptera
- Blue-black Grassquit Volatinia jacarina
- Yellow-bellied Seedeater Sporophila nigricollis
- Saffron Finch Sicalis flaveola Seen in Sanare
- Ochre-breasted Brush-Finch Atlapetes semirufus Possibly seen
- Chestnut-capped Brush-Finch Buarremon brunneinucha
- Rufous-collared Sparrow Zonotrichia capensis
- Streaked Saltator Saltator striatipectus
- Buff-throated Saltator Saltator maximus
- Golden-bellied Grosbeak Pheucticus chrysogaster
- Carib Grackle Quiscalus lugubris
- Yellow-backed Oriole Icterus chrysater Recorded
- Russet-backed Oropendola Psarocolius angustifrons Photographed Recorded
- Oriole Blackbird Gymnomystax mexicanus Photographed
- Yellow-bellied Siskin Carduelis xanthogastra
Other Fauna
A total of -- species of mammals.
There are -- recorded species of amphibians and reptiles.
Flora
Author: Charles Hesse
www.birdingsiteguide.com