More
Birds of the Tambopata Colpa
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locks of macaws
and other parrots are in constant activity around the Colpa all morning.
Groups will settle on one or two ridges and work it for awhile. Others
will join and there will be a flurry of regrouping. Scuffles break out
over a prime spot and the whole cliff will clear of birds occasionally
like an alarm going off.
rom across the river
you can appreciate the full scope of the feeding display. In the picture
above, Blue and Gold, Scarlet and Greenwing macaws take to the air as
a group and circle the area before landing again. In the picture to the
right, a large group of macaws works a ridge of the cliff.
Predators,
such as Roadside hawks, lurk in the area, so the birds are constantly
on the lookout for danger. Sentry birds in the trees above call out a
warning to the flocks below on the cliff.
Most of the birds have left the clay lick by late morning
and on rainy days they usually don't come at all.
he
blinds at the base of the cliff offer an up close and intimate view of
the colpa activity. The are built of palm fronds and are only large enough
for you to sit or kneel in. You enter them before sunrise, then wait in
the rising heat for the birds to come. But it's well worth the discomfort.
You are surrounded by the sound and sight of the flocks. The sound of
their calls is overwhelming at times and they drop clay on the top of
the blind as they forage.
 Mealy amazons, Scarlet macaw, Blue headed Pionus |
 Blue and Gold, Scarlet and Chestnut- fronted macaws |
 
Mealy amazons on the left and mystery birds on the right. A close up of a pair of mystery birds in small picture. |
 Red-Bellied macaws and Chestnut- fronted macaws. |
he
mystery birds have been identified as Barraband's Parrot (Pionopsitta
barrabandi) by Mr. Randolf Berry. Bravo! Thanks
to Cyril Laubscher, Ron Kasper and the Laurets who also responded with
the correct identification.
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