04/12/2024
We closed out our visit to Maranhão with two nights in Caxias near the eastern border of the state. After seeing our main targets for the area during our first day of birding (think Kaempfer's Woodpecker, Ash-throated Casiornis, Bearded Bellbird, Maranhão Hermit, and an undescribed species of pygmy-tyrant), we had a last morning available to look for a ghost...
Thiago took us to an area where a friend of his had recently filmed (with his phone, no less) a pair of ground-cuckoos. His cheerful friend told us he figured we had "an 80% chance" of seeing the birds as we parted ways, an opinion that was greeted with knowing smiles. Well, within 10 minutes of settling to try for the birds, his prediction was fulfilled as we had great views of a Rufous-vented Ground-Cuckoo perched, in full view, on a thick liana about 2 metres off the ground! Just amazing.
We spent a couple of hours with the birds -- 3 of them -- as they came and went, sometimes dashing away at great speed and disappearing for a while, before eventually coming back, snapping their bills as they checked us out, patently curious about our presence behind the blind that Thiago had set up. After managing a number of photos of various bits and pieces of the birds, we finally decided to "just give it 5 more minutes"... and then one of these spectacular ground-cuckoos hopped up onto a woody liana in front of the blind!
A massive thanks to Thiago Rodrigues for his highly competent guiding during our time in Maranhão and Pará. This morning turned out to be the highlight of my year!
