MANU ROAD – CUSCO & MACHUPICCHU CITADEL – MARCH 2024

Participants: Soumyadeep Chatterjee & Mary Tucker

Bird guide: Jesus Cieza

Bird locations:

• Cusco – Manu road – Paucartambo town – Cock of the rock lodge – Pilcopata town – Pico de oz- Inkamazonia feeders.
• Madre de dios – Parrot clay lick – Machuwasi lagoon
• Machupicchu – Ollantaytambo & Cusco city.
• Highest point at 3800m – lowest point at 450m.

Tour description

DAY 01.- Cusco – Huambutio – Paucartambo – Accjanaco

We started from the airport to then visit our first birding spot at huacarpay lake where we could get some interesting birds like rusty fronted canastero, wren like rushbird, plumbeous rail, yellow billed pintail, White crested elaenia and many others. Then we move to huambutio spot, looking for bearded mountaineer but we could not get it but we could get some others like andean parakeet, yellow billed tit tyrant, cinereous conebill, greenish yellowfinch, black throated flowerpiercer and more. After this we have a nice stop at Paucartambo town where we have a nice local dish with trout and check the local Street vendors to then visit our final bird spot at accjanaco where we could get creamy crested spinetail, chesnut bellied mountain tanager, black faced brushfinch, White throated tyrannulet, variable hawk, White Browed conebill, Brown backed chat tyrant, moustached flowerpiercer, red crested cotinga and many others. Our first night was spent at Paucartambo town¡¡

DAY 02.- Paucartambo – Accjanaco – Tunnels – Rocotal

Another great day with many new birds for Deep and Mary. This time We started with a nice early breakfast at Paucartambo lodge to then continue with our birding route along Manu road, so Our first bird stop was at Manu National Park main gate where we had a little walk to enjoy this tree line fores plus the nice paramo. Morning was foggy with some light rain but We could get some birds around like Scarlet Bellied Mountain Tanager, Hooded Mountain Tanager, Golden Collared Tanager, Streaked Tuftedcheeck, Gray Breasted Mountain Toucan and by the time We birded the lower part We could get some more birds like Handsome Flycatcher, Inca Flycatcher, Blue Banded Toucannet, Andean Cock of the rock, Bolivian Tyrannulet, Pale Legged Warbler and many more. Late in the afternoon We arrived to Cock of the rock lodge where we had a beautiful dinner.

DAY 03.- Cock of the rock lodge garden – Birding the road around the lodge

We decided to bird the garden first in order to get the hummmingbird visitor to this place like the endemic Peruvian Piedtail & some others like Green Hermit, Many Spotted Hummingbird, Wire Crested Thorntail, Rufous Booted Racketail, Speckled Hummingbird and the common violet fronted Brilliants. At the same time We also enjoyed a great breakfast facing the garden with Large Headed Brown Cappucin monkeys trying tos teal our breakfast, this nice lodge location has a nice Gadua Bamboo with some good birds like Two Banded Warbler, Stripe Chested Antwren, Scale Crested Pygmy Tyrant and Yungas Manaking calling around plus many other birds. Then some more birding along the road that border the lodge to get a nice flock of Paradise Tanager and some more birds like Versicolored Barbet, Lemon Browed Flycatcher, another big flock of Scaly Naped Parrot, Purple Honeycreeper, Yerllow Throated Chlorospingus, White Eyed Parakeet and many more. We finish our birding around this cool lodge with another great lunch and continued with our birding along the lower part but We had a heavy rain on the way and We decided to visit the local feeders found around hilly forest near Pilcopata Town located at 500m. This nice birdy spot known as Pico de Oz, due to an uncommon visitor Buff Tailed Sicklebill. Has a great hummingbird variety plus two cool places like the little lagoon where you can take a little raft to move around and get some birds like the Unique Hoatzin, Amazon Kingfisher, Plain Softail, Little Woodpecker, Lesser Kiskidae, Red Capped Cardinal, Ringed Kingfisher and many more water birds like Brazilian Teal together with a nice hide to shoot the colorful King Vulture. Here you can also enjoy Monkeys and big birds like Spi’x Guan.

The hummingbird variety at this location is great with good birds like Long Billed Starthroat, Great Billed Hermit, Golden Tailed Sapphire, Blue Tailed Emerald, Rufous Breasted Hermit, Gould’s Jewelfront, White Necked Jacobin, Gray Breasted Sabrewing and many more.

DAY 04.- Pilcopata Lodge – Parrot Clay Lick – Machuwasi Lagoon – Inkamazonia Garden

This time we had a good time having a boat trip along Madre de dios river, Our boat ride was for about 30 minutes to visit a little place along the river bank where some parrots, parakeets and médium sized macaws visit this place toe at clay and spent good time time together. This time the activity was not that good since birds were a little shy and did not let us see them the proper way but We could see some other birds around like Crested Caracara, Blue Throated Piping guan, Ladder Tailed Nightjar, White Banded Swallow, Violaceous jay, Chesnut Fronted Macaws then on the way back from the boat We could get some more birds like Great Black Hawk, Roseate Spoonbill, Capped Heron, White Winged Swallow and more. After this early boat ride We then visited Machuwasi Lagoon where we had to walk to get to this beautiful bird spot and along the Trail and lake We could increased our morning bird list with birds like White Lined Antbird, Chesnut Crowned Foliage Gleaner, Red Billed Scythebill, Chesnut Tailed Antbird, Masked Crimson Tanager, Speckled Spinetail, Cream Colored Woodpecker, Orange Backed Troupial, Smooth Billed Ani, Black Capped Donacobius, Chesnut Bellied Seedeater, Yellow Browed Sparrow, Chesnut Bellied Seedfinch, Long Tailed Tyrant, Swallow Winged Puffbird, Crested Oropendola, Ruddy Ground Dove, Horned Screamer and some Squirrel monkeys jumping around. At the end of this nice walk and visit to the lagoon We finished our afternoon visiting another bird feeder where we could get some more hummingbirds like Rufous Crested Coquette, Violet Headed Hummingbird, Fork Tailed Woodnymph, White Bearded Hermit and many more.

DAY 05.- Pilcopata back to Cusco – Ensifera Camp feeders – Ollantaytambo Town

Early departure from this little town at the hilly forest along Manu road, to have some bird stops on the way back. This time we were lucky to catch a very good bird like Amazonian Umbrellabird perched along the road then another stop on the way up for breakfast and around We could get a nice flock where we got Slaty Tanager, Masked Trogon, Strong Billed Woodcreeper, Bolivian Tyrannulet, Inca Flycatcher and a nice couple of Chesnut Crested Cotinga. Our lunch was taken near Cusco where we also had the chance to get some extra birds like the endemic Chesnut Breasted Mountain Finch, Andean Parakeet and some others. Then we continued searching for the endmeic Bearded Mountaineer and we finally got it along the road along Urubamba river. We finally arrived to Ensifera camp, nice bird spot for extra birds, where We got Sword Billed Hummingbird, Giant Hummingbird, Gree Tailed Trainbearer, White Bellied Woodstar and another endemic Green and White hummingbird, plus many more birds. Nice dinner around Ollantaytambo where we had nice local dish, Pollo a la brasa.

DAY 06.- Ollantaytambo – train to Aguas Calientes – Birding along Urubamba River.

We had a late breakfast since our train was at 11.00am, so We had an easy morning to then take the 02 hours on the train sitting with a nice view of Urubamba river ,We could also get some birds from the train sitting on the big rocks, this birds were Torrent Ducks and White Capped Dipper. At Our arrival at Aguas Calientes town we headed to a nice restaurant were We had a nice buffet for lunch with good variety, then We visited the feeders at the hotel lodge where we also could get some birds like Chesnut Breasted Coronet, Thick Billed Euphonia, Andean Motmot, Gould’s Jewelfront and some other. To finish the afternoon We went for a walk by the rail road and got some extra birds like Tropical Parula, Blue Necked Tanager, Torrent Tyrannulet, Torrent Duck, Variable Antshrike, Mottle Cheecked Tyrannulet, Capped Conebill and some others.

DAY 07.- Machupicchu visit and birding – Back to Cusco

Today We had a good time up in Machupicchu citadel with a friendly local guide to learn about this interesting construction and other details. We could also get some birds like the endemic Inca Wren, Andean Guan, White Winged Black Tyrant, Blue Capped Tanager, Sierran Elaenia and some others plus some cool pictures in one of the top arqueolical sites in Peru. After having good time We then took the car back to Aguas calientes for lunch and went for our last bird walk around this nice hotel lodge, where we could add some more birds like Ocellated Piculet, Beryl Spangled Tanager, Blue Naped Chlorophonia, Brown Capped vireo, Sclater’s Tyrannulet, Streaked Xenop and some others. Finally our train back to Cusco to then go for another Pollo a la brasa for dinner and had a nice walk around Cusco city.

DAY 08.- local markets & local dishes -flight to Lima

No more birds this time since We only had short time, so after another nice breakfast We visited some of the most popular markets ‘’Mercado San Pedro’’where we could enjoy the local products, taste them, see them and move with the local population. We also visited the market where you only find handmade products from Alpaca and Llama wool and at the same time we interacted with local people around plus a nice  walk in Cusco city. Right after this cool morning We went for our last lunch together and tried the local Guinea pig plus Alpaca meat cook with local ingredients facing the nice Cusco’s main square.

THE ANIMAL LIST:

• Large headed Brown cappucin monkey
• Common gray wooly monkey
• Bolivian black capped squirel monkey
• Toppin’s titi monkey
• Dwarf caiman – Paleosuchus palpebrosus
• Spiny whorltail iguana – Stenocercus crassicaudatus
• Southern Vizcacha – Lagidium viscacia
• Brown agouti – Dasyprocta variegata