Feathered Gems of Northern Peru: Marvelous Spatuletail, Antpittas & Much More!

Marvelous Spatuletail © Andrew Whittaker

A special Relaxed & Easy departure offering an unmatchable opportunity to look for colorful hummingbirds (including the Marvelous Spatuletail), as well as endemic and regional specialists from the dry habitat and sandy soil forest to the cloud forest of the eastern Cordillera in Peru. Great opportunity for photography and close-distance observation due to the presence of bird feeders.

Peru is a country with a massive avifauna. Ranking second in the world, it hosts more than 1,800 species of birds. Along the coast, it has one of the richest oceanic waters due to the Humboldt Current. It is transected by the imposing Andes, and is home to the great Amazon biome in the east.

Our main effort will focus on trying to see the mind-blowing Marvelous Spatuletail (probably the fanciest of all hummers) but also Rufous-crested Coquette, White-chinned Sapphire, Violet-headed Hummingbird, and the extravagant Sword-billed Hummingbird. Other species usually hard-to-see in other areas but possible here include Rusty-tinged and Chestnut antpittas, as well as the beautiful Golden-scarfed Tanager. We will visit famous birding locations of Peru such as Abra Patricia, Alto Nieva, and Alto Mayo reserves.

After birding the higher part of the Andes, we will reach lower elevations in the Mayo Valley, where a delightful garden with up to 18 species of hummingbirds awaits us. The birding rewards here are terrific. Some of the jewels reported here include Rufous-crested Coquette, White-chinned Sapphire, Brown Violetear, and Blue-tailed Emerald. In addition, we will see many beautiful orchids in their natural habitat; the city of Moyobamba is known as the orchid capital of Peru.

Our tour will end in the humid forests at the Escalera Reserve outside Tarapoto in the Huallaga Valley. This location will offer opportunities to look for Koepcke’s Hermit (optional walk further inside the forest), Dotted Tanager, and Plumbeous Euphonia.

Comfortable lodging and good food throughout; two relatively long drives in comfortable air-conditioned vehicles; steep trail to access one lodge; most birding along roads or feeding stations; highest elevation on route 7,550 ft.; climate warm and humid in Moyobamba and Tarapoto, cool and pleasant in the mountains around Abra Patricia. We strongly recommend that you read the summary prepared by VENT leaders addressing the challenges on this tour that are not usually found on a Relaxed & Easy tour.

Chestnut Antpitta © Andrew Whittaker