Peru
The Manu Road
    Birding the road between Cuzco and Pilcopata, along the edge of the Manu NP Reserve Zone, without a private vehicle, can be frustrating and time-consuming but can be done, contrary to the views expressed in the popular travel guides based on the fact that only clients of licenced tour operators are allowed in the buffer zone, the Zona Reserva, abutting the Manu NP where only researchers are allowed. You don't have to go into the Zona Reserva to see good birds above 1500m, and in fact there is very limited access to the mid-altitudes of 1500-3000m .
    The main frustration with public transport is that it doesn't stop much on the way and if you don't know much about the road you don't know where to get off. So while I was in Peru giving the new book, "A Field Guide to the Birds of Peru" by James Clements and Naom Shany, a trial run in Jan 2002, I climbed on a "cattle" truck for people in Cuzco, and travelled across the parámo and down the east side of the Andes to Pilcopata, a journey of about 6 hours and s/10, or about U$3.
    My target birding area was the higher forests of the eastern slope, the humid subtropical zone, between 1500m and 2500m asl, and I quickly found out that Pilcopata was home to mostly common lowland birds, so even without an altimeter I realised by the species present it was probably just below 1000m. I stayed the night at the very pleasant Manu Lodge and poked around and along a trail across the ??? River, a branch of the Rio Pilcopata, the next morning amongst partly farmed, grazed and generally degraded habitat - the Zona Cultural.
    New trip-birds were Peregine (in Cuzco), and from the truck across the parámo, through a 2 inch gap along the side of the cattle crate, Andean Ibis, Aplomado Falcon, Andean Gull, Brown-breasted Swallow, Great Thrush, and Yellow-rumped Siskin. This was the most frustrating part of the ride - many small birds, some of them new to me no doubt, were glimpsed but unidentified. Around Pilco new birds were Roadside Hawk, Orange-breasted Falcon, Blue-headed Parrot, Amazon Kingfisher, Magpie Tanager, and Grayish Saltator but mainly species already seen around Puerto Maldonaldo. I had come too far down.
    Around midday I was offered a lift back up the hill by a British couple, Alicia & Paul Thompson, who had a tourist truck all to themselves (plus two guides, a cook, and two drivers). They had been camping in the lowlands of the Zona Reserva and had had a wonderful time with Manu Ecological Adventures and guide Eduardo. They dropped me off at about 2500m at 4pm, and I camped 3 nights there, at 2000-2500m, right beside the road as there was nowhere else flat enough to pitch a tent.
    The birds that late afternoon were what I had come to see. Long-tailed Sylph, White-throated Tyrant, Sierra Elaenia, Andean Swallow, Glossy Black Thrush, Spectacled Whitestart, Pale-legged Warbler, Hooded Mountain Tanager, Scarlet-bellied Tanager, nesting, and White-collared Jay. Not many species but good quality. It was a beautiful evening and a cool, heavy-dew night.
    I ambled down about 500m the next day after hanging around the 2500m level until midday. The habitat up there was mainly bushes with occasional small trees. One side of the road had been burnt out a couple of years ago. The trees became larger and the forest thicker not far down the road which was a series of hairpin bends in some places. New-growth alders with their associated bird species dominate the roadside between about 2300-2400m but below that they become less obvious as larger, older trees of various species take over, interspersed with patches of dense bushes covering recent small slip areas. There's a lot of birds in these bushy places.
    That night I camped at the base of the hill, just past the last of the 30?km of zig-zags, at about 2000m on the roadside where the road levels out, just above the noisy Rio Suisa in its little gorge and between two waterfalls across the road, not far from the main valley of the Rio Piyauatawhich the road followed from there on.
    All birding was done from the road although there is a well worn foot trail down a little spur toward the valley the road eventually follows; an ancient Inca Way I presume, but still regularly used by someone. An Andean Guan preened and climbed slowly along the branches of a Cecropia, giving excellent views, and further down what I think was a Sickle-winged Guan was climbing up through the trees, occasionally cackling an alarm. It was far enough away to need a scope on it to be sure of the id but I didn't do that for some reason.
    At the cessation of a light shower in the late afternoon, two feeding flocks were encountered, one immediately after the other. This is what I had come to the Andes for. Amongst them were Streaked Tuftedcheek, White-tailed Tyrannulet, Cinnamon Flycatcher, Blackburnian Warbler, Capped Conebill, Black-capped and Superciliaried Hemisphingus, Blue & Black Tanager; Rusty, White-sided and Masked Flowerpiercers; and Vilcabamba and Cusco Brushfinches, all new ones for the trip.
    It was raining lightly at daylight the next morning so I strolled around vainly looking for one of the two White-eared Solitaires I could hear but the large amount of water noise prevented pinpointing where the singing was exactly coming from. As the rain tailed off I walked slowly back up the hill to where the feeding flocks had been. Perfect timing. As I got there, they all came out. In fact that day I watched three feeding flocks, all in the same area but with a slightly different composition each time. There were several other species as well, not associated with flocks.
    The day finished with the following additions to the list - Band-tailed Pigeon, Violet-headed Starfrontlet, Montane Woodcreeper, Pearled Treerunner, Barred Becard, Oleaginous Hemisphingus, Grass-green and Rust & Yellow Tanagers, Deep-blue Flowerpiercer, Black-crested and Citrine Warblers, and Crested Oropendola.
    For someone who has seen only about one third of the birds of the Neotropics, 7-8 new species per day was still quite good, so I thought I would stay another night. Right beside the road again but up where the flocks were, well above the water noise. It was the best tent-site yet although the 2 or 3 trucks which passed in the night were only a few feet away and liked to toot to make sure I was awake.
    Only about 8 trucks a day went through, plus a couple of tourist 4wds. No local traffic, even on foot. A very safe area I thought. Besides there is often a police checkpoint a few km up the hill by an abandoned school - they're looking for drug runners mostly. But no-one stopped and I didn't talk to anyone for the three days that I was there.
    The third morning was a little showery again, just the thing for feeding flocks. New trip birds for the morning were Golden-headed Quetzal, Hooded Mountain Toucan, and Stripe-headed Brushfinch. Only the last new for my list; time to move on, but it was very good place to be. Next time I'll be in a hired vehicle and will also spend quality time between 2500m and the top which is at 3850m where the road turns off to Tres Cruces where there is more good birding. This area isn't world-famous for nothing.
    I set off down the hill, past the twin waterfalls (a favourite stop for most vehicles), to the corner above the confluence of the Rios Suisa and Piyauata. From here I could look back up to the hairpins where I had just been and see that the habitat I had been in was relatively undisturbed compared with around the abandoned school further up where the land flattened out and had once been cleared for farming. Above that again was nearly 1000m of shrublands before the parámo began at about 3200m. That was the west side of the side valley that the road comes down; on the east side the treeline was at least another 600m higher. The forest on that un-accessible steeper slope looked very healthy; that was in the Zona Reserva.
    From here the one-way gravel road is almost level as it follows the river valley about 20 kms to the next hairpin section. The river is about 200-300m straight down in places, certain death if your truck leaves the road so drivers are more catious here on this level but winding section than anywhere else on the road.
    Just as I started off again, an Eagle soared along the ridge high above; after a long look it turned out to be isidori the Black & Chestnut Eagle.
    I hadn't gone far when the first truck of the day came through; the same way I was going fortunately as they are supposed to only go one way on alternate days - not that Latinos take much notice of regulations. I flagged "el camión" down thinking it was a cattle-crated bus-truck. It was the police. They gave me a lift anyway and evicted a leser mortal from the cab so "el turista" could ride in comfort, as far as the base of the next hairpins, to the Manu Cloud Forest Lodge, at about 1600m asl.
    Nestled in the narrow gorge of another tributary of the Piyauata, between the cliff and the water, this lodge is there so it can own the land a Cock-of-the-Rock lek is on. The next, Cock-of-the-Rock Lodge, is there for the same reason and in both cases they have the roadside lek fenced off from passing, prying eyes. And both are touted as cloud forest lodges which they aren't, they're both over an hour's drive from the cloud forest where I had been.
These are both very comfortable lodges - they would need to be at U$800 per person for 3 days/2 nights ex Cuzco - excessively dear I think.
    Only the cook/maintenance man and his family lives at Manu Cloud Forest Lodge and he said they had no rooms that night as a group was coming in but there would be no-one the next night and the Cock-of-the-Rock Lodge was 5 mins down the road. Typically of these up-market South American wildlife lodges, they aren't prepared for penniless passing travellers who might only stay one night for say U$100 and move on; they want you to buy the whole package to maximise profit.
    The guy thought I had a vehicle because it wasn't 5 mins to the next lodge it was 5k. And a much better setting than the other, lots of space, lots of habitat, lots of birds. AND an open shed where the penniless can camp for a small fee, AND be fed cheaply. The flush toilets and cold showers are near the small river about 100m down the hill from the open shed.
    Across the road is the real lodge, just as comfortable as the other and with extensive river-side forest to explore plus a hill trail behind the open shed which proved to be quite productive. The skeleton staff of two, Gerado and Eloy, were very friendly so I stayed two nights, and ate with them, for U$15 per day.
    New birds for the trip between the two lodges and around Cock of the Rock were Violet-fronted Brilliant, (Cock of the Rock, heard only as I went by the fenced-off platform beside which they display), Tropical Kingbird, Green Jay, Tropical Parula, Saffron- headed and Summer Tanagers, and Yellow-browed Sparrow.
    Being the middle of the day, I took note of the more interesting Butterflies as well. A boldly red & black striped one I called Gimmerburn after the rugby colours of a team we used to play against, but there was closer to 15,000 of them than 15 as in a rugby side, and they were all on the road. A lovely pearly one, middle-sized to big, I called simply Madame after the way it danced langurously around clearings.
    Next morning, near the ablutions area, from the bank of the tributary flowing into what was now seems to be known as the Rio Pilcopata, (was Piyauata), the main stream the road followed, an Andean Guan flew across and landed on a branch on the other side. Within the minute, another, much larger Cracid flew over to the same branch. Everything about it, even its wattle, was larger. For a little while I thought I had mis-identified the first bird as an adult. The larger bird then flew back to where it had come from, having no contact with the smaller at all. As I looked in puzzlement at my "Field Guide to the Birds of Peru", I realised that Spix's Guan could be found up to this altitude and the second bird was probably that species even though I hadn't observed the difference in rump colour. Curious that two species would land on the same branch though and not interact in any way.
    I wandered up the track past the henhouse and glassed a little side flow - nothing; took another step forward and flushed a heron which landed behind some vegetation about 70m away. I scuttled back for my scope and sure enough the Fasciated Tiger Heron was still there when I got back. You can see why I was beginning to like the Cock-of-the-Rock Lodge very much.
    Around the open shed (was this the original Platform? Or was it the platform from where you can see Cock of the Rock?) in the mornings were several vocal Olivaceous Siskins and an as yet un-identified wren which wouldn't respond to tape play-back. Around the main lounge of the Lodge across the road was much more interesting; a troupe of White-fronted Capuchin (monkeys for a change of pace). A saunter through the forest behind produced Buff-throated Gleaner, Streaked Xenops, Marble-faced Bristletyrant, Swainson's Thrush, and Bronzegreen and Thickbilled Euphonias.
    Before dawn the following day I was outside the locked gate to the Cock of the Rock lek waiting for Eloy to open it for me. We entered the covered platform just as the birds began calling and when daylight came could see three males but none clearly as the main vines they display from were severely obscured by the fallen top of one of the lek trees. Someone should do a bit of delicate pruning.
    Eventually a beautiful male Cock of the Rock perched close by in the open for a few seconds. All red with black and white primaries and yellow eyes. There is no front, not even hessian, between the people and the birds so it didn't stay long. Eloy drew my attention to a bird above where he was standing at the other end of the platform. I moved just fast enough to see a perched Amazonian Umbrellabird, but only for a few seconds too.
    For the 40 mins I was there there was only one photo opportunity of a few seconds so if you were seriously wanting pictures a visit to the lek at Manu Cloud Forest Lodge might be worthwhile too.
    Eloy isn't a bird guide so he walked away home as I stood on the road outside the lek looking at a feeding flock comprising Yellow-throated Spadebill, Slate-throated Whitestart, and Flame-crested, Golden, Spotted, Blue-necked, and Bay-headed Tanagers, plus a few other species I had seen the day before.
    It was a Sunday. No traffic this morning said Gerado. Nevertheless I packed and stayed by the road. within the hour a large truck with the seemingly regulation cattle crate stopped to add water to the radiator before the long, steep climb up the mountain. They weren't keen at first but after Gerado put in a good word for me I climbed up on the back and sat on top of a full load of hardwood timber, which had been the basis of good rainforest habitat only a short time before.
    It was time to go back to Cuzco.