Photo Gallery
Photos by Rich Hoyer unless otherwise noted
The trees at our first night’s hotel have sometimes hosted the highly sought-after Seven-colored Tanager…
…while birders otherwise can enjoy the view of the valley below.
Nearby are remnant patches of cloudforest, islands among sugarcane fields, but now also conserved by the sugar companies for the watershed benefits they provide.
This Orsis Bluewing prefers the interior of the forest here.
Possible to see on nearly every day of the tour will be the splendid Swallow-tailed Hummingbird.
An example of a room at our Alagoas hotel.
In short order we’ll be west of the rain shadow and into the seasonally dry caatinga, where giant cactus mingle with the deciduous woodland…
…and smaller cacti, like this handsome Melocactus, populate the understory.
The distinctive capistratus subspecies of the Barred Antshrike inhabits this region.
Among the other inhabitants of this region are the Vaqueiro, the Brazilian cowboy…
…the Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl…
…and Ultramarine Grosbeak…
…and the Pileated Finch.
One one day we brave mid-day heat in the caatinga to see an inhabitant of the caatinga granitic outcrops, the Pygmy Nightjar.
This is Arajara Park, where we’ll spend as much time as necessary to see the Araripe Manakin…
…a vision to behold…
Photo: Ciro Albano
…while here’s a view that encompasses most of the species’ world range.
On top of the plateau is a unique forest type…
…with many bizarre plants, such as this Parkia tree…
…and the Cinnamon Tanager can be quite common in this woodland.
At our final destination, the Serra de Baturité, we look for several specialities, such as this Buff-breasted Tody-Tyrant…
…and this Red-necked-Tanager.
When time and low bird activity allow, we always stop to admire the butterflies and other critters. This is a Silver-studded Leafwing, Hypna clytemnestra.