Photo Gallery
Photos by Rich Hoyer and Greg Corman
We begin our tour in the open habitats of the Andes where Gray-hooded Parakeets feed on roadside grasses and nest in road cuts.
As a result of the summer rains, the wildflowers at this elevation can look like a Rocky Mountain meadow.
The Puna Tapaculo is the only member of its genus in Bolivia that will sing from an open perch; all the others are more like mice than birds.
Calceolaria is a very diverse genus in the Andes and grows commonly along the roadsides.
Photo: Greg Corman
In the shrubbier areas one can find the Tufted Tit-Tyrant, a name you have to speak slowly.
This cactus looks out of place in the lush post-rainy season growth, but this is typical of the valleys near Cochabamba.
If we’re lucky, some cacti will still be in bloom, such as this lovely Echinopsis.
And the abundance of flowers means food for hummingbirds, for example this Red-tailed Comet.
A gorgeous red Jatropha, a short succulent plant that inhabits the Chaco desert.
On dry slopes where fog frequently drapes over the mountain tops, bromeliads can blanket the rocks.
Photo: Greg Corman
We venture into moist cloud forest a couple of times where multitudes of ferns and orchids can be found.
Our simple but bright and cheery hotel in the Valle zone of Comarapa.
The endemic Bolivian Earthcreeper feels at home in the spiny acacias of the Valle zone.
We often take a break in the birding and botanizing to admire other marvels of the natural world such as this clearwing butterfly…
…and this Charuplaya Treefrog.
A Spot-backed Puffbird surveys the cactus-clad valley it calls home.
We’ll also stop for stunning views, such as this before we descend into the valley of Refugio Los Volcanes (the lodge is barely visible in the clearing in the center).
The road into Refugio Los Volcanes is too steep and narrow for our bus, so they haul luggage (and passengers) for us in their small SUVs.
This streamside flower in the family Gesneriaceae may belong to the famous genus Gloxinia.
The flowers of Chorisia are attractive to hummingbirds as well as people.
Photo: Greg Corman
The dining room at Refugio Los Volcanes where we are served delicious home-cooked meals.
The papery bark of Cochlospermum tetraporum demands close inspection.
Photo: Photo by Greg Corman
Lagunillas is a magnet for water birds such as ducks, screamers, ibises…
Photo: Photo by Greg Corman
…and these Black-necked Stilts, of the distinctive South American form, are sometimes considered a separate species.