This report confirms the presence of the Spangled Cotinga (Cotinga cayana) and the Chestnut-crested Cotinga (Ampelion rufaxilla) in Arena Blanca Reserve, in the buffer zone of the Alto Mayo Protected Forest, province of Rioja, in the San Martin region.
This report confirms the presence of the Spangled Cotinga (Cotinga cayana) and the Chestnut-crested Cotinga (Ampelion rufaxilla) within the Arena Blanca Reserve.
The site lies within the buffer zone of the Alto Mayo Protected Forest, in the Rioja province of the San Martín region.
According to Birds of Peru (2010), Spangled Cotinga is a rare but widely distributed species in the Amazon, under 800 masl or locally up to 1350 masl, mostly found on dry land away from seasonally flooded forests.
In the case of the Chestnut-crested Cotinga, it is rare along the Andean slope from 1700 to 2800 masl and is more linked to continuous humid mountain forest.
Report details
The birding team recorded both species on September 24, 2020, as follows:
At 07:45 hours, we spotted a pair of Spangled Cotingas in the canopy of a Cachaco Moena tree.
Subsequently, at 09:35 hours, we photographeda male individual on a dry Caraña tree branch.
Ten minutes later, we confirmed the presence of a male Chestnut-crested Cotinga, photographing it on a Caraña tree at 09:45 hours.
Spangled Cotinga (Cotinga cayana)
Chestnut-crested Cotinga (Ampelion rufaxilla)
Ultimately, these findings not only provide the first records for the Arena Blanca Reserve but also expand upon the few existing sightings in the Alto Mayo area.
Crucially, the report determines that the Chestnut-crested Cotinga inhabits lower elevations than those typically indicated in the Birds of Peru reference book.
Bibliography
Schulenberg, T. S., Stotz, D.F., Lane, D.F., O’Neill, J.P. & T. A. Parker III. (2010). Birds of Peru. Princeton University Press. Chicago. pp 1-656.
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