We stayed our first night in Argentina at the Hotel Uspalata. It had pretty basic rooms, but it was convenient being so close to the border we crossed from Chile. What it lacked in modern conveniences was made up by its extensive grounds; the hotel was surrounded by soccer fields, basketball courts, paths through the trees, and a marshy area. Our first morning in Argentina was an early one because we wanted to check out the birds in the marshy area. It was a bit of a trick getting in there (going down a steep bank, ducking under an old barbed-wire fence) but once we were there we began to tick off more lifers! Here are a few of the Argentinian Lifers were saw there:
Although it was reluctant, Marcello finally coaxed a White-crested Tyrannulet out long enough for a shot or two. I love its little tuft of feather rising above its head.
Another shy bird was the Grass Wren. It kept bouncing around behind the first layer of reeds in the marsh, finally popping out for a relatively clear shot.
In the Northern Hemisphere we just have one type of siskin, the Pine Siskin. We observed several species of siskins on this trip, including this Hooded Siskin.
Perched up high with the sunrise hitting it, a Great Pampa-Finch showed off its bright-orange bill. We were able to see this species a couple of times during our stay.
One of the most common birds we saw in Argentina was the Grayish Baywing. The name says it all. these two were perched right next to our hotel.
It’s hard to miss the Picui Ground-Dove with its bright white breast. This is another species we saw quite often in Argentina – but never on the ground.
Next up – birds of the Pampas grass.
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