Yellow-browed Sparrow

Paul Demkovich

The Napa River meanders through Ecuador. As it does, water movement erodes the river banks, creates horseshoe bends, and deposits sand banks and islands, and erodes the islands away. Some of the islands are colonized by plants, and some islands become permanent features of the river.

Interestingly, several bird species specialize in making the young, vegetated islands their homes. This Yellow-browed Sparrow is one of these Napa River island specialists. To find it and some of the other specialists, we traveled down the river to one of the younger islands that had grasses, shrubs and small trees, but no large trees. These specialists were very happily living in this island environment that is not preferred by the ‘mainland birds’.

Yellow-crowned Parrot

Yellow-bellied Dacnis