**Due to the high resolution quality of the images in this blog series it is highly recommended to
view posts in Landscape Mode on a desktop PC from the actual blogsite at Ecuador Birding**
Ecuador Birding – Where Every Feather Tells a Story
From October 26, 2025 through November 8, 2025 I joined 5 other adventurers and an outstanding photographer and birding guide (Liron Gertsman) with Eagle-Eye Tours to Ecuador. This blog series highlights the animals (mostly birds), people and locations we encountered over the 14 full days in this beautiful land.
A Reflections of the Natural World Blog Post Series by Jim Gain
DAY 6 – Lunchtime
- My Ecuador Species Count including WildSumaco jumps up to: 208 (145 lifers)
- Primary eBird Public Hotspots: WildSumaco Lodge
WILDSUMACO PART 2 — The Midday Rush: More Jewels of the Eastern Andes
As the morning deepens, the tempo at the feeders shifts. Sunlight filters through the canopy, and a new cast of hummingbirds takes the stage. The Rufous-vented Whitetip zips in with a flash of copper and snow-white tail tips, its movements crisp and purposeful. The Black-throated Brilliant, larger and more imposing, hovers with a slow, deliberate confidence—its emerald body and dark throat glowing like polished stone.
In contrast, the Gould’s Jewelfront seems almost unreal, its fiery orange breast and emerald crown catching the light in a way that feels staged. The Violet-headed Hummingbird brings cooler tones to the mix, its head shimmering with deep purples that shift with every angle.
From the shadows, the Napo Sabrewing emerges—broad‑winged, powerful, and surprisingly graceful for its size. When it hovers, the air seems to thrum around it, each wingbeat deliberate and heavy, as if the bird is carved from the forest itself. Its deep emerald tones catch the light in brief, dramatic flashes, giving this large hummingbird an almost regal presence.
And weaving through all of them is the Fork-tailed Woodnymph, a common but endlessly charismatic species whose forked tail and glittering green plumage make it a constant delight. It darts in and out of the feeders with buoyant, playful energy, often pausing just long enough for its iridescence to flare like a tiny green flame. Even in a crowd of more exotic species, the Woodnymph’s lively personality makes it impossible to overlook.
Even the Many-spotted Hummingbird, with its speckled underparts and steady, purposeful flight, adds its own quiet charm to the spectacle. It approaches the feeders with a calm, almost methodical rhythm, its subtle patterning revealing itself only when the bird turns just right in the soft cloudforest light. Though less flashy than some of its neighbors, its understated beauty rewards anyone who takes the time to look closely.
A South American Coati added an unexpected twist to the morning when it climbed out along a thick, overhanging branch to reach a cluster of bananas wired high in a nearby tree. This individual was a rich brownish‑orange, moving with slow confidence as it tore into the fruit—its tail plain and unmarked, unlike the ringed pattern many people expect. Watching this curious mammal feeding above us, framed by cloudforest greenery, was a reminder that WildSumaco’s wildlife surprises aren’t limited to birds; sometimes the forest sends a very different kind of visitor
By midday, the feeders feel like a living gemstone display—each species a different cut, color, and brilliance.
NEXT UP: EB#38 “Sunlit Surprise: The Golden‑Tailed Sapphire’s Rainbow Glow“
Additional Photographs and Video
Previous Ecuador Birding Blog Posts:
- EB58 – A Titan Among Hummingbirds: The Giant Hummingbird Reveals Itself
The Giant Hummingbird’s arrival at Tambo Cóndor felt like the Andes unveiling a second mountain‑forged marvel—an immense, slow‑winged specialist of thin air and rugged slopes whose deliberate power and quiet presence echoed the grandeur of the landscape itself. This blog series chronicles Jim Gain’s experiences with a birding tour in Ecuador. - EB57 – A Sapphire Flash in the Clouds: Meeting the Great Sapphirewing
The Great Sapphirewing’s arrival at Tambo Cóndor felt like a shift in the very air—an immense, jewel‑toned hummingbird shaped by altitude and silence, revealing its rare beauty in a moment that seemed carved directly from the high Andes. This blog series chronicles Jim Gain’s experiences with a birding tour in Ecuador. - EB56 – The High Andes Unfold: Our First Moments at Tambo Cóndor
Our arrival at Tambo Cóndor unfolded as the high Andes revealed themselves in sweeping ridges, sharp light, and the first flashes of local specialists—Sparkling Violetear, Shining Sunbeam, and Cinereous Conebill—welcoming us into a landscape shaped by wind, altitude, and vast silence. This blog series chronicles Jim Gain’s experiences with a birding tour in Ecuador. - EB55 – Leaving Guango Behind: Birds, Volcanoes, and the Long Drive to Tambo Cóndor
A quiet final morning at Guango Lodge eased us from the familiar rhythm of cloudforest birds into a dramatic high‑Andean crossing, where stark volcanic landscapes and sweeping vistas carried us toward the cliffs of Tambo Cóndor and the promise of a new chapter in the journey. This blog series chronicles Jim Gain’s experiences with a birding tour in Ecuador. - EB54 – Life in the Whitewater: Torrent Ducks of the Papallacta River
A breathless, high‑altitude chase along the river turned into a triumphant, hard‑won encounter with Torrent Ducks, ending the day at Guango Lodge with the exhilaration of finally photographing one of the trip’s most coveted species. This blog series chronicles Jim Gain’s experiences with a birding tour in Ecuador. - EB53 – Back to the Cloudforest: A Gentle Afternoon at Guango Lodge
In October 2025, Jim Gain joined a birding tour in Ecuador, exploring its rich biodiversity and stunning landscapes over 14 days. The blog series chronicles his experiences with birds and nature.
>>Ecuador Birding Blog Home Page Link https://reflectionsofthenaturalworld.com/ecuador-birding/
*This Ecuador Birding blog post was shaped and polished with the assistance of Microsoft Copilot, helping bring clarity and a consistent flow to my field notes and dictated memories.
**Unless otherwise indicated in the image caption, all photographs (>99%) are mine.
Reflections of the Natural World 
Leave a comment