Five days of bird watching in the high mountains, wetlands, cloud forest and Amazonian jungle between Cusco and Manu National Park. You’ll see a lot of species including the Cock-of-the-Rock. Transport, meals and lodging for four nights are included.
Day 1: Cusco to Cock-of-the-Rock Lodge
Day 2: Cock-of-the-Rock Lodge – Full day
Day 3: Cock-of-The-Rock – Manu Biological Station
Day 4: Manu Biological Station- Full day
Day 5: Manu Biological Station to Cusco
Our overland journey begins at 3,400m (11,150 ft) with an early departure from the highland city of Cusco. Today’s destination is the lush cloud forest region where the Andes meet the Amazon basin. Our first stop is Huacarpay, a mountain wetland habitat, with numerous bird species such as the endemic Bearded Mountaineer, Rusty-fronted Canastero as well as non-endemic flycatchers, coots, teals, egrets, hummingbirds, raptors, and seedeaters. Between the Cusco Valley and the Paucartambo valley we’ll stop to look for two more endemic birds, the colorful Chesnut-breasted Mountain Finch and the Creamy-crested Spinetail. We will reach a maximum altitude of 3,900m (12,790ft) before we start down through forested cliffs, waterfalls and gorges. Some of the stops along the way include mountain villages, a hilltop necropolis with Chullpas (pre-Inca burial chambers), and numerous opportunities to spot ground tyrants and miners. The ridge top of Acjanaco marks our final high point in the Andes. On a clear day, we’ll see a breathtaking panorama of cloud forest and mountains giving way to the lowland Amazonian rainforest far below us.
After a picnic lunch we descend through the rapidly changing habitat characteristic of the tropical Andes. We move through grassland, stunted trees and elfin forest with mixed-species flocks of mountain tanagers, metaltails, tyrannulets, flower piercers and tapaculos. Next is the cloud forest with giant ferns, monster begonias, countless orchids and bromeliads. There’s a good chance we’ll see the Inca Flycatcher (endemic) and more mixed-species flocks of tanagers, fruiteaters, quetzals, the Solitary and Black-and-Chesnut eagles.
As dusk arrives on Manu Road we may see one of the most rare and unique birds in the world – the Lyre-tailed Nightjar.
Overnight: Cock-of-the-Rock Lodge
After an early morning bird walk and breakfast we’ll drive to El Mirador (Union Lookout) to look for mixed-species flocks of Blue-necked Tanagers, Paradise Tanagers, Chlorospingus, Slaty-capped Flycatchers, Slate-throated Redstars, Olive-backed and Mountain Woodcreepers, Mountain Foliage Gleaners, Blue-banded and Chesnut-tipped Toucanets, Crimson-bellied and Golden Olive Woodpeckers, and Highland Motmots. El Mirador is a great place to spot raptors as well.
Back to the lodge for lunch and time to enjoy the garden, home to at least six species of hummingbirds, the Booted Racket-Tail, and Wire-crested Thorntail.
We’ll set aside some time to visit a lek in the cloud forest to observe the Cock-of-the-Rock, the national bird of Peru. We’ll get a chance to watch the colorful males dance to attract the females.
Overnight: Cock-of-the-Rock Lodge
Andean Cock of the Rock
We’ll have another chance to visit the Cock-of-the-Rock lek before we continue our journey in the cloud forest – through trees, waterfalls, and dramatic ravines – to the Andean foothills and bamboo forest. Here we’ll look for species like the Dusky-cheeked Foliage-gleaner, Red-billed Scythebill, Chesnut-backed Antstrike, Foothill Antwren, White-backed Fire-eye, Yellow- breasted Flycatcher, Stripe-chested Antwren, and Cabanis Spinetail. We’ll also see the Golden-bellied Warbler, Ornate Flycatcher, Cinnamon-faced Tyrannulet, rare Peruvian Pietail (Endemic Hummingbird), and Fine-barred Piculet (endemic). In Pillcopata we’ll stop to visit a coca plantation and learn about this plant and its many medicinal uses. Then we drive to the Manu Biological Station a couple of kilometers from Pilcopata town so there are trails and garden to explore the rest of the day
Overnight: Manu Biological Station
We’ll spend two days at Manu Biological Station run by Amazon Conservation (Nonprofit Organization) They converted various plantations and citrus, Pineaple, Manioc from the previous owner to experimental agriculture areas and to study the flora and fauna for Biologist, this station boasts a bird list of near 500 species! The lodge is in the transitional zone (1640 feet of elevation) where the last foothills of the Andes begin to flatten out into the lowland Amazon Basin. Butterfly bushes attract numerous hummingbird species including the Rufous-crested Coquette, Golden-tailed Sapphire, Blue-tailed Emerald, Black-eared Fairy, Wire-crested Thorntail, Amethyst Woodstar and the endemic Kopeck’s Hermit.
We will also see birds in floodplain and hill forest habitats. Some of the species we will be looking for include the Black-capped Tinamou, the Strange Hoatzin, Buckley’s Forest Falcon, Wattled Guan, Military Macaw, Blue-headed Macaw, Pheasant Cuckoo, Bluish-fronted Jacamar, Chestnut-capped Puffbird, Fine-barred Piculet, Red-billed Scythbill, Dark-breasted Spinetail, Dusky-cheeked Foliage-gleaner, Bamboo Antshrike, Chestnut-backed Antshrike, Amazonian and Thrush-like antpittas, Rusty-belted Tapaculo, Mottle-backed Elaenia, Red-billed Tyrannulet, Johanne’s Tody-tyrant, Yellow-browed Tody-flycatcher, Black-backed Tody-Flycatcher, Ornate Flycatcher, Band-tailed, Fiery-capped and Round-tailed manakins, Golden-bellied (Cusco) Warbler, Black-faced Dacnis and many more. We will go owling for the Mottled Owl, Black-banded Owl, Tawny-bellied Screech Owl along with Great, Long-tailed and Common Potoos.
We continue in the afternoon to Atalaya’s Mirador from where we see the upper Madre de Dios River on the way we stop at the local initiative for birds like Hummingbirds at the feeding station (sugary water) so we will be combining the birding in the gardens and sunset time over the Piñi Piñi Mountain range a magical. The upper Madre de Dios river, one of the southernmost tributaries of the Amazon River.
Overnight: Manu Biological Station.
Chestnut fronted Macaw
After breakfast, we’ll take our vehicle, get back on Manu Road and continue our bird watching. The landscape will change as we climb and move through the cloud and elfin forests. We’ll have a good chance to see Mountain Tanagers, Chat Tyrants, and elaenias. We’ll have a box lunch along the way as we move through the magical landscape toward Cusco. The trip ends when we drop you back at your hotel in Cusco.
Including in this trip:
Not Included
USD.00