Mountain Elaenia Confirmed First For Mexico

I led a second field trip to Ejidos Tapalapa and Coapilla today, and my main goal, besides just finding lots of cool birds for the participants, was to re-find the Mountain Elaenias and get better photos and recordings.

We scored on all accounts. Here is my best and most diagnostic photo of the Mountain Elaenia, and here is also one of the recordings I obtained.

I actually heard a third bird down the road from this same pair we had yesterday, and then later in the morning found a fourth individual well up the road. So it seems there is a very isolated population on this one mountain. I’ve queried several people now, and all agree that this would be a first record for Mexico – 212 miles from the nearest eBird submission in Guatemala.

I didn’t get many bird photos today, but we did have excellent views of Scaly-throated Foliage-gleaner, Brown-backed Solitaire, Black-throated Jay, and Black-headed Nightingale-Thrush. Some of us also saw Blue-crowned Chlorophonia, Blue-and-white Mockingbird, Blue-throated Motmot, and many others.

This Mountain Trogon female was being wooed by a male who would not give us decent views.

We flushed a Slate-throated Redstart off its nest, which had two eggs.

We had some nice butterflies, including Adelpha donysa, Donysa Sister

Anetia thirza, Cloud-forest King

And Catasticta flisa, Narrow-banded Dartwhite

There are some pretty amazing plants up here, from this tiny Castilleja sp.

To this giant Gunnera sp.

Tomorrow I lead the field trip to Sumidero National Park.