Ecuador occupies less than two-tenths of one percent of the Earth’s land surface, yet more than 1,600 species of birds have been recorded there — roughly one bird species in every six known worldwide. Even allowing for the fact that larger countries naturally tend to contain more species, Ecuador is extraordinary. A simple species–area analysis suggests that it supports close to three times as many bird species as we might expect for a country of its size. Ecuador’s tourism authorities describe it as having the highest bird-species density in the world, and it is not difficult to understand why.

What makes Ecuador so rich is geography. In a country only a little larger than the United Kingdom, the Pacific lowlands, two great Andean cordilleras, inter-Andean valleys, cloud forests, páramo and Amazon rainforest are compressed into remarkably short distances. Cross the Andes and you repeatedly pass through entirely different ecological worlds, each supporting its own community of birds. For the visiting naturalist, this means you do not need to be a dedicated “lister” to encounter spectacular species. Hummingbirds glitter around lodge feeders, toucans and barbets appear in fruiting trees, brilliantly coloured tanagers move through mixed flocks, and with a little luck an Andean cock-of-the-rock may emerge from the cloud forest. Even some of the more extraordinary birds — such as the sword-billed hummingbird, whose bill is longer than the rest of its body — can be encountered without mounting a full-scale birding expedition.

The remarkable Sword-billed Hummingbird — one of the characteristic birds of the high Andes. Photo: Jess Findlay / Nature TTL.

For someone already travelling through Quito, perhaps the easiest introduction is to spend two or three nights on the western slope of the Andes around Mindo and Tandayapa. This is classic cloud-forest country and particularly rewarding for hummingbirds, tanagers, toucans and the Andean cock-of-the-rock. A contrasting day can then be spent at Antisana, southeast of Quito, where the forest gives way to high-altitude páramo and the avifauna changes almost completely; this is one of the classic areas for looking for the Andean condor. You do not need to spend the day ticking off species. Stay at a good nature lodge, sit quietly near the hummingbird feeders, take an early-morning walk with a knowledgeable local guide, and stop whenever something interesting appears. That slower approach is often considerably more enjoyable for the general naturalist. Ecuador's official birdwatching guidance specifically highlights Antisana for the condor and the country's northwest for its exceptional bird diversity.

The aptly named Long-tailed Sylph is one of the many hummingbirds that make Ecuador particularly memorable.

To experience another completely different community of birds, add three or four nights in the Amazon. A good wildlife lodge in the Napo–Yasuní region gives access to forest trails, rivers and lagoons, canopy observation towers and, in some areas, parrot clay licks. Here the experience is as much about the forest itself as it is about accumulating species: macaws and parrots passing overhead, toucans calling from the canopy, kingfishers beside the waterways, strange prehistoric-looking hoatzins scrambling through riverside vegetation and dozens of smaller species moving through the forest. Yasuní National Park is regarded as one of the most biologically diverse places on Earth, and Ecuador's tourism authorities specifically recommend river excursions, birdwatching, jungle lodges and parrot clay licks as ways of experiencing it.

 A monkey's greatest nightmare: The Harpy eagle of the Amazon basin

 

 

Red-headed Barbet — a good example of the remarkable colour encountered in Ecuador's humid Andean forests. 

And then there is Galápagos. The islands do not contribute enormous numbers to Ecuador's national bird list; their importance lies instead in endemism. The Charles Darwin Foundation currently recognizes 29 species of small Galápagos landbirds, about 90% of which are endemic, alongside remarkable endemic seabirds and coastal species such as the Galápagos penguin and flightless cormorant. Here birds are interesting not simply because of what they look like, but because of the evolutionary stories they tell. Darwin's finches differ from island to island, short-eared owls on Genovesa hunt storm petrels among the lava, penguins survive on the equator because of cold ocean currents, and the waved albatross returns to Española to breed. A well-designed Galápagos cruise therefore complements mainland Ecuador beautifully: the mainland overwhelms with diversity, while Galápagos fascinates with adaptation, behaviour and uniqueness.

Waved Albatross on Española — one of the great bird encounters of Galápagos.

For a traveller wanting to appreciate Ecuador's birds without making birds the sole purpose of the journey, the formula can be surprisingly simple: combine the Andes with the Amazon and Galápagos. Even a few days around Mindo and Antisana, followed by several nights in a good Amazon lodge and a Galápagos cruise, exposes you to an extraordinary cross-section of the country's avifauna. Bring a decent pair of binoculars, go outside early in the morning, and whenever possible travel with guides who know the birds as part of the wider natural environment rather than simply as names on a checklist. You may return home without knowing exactly how many species you saw. That hardly matters. What you are likely to remember is just how often, in Ecuador, you raised your binoculars and found yourself looking at something you had never imagined existed.

Think you're in paradise?  You're not far off.  The Paradise tanager - an Amazon resident

 

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