Visiting Peru and not visting Machu Picchu would have been a tragedy. We did not see a lot of birds there, but who needs birds with scenery like this.
Grass-green Tanager (Chlorornis riefferii)
A striking green tanager that is found in the Andes from Colombia to Bolivia. It is the only extant member of the genus Chlorornis.
Spotted Tanager (Ixothraupis punctata)
A pretty tanager found in the Andes of Peru. It’s closely related to the Speckled Tanager also in this blog.
Golden-naped Tanager (Chalcothraupis ruficervi)
A common Tanager on the eastern slopes of the Andes in Peru.
Plumbeous Rail (Pardirallus sanguinolentus)
A rail that is common in much of the southern half of South America. This one was seen at Refugio de Vida Silvestre Los Pantanos de Villa, in southern Lima, Peru.
Peruvian Thick-knee (Hesperoburhinus superciliaris)
We were on a tour of an ancient archeological site near Lima, Peru. It is a drab, sandy area. Several of us saw a bone on the ground (shown). I did not think much of it until one of our party asked what was on the ground next to bone. It took me several seconds to see what she was referring to. This fairly large bird is a master at camouflage. They rest motionless during the day and forage at nighttime.
These photos were taken with a telephoto lens with a limited depth of field to bring out the bird. To the unaided eye, they are difficult to see. The Peruvian Thick-knee.