The Atlantic Forest is a unique ecosystem from sea level to about 1 mile elevation. It contains 800 species of birds (225 endemic) and 26 species of primates. Unfortunately it also contains 2 mega cities - Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro and the resulting sprawl and clearing for agriculture since the Portuguese arrived 500 years ago, has wiped out 90%+ of the original forest. About 250 species of amphibians, birds and mammals have gone extinct in the past 400 years. The good news is that many preserves and parks have been set aside to try and preserve the remaining biodiversity. Many of the birds have wide distribution, but others are restricted to a tiny area of original forest usually above 2500 foot elevation. The Birds of Brazil guide book by Ber Van Perlo was published in 2009. He gives the chances of seeing the birds and many are listed as R - meaning rare with a negligible chance of finding them. However with the excellent guide (Alex Mesquita) and going point to point where the reported sightings have recently occurred, we saw many of them. We drove over 2000 miles in the 2 weeks to see as many of these rarities as well as the more common birds. I will indicate the R species.
In 2023 I visited the southern
part of this area. In 2025 I visited the northern part. Some of the photos will
be ones I had not sent for the 2023 trip.
The 5.9” Rufous-collared Sparrow (Zonotrichia
capensis) is a common bird all through Latin America and the Caribbean. He
is IDed by the brown back, black and gray face and an orange collar.
Rufous-collared Sparrow
The 5” Grassland Sparrow(Ammodromus
humeralis) is found throughout Brazil south of the Amazon. It is a typical
non-descript sparrow but he has a yellow spot in front of his eye.
Grassland Sparrow
The 5.9” Pectoral Sparrow (Arremon
taciturnus) is a colorful sparrow with an olive back, and black and white
striped face. He also has a yellow shoulder patch. His bill is black.
Pectoral Sparrow
His cousin is the similar 5.9” Sao Francisco Sparrow
(Arremon franciscanus). He is an
endemic and is listed as Rare. We only had one chance for him along a road and
he came practically to our feet! His bill is yellow.
Sao Francisco Sparrow
The 15.5” Purplish Jay
(Cyanocorax cyanomelas) appears to be
all dark but he is deep purple except for a black hood.
Purplish Jay
His cousin,
the 13” Curl-crested Jay (Cyanocorax cristatellus) has a blueish back and white breast and
tail. The crest facing backwards is an easy ID.
Curl-crested Jay
Another cousin
is the endemic 13.8” White-naped
Jay
(Cyanocorax cyanopogon). He is black
and white with a bright yellow eye.
White-naped Jay
A new family
for me, was the 5.5” Collared
Crescentchest (Melanopareia torquata).
It is one of 4 species in the family of small songbirds south of the Amazon. This
is the only one found in Brazil so it is an easy ID with his striped head,
yellow throat bordered by black stripes.
Collared Crescentchest
I have photos of
77 of the 137 species of New World Sparrows
I have photos of 46 of
the 136 species of Crows,
Jays and Magpies
Happy birding and
photography,
David McDonald
dkmmdpa@gmail.com
photos copyright 2006 - 2026 David McDonald
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