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 toa 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.
A lifer was the 20" Grey-headed Kite (Leptodon cayanensis). This was a stroke of luck as
we were driving back the long haul from the Pantanal, the guide stopped the
vehicle for a moment and this bird flew in and landed in the trees beside us.
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| Grey-headed Kite |
Another new photo was the 25" Black
Hawk-Eagle (Spizeatus tyrannus). I have never seen this bird perched.
 |
| Black Hawk-Eagle, |
Another lifer was
the 21" Mantled Hawk (Leucopternis polionotus) This bird is similar
to the White Hawk, but it is only found along the Atlantic coast of Brazil,
Paraguay and Uruguay. It was very far away and I had to take the photo with my
camera through a scope. It is listed as Rare.
 |
| Mantled Hawk |
Another lifer was the 20" Long-winged Harrier (Circus buffoni). The long banded tail is a field mark.
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| Long-winged Harrier |
Another bird soaring was the
21" Zone-tailed Hawk (Buteo albonotatus).
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| Zone-tailed Hawk |
There were many 17" Snail Kites (Rostrhamus sociabilis) in the Pantanal region. This
is a dark gray raptor with a markedly hooked beak. They are found widely in
tropical America from Florida southwards.
 |
| Snail Kite |
 |
| Savannah Hawk |
On a boat trip in the Pantanal along a
stream not more than 30 yards wide, we came across a pair of 20" Black-collared
Hawks (Busarellus nigricollis). They had a nest in a tree nearby
and this was their hunting ground along the stream. We were within 10 yards of
this bird for an amazing photo opportunity. He is a fantastic bird.
 | |
| Black-collared Hawk |
 |
| Smooth-billed Ani |
A new cuckoo was the 15" Guira Cuckoo (Guira
guira). He is IDed by the long tail, dark wings and bushy orange crest.
 |
| Guira Cuckoo |
 |
| Guira Cuckoo |
I have photos of
80 of the 254 species of hawks and eagles
I have photos of
26 of the 148 species of cuckoos
Happy birding and
photography,
David McDonald
dkmmdpa@gmail.com
photos copyright 2006 - 2025 David McDonald
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