Ecuador lies on the equator. It is called “equator” in Spanish. And this term also gave the name to this country. It is one of the smallest countries in South America. Its small size is made up for by the diversity of nature and local ecosystems. Coastal mangroves on the Pacific coast, mountain cloud forests, the high-altitude nature of the Altiplano with six-thousand-meter snow-capped volcanoes. And in the east, behind the Andes ridge, the lowlands of the Amazon rainforest.

Our journey to the bird jewels of Ecuador began, of course, at the airport in the capital Quito. It is located in the northern part of the country in the province of Pichincha, about 22 km south of the equator at an altitude of 2850 meters. It is the second highest capital city in the world. The city lies on the eastern slope of the active stratovolcano Pichincha (4794 m) in a deep valley. According to the 2019 census, it had 1,978,376 inhabitants. The current number is estimated at more than 2,700,000 inhabitants. It is therefore the second largest city in the country, after the coastal Guayaquil.

Statistics recently ranked Ecuador among the most dangerous destinations in the world. We therefore did not want to stay in the capital for long. Despite the exhausting thirteen-hour flight from Amsterdam, we did not miss the view of the night city from the top of Panecillo hill with a giant statue of an Virgin with a dragon. That looked more like an angel. In the evening, just a “welcome drink” at the hotel, an orienteering run with the confused receptionist around the hotel with our twenty-kilogram luggage in search of free rooms. We went to bed tired, but with the hope that tomorrow we would “dig” a lot of gems from the bird Ecuadorian treasure.

As already mentioned, Quito is located high, and the hills around it are also high. The next morning, while it was still dark, we set off into these hills another thousand meters higher. Our lungs were still struggling, but the altitude of 3500 m was noticeable. Our destination was the Zuru Loma reserve at an altitude of 3500 m above sea level. Without much delay, we unpacked our photographic equipment and headed to the places prepared for “gem mining”. It was quite similar to winter photography at a bird feeder. But there is a difference between Europe and Ecuador. There are about a hundred times more birds in the tropical rainforest and Ecuador in general.

The number of birds and the diversity of bird species is admirable. And that’s not counting the ubiquitous hummingbirds. The vast majority of species are frugivorous birds. They can be attracted to the right places with a regular supply of bananas, mangoes and other juicy fruits. Then all you have to do is arrange some nice still life and a nice picture is (almost) guaranteed. But! In the tropics, everything is a little different. What surprised me the most was the fact that almost everywhere it is necessary to use a relatively high ISO. In the dense tropical forest it is constantly dark. It often rains here, and the rain complicates the lighting conditions even more. Most species only stay in one place for a short time, they fly in and out quickly, so short shutter speeds are necessary. And everything together must be set optimally and in time.

Geographically, South America is on the opposite side of the globe. In Ecuador we come across families and genera of the bird kingdom that we do not know from Europe. Unfortunately, we did not have time to visit the Pacific coast called “Costa”. It is an area with dense population and vast banana plantations, but with a significant number of seabirds, including blue-footed boobies. We finally had to go to the Galapagos Islands to see them. For several days, we visited the area of ​​the Amazon rainforest called “Oriente”, some parts of which are negatively affected by oil extraction. We spent most of our time in the “Sierra”, which are mountain rainforests and high mountain plains and where the capital Quito is located.

Among the bird species that are not attracted by any fruit are, of course, birds of prey and owls. Taking a high-quality photo in a dense mountain forest or even a rainforest of a predator that spends most of the day waiting for prey hidden in the treetops is an almost superhuman task. Nevertheless, we were apparently lucky with our photography. This is probably also due to the fact that birds of prey and owls are not perceived as pests here and people do not chase or hunt them. So they have no reason to run away from people. We also encountered natives advertising by the road. The sign says what kind of animal can be seen on their land. For a small fee, of course. Often, these were owls at their daily perch.

The symbol of the Andean giants, the Andean condor, occupies a supreme position among bird species. Not only because it is depicted on the national emblem of Ecuador. Its nesting grounds are strictly protected and for the private reserves that protect these nesting grounds, they are a significant source of income needed for their operation. Watching condors flying by from a rocky cliff at a distance of a few meters is an unforgettable experience. The almost three-meter wingspan will cause true admiration in the observer. Their faithful companions are the Crested caracara.

Before a long journey, one has at least a minimal idea of ​​what to expect from the trip. I was mainly looking forward to the hummingbirds when I went to Ecuador and I didn’t think much about anything else. However, deep down I wanted to meet other local bird gems. Hummingbirds can be compared to birds with no less colorful feathers and beaks – toucans. Meeting these incredible creatures is an experience even for the local natives. We must have been very lucky, because we observed several species. Not only the strikingly large, agile beak and colorful feathers. Their inquisitive, almost wise gaze also makes toucans fascinating creatures.

In addition to the clear Ecuadorian goals, there was also a category of wishful thinking in my plans that I did not dare to talk to anyone about, or even think about. The biggest wishful thinking was, above all, the Andean cock-of-the-rock. Their roosts are located in very inaccessible places deep in the mountain forests and high in the treetops. And even if they lead you to such a place, it is far from over. The treetops are so dense that it is almost impossible to take a photo of this bird without a branch or leaf of the surrounding lush vegetation sticking out of some part of its body. But here too, luck did not leave us and the branches parted.
By the way, these birds are a real problem for a photographer. Their deep red color does not show up very well on a digital chip. The structure of the feathers merges into one solid surface and it does not improve much in post-processing.

The list of species in the wishful thinking category was of course much wider. In all cases, perhaps, these were truly lucky, random encounters that we had not counted on at all. Despite the fact that most of these encounters lasted only a few minutes, sometimes even seconds, they were worth it. In general, you will not encounter the rarest species in a pre-prepared place. You will meet them while walking through the forest or even in the garden of one of the local lodges. This show we met, for example, hoatzins, trogons, potoos or momots.

As mentioned at the beginning, the diversity of the bird kingdom in Ecuador is endless. Hummingbirds are undoubtedly a phenomenon of South American nature. However, even if there were no hummingbirds flying here, there would still be hundreds of miraculous bird species that cannot be seen anywhere else.