Highlands of Mexico

A Hundred Million Monarchs

A Greentours Tour Report

14th February – 1st March 2018

Led by Ian Green & Eric Miranda

Day 1 14th February

We departed Heathrow on time and headed across the North Atlantic, making landfall in a very cold and snowy looking Labrador before heading south through Canada and the USA and then traversing the length of Mexico, passing some spectacular mountain formations, landing just a little early in Mexico City. Immigration queues were unusually long and slow this year but by eight- thirty or so we'd met up with Eric and then we were into the Grand Prix and enjoying some Aztec Soup amongst other excellent dishes!

Day 2 15th February

We left the comforts of the Grand Prix at the allotted four-thirty, and just minutes later arrived into Terminal 2 at Mexico City Airport. We were soon checked in and through security and on our turboprop, a little eighty-seater affair that meant most of us had window views. Popacatapetl loomed snow-clad above the city but we soon turned our back on it and headed west. Volcan Toluca stretching 17000 feet into the sky above the city of the same name was unfortunately mostly obscured by cloud. Valle de Bravo lake appeared and then up and over the forested Sierras that held the wintering monarchs. The tops of El Fuego and Nevado de Colima were beautifully lit on the other side of the aircraft.

It was like a breath of fresh air, stepping out onto the tarmac at Colima's small, friendly, and dare we say it, rather beautiful little airport. We met up with Beto, our driver, and then drove up above Comala, one of Mexico’s ‘Magic Towns’, before stopping for breakfast. En route we’d already seen a marvellous showing of the leafless Tabebuia chrysantha, each elegant tree covered in tresses of yellow flowers.

This was our first chance to properly take in the local birds, and my there were a lot of them! Black and Turkey Vultures cruised overhead. Two Golden-cheeked Woodpeckers appeared in the trees at the bottom of the garden along with Streak-backed, Baltimore and Hooded Oriole. There were Rose-throated Beccards, Tropical Parula, Black & White, Nashville and Yellow-rumped Warblers, Greenish Elaenia, Grayish Saltators, Rufous-backed and White-throated Thrushes, Blue Grosbeak,

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 1

Indigo Buntings and Painted Buntings. Meanwhile a superb breakfast was being prepared with us trying all sorts of typical Mexican dishes. The fresh orange juice was marvellous. Back to the birdy spot after breakfast we looked for the Painted Buntings… Instead we found two superb Mexican Parrotlets and a Squirrel Cuckoo! We needn’t have worried about the buntings though as Cristina spotted a superb male which posed long for us, its improbably bright colours amazing in the morning light. Also at this spot was a Black Ctenosaur and a superb Red Cracker butterfly.

El Fuego loomed above us as we drove steadily uphill along quiet lanes and through small colourful villages, everywhere seemed covered in a riotous assemblage of vegetation, though being 'winter' here (18°C!) it was the dry season and the grasses looked brown. Nevertheless there were plenty of blooms along the roadside as we went, Leonotis nepetifolia, various Convolvulaceae, and Lopezia hirsuta. One could easily have spent all day stopping along this road but we needed to get to the Laguna and so an forty minute drive from the breakfast spot we pulled into the little cobbled lane that runs up to the Laguna Maria. The volcano now appeared very close and the surrounding habitats looked very exciting as birds flung themselves out of our path. Laguna is a very birdy place! Below us lay a green lagoon, and a nearer water tank, set in a volcanic vent and surrounded on three sides by crumbling volcanic ash cliffs covered in a rich forest. The rooms were exceedingly spacious, made all the more so by the almost complete lack of furniture! Only two large beds in each and a small table – and acres of floor space!

We took a late morning stroll down to the laguna, just three hundred metres away. By the rooms was a small tree of Pithecellobium dulce with white globose flowers and the colourful red and white spiralled fruits hanging below. The flesh of these fruit is edible and sweet. This tree is often dominant in the area. Here it was well liked by Nashville Warblers, half a dozen living in this one! We looked at Asclepias curassavica the Monarch butterfly’s food plant and watched Crescents (like little fritillaries) settling in the grass. Barred Yellows fluttered close to the ground. Fabulous Vermilion Flycatchers were very conspicuous, the males like red flaming balls as they fluttered into the sky in their display flight. It was soon apparent that the place was heaving with all manner of wildlife whether it was the ring-tailed Tropical Ground Squirrels that chirruped from the top of boulders or the rich array of invertebrates visible on the trackside flowers. There were plenty of flycatchers around to snap up these little morsels. Tufted and Nutting’s Flycatchers sallied forth from low branches, and from higher up the larger insects were snapped up by groups of Social Flycatchers and the altogether larger Boat-billed Flycatcher. Brilliant green and black striped Zebra Heliconids flew up and down the track, a similarly long-winged but contrastingly brilliant orange Julia doing the same. It was clear that it was going to be good here for butterflies, the weather gorgeous with a clear blue sky and temperatures pleasantly warm in the low 20s°C by midday. We found several butterflies down by the lagoon-side picnic area including Ardent and Pale-banded Crescents, and both Banded and White Peacocks. We had great views of a gorgeous male Varied Bunting. Above, the huge fig trees Ficus insipida were laden with impressive Bromeliads, these Tillandsia tillii, and lined with ferns and orchids, the latter mostly not in flower though we were able to get a look at the little purple-flowered Maxillaria variabilis. There were plenty of other large trees down here - Fraxinus uhdei was common – and others included Inga flexuosa, Ardisia compressa with its shiny red/black berries, Psidium guajava with its distinctively eucalyptoid bark and locally common Heliocarpus occidentalis. The ash walls of the little volcanic vent that the lagoon sits in are

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 2 cliff-like by the track at one point and here we saw some orange and yellow Lobelia laxiflora in flower alongside the tubular red flowers of a Loeselia species, both hummingbird pollinated flowers. Our first hummingbird was a shimmering green Berylline Hummingbird. another less than common species noted this morning was Golden-crowned Warbler. Golden-cheeked Woodpecker, Squirrel Cuckoos, Ladder-backed and Golden-cheeked Woodpeckers, Ivory-billed Woodreeper, Greenish Elaenia, Orange-billed Nightingale-Thrush, Rose-throated Beccard, Golden Vireo, Nashville Warblers, Rufous-capped Warblers, Tropical Parula, gorgeous Painted Redstarts as wel as the commoner Slate-throated Redstarts, Warbling Vireos and a Blue Mockingbird were all seen in the greenery whilst on the lake we watched American Coots and Black-crowned Night-Herons before returning for lunch up at the restaurant. A wonderful surprise was a group of White- throated Magpie Jays moving cross the track on the way back up to the rooms.

In the afternoon we went up to a barranca about 4km above the Laguna Maria. This year El Fuego was very quiet, not at all its usual active self, usually we get great views of regular columns of ash and eruptions from this spot. We walked along a track that took us through light open West Mexican Thorn Scrub the well-spaced trees being mostly acacias and on the ground a mix of grass and herbs. The herbs included much Loeselia and this was attracting many hummingbirds, with Broad-billed, Cinnamon and a female Calliope seen. The acacias, though only twice as tall as a person, were thickly covered in lichens and looked old. They also had a good number of bromeliads, mostly Tillandsia juncea, and a few orchids in flower, these Oncidium hyalinobulbon with wonderful sprays of tiny yellow blooms. Also of note here was the unusual shrub Hybanthus elatius, a member of the Violet family!

As we descended to the hotel the sun set in a blaze of orange over the Sierra de Manantlan to the west, El Fuego standing proud and tall above us briefly lit orange before turning purple as dusk descended. One of the local coffee growers was drying his beans and several of the group popped in and had what was apparently a most excellent brew, and purchased some beans too!

A night walk yielded no less than five Armadillos.

Day 3 February 16th The Pacific Coast - Los Asmoles dry forest & Playa Mezcala

We drove down the slopes to Colima and on to the main road to the coast stopping in Colima for pictures of the spectacular Tabebuia chrysantha, the leafless trees like giant golden torches. South of the town the road soon took us into an interesting area of 'coastal' West Mexican thorn forest. Eric and the team set up a breakfast as we pottered up the track. We were surrounded by small trees, often spiny in nature, and clambering through them many lianas such as Ipomoea bracteata, a bindweed with large colourful bracts and long-tubed pink flowers. This genus was very diverse in form here with typical trackside small herbaceous flowers and also the substantial tree Ipomoea intrapilosa smothered in white blooms, one magnificent specimen was at least eight metres tall. Peter was pleased to find a tree of the little known family Theophrastaceae – this Jacquinia pungens with neat little orange flowers and narrow spine-tipped leaves. A superb Plain-capped Starthroat was the first

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 3 hummingbird of the day and we soon saw the West Mexican endemic Dusky Hummingbird. It didn’t take long for one of the area’s star birds to fly noisily overhead, the White-throated Magpie- Jay. There were lots of Ash-throated Flycatchers about and we saw some Spotted Wrens, various warblers and Grey-collared Beccard as well as the first of several Blue Buntings. We returned to the breakfast, table and chairs set up, and Eric produced scrambled egg and a lovely dish of fried potatoes and onions. There was of course tea, coffee, juices, bread etc. Then we were off up the canyon spending another three hours in the environs this morning. We soon encountered the White-throated Magpie-Jays again with a large group moving slowly up the canyon ahead of us. There were Golden-cheeked Woodpeckers in the trees and we also soon encountered a lovely pair of Citreoline Trogons. All the time there were Ash-throated Flycatchers and a single Flammulated Flycatcher was seen. Moving upwards we soon started to reach areas where we could get close up to some of the cacti which adorned the steeper and rockier sections of the canyon. There were two large columnar species, the first, Neobuxbaumia mezcalensis, was tall – up to 5m – and little branched and looked amazing on the rock walls, and further up the canyon there was Pachycereus pecten- aboriginum, another multi-branched columnar cacti of immense stature growing on a limestone karst plateau. We found Euphorbia tithymaloides, a leafless Euphorbiacean whose blooms looked like a bunch of little birds perched on a twig, and also another strange member of this family, the succulent Cnidoscolus tepiquensis which was just sprouting some leaves. We noted the papaya relative Jacaratia mexicana, here a substantial leafless tree on the canyon walls, the winged fruits hanging down.

The canyon is very good for butterflies though they didn’t really get going until it was really warm in the last hour! We saw plenty of Blackened Bluewings, a beautiful nymphalid whose uppersides, in the male, are shot with rays of electric purple-blue, whilst the female has bands of paler blue. These were quite common. There was also a spectacular Jazzy Leafwing and a few Malachites appeared, these spectacular big lime-green and black butterflies are always a favourite. The lovely red going over to green blooms of Combretum farinosum attracted Pierids such as Apricot, Yellow- Angled and Cloudless Sulphurs, Great Southern Whites (turquoise antennae clubs!) and Orange- barred Sulphur. Other butterflies included Gray Crackers, Ruddy Daggerwings, a Prepona that didn’t stop, and a stunning little White-rayed Pixie. Satyrids were common in the understory including the beautifully patterned Hook-line Ur-Satyr and the impressively large Great Ur-Satyr. There were a number of skippers though most of these were moving too fast for us to get a look at let alone a camera on. The architectural vegetation study continued with some nice Burseras including Bursera fagaroides with green papery bark, and Bursera longipes with deep cinnamon-red shiny bark. There was also spiny Haematoxylon brasiletto with paired heart-shaped leaves, Ceiba aesculifolia with large white fluffy flowers, and Platymiscium lasiocarpum with long white-flowered racemes. Needless to say in such a habitat the succulents were varied and as well as the aforementioned ‘giant cacti’ there was lemon flowered Opuntia excelsa and magenta bloomed Opuntia karwinskiana. Shrubs included white-pink flowered Bauhinia subrotundifolia, Cordia diversifolia with white globose blooms, and Coursetia glandulosa with white flowers and pinnate leaves. On the various leafless trees were two little bromeliads, Tillandsia juncea and Tillandsia recurvata, and on the cliffs the large spiny-leaved Hechtia glomerata. Further up on the karstic limetone was the local endemic Hechtia laevis (grey leaves as opposed to green).

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 4

Then it was off to the Pacific, pausing for a much-needed ice-cream for it was by now very warm. Driving through the coastal mangroves we saw the fantastic huge flappy White Morpho. We arrived at Boca de Apiza, the mouth of the river that marks the border between Colima and Michoacan.

Down at the river/sea-side Eric and the team started setting up the lunch whilst we looked around this excellent birding site. Upriver we could see abundant birdlife – and this was very close to us. A group of Brown Pelicans loitered on a small island and around them were both Neotropic Cormorants and a number of White Ibises. Franklin's and Laughing Gulls and both Elegant Terns and Royal Terns flew back and forth along the river. There were many Blue-winged Teal and American Coots. Down by the beach was a sand spit where the river reached the Pacific. Some fishermen were throwing nets in the water and Brown Pelicans diving into the water around them and Neotropic Cormorants practically raided the nets! Overhead Magnificent Frigatebirds drifted past waiting to see if anything would come their way. We explored the strand line where there were abundant indications of the birdlife present in feathers, including some nice Roseate Spoonbill ones for my collection! There were a number of dried Pufferfish and some impressive tooth-laden fish jaw bones too.

After lunch we walked back through the Mangroves for a while. Sarcostemma viminale, a vine with white flowers, trailed through the mangroves which included Rhizophora mangle, Conocarpus erectus, with reddish nuts, and Laguncularia racemosa, and other trees in this peculiar habitat included Coccoloba venosa with cream spikes of flowers, and Talipariti tiliaceum with orange flowers and heart- shaped leaves. There were White-crowned Night Herons and Little Green Herons as well as Mangrove Yellow Warblers and Common Yellowthroats living in the tangle of mangrove roots.

We decided to visit a family on the Michoacan side of the border. One of them took us on a boat ride in one of their fishing boats. This was marvellous. There was abundant birdlife – and this was very close to us and all in exceptional late afternoon light. On sandbars we enjoyed close up views of Neotropic Cormorants, lots of Brown Pelicans and a number of White Ibises. There was a single Caspian Tern. Waders were amazing, and we got really close to many of them. There were lots of Willets, Short-billed Dowitcher, Least Sandpipers and just a few Greater Yellowlegs and Lesser Yellowlegs. Most spectacular though was a huge flock of Black-necked Stilts absolutely shining in the sun. There were great views to be had of herons and egrets. There were lots of Snowy Egrets and Little Blue Herons, and some photogenic Tricolored Herons, whilst Little Green Heron were in the fringing riverside vegetation. There were also Great White Egrets and a Great Blue Heron. A Reddish Egret was nice to see and numbers of White-faced Ibis increased as time passed. Most enjoyed though were the stunning Roseate Spoonbills who did everything they could to ensure their amazing pink plumage was seared into our memory cards – marvellous! We had great views of Green Kingfisher, our boatmen being particularly adept at spotting them. Crested Caracaras shone in the sun and there was a Gray Hawk in a riverside tree. Most spectacular of all was a Peregrine which had just caught a Coot and was busy dismembering it on a sand bar. He looked the picture of power as he tore the bird apart. Several Turkey Vultures stood nearby and the Peregrine had words with them a couple of times before eventually flying off with his catch, looking a little

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 5 heavy in flight! As we returned, rather overwhelmed by the numbers and variety of wetland birds, Magnificent Frigatebirds cruised overhead.

It was almost six when we reached Playa Mezcala a few kilometres along the coast. Recently a birdwatching tower and a walkway had been built into the marshes by the coastal lagoon here so we spent half an hour on this. The white flowers of the waterlily Nymphaea ampla were noticeable, the leaves strongly serrate, and there was also a deal of the invasive Eichhornia crassipes on the lily pads where there were plenty of Common Gallinules and Northern Jacanas. Several Purple Gallinules were seen too and there were a couple of Snail Kites and numerous snails that had been consumed by these birds!

This is one of a number of beaches in this area that have significant populations of turtles nesting. We met up with Pablo who looks after the turtles on this beach for much of the year. In the past he was paid by the Mexican Government to do this though that has recently stopped and so he and his wife continue to aid the Chelonians unrewarded by the powers that be. He said that numbers of both Green Turtles and Pacific Ridleys were still reasonable this year, though predation from local people after the eggs was still high. Leatherbacks sometimes nest on these beaches too.

We walked along to Pablo's house where his hatchery lay. Collared Plovers and various waders were on the beach. He moves the eggs there when he finds females laying so that locals can't rob the nests. He is very careful to ensure that the actual nest conditions are faithfully replicated. As the sun lowered in the sky offshore we watched Royal Terns fly by. Beach-combing proved productive with many nice finds including some large bright pink shells. A nest was due to hatch two days later but sadly there were no little turtlings to watch tonight on their way into the sea. After dark we could see a Crocodile’s eyeshine across the lagoon.

Then we all headed back up the beach for Eric's baked fish dinner served by coconut-palm firelight on the beach – a great evening with wine, the gentle sound of the Pacific behind us and a delicious meal.

Day 4 February 17th El Fuego

After the long day yesterday we enjoyed a relaxed start this morning. Breakfast at eight-thirty was much enjoyed – outside Nigel had spotted some Eastern Bluebirds and Eric some Lilac—crowned Parrots.

We headed up the slopes of the volcano a few kilometres this morning. The 13.488 foot cone had just the top obscured by cloud otherwise it was a warm and sunny morning. We found our route uncertain as far as allowing the vehicle was concerned so we set off earlier than had been hoped on foot. We walked steadily uphill for half an hour through dry volcanic slopes used for cattle-grazing, but still with a scattering of acacias some of which held nice specimens of the little yellow Oncidium hyalinobulbon. A covey of Banded Quail took off close to us. Castilleja arvensis, a bright red-tipped Indian Paintbrush became common and there was lots of lantana. Butterflies were starting to fly notably a number of Common Buck-eyes which posed on the track. Further along the track the

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 6 trees, especially the Heliocarpus occidentalis, had a rich assemblage of epiphytes. There were ferns in abundance, mosses and lichens of course, and bromeliads, these being mainly the large Tillandsia tillii and the thin-leaved Tillandsia juncea, though there were others, notably a species with downward pointing spiralled leaves. Quite a percentage of the epiphyte cover on some trees was provided by orchids. It is not the season for these – must be a fantastic sight when they are out. The elegant Pinus douglasiana started to appear. Bushtits fossicked like Long-tailed Tits in the bushes and we saw a number of Varied Buntings. A large pine was host to a Western Wood-pewee and a flock of brilliant Black-capped Siskins, there also being a Pine Siskin with them. A Red-tailed Hawk sailed over.

A Pink-spotted Cattleheart and some Mexican Silverspots, and the first of the fabulous Surprising Whites, this the definitely ‘not-white’ black and red female, showed that the butterflies were getting going and as we crossed a dry riverbed we started to enjoy some really fine species. An Orange- striped Eighty-eight caused much excitement but it was to prove the first of many, there being perhaps twenty up and down the dry stream. A Soldier or two visited Asclepias here, and there were lots of Crescents. Fatal Metalmarks were frequent too and there were lots of tiny orange moths that resembled the Elf butterfly fluttering about. Nigel spotted a couple of long-tailed skippers and a flasher all of which evaded full identification. When we came back to the spot for a second time a new butterfly had taken pride of place – the fantastic Common Banner. This is a poor name for one of Mexico’s most beautiful butterflies – this species appears on the front cover of Glassberg’s Butterflies of Mexico. Our second cover species in two days with the Magpie-Jays of the day before! I should say that it is the West Mexican race of this species which is particularly stunning. The uppers are a brilliant orange. Blue-black bands break up this colour. There turned out to be at least half a dozen of them. Nigel spotted a Postman and a Mexican Fritillary and I spotted a Mexican Heliconian. There were also a big range of whites with Orange-barred, Cloudless, and Apricot Sulphurs, Salome Yellow and a Pallid Tilewhite.

Some of us walked a little further up the hill. A number of male Surprising Whites accompanied us but could we get them to land… Glassberg doesn’t do this species justice for the male is a fabulous thing – a large butterfly with lots of grey-blue on a black background and with a less intense band of red than the female. Along here we also spotted Little Banner and Creamy Stripe-streak. The benefits of sitting quietly were well illustrated for Anna when two deer walked out of the forest very close to her. From Anna’s description we deduce they must have been White-tailed Deer. Though midday and often quiet for birds there was still one large party that contained Hermit, Orange-crowned, Black & White and Nashville Warblers. There were also Rufous-capped Warbler, Hutton’s Vireo, Indigo Buntings, Bullock’s Orioles and Ladder-backed Woodpecker. What must have been a Yellow Grosbeak braked into cover in front of Christine and me! Peter told us of a White-tipped Dove he had flushed and Christina found the feather remains of Wild Turley, these having been re-introduced here. There were oaks now, we were just about high enough, Quercus rugosa and another species. There were plenty of interesting shrubs including the white-to-pink flowered Arthrostemma ciliatum, a member of the Melastomaceae, Fuschia microphyllia, Cornis disciflora, and the sometimes very tall almost black-flowered umbel Arracacia atropurpurea. There were banks of tall yellow flowered asteraceous shrubs too including Roldana angulifolia, Roldana barba-johannis, Rumfordia floribunda, and Verbesina oncophora.

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 7

Meanwhile, back near the minibus, Eric was sat in front of his stove cooking us lunch, hot tacos filled with cheese and ham - just what we needed as the walk had been more than we were expecting. Superb sitting there at our table in such an environment, and Eric had raised a canopy over us too. Some of us elected to walk down the dry acacia dotted slopes disturbing more Banded Quail en route. Then it was down to Laguna Maria for a spot of relaxation whilst I went and collected the trap camera. Nothing on it though I did find some small cat prints in the canyon and saw a large group of West Mexican Chachalacas. There were also Blue Grosbeaks, Flammulated, Nutting’s and Dusky-capped Flycatchers, Greater Pewees, and several hummingbirds including Calliope, Berylline, Rufous and Blue-throated! By the main road I found another group of birds with Yellow-breasted Chat, Black-throated Gray Warbler and Slate-throated Redstart. A Clethra flowered along the water course as well as some substantial Oreopanax trees.

Day 5 February 18th Nevado de Colima & Zapotlán

Breakfast was another Laguna Maria spectacular as the sun rose over the rim of the little crater in which the hotel sits. Before leaving we looked in the trees by the entrance for the red-flowered Psittacanthus mayanus and duly found one plant of this hemi-parasite. In the Enterolobium cyclocarpum trees were Black-cheeked Woodpeckers and a little down the road was a Grey-crowned Woodpecker.

We now journeyed round the flank of the Volcano getting all kinds of views, though this year it wasn’t playing ball and we saw no eruptive activity. Our journey took us through wonderful convoluted volcanic landscapes as well as agricultural areas dominated by sugar cane and the tequila agave. We stopped briefly to photograph some Yellow Buttercup Trees, Cochlospernum vitifolium, and here too there was a little of the equally yellow Tabebuia chrysantha and the large white sprays of stamens that go for flowers on Pseudobombax ellipticum. Brown Skipper visited the Wigandia here. The large pale yellow flowers of Senna pallida were on the roadside here along with the white-flowered cactus Stenocereus queretaroensis.

We stopped for supplies, ice-creams (two Nigel!), toilets etc in Zapotlán and then we headed for the volcano we could see across the flats (a tectonic rift) around the town. Nevado de Colima is El Fuego's sister volcano, they are in fact vents on the top of the same huge strato-volcano. The Nevado is no longer active but is the higher of the two, well over 4000m at the top and prone to a little bit of snow at this season right on the peak. The upper volcano is protected by a national park the lower steep slopes are covered in pristine forest. We soon entered this on a track heading uphill, and we reached the pine-oak zone before stopping. We pottered about find four species of Salvia including the shining red elegans, the pink-furry curviflora and the little blue longispicata. In just a short stretch of road one could find four or more species of oak, here Quercus laurina and Quercus rugosa were very common. The pale undersides of the leaves of Quercus candicans were a frequent sight and there was a lot of large—leaved Quercus castanea. Cuphea jorullensis had twinned orange flowers. There were shrubs of the large showy Rumfordia floribunda and smaller yellow Asteraceae including Senecio stoechadiformis among others. A Juvenal Duskywing perched on roadside flowers and Mexican Silverspots ranged along the track. Crescent-chested Warblers were in the oaks.

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 8

We found a nice off-road spot where Eric and co could prepare their picnic, and there was a track that led off through the forest more or less on the level. Here the trackside flora was varied with the large Salvia fulgens, a deep blue subspecies of Salvia mexicana, and a little blue Salvia joining the parade of salvias. We also admired the strange shrubby milkwort with blue and yellow flowers, Moninna ciliolata. We found one or two bushes of the lovely blue-flowered Ceanothus caeruleus. The pines – Pinus montezumae and Pinus pseudostrobus - and oaks intermixed with trees of Buddleja cordata and Clethra mexicana, and here and there a little Arbutus xalapensis and Comarostaphylos. Lobelia laxiflora was in great form and along the banks were the ferns Blechnum occidentale, Asplenium monanthes, Adiantum princeps and Adiantium andicola. The tiny lemon-yellow Sisyrinchium tenuifolium flowered along the track. Hummingbirds were abundant, particularly White-eared, and we had great views of Magnificent Hummingbirds visiting flowers along this track. Fabulous Red Warblers were well-watched with several Townsend's and Hermit Warblers and we also saw groups of both Bushtits and Ruby-crowned Kinglets. Grey-barred Wrens were very noisy as the fossicked through the stunning bromeliads adorning the oaks. We heard Mountain Trogons several times before we located three together by the track. With patience we got great views of these gorgeous birds. Also passing through here was a party of Gray-breasted Jays.

Our highest stop of the visit, at over nine thousand feet, took us through Oyamel (a fir) dominated forest. The trees were huge! There were oaks too. This was a great area for Hummingbirds with a goodly number of Magnificent Hummingbirds but also a couple of Blue-throated Hummingbirds. Smaller but more dazzling were Green Violet-ears and we also noted Ruby-throated Hummingbird and Berylline Hummingbird. Here the large Salvia was Salvia gesnerifolia. By the van was the yellow Coreopsis petrophiloides, Lamourouxia xalapensis, and there were new ferns in the shape of Woodwardia spinulosus and Dryopteris wallichiana as well as Cheilanthes farinosa and several other Cheilanthes. Another loud party of Grey-barred Wrens moved through the trees and we saw Mexican Chickadee, Golden-crowned Kinglet, and Christina spotted a Red-faced Warbler that the rest of us didn’t see!

Meanwhile Peter had disappeared with Eric and Beto to the very top of the mountain. They emerged from the Abies zone to find themselves first amongst masses of Ribes ciliolata and then into a zone of Pinus hartwegii. Still they continued, reaching in the end the alpine zone where it was all rocks and herbs… and snow! Some special plants up here included a striking Euphorbia, greenish- red Castilleja auriculata, fiery Castilleja cryptandra, and fleshy-leaved Senecio toluccensis.

Back in town the water levels were high and our usual livestock farm was now inaccessible. Still we could see flocks of various 'blackbirds' passing us, or sitting in the trees in the water, a fantastic sight. There were very many Yellow-headed Blackbirds looking like citrus fruits in the trees. There were lots of grackles and Brown-headed Cowbirds too. Then it was on to the Hotel Hacienda.

Day 6 February 19th to Pátzcuaro

We left the hotel at a little after eight and drove out past the Zapotlan wetlands, stopping not long afterwards when we spotted a tree full of Yellow-headed Blackbirds, these looking like a heavy crop

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 9 of yellow pears on the tree top! We walked up to them for a photograph before they left en masse providing quite a spectacle. A little later this was rather surpassed by a large flock doing the full murmuration thing as they swirled this way and that in the sky. Now we headed north on to the extensive Sayula salt flats, these sitting in the large tectonic depression between the huge stratovolcanoes we'd been staying next to and the Sierra el Tigre to the east. The salt flat stretched for a distance along the floor of the valley and in places had a lot of water in it. A Coyote surprised us by suddenly running across the road, narrowly missing the front of our minibus. Further along sheer weight of birds drew us to a halt. We were looking for Snow Geese but couldn’t see any of these. Instead there were thousands and thousands of American Avocets feeding in groups over the entire area. There were very large numbers too of Shoveler. Black-necked Stilts and Ruddy Ducks were also noted.

Then we headed up over a hill and found Mexico's largest lake, Chapala, in front of us. We followed the southern shoreline for a good way, water on our left, fine hillsides of cacti and oak scrub on our right.

We were seeing pelicans as we drove and soon we stopped at a village on a promontory. Here were pelicans. To start with we found just a few, but then a little girl with a bucket of fish bade us follow her up the main street to the jetty where she would show us pelicans. As we were going there we could see them all flying past in the opposite direction so when we got there, there were no pelicans to be seen, or at least close by. The girl espied a bunch over by some houses and waved some fish at them. They looked interested but even as she elegantly threw the fish in the water they wouldn’t come. Eventually she disappeared and we started to see some action as she tried to chase/lure them round to us. We decided it was time to leave but just a few hundred metres on down the street and we noticed a large raft of American White Pelicans right by the shore. Now we had our pelican spectacle. In great light and with a fabulous background of lake, reeds and volcanic hills. A little boy this time was luring them in with fish offal and the Pelicans came in right to the shore. There were a couple of hundred of them and the boldest came within metres of us – it was an amazing experience. A number of Ring-billed Gulls and some egrets joined the feeding frenzy. Pelicaned out, we left them to it.

Lunch was by a lake that this year had a fair bit of water in it. There were various herons and egrets including Night Herons, and plenty of Jacanas. Up above the picnic spot there were some interesting trees including the tree-like Ipomoea murucoides. This spot often produces some good butterflies and this year it proved so, after some initial searching. There were a few Soldiers, a fabulous Zilpa Longtail skipper, and both Southern Skipperling and Tropical Least Skipper. A lovely little White-rayed Pixie was seen and so too the superficially similar White-rayed Patch. We drove past a village peopled by local Indians en route to a viewpoint that looked out over Paricutín however as we were running out of time we decided to just stop by the main road and photograph the slightly smouldering volcano. Here we heard how the volcano had first appeared in a farmer's field back in 1943 as a little hole in the ground spurting fire, and how it grew to a volcano two thousand feet high over the next year. We also discussed the origins of the volcanoes along the Neovolcanic axis and the different lava types involved as well as the plate tectonics that were producing all this vulcanicity.

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 10

Then it was down into Uruapan where unfortunately we were ten minutes too late to enter the Barrancas de Cupatitzio National Park and no amount of saying just how far we’d travelled etc would sway the entry people. So it was on to the hotel in Pátzcuaro where we arrived just before seven. We were allotted rooms and then went for an excellent meal in the restaurant where Eric ordered some tasty starters such as grilled cheese and some excellent tamales served with sour cream and salsa and cheese as well as dried smoked chillis. Some had filletas de la tampiqueña, a dish of beef strips – tender and very tasty – and tacos filled with sauce, and a salad. There was a wonderful fish dish baking itself on the plate with a surround of thinly sliced potatoes. Some tried the chuletas - very tasty pork chops.

Day 7 February 20th Cerro Burro & Tzintzuntzan

Another superb breakfast under our belts we left a little later than intended (the breakfast was quite slow in appearing!) at twenty past nine and drove uphill to the old volcanic hill of Cerro el Burro forty minutes south of the town. It has a communication tower on the top and of course a road (track) up to it. At the top we were at ten thousand feet and though it was warm in the sun it would have been pretty cool when a cloud came over – luckily this didn't happen for some time. The views over the landscapes in all directions were sublime. We stepped out in the (quite…) warm sunshine and immediately started seeing stunning Princely Tiger Moths (Chrysocale principalis) whose shimmering green wings and body were shot through with purple, pink and bluish hues. We stopped to photograph our first spectacular Cirsium ehrenbergii and noted Crataegus mexicana too. We started noting hummingbirds. They zipped here and they zipped there and it would be fair to say that they were never out of hearing throughout the walk which took up the whole morning. Our first hummingbird was a perched Broad-tailed Hummingbird, followed quickly by a Magnificent Hummingbird. Up at the top there were Ericaceae – notably Comarostaphylis discolor, and also Comarostaphylos rupestris, and Peter found Pernettya prostrata. We spent the next two and a half hours walking slowly back down the mountain (we probably only covered two kilometres) until Beto picked us up. Salvias were particularly good with the powder blue Salvia lavenduloides and the vibrant scarlet Salvia elegans the best. We also saw a pink species that was almost certainly the real Salvia curviflora and some large red Salvia fulgens. There was a new purple one and also a compact spiked Salvia with blue flowers. Yellow Bidens anthemoides was joined by other members of the Asteracae, also yellows – fleshy Senecio tolucana, huge Rumfordia floribunda, the immense Roldana angulifolia and Senecio barba-jovis. The yellows didn't stop there with Packera sanguisorbae frequent along the trackside, and both Verbesina oncophora and Verbesina virgata were here and there. Yellow and orange Castilleja tenuiflora coloured the banks, occasionally with Castilleja arvensis and its red heads. This year the Penstemons were in seed. Orange-yellow Cestrum thrysoideum was a nice find. Ruby-crowned Kinglets, Orange-crowned Warblers and Townsend's Warblers were in the trees whilst at lower levels we saw Slate-throated Redstarts and fleeting glimpses of Rufous-sided Towhees. However birdwise it was all about the hummingbirds and they were everywhere, not always very visible, but always there! Magnificent Hummingbirds were much the most noticeable and we had good 'scope views of these at regular intervals. There were White-eared Hummingbirds, a Ruby-throated Hummingbird, a Black-chinned Hummingbird, and the tiny

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 11

Bumble-Bee Hummingbird too. Some Yellow-eyed Juncos were seen and a Mountain Trogon flew across the track. Gray-breasted Jay was in the oaks and we also saw Hutton’s Vireo and two very fine Red Warblers. Butterflies started at the top with some Dainty Sulphurs and then some way down we started seeing Mourning Cloaks (Camberwell Beauties) and these stayed with us much of the morning, more than a dozen being seen. There were Crescents and a Duskywing Skipper. Prixe butterfly though was the Xami Hairstreak which was up a steep bank. This butterfly went through rather a lot in the next few minutes and was indeed playing dead on the track when a stone landed on it from above and it decided to give this up for a game of soldiers and headed off rapidly! There were few epiphytes but Pleopeltis ferns grew on some of the oaks and the maidenhairs Adiantum andicola and Adiantum braunii were on banks and rock-faces. Other plants of note were an Angelica, Arracacia atropurpurea, Eryngium alternatum and Vicia americana. Among the many oaks present we saw the shiny-leaved Quercus laurina, Quercus martinezii, the huge-leaved Quercus magnolifolia and the pretty little Quercus scytophylla. There were some large flowering specimens of Clethra mexicana and Alnus acuminata was abundant. As we drove down the lower parts we admired tall yellow Cirsium tolucanum and the orange flowered Satureja macrostema. As we drove across the fields at the bottom we passed juncos, sparrows and a fine male Bullock’s Oriole.

Lunch was taken in a local restaurant which served excellent chicken and pork with a fine salsa and tacos, the perfect lunch-time pick-me-up.

Then it was round the lake to Tzintzuntzán, the ancient Tarascan Indian capital, the name translating as ‘Place of the Hummingbirds’. At the time of the Spanish Conquest there were reckoned to be 40,000 people living there. We spent much of the time across the road as Cristina (Eric was away getting the vehicle fixed) took us on a guided tour of the Franciscan Monastery in its fine gardens and the Baroque Church and atrium where the monks attempted to convert the Tarascans! The gardens were full of very old, very wide, and very gnarled, olive trees as well as other fine trees and the church had an enormous ash growing in its yard. Cristina took us into a local potters yard where they were experimenting with high temperature kilns – certainly the things they were making were beautiful. Outside we noted a Sinaloa Wren in the cupressuses and a Canyon Wren in the eaves of the old hospital. Canyon Towhees allowed close approach. Later we walked past the old Tarascan ruins noting a variety of rock ferns species, a fantastic old specimen of Yucca filifera, a Lincoln’s Sparrow and an Acorn Woodpecker. I took a wander among the wood carving shops and came away with a colourful parrot piece only to find it was too big for my luggage.

Then it was back to the hotel by around five-thirty. Several of the group joined Cristina for an exploration of the pretty town centre.

Day 8 February 21st Tacámbaro & Arroyo Frio

We set off at seven and headed south to Tacámbaro, taking just over an hour to reach this pleasant little town which sits at the juztaposition of the Michoacán mountains and the Tierra Caliente, the Hot Lands, of the Balsas Drainage. We stopped at a little café just outside town, our normal

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 12 breakfast stop, the Hotel Mansion del Molino, having lost their chef to California just the week before. Our café was just a local roadside spot, but after a little bit of waiting was soon providing us with a marvellous breakfast of scrambled eggs and beans, fresh orange juice, and of course, as they grew all around us, avocados. Curve-billed Thrashers and a Bullock’s Oriole were in the trees outside.

We headed downhill rapidly, the road snaking down a long slope covered in sugar cane, but with steeper valley sides and barrancas cloaked in productive-looking scrub. Blackberry fields are becoming commoner down here. We took a brief walk along a track where a Pesudobombax elliptica tree which had just a few blooms was weighted down by Psittacanthus in fruit and flower. Commelina bloomed by the trackside along with Ludwigia ocotvalcis. The nearby canyon edge (the land here has extraordinarily deep little canyons that are hardly noticeable from the surface) had lots of the clambering Ipomoea bracteata that is covered in pink and lime bracts and long-tubed flowers and there were tiny pink Gentianaceae and large pink ones too. Back by the vehicles was a hedge draped with a flowering Aristolochia and the doubly-ternate leaves of Serjania mexicana. Peter was most pleased to find Gyrocarpus jatrophifolius in the Hernandiaceae, a new family for him. Tall red Canna indica turned out to be a native here despite the name, and other interesting flowers included Centaurium strictum, deep blue Phacelia campanularia, salmon-red Lopezia hirsuta, and the globular greenish bloomed Chamaesyce hirta. The trees and shrubs throughout the canyon were draped in lianas and vines – the Combretum and Sarjania we’d already met, but here too were a Malphigia, Phyllodendron hederaceum, and reddish-black flowered Macroptilium atropurpureum. We saw Warbling and Golden Vireos, a Lesser Roadrunner, and a Yellowthroat. However it was mainly about the hummingbirds here. We saw a number of Violet-crowned Hummingbirds and a Dusky Hummingbird too.

Then it was on to Arroyo Frio where we were to spend much of the day. This is just a little canyon, the fifty metre high walls of black volcanic rocks support some fantastic figs, their yellow trunks rising from convoluted root systems that wrap around the cliff bases. Some sugar cane is cultivated, but much of the canyon's vegetation is natural or semi-natural and there is plenty of botanical variety present, notably some nice vines, an Aristolochia which had flowers, and lots of introduced Thunbergia alata. A fine hanging blue Thunbergia, also introduced, hangs down the cliff next to the waterfall. Adiantum poiretti grew on the cliffs, lots of Dennstaedtia distenta, like a huge bracken, along wet gullies, and the impressive tropical-looking Tectaria heracleifolia under a large fig. Even before we’d passed the gate we were enjoying a flock of Groove-billed Anis and a pair of Squirrel Cuckoos, and Great Kiskadee, Social Flycatchers and Thick-billed Kingbird. Some scolding in a nearby bush drew our attention and Christine first spotted the tiny Colima Pygmy Owl who was the centre of attention!

This is a marvellous place for butterflies and they took centre-stage today. We walked the half kilometre or so up to the cafe area where a swimming pool had been made close to the waterfall, some of us taking almost the entire morning to cover this half kilometre! The Banded Peacock was a popular subject for photographers. Several Ruddy Daggerwings and some brilliantly orange Julias competed for flowery landing places. Meanwhile things were getting very busy along the sides of the road with blues arriving in numbers, notably Ceraunus, Cassius and Marine Blues and there

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 13 were many skippers too, especially nice was the Fantastic Skipper. I popped down into the stream to see what was about and was surrounded by all sorts of Odonata with damselflies particularly abundant. Rubyspots and various blue species were joined by the delicate little Fiery-eyed Dancers with the males having a brilliant blue body and shimmering bright red eyes, the females having the rear of their abdomen coloured a fetching violet! A bee-fly was like nothing I had ever seen, a spherical ball of blue hair, but oh so much larger than any bee-fly I’d ever seen.

Back up on the track Zebra Heliconids were here and there and we saw the superficially similar but much larger and differently shaped Malachite. There were sulphurs too – the Cloudless Sulphur and a few Apricot Sulphurs. Orange-barred Sulphur cruised through so close to us and White Angled Sulphur stood out well on some Bougainvillea. We only spotted a couple of swallowtails, a tailed-type and also the Yellow-spotted Swallowtail. There were Leading Red-rings and the closely related Complete Red-ring, the former in good numbers. There were several fabulously bright Orange Banners, not to be confused with the similarly bright (when they flew) Tailed Oranges.

Suddenly a fantastic gold-spotted helicopter damselfly appeared, at first sight it looked like four dancing gold dots in sync amongst the trackside vegetation but then as we looked closely we realised these were the wing tips, these fully ten cm long and the body even longer, an improbably delicate and yet impressive insect. We went on to see several more.

Up at the waterfall we watched many damselflies including a brilliant blue bluet and the lovely rubyspot and we'd already trained our lenses on the pink-purple Roseate Skimmers whilst walking up. The White Morpho swung back and forth across the front of the falls. We took lunch up here, Eric as usual providing us with a veritable feast, this time a wonderful dish of rice and very succulent prawns served in a taco, delicious! Podostemon ceratophyllum draped down the waterfall, a green carpet for the water to fall through…

After lunch we continued to search for wildlife. Or took to the water… Or both - in the stream was possibly the most marvellous butterfly of the day, a Carousing Jewelmark whose varied colours and strange patterns were only topped by the really weirdly hairy legs! Also here was Blomfild’s Beauty and a number of spectacular Two-barred Flashers, powerful skippers with a flash of brilliant blue. Among them was a Gilbert’s Flasher and indeed there was an abundance of 'long-tailed' skippers throughout the day and these included several fine greeny-blue hued Long-tailed Skippers. Others of their kin included Pronus, Brown, and Teleus Longtails. A Lesser Roadrunner or two were seen and more Golden Vireos, but when we found some White-throated Thrushes and a Scarlet Tanager in full agitation we knew there must be something afoot. Indeed there was – a Mottled Owl sat in the tree – of course off soon after we’d spotted it!

At three-thirty we left, arriving back at Patzcuaro at five. We decided to head down to the lake once there. Some went instead to a lakeshore Mescaleria with Eric and Cristina and by all account had much fun. Those of us left to man the bird watching bridge succeeded in finding the very local Black-polled Yellowthroat a species known only from a few central valley of Mexico lakes. There was also a Common Yellowthroat, some Black Phoebes, brilliant Vermilion Flycatchers, and both Lincoln’s and Vesper Sparrows. A flock or two of White-faced Ibis flew in. There were even some ferns here with Peter finding Notholaena grayi and Pellea cordifolia growing on roadside rocks.

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 14

Day 9 February 22nd Lago Cuitzeo, Morelia and Mil Cumbres

We left the excellent Mision Patzcuaro at nine thirty and drove for forty-five minutes to Morelia, capital of Michoacan and one of the world's more beautiful cities. After breakfast Eric took many of the group on a gentle and informative tour of some of the highlights of Morelia's city centre, a UNESCO world heritage site because of its cultural significance. No less than one thousand three hundred buildings are listed as heritage sites and almost the entire city centre dates from the 17th century. The following account is from the year before's trip when I was with the group so it may be similar to what you did, or may not! The magnificent city-centre cathedral, set opposite the governor's building and next to a pleasant open park was where we started. Eric told us of the significance of the religious figures carved on the front of the cathedral and that the reason that the church was unusually aligned was so that it faced a similarly misaligned cathedral in Mexico City. We went into the magnificent interior and saw the huge organ and also the 'manifest', made of only silver and gold and weighing half a tonne. Eric told us of the story of how in 1985 it had been stolen – by a tour guide! We visited the law court – the Palace of Justice - where Eric showed us the amazing murals produced by Alejandro Cardenas. The main one depicts Morelos holding Los Sentimientos de la Nacion, the sheaths of paper cascading downwards to signify the speech on the document, whilst all around are images that provide the substance to the revolution. The Spanish are illustrated as rather pained figures on the ground, their eyes blinded, signifying the blindness of power. We next moved to an old school where many of the major figures in Mexico's revolution either taught or were students. Today there was a strike so none of the modern day students were wandering about in this historical building. Our last port of call was the Church of Santa Rosa, formerly the Church of Santa Catalina of Sienna when it was a Dominican Convent. Here we learnt that once a girl went inside to become a nun, she never came out again. Eric's tale of the goings on surrounding the moving of the nunnery were very amusing. The church itself was amazingly ornate. Some elected to wander the town and explore the streets and shops by themselves and Eric and Cristina took everyone to the local market which was quite a highlight.

Leaving the city within half an hour we were up into the Mil Cumbres, or thousand peaks, an extraordinary area of highland with peaks stretching away as far as the eye could see, much of it covered in forest, some with avocado groves, and some with campesino farms. It seems amazing that such a good road goes eighty kilometres through such terrain and yet there's hardly a settlement of note nor indeed many connections with other roads.

Some of us had set off a little before seven and headed north to Lago Cuitzeo. This remarkable lake sits in a depression in the wide central valley of Mexico. A new highway took us there, almost halving the time it used to take – it seemed like they had built the road just for our wish to get to Cuitzeo. We passed dry oak and cactus dominated hillsides before dropping down to the lake. We breakfasted in an OXO – very tasty too, with tea and coffee etc. Then it was down to the lake shore where we found an incredible number and variety of birds. And all in wonderfully clear morning light with fabulous scenery surrounding the slightly saline lake. First up were American Avocets who were doing that feeding in a bunch thing, a hundred or so birds together would all put their bottoms in the air at once! There were many groups around the lake. A flock of Wilson’s Phalaropes flew in to join them and the avocets were often in company with Black-winged Stilts whose smart

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 15 attire and shocking pink legs looked great in the morning sun. Ducks were everywhere. We must have seen more than five thousand Northern Shovelers during the morning and also lots of Blue- winged Teal and Cinnamon Teal. There were Pintail, Mexican Ducks, even a few Fulvous Whistling Ducks. In one area of the lake there were abundant Ruddy Ducks and it was here that we started to find Clark’s Grebes. Many if these were carrying babies on their backs. Interesting at least two of the pairs seemed to be made up of one Clark’s Grebe and one Western Grebe. Little Green Herons and Night Herons were seen along the side of the causeway, Snowy Egrets were busy helping the local fishermen, and there were Great White Egrets and Great Blue Herons too. But back to the waders. Spotted Sandpipers, and both Lesser but mainly Greater Yellowlegs were along the side of the causeway. On mudflats near the end were thousands of waders swirling into the air in flocks occasionally. These comprised Least Sandpipers in the foreground and abundant Western Sandpipers in the background. There were a couple of White-rumped Sandpipers too and Snowy Plovers, and as we watched Wilson’s Snipe a flock of Long-billed Dowitchers flew over. Flocks of White-faced Ibis appeared and there were groups of American White Pelicans out on the water. There were a few Forster’s Terns and Caspian Terns and lots of Franklins Gulls, many with fine summer hoods. A few Laughing Gulls and Ring-billed Gulls… In the marshy bits were Common Yellowthroats and we saw a number of American Pipits and Savannah Sparrows along the shore. Snakes can be a feature along this causeway however this morning we could find only a few, just one photographed and another few disappearing quickly. A surprise was a Collie’s Squirrel along the shore half way across the causeway! A magnificent morning’s birding and photography. We went to the small waterfall where we would meet the Morelia team for lunch. Up by the waterfall was the pretty pink flowered shrub Fuschia paniculata. We soon spotted a Magnificent Swallowtail and this gave us quite a show as it posed with wings open, when it wasn’t being chased by the bossy Mexican Dartwhites that held sway over the Fuschia bushes and tall Roldanas, hurtling round in an apparent rage at anything else 'butterfly'. Mexican Silverspots looked stunning in the bright sunshine, their bright orange uppers flashing as flew about us. When they landed the fabulous mother-of-pearl undersides were quite a contrast. There was a Spring Azure blue, Black Crescents, and Skipperish Tanmarks in the lower vegetation. A superb Eyed Sister eventually came down to mud-puddle and across the road two Karwinski’s Beauties sat sipping sap from a tree trunk. A lovely Green-striped Brush-Finch was very tame in the undergrowth and also here we found the very large and impressive leaf-mimic Cramer’s Ur-Satyr. Meanwhile the teams had rejoined and we ate our calzones in warm early afternoon sunshine.

After lunch we stopped first by a cliff where Agave attenuata grew, the inflorescences spectacular arching things a couple of metres long. Nearby were drifts of a little Mimulus species covered the wettest parts of cliffs while little yellow pouched Calceolaria mexicana preferred unstable slopes. Salvias were represented by the lovely furry (Barbara Cartland-) pink Salvia curviflora and the blue Salvia polystachya, also a little Salvia mexicana and a new one for us, blue and white Salvia laevis. Dyssodia tagetifolia added its own brand of orange to the scene and there was lots of Lopezia racemosa. We enjoyed the rather shrubby orange and yellow Cuphea cyanea as well as the altogether prettier herbaceous Cuphea bustamata which had reddish-orange and yellow flowers with pink stamens and blackish-purple 'ears'. The elegant spires of yellow blooms on the Galphimia glauca bushes were very fine as were the striking red blooms of Russelia tetraptera.

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 16

Continuing through the lovely forests we could see many of the oaks (Quercus candicans and Quercus laurina in the main) were festooned with these Tillandsia prodigiosa, with any spare branch space taken up with Tillandsia juncea which was also flowering, the long thin reddish-orange flowering spikes having purple stamens protruding. A Mexican Gray Squirrel crossed the road. Peter found the tea-tree relative Ternstroemia (possibly lineata) in good flower.

Heading onwards we stopped for some roadside birding. We started with a Slate-throated Redstart and a stunning Red Warbler, there were several of both. There was a bunch of Grey-barred Wrens noisily moving through the trees. Magnificent Hummingbird flashed its green throat at us, and in the trees above was an assortment of warblers including Olive, Crescent-chested, Hermit and Townsends. A Brown-throated Wren dived for cover. Next was a stop for orchids. These the lovely Rhyncostele cervantesii, an epiphytic species with large white orange-brown lined blooms. These were quite high up a tree but were a fine sight nonetheless.

Our last stop was at the Mil Cumbres viewpoint where mile after mile of blue-tinted mountains faded into the distance, a truly impressive, if difficult to photograph scene. This side track had plenty of the elegant Carpinus caroliniana in pale green leaf and we found the tea-tree relative Ternstroemia lineata. More Grey-barred Wrens joined us alongside a Chestnut-naped Brushfinch, a Hammond’s Flycatcher, a Bullock’s Oriole and an assortment of hummingbirds. There were so many of these, perhaps ten in one little gully but apart from brief views they stayed pretty much out of view amongst the abundant flowering Salvias that here included the deep crimson longistyla. Then it was through some sublime high altitude country to Tlalpujahua and the hotel, arriving there a quarter to eight. Tonight we were in for something special. Whilst Beto had been labouring all day with our driving needs his wife and indeed mother had been cooking for us. We went up the cobbled streets to their lovely house and in the garden had a veritable feast. The starter comprised a local cheese atop apple and with a dressing made from agave and tequila. Then there was a pasta and pesto dish. The main course was a gorgeous baked salmon and there was even a special desert to follow with cardamom and turmeric flavours – extremely delicate!

Day 10 February 23rd Sierra Chincua

We awoke to a sunny morning, which enticed a few to go and wander the streets of Tlalpujahua before breakfast. Erica and Christina provided us with a most excellent and filling breakfast as usual and so we were on our way at nine. The drive to the Sierra Chincua is through little villages and fields and then a long tract of forest, this occasionally opens out into the 'pastizales' at the highest levels, probably full of flowers in the warm wet summer, but now barren looking with close-cropped turf. After forty minutes we reached the reserve entrance which is at eleven thousand feet.

Five years ago the Mexican Government funded and built a whole new complex here, gone are the rustic shacks and rather downtrodden feel to the place, now there are gleaming new wooden cabanas hosting a few shops and the concinas. The same families run the place which was good to

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 17 see and also the same feeling of intimacy which pervades this place – there were only three other vehicles in the carpark when we arrived.

This year the butterflies were an average distance from the centre. We all elected to sit on the led horses, even though the walk would have been relatively easy. This had the benefit of supporting the local families whose land and to a certain extent livelihoods have been appropriated by the new butterfly reserves. The gleaming new cabanas don't tell the whole story!

It took us about thirty minutes to get to the dismounting point (other ride lengths in the recent past have been twenty minutes to an hour) and involved a gentle ascent before a long but gentle descent through the forest. We just sat back and admired the wonderful Abies religiosa forest all about us, the understorey full of red, blue and pink Salvias. Once off our horses we slowly made our way on foot towards the butterflies which were just a ten minute walk away. We were met by an incredible sight. In amongst the thickest firs we could see the vast masses clinging to all the branches. Nearer to us and up on the higher branches the butterflies instead of forming thick masses many butterflies were sitting wings open on the fir needles turning the fir’s green a fetching orange. Within a minute or two of arriving the sun had warmed them enough for many to start flying. During our time the clouds were over maybe two-thirds of the time but at regular intervals warm sunshine appeared and as it did so the butterflies would start flying. One could hear this happen, suddenly the sound of thousands of (rather strong) Monarch wings would fill the air, to start with a gentle rustling but very soon quite noisy. Often a particular branch would explore outwards with orange like a firework as the butterflies seem to reach a critical ‘sunniness’! When the sun lasted a few minutes as it did many times the air would fill with butterflies so there would be hordes below us in front of us and up in the sky above us. There were quite a few people here to day and many could be seen trying to photograph this spectacle – not an easy thing. Many of us tried to capture the masses in flight, and I am sure all had some success though each of us must have taken hundreds of pictures to get some decent ones, but my what a sight it was. Peter found a viewpoint past the main colony where Monarchs sailed around in front of us as we photographed some impressive Furcraea parmentierei. As the morning reached lunchtime the butterflies seemed to be creeping up the slope and were by then around us, flying through us and some even landing on us. Some nectared on Ageratums. Just before we left there was one amazing burst of activity where a whole tree seem to erupt into the air. The noise was impressive and orange against the blue sky too.

The walk back took us gently back up the hill and gave us the chance to see a bit of the flora. Pretty pink Salvia gracilis was common and the much larger red Salvia fulgens was here and there. Salvia elegans was commoner still and there was another Salvia that was blue, this the more compact headed prunelloides. Little Nama prostratum, a member of the waterleaf family scattered its diminutive white blooms across the forest floor. Purple Senecio callosus and succulent-leaved yellow Senecio toluccensis were frequent. Peter found Gentiana bicuspidata in flower back in the pastizale grasslands near the centre. Bird life compromised mainly out of sight hummingbirds however we did see the occasional White-eared, and some Red Warblers, a Steller’s Jay, and a Grey-barred Wren were seen. Back in the centre we had a superb lunch laid on by one of the local concinas. Cheese and mushroom quesedillas were served in blue corn tortillas these with a fine beef and vegetable soup.

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 18

Your leader nearly made the mistake of thinking that the large bowl of extremely spicy salsa was the soup!

After lunch several of us went up to the stream to look for Axolotls. En route we came across a bird party with several of the very rare Sierra Madre Sparrow in it. These hopped around like wrens! There were also Lincoln’s Sparrows, Chestnut-capped Brush-Finch, Pine Siskins, Cassin’s Finches, Black-headed Grosbeaks, Yellow-eyed Juncos and a fine Rufous-sided Towhee in them. We immediately had success with a deeper pool having a few Mexican Tiger Salamanders, big and greyish, and a single Michoacán Stream Salamander. We found more of the latter and caught one to have a brief look at it! Before leaving there were more birds in the carpark – the Western Bluebirds were particularly fine.

We popped down the road to a wood yard where they kindly let us drive down to a stream where we found very many of the marbled Puerto Hondo Stream Salamanders, again catching one for a brief photo session.

On the bus journey back and during the evening we also learnt about the life history and migration of this extraordinary butterfly and snippets about how the scientists estimate their numbers, how the butterflies navigate, and just how the authorities have worked and compromised on how to effectively protect one the world's great wildlife wonders.

Day 11 February 24th El Rosario

Peter had been on an early morning explore in the dry open oak forest south of the town. Open areas had much Baccharis and also Arctostaphylos pungens as well as some fine Arbutus tesselata. There were occasional plants of Loeselia mexicana, and in the trees were plenty of Tillandsias. Also noted were yellow flowered Mahonia moranensis and Pinus teocote.

Suitably filled with yet another fine Mexican breakfast we headed off into the hills if one can say that when one is already at eight and a half thousand feet. In this case one certainly can for having traversed the road through the Sierra Chincua which reaches eleven thousand feet above sea level just half an hour from Tlalpujahua, we descended to Angangueo, and the newly improved road (track) that rose steeply out of Angangueo soon passed over ten thousand feet before dropping just slightly into El Rosario. Though many of the surrounding hills/mountainsides were covered in forest, a goodly area was given over to small scale cultivation, mostly of maize. The straggling villages looked really quite poor, giving us an insight into the problems facing the authorities in providing a workable conservation plan for the Monarchs. These people need food and jobs/money and so the situation is not ideal, even allowing for the payments made by the government and the jobs provided by tourism to the area, for the latter are still relatively limited – though increasing to the extent that a large number of people are now employed in the service industries that surround El Rosario. We parked up just below the park entrance and filled our daypacks with snacks and water. The hopeful blue skies that had greeted us at dawn had now receded to the valleys around about and cloud was above us and over the monarchs.

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 19

The walk up is one that we all hear about beforehand as being steep and quite a long way. The bare facts are that when the Monarchs are at their furthest (they were this year) that the walk is about two kilometres (bit less probably) and the vertical ascent is about 1200 feet. The path is quite steep in the lower sections but is very well made, with concrete sections and nice even steps too. We took it very slowly as there was much to see on the way up. Salvias were particularly abundant and dominated the understorey under the impressive shrubs of Verbesina oncophora and Roldana angulifolia. The large red Salvia fulgens was only found top and bottom but in between the striking Salvia elegans was everywhere along with the bright blue Salvia mexicana and a blue and white species I haven't yet worked out. There was also a little of the pink Salvia gracilis. There was abundant Geranium seemannii. We found just one plant of Physalis coztomatl on the way up and also noted Celastrus pringlei. Hummingbirds were frequent, especially White-eared Hummingbirds, and we also saw Green Violet-ear and a Broad-tailed Hummingbird that was so busy on its territory and so used to humans that it carried on feeding or sitting within a metre of the people passing. We saw a Hepatic Tanager at the entrance and further up several Golden-crowned Kinglets as well as a few Ruby-crowned Kinglets. Golden-browed Warbler was noted a couple of times and a Brown- throated Wren sang from a dead stump. There were Pine Siskins and Black-headed Siskins in the trees and Christina had a brief view of a Steller’s Jay. Also noted were Hermit and Townsend’s Warblers. This is a great place to get to know the iconic Red Warbler, and sure enough one or two appeared on the way up. We reached a small plateau with a pleasing landscape of open grassland with patches of Juniperus monticola and the invasive Baccharis conferta.

We were frequently passed by families and small groups, mostly Mexican but certainly a few foreigners too. It was great to see so much interest in seeing this amazing wildlife phenomenon from the locals. The future of the reserves looks much more secure with such a turnout. The butterflies and the birds are obviously used to the continual passage of people and were very visible, perhaps only one or two skulking species were keeping their heads down more than usual!

We reached the colony and spent a while photographing the butterflies. The trees were festooned with great bundles of butterflies. They looked like nothing more than massed dead needles hanging from the Oyamel trees. It was difficult to comprehend the numbers involved for the butterflies sat many deep. Millions. The sun was not forthcoming and so there was little activity within the colony so most of us soon wandered off to head down or to birdwatch, or in Peter’s case to scale the nearest peak. This he did and found a remarkable rocky area above the firs where there were just a few Pinus leiophylla and a fabulous succulent yellow Crassulacean cascading over the rocks.

Down at the village we met for our lunch in a cantina by the vans. Though looking primitive the cantina was the model of efficiency and produced loads of excellent quesadillas filled with cheese and/or mushrooms as well as beef steaks and nopal (cactus leaves).

We moved downhill to the Laguna Verde where we spent the rest of the afternoon in a fine mosaic of habitats that included wetland and various wooded and shrubby habitats. There were Oncidium cavendishianum orchids in the trees. There was a slightly shrubby deep pink flowered Salvia a little like Salvia curviflora, also crimson Salvia iodantha. Down by the lake shore was Osmunda regalis, Thelypteris interrupta, and in the lake itself was the insectivorous bladderwort Utricularia gibba with

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 20 yellow flowers. There was a surprising range of oaks here including Quercus scytophylla. Something that looked like the usual red and yellow lobelia turned out to be Heterotoma lobeloides.

Back in Tlalpujahua Eric cooked us meatballs for dinner…yum! The starter was something too, with a delicious vegetable and cheese centre coated with courgette.

Day 12 February 25th Tlalpujahua & Rancho los Cedros

This morning we headed into town with Eric to get our own breakfasts. It seemed there was a near infinite variety available. We started in a bakery where Eric bought us a selection of local breads and then we headed up to top of the main plaza where a lady was making fresh coffee, or for some of us hot chocolate! She also had some tamales with chicken served with either mole sauce or a green and very spicy salsa and all served/cooked in a corn husk. At another stall in the market we had a choice of freshly squeezed fruit juice or a plate of papaya and melon, or pineapple. Eric had talked of the delights of the slow-cooked cow’s head and so we had to try… the cow’s head is cooked for at least eight hours overnight and then served at breakfast. Of course we didn’t have to see the gory bits merely just try the succulent meat on a taco. I for one was getting very full now and couldn’t work out whether it was that or just the thought of the cow’s head…!

Now Eric took us to the cathedral, the insides of which give meaning to the description 'baroque'. Eric told us about the cathedral and also the history of this beautiful little town. We learnt that in its heyday Tlalpujahua was second only to Mexico City in importance. He told us that when they gave out the first fifty telephone numbers Mexico City had the first twenty, Tlalpujahua the next twenty! Then we had time to visit the odd silver shop, arts and crafts shops and the Christmas decoration shop - the latter is because there is a factory in Tlalpujahua that makes hand-blown Christmas decorations. There was a variety of intriguing produce on sale in the lively and extensive Sunday market that had stalls all around the main plaza as well as side streets where clothing and vegetables were being sold. One corner of the main plaza was given over to preserved fruits which are a speciality here, there were very many different types available, as whole fruits, covered in a sugary syrup, to compressed fruit sold by the block.

Then it was time to say farewell to the Hotel Mineral. We headed off to the old goldmine. Between 1907 and 1913 it was the largest producer of gold in the world. It continued producing for many more years but disaster overtook the mine in 1937 and many people died. The town dwindled for a period but is now thriving again. As most of the group explored the mine and museum with Eric Nigel, Christina and I took at a look at the valley below. A Pine Flycatcher was new and we also saw a large flock of Bushtits. Also noted here was Blue Mockingbird. Our target though was butterflies. It was probably a bit early in the day and not many were present though we did see a few Camberwell Beauties and Mexican Silverpots. One of the tailed swallowtails flew back and forth. Just one Mexican Dartwhite was seen. Labelled Quercus resinosa made identification easy! Also here was some nice Loeselia mexicana with long-tubed bright red flowers. Back up by the mine any disappointment felt by the butterfliers was soon dispelled by a very much appreciated Mexican Zesty Skipper, another to add to the growing list of crazy skipper names on this tour!

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 21

Now we drove south passing through high country, most of it around eight and a half thousand feet above sea level. After an hour's drive we arrived at the home of a friend of Eric and co, namely Victor and Michele and their daughter Camilla and their son Pablo. Camilla had the day before taken an exam to try and get into UNAM the biggest and best university in Mexico City. They live on the Rancho los Cedros, perched high on the montane plains near Villa Victoria. Their abode is a wonderful 19th century farmhouse with extensive farm buildings of a similar age. Victor has to some extent renovated all of this, and he attempts to farm the land in as sustainable way as possible. Income is often minimal from such an enterprise so our visit is most useful as well as great fun for us.

Lunch was served under an ash tree outside the kitchen. House Finches and an Abeille’s Oriole came and watched us. We enjoyed a tasty vegetable soup, followed by a main course that was locally (on the farm) caught rabbit served in a slightly piquant and delicious sauce and then a traditional desert made from pumpkin (there was a large pile of them by the house) and served in a huge bowl. All was served with great elan by Camilla and Pablo.

After lunch we walked up the field out front to the low cliffs 200m away. The oak trees (Quercus dypsophylla) up here had a healthy covering of a fine bromeliad, Tillandsia erubescens, the narrow glaucous leaves form a vase from which rises a glowing orange red inflorescence, and when a flower opens it is bright yellow (apparently sometimes purple too). We found the lovely yellow and orange flowered Echeveria secunda. We saw Ruby-crowned Kinglets, Eastern Bluebirds, an Acorn Woodpecker, a Hammond’s Flycatcher, a fly-by Cooper’s Hawk and some Striped Sparrows. There was some fine fragrant Ribes affinis under the cliffs and some good ferns on them. We popped down to the little lake behind the house noting American Pipits, American Robins and Blue Grosbeaks. By the lake was rather oddly a single male Bronzed Cowbird while Northern Roughwings and Violet- green Swallows hawked over the water. Then it was time to say farewell to our gracious hosts and the lovely Rancho los Cedros and continue southwards across the plateau before re-entering forested lands and descending towards Valle de Bravo. We stopped briefly for some fine large clumps of flowering Psittacanthus calyculata in the trees. This parasitic species has spectacular yellow and orange blooms. The tall orange-red (bracts and all!) Salvia sessei was here on the roadside along with Pteris orizabae. A hundred minutes after departing Los Cedros we reached Rancho de las Margaritas where we settled in and got ourselves organised before dinner at seven-thirty.

After dinner Peter gave us a marvellous explanation of what I will call the ‘Battle of the Pine and Oak’. He took us through the worldwide distribution and diversity of both noting the similarities and the differences. He showed us that in fact, in Mexico, with 40 out of 70 known Pinus species, and with over 180 species of oaks we were in fact in the heartland of both species and could in fact be said to be in the land of the pine and in the land of the oak. He discussed the ecological basis for the association and possible reasons why either group could be dominant in any given situation. We all ended up feeling sorry for the oaks! It was a marvellous treatise and much enjoyed.

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 22

Day 13 February 26th Colorines & Santo Tomas

After a seven-thirty breakfast it was off down past the lake at Valle de Bravo. The scenery here is outstanding, the lake surrounded by forested hills of all shapes and sizes, and the quaint town itself perched on the shore and on islands under a sun which was rapidly gaining power. We made our first stop just below the dam where we walked a little track. Several species of bromeliad grew in the trees, there was a weighty-looking species with the facies of Tillandsia fasciculata but with much slenderer spikes, and the sparser redder flowered spikes of the equally large Tillandsia calothyrsus, not sure what the fine leaved smaller species were. The Jacaranda across the road was in beautiful flower and was attracting plenty of birds. There were some very bright Hooded Orioles and in the scrub below was Sinaloa Wren and many Lesser Goldfinches. We walked down the track opposite seeing a Berylline Hummingbird, a Plain-capped Starthroat, a Squirrel Cuckoo, and some very bright Hepatic Tanagers. The trees here included the elegant Quercus resinosa and Cnidoscolus tepiquensis (Euphorbiaceae). The little orchid Deiregyne pyramidalis was found. More birds included Ladder-backed Woodpecker, Black-throated Gray Warbler, and a Blue Mockingbird. Collie’s Squirrels scampered through the larger trees.

We moved on down into the wonderful country below Colorines. Here the land drops sharply in a series of sharp steps so there are waterfalls, canyons, valleys full of rich subtropical vegetation and slopes covered in a variety of semi-arid vegetation including light West Mexican Forest. The result is a staggeringly rich biodiversity so that both birds and butterflies are here in both abundance and variety. It was now warm and butterflies took centre stage today. They were staggeringly numerous at all the sites we visited from mid-morning and we saw some fabulous species. We started this phase of the day at the waterfall below Colorines – the Cascada Ixtapatongo. Here we spent two and a quarter hours pottering up and down the short section of habitat between the road bridge and the waterfall. First though, some plants. Right by the road bridge we found a fine long-lipped Aristolochia in bloom, whilst up on the cliff we spotted a wand-like little white-flowered orchid, the caulescent Mamillaria meyranii cactus, endemic to Michoacan, and the shrub-sized succulent Pittocaulon praecox with no leaves and sprays of yellow flowers. Tillandsia ionantha grew here, small and very cute! The very glaucous, almost white leaves are narrow and curve upwards, and on the flowering shoots these extend and turn a translucent red. Emerging from these are rich purple flowers with yellow anthers, all in a plant just 10cm high or so – gorgeous! This year though we had to be content with the glaucous and red bits.

There were huge numbers of some species, notably Zebra Heliconids and the Eurema yellows, both almost 'swarming'! There were good numbers of Julias, and other 'oranges' included a few Orange Banners, Little Banners, some Ruddy Daggerwings, and all three Monarchs and Monarch-mimics. White Morphos lazily flapped up and down, sometimes one, often two, once or twice people reported three together and Christina had four flapiing along in a line. There were several Blomfild's Beauties, sitting quietly on the trunks, Christine photographed a Black-patch Cracker. Under the shade lovely Malachites were seen in numbers. There was a good range of various Sulphurs seen, as well as Florida Whites, Tailed Oranges and Sleepy Oranges. A brilliant green and very tiny ‘dreamstreak’ evaded full identification. With all the aristolochias around it would have been a surprise not to have seen any swallowtails and there were a few though they mostly just flew

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 23 past us. A Variable Cattleheart did stop to have its photo taken but not the Yellow-spotted Swallowtail, Polydamus Swallowtail or one of the large yellow Tailed Swallowtails.

There were birds too! Black Phoebes and Green Kingfishers were along the river. White-throated Swifts arced through the sky above the waterfall where numerous vultures soared, and two Ospreys floated by. Christina found a Golden-crowned Emerald – an uncommon West Mexican endemic hummingbird. A trip highlight were two Gold-tipped Helicopter Damselflies that flew in typical slow-motion flight around us – simply stunning with the light behind them. We were so busy during our stay that we didn't have time to look at the ditch with the Tetra fish in it!

Botanically the Mexican Thorn-forest was quite species rich here and even just scratching the surface we (mainly Peter of course!) came up with a nice range of trees including white flowered Cordia dentata, red-flowered Erythrina americana, a Cinnamomum species, Diospyros latifolium with yellow-green apple-like fruits, and Byrsonima crassifolia with yellow to orange flowers in the long racemes typical of Malpighiaceae. Bursera instabilis had shiny deep redbrown bark whereas Bursera fagaroides had bark that was green papery. Ficus citrifolia had white bark, the widespread Ficus petiolaris, yellow. Vines included yellow-flowered Melothria pendula with green-black pendulous fruits, Serjania mexicana, and the spectacular Solandra guttata with huge golden-yellow blooms. Notable herbs included the red-flowered Tetramerium abditum and blue-flowered Commelina erecta, and amongst the bromeliads we noted Hechtia podonantha on rocks, and both Tillandsia juncea and Tillandsia recurvata.

We moved up to the nearby town of Santa Tomas de Los Platanos where we stopped for icecreams. They do really good icecreams here! Some tried the Mami Apple variety, I enjoyed the superb Cajeta (goats milk dulce de Leche) and the Guanabana, others enjoyed a mixture of the various flavours on offer. Remarkably as we sat there we could see two large dark swallowtails church spire 'topping'. Long-distance photos showed these to be Band-gapped Swallowtails. A Bordered Patch sauntered down the road.

Further downhill we parked up in a stream bed! Eric and co produced a most superb lunch here with warmed tacos holding some succulent pork, fried onions, peppers and sausage served with rice. Some tiny but strong pickled peppers were optional! Mini mangoes for desert. Before, during and after lunch there was plenty of fauna and flora to keep us going. we found tree lizards and a Mexican Ur-Satyr, as well as Bow-winged Metalmark. Now we were finding lots of the White-rayed Pixies, but with them was also a few of the more strikingly marked (with gold) Red-bordered Pixies. Flowering plants by the stream continued to yield crescents such as Mexican and Black. Nigel photographed a superb crescent-mimic, the Walker's Metalmark, and under shade, was Hook-line Satyr and a Carolina Satyr. He found a bush that was attracting many butterflies. Another Plain- capped Starthroat was seen just upstream where also I encountered Hook-line Ur Satrys, Orange Banners, Queens, and the very fine Dusky-Blue Groundstreak. Next we pottered slowly upstream, seeing Green Kingfisher. There were many Rubyspot Damselflies here and amongst a range of dragonflies we saw lots of a black Pennant. Warbling Vireos were in the trees along with Groove- billed Anis. I continued up the river a way seeing Blomfild’s Beauties and, just at the point where my camera ran out of juice, a superb male Orange-breasted Bunting which practically begged to

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 24 have its photograph taken. Walking back I looked into a man-made irrigation tunnel and inside was an odd sight - there were many skippers 'roosting' on the walls. These appear to be Fritzgaertner's Flats!

For the last part of the day we moved just another kilometre or so down to the old village of Santo Tomas. This lies next to the reservoir which swallowed much of the village. The church tower still sticks up above what is now mud rather than water. There were plenty of egrets and vultures out on the reservoir. We parked up under a huge spreading fig tree next to the bar in what is left of the village. We looked at the usual spot for Rufous-crowned Motmot (above the bar) but it wasn't there (Christina later producing photographs of one!). Several of us went on a walk up through the village and into a little valley where we hoped to find the stunning Orange-breasted Bunting. We managed to see them though only I got great looks at the males (two of them), the rest of the group having to be content with a female. There was also a Virginia Warbler here. There were some good butterflies still about, a hairstreak landing on the orchid Oncidium cebolleta though this wasn’t in bloom. Another bush attracted Bell-banded Theopes. There were several trees of interest here too including one covered in tiny flowers that sprang straight out of the branches (Trichilia havanensis), and Pseudobombax ellipticum with great pink pompoms for flowers. Under some mangoes we found Stormy Satyrs and the elegant fern Tectaria grandis. In this area we also noted Spondias purpurea, the pink flowers blooming directly on the twigs, the very pink flowered Tabebuia rosea and the tall branched Stenocereus queretaroensis, a cactus with white flowers.

Day 14 February 27th Temascaltepec

Eric, Anna and Trevor decided to have a relaxed day and spend some time exploring the lovely little town of Valle de Bravo and to take in some relaxation by the hotel pool too.

The rest of us met up at seven and Beto drove us through Valle de Bravo and its cobbled streets before the rich and famous had woken. However plenty of the not so rich and famous were making their way into work so progress through the quaint town was rather slow! Our morning stop was on a high area south of the town where rocky bluffs rose from the pine-oak woodland and some cultivation next to a small hamlet. This is quite a birdy spot!

We started with a problem though. Formerly the area was just a partly farmed and open access but recently had been bought as a ranch and was now ‘privado’. And the guy on the gate was not going to let us through this year. So we moved along and visited the next ranch who did let us and not only that sent a guy down to meet us and take us to a track that would take us through natural habitat. Ironically this took us to gate into the other ranch, however we didn’t mind as the track took us through the most beautiful forest, the huge Tillandsia prodigiosas many to a tree. There were some great birds in this. Grey-barred Wrens were prominent and noisy. We saw Flame-coloured and Western Tanagers, male and female of the former, females of the latter. There were a pair of Hairy Woodpeckers and also quite a number of Acorn Woodpeckers. White-striped Woodcreepers too. There were Pine and Tufted Flycatchers, Slate-throated Redstarts, Crescent-chested Warblers, Bullock's Oriole, Blue Mockingbird, Ruby-crowned Kinglets, and hummingbirds, this time Berylline

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 25 and White-eared. Christine spotted one of the birds of the morning, a Rufous-browed Pepper- Shrike. This is a most peculiar bird and is easily missed, it is uncommon and sluggish in habitats making it difficult to spot. Greenish of back, the pale undersides have a rufous chest belt and the head a complicated pattern. There were Black-throated Green and Townsend’s Warblers. In the undergrowth Blue Mockingbirds, a fine Rufous-capped Brush Finch, and a Virginia’s Warbler. Squirrels scurried through the trees, some all greyish others with a strong reddish underside. Notable plants under here were lilac Loeselia amplectens, the yellow asphodel Echeandia mexicana, and Lupinus elegans. At the far end of the walk the day’s star butterfly appeared, a Mexican Stripestreak. This stunning butterfly was so comatose that its finder, Cristina, thought it might be dead. It was not, but it didn’t fly off until we had a good chance of photographing it. Other butterflies were few but did include several crescents and a Mexican Silverspot or two.

The views of seventeen-thousand foot plus snow-covered Volcan Toluca would have been wonderful as we descended to the valley floor and the small town of Temascaltepec, but unfortunately gathering cloud had hidden it. In Temascaltepec we headed up a side road, stopping a few kilometres above the town. Getting out of the minibus the first of the morning’s hairstreaks escaped us before we could identify it. Just three hundred metres uphill are damp tracksides where there are usually a few butterflies but today was cloudy and there was little about just a couple of Common Buckeyes and a Reakirt's Blue. An American Kestrel flew in, a large grasshopper in its talons. Down by the river was an American Dipper. The riverside trees were draped in the spectacular purple trumpets of the climber Cobaea scandens.

We spent the remainder of the morning walking down a kilometre or two of road. Butterflies were rather scarce but did include a number of crescents, a Green-eyed White or two, and yet more ‘escaping hairstreaks’ – a bit of a theme today. Rufous-capped Warblers were seen and we found a little field where were both Berylline Hummingbird and the Bumble-Bee Hummingbird. The latter really is a tiny bird, hardly bigger than a hummingbird hawkmoth and is so difficult to follow in flight! Chestnut-collared Swifts raced through the skies above and Red-tailed Hawks soared effortlessly overhead. A bunch of Social Flycatchers were noisy in a tall tree with a Gray Silky looking on disdainfully. As we were looking at the hummingbirds we became aware that there something waving on a nearby stick. This turned out to be the throat flap of a little pale coloured lizard, the throat flap a pale yellow! Another raced up the stem and chased it away. Further down we explored the steep and sometimes cliffy inner edge of the road. The regular moisture of precious years seemed to have disappeared and there were no Pinguicula moranensis left however there was still a variety of plants. Most striking were the two Melamostomacious sub-shrubs, there was a Monochaetum calcaratum with pinky-purple flowers 3cm across, and the other with spires of white with a hint of pink blooms which was probably Tibouchina longifolia. Amongst Cheilanthes and other small ferns and lots of dried Selaginella we found tiny blue and white Lobelias nana. Sadly it looks as of the population of Pinguicula moranensis has disappeared. Calceolaria mexicana grew in damp areas. Across the road the trees were festooned in ferns, tillandsias and (mostly non-flowering) orchids. Lower down we stopped for our picnic, Beto having been into town and returned with cheese and mushroom quesedillas. The picnic was in someone’s garden, the family welcoming us with open arms and even giving us gifts of avocados and oranges as we left – it was wonderful to be welcomed so. The trees in their garden held fine flowering spikes of yellow Oncidium

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 26 cavendishianum, indeed the trees all down this valley did. Some of us went down to explore the river banks below where there were several skippers and birds included both Berylline and Blue- throated Hummingbirds.

Now we headed back uphill stopping again at the bridge when a Two-tailed Swallowtail was seen. This posed beautifully on a Wigandia bush. Beto had stopped the minibus right by it and could be seen taking close-ups with his phone from the driver’s seat. Then it was into a more pine-dominated zone nowadays severely damaged by avocado and cut-flowers plantings. The birds though continue to be very good up here. We stopped by a Jacaranda, a really stunning one draped with bromeliads and covered in great masses of blue flowers, and in it were brilliant orange orioles! Three species here – Black-vented, Baltimore and Hooded. More Chestnut-collared Swifts were in the skies. Further up the road we watched Acorn Woodpeckers, White-breasted Nuthatch, Varied Bunting, Grace’s Warbler, and Ivory-billed Woodcreeper. Here we found the strange root-parasite Conophilis alpina with its broomrape-like straw-coloured flowering spikes, now flowering in open land, the forest having been cut.

We made a brief stop on the way back to look for Salvia regla but failed to see any, only finding instead striking red Lamourouxia xalapensis and growing amongst the Pinus oocarpa. Peter found the delicate brown and white orchid Encyclia linkiana growing on one of the trees and also a most beautiful hanging yellow and orange pea. A Brown-crested Flycatcher was new and we also saw Hepatic and Red-headed Tanagers here. Then it was back Valle de Bravo. Here we met Eric, Trevor and Anna at a floating restaurant where as we arrived the sun set in a blaze of glory, lighting the lake orange before reddening appreciably as it disappeared behind the treed ridges across the lake. Once the desperately needed beers had settled us down we set to a superb dinner. Most spectacular were the half pineapples (these were huge) stuffed with beautifully cooked seafood. Giant prawns, clams, crab claws, and fish were amongst the largesse. I had a soup filled with the same seafood. Wonderful, but enough to last for several days.

Day 15 February 28th University of Mexico Botanical Garden

I went down into the pine forests below the hotel at dawn and spent a couple of hours picking up the trap camera (a Margay on it!) and seeing some of the rich variety of birds that are found here. There were Brown Creepers, these were backed up with several White-breasted Nuthatches, and also a Ladder-backed Woodpecker. As the sun touched the tops of the pines things became very active and warblers were everywhere. Notable were Grace's Warblers, Black-throated Gray Warbler and Painted Redstart. Hepatic Tanagers looked fabulous in the sun and Band-tailed Pigeons settled in the pines. Back out into the open fields below the hotel some Gray-breasted Jays flew over and there were Lincoln’s Sparrows, Bewick’s Wrens and Rufous-crowned Warblers to enjoy. There were some spectacular oaks down here with leaves fully 40cm long and almost as broad, these Quercus urbanii. Pinus oocarpa was dominant and in the understory was pretty Plumbago pulchella.

Breakfast was a very relaxed nine o’clock this morning and fresh fruit juice, fruit, and then eggs were very much enjoyed before we set off at ten, gaining height gradually through the beautiful

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 27 landscapes that typify this land. Eventually we reached the more open country around Toluca, and there got on the cuota to Mexico City, the two and a half hour journey passed serenely, though the traffic was bad in Mexico City. We had two hours to explore the University Botanical Garden. A series of paths takes one through a landscape of shattered lava, so with hollows (some filled with ponds) and dells, cavelets and crevices, and planted over the couple of acres that is the main garden, are an abundance of succulents. There were all sorts of cacti, from giant Barrel Cactus to Cardon and Lemairocereus, down through variously shaped Prickly Pears to squat Mamillarias. Some of the latter had flowers; pink, cerise and orange blooms noted! There were also plenty of Agaves, Notholirions, Dasylirions, and a spectacular Ocotillo or Boojum Tree, a plant of the northwestern deserts that takes plant architecture to new and bizarre levels. There were plenty of Echevarias too, some fine orange-red ones in flower, and lots of Crassulaceae. It was great to see that a lot of work has taken place in recent years, the whole place had been tidied up and there were lots of new plantings and quite a decent number of plants labelled. Crevice Spiny Lizards were well camouflaged on the dark grey rocks and there were terrapins in the ponds, these Red-eared Sliders and not native. Damselflies flitted about the pools whilst every now and again fine Gulf Fritillaries sailed past. We found a number of the prettily marked Xami Hairstreaks, the bright green undersides patterned with black, white and silver. There were plenty of birds about, mostly Yellow- rumped Warblers and House Finches. Clay-coloured Sparrows were seen and Bewick’s Wren and Dusky Flycatcher was appreciated. The shop had a variety of botanically related items for sale and was raided efficiently by the group – I purchased a book mapping Mexico’s varied cacti – with more than just one eye on devising a new tour concentrating on this wonderful group of plants.

Then the team took us to a restaurant en route to the airport and introduced us to Pozole. These are soups based on a local type of corn. The corn is huge in size and has a nice texture. The soups were meals in themselves and Eric also laid on various starters that included some wonderful pork crackling with a guacamole dip. Puddings looked nice but we didn’t have time (or space)! Fast food but very good food. Then it was off to the airport and Eric, Christina and we departed on flights to London, Madrid and Frankfurt, Christine staying an extra night in Mexico City before heading off to San Diego.

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 28

Chiapas

Rainforests of Lacandon, Cloudforests of San Cristobal

A Greentours Tour Report

15th February – 2nd March 2017

Led by Ian Green, Seda Soylu & Eric Miranda

Day 1 February 15th Departure

Everyone arrived as planned into Mexico City Airport and were soon whisked to the nearby Grand Prix Hotel where we all met up for dinner and a discussion about the ‘morrow!

Day 2 February 16th Sumidero Canyon

It was a very early rise this morning as our flight to Tuxtla Gutierrez was to depart at six-forty. There were fabulous views of the snow-capped conical peak of Volcan Toluca not long after departure. The flight passed soon enough and we descended into the dramatic scenery that surrounds Tuxtla earlier than scheduled – there were views of the canyon to the left side of the aircraft before we landed… except just as we were about to touch down the pilot suddenly took us back up again. What it as all about we were never to know…. Once all our baggage had been collected we popped upstairs to get breakfast. This was very good for an airport cafe. Then it was on the road to the Canyon. The road goes through some nice West Mexican Thorn Forest habitats with fantastic Tabebuia rosea replete with trusses of pink flowers, and the equally magnificent brilliant yellow Tabebuia donnell-smithii. As we entered the city of Tuxtla other trees such as the Flambouyant and Cordia sebestena became common though they were still outdone by the many Tabebuias within the city. By ten we were inside the national park that borders the north side of the city and rising rapidly through some very good thorn forest. We stopped by the first viewpoint over the canyon. This was meant as a quick look at the view stop, but turned into an hour long stop as there were so many things to see. The view was spectacular but we soon found wildlife to distract us. The fig trees were popular with Black-patched Crackers with half a dozen sitting together quietly on the trunk. Fabulous electric-blue Mexican Bluewings were difficult to get a good look at. There was also a Band-celled Sister. There were several flowering trees here and the wonderful creeper, Combretum farinosa, festooned with flat inflorescences out of which rose hundreds of red or bright green stamens. A juvenile Ctenosaur or Black Iguana basked on a wall and a party of birds included a male Varied Bunting, a Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, and two bright Streak-backed Orioles.

Our next stop was just a few kilometres or so uphill. A metalmark and some incredibly iridescent green bees attended a trackside bloom. Bouvardias bloomed red along the trackside and there was a pink and white Bauhinia in flower. Very striking were the red blooms on Euphorbia tithymaloides, a leafless Euphorbiacean whose blooms looked like a bunch of little birds perched on a twig. Red-rim butterflies flew back and forth, one stopping for photographs. A Malachite flew past too. There

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 29 were a number of birds in the trees here. Western Tanager, White-winged Tanager, White-throated Thrush, Banded Wren and a seedeater species were all seen.

Then it was up to the very top of the canyon where we had amazing views of the kilometre deep defile through which the Grijalva River flows. It looked green and strong far below, the walls almost vertical on both sides, it will have needed to have been strong to cut through such a deep layer of hard limestone though it had a considerable geological time-span to do it in! Straight away there was wildlife to distract us from the stupendous scenery. The trees below us were festooned in epiphytes with orchids (not blooming), a cactus, an agave, and at least three Tillandsias. A Polydamus Swallowtail teased us for a while. There were a good number of birds coming in here. A Yellow-throated Euphonia sat and sang for us, there were gnatcatchers and a bunch of warblers including Nashville, Black & White, Orange-crowned, and Magnolia and a family of Boat-billed Flycatchers. Hooded Yellowthroat was seen. We found a female Green-throated Mountain-gem, a group of striking Green Jays, and a superb Streak-backed Oriole and also a Streak-headed Woodcreeper. An impressive spray of Oncidium flowers were in perfect condition. Nearby Black, Chestnut and Pearl Crescents all fed together with a Tegosia and Orange-spotted Skipper and both Julia and Zebra. There was a tall ash-like Astronium graveolens tree here, Manilkara zapota with its heavy brown fruits was noticeable as was the bombacaean Ceiba acuminata. We walked down the track and thanks to Cristina’s alert eyes we were soon photographing White-spotted Prepona.

We descended to the bottom of the canyon where we found a restaurant for lunch. Eric took us through the menu, our first chance to experience the richness of Mexican cuisine. The restaurant overlooked the wide, deep and very fast flowing river. Mangrove Swallows hawked backwards and forwards whilst Great-tailed Grackles were in the trees outside. White-winged Dove and Cassin’s Kingbird were seen. A Ringed Kingfisher flew past. Then it was on board our boat for the trip up the Canyon. The Sumidero is a very dramatic landform, over a kilometre deep at its deepest, and with vertical or very near vertical walls for much of its length. The river has cut through a deep layer of limestone that has been raised gradually as the Cocos plate subsides under the Caribbean one. The river drains Chiapas's central valley seemingly in the wrong direction as it heads north into this mountain of limestone, but over the ages it has cut a great defile. The scenery throughout our boat trip was fantastic, made all the more so by the exceptional vegetation found within the canyon. The walls are dotted with tall cacti, and abundant bromeliads, and where there is something not quite vertical a variety of trees thrive. Two of these were in flower, a white one, and most spectacularly, Tabebuia donnel-smithii, whose leafless branches were ablaze with rich yellow tresses of flowers. Red stemmed Bursera simaruba was prominent too. We came close up to American Crocodiles, also to Great Blue Herons, Great Egrets and an Osprey or two. Some the crocodiles were very large and we got very close to them! Hundreds of roosting Black Vultures lined the shore on one section and our boatmen steered us in for a close-up look. We admired cacti and bromeliad- encrusted canyon walls that at their highest were over a kilometre in the vertical. The gorge in places was quite narrow and the landscape throughout was imposing, often magnificent. Jane spotted Central American Spider Monkeys cavorting through the trees and we were able to get close for photos. We also spotted a fabulous pair of White-throated Magpie Jays which were lurking in riverside vegetation. Further along a superb Black Hawk was spotted after we had stopped for a bit of geomorphology information. Our boat journey reached its farthest point at the 'Christmas Tree' a strange and rather beautiful rock formation. Here we found a number of plants including a large pinky-blue and a smaller purple Ruellia. There were also Begonias, Campanulas and various other blooms around the formation. Turning round we sat and admired the scenery as we cruised

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 30 back to the dock however there turned out to be still much to see. We got close to another group of Central American Spider Monkeys and as we were watching these Cristina spotted two huge birds. Male and female Great Currasow came out and gave us a great show, the male a huge black bird with a yellow knobby beak, the female all intricate browns, and both with beads surmounted by a very strange curly crest! Further down river we found some more unusual head ornamentation this time the floppy crests of more Magpie-Jays – seven of them in the top of tree mixed with a number of orioles. We passed more wonderfully elegant Agaves in flower and a terrestrial Bromelia species and ended up passing a bridge where we could hear lots of Green Parakeets in the iron girders but we could only glimpse a couple of them. We’d seen so much we were back later than expected however all we had now was to cover the last hour into San Cristobal.

After settling into our hotel Eric took us out for a great meal in the Revolution Restaurant where he set all sorts of things before us mostly of Mexican origin but also some Italian dishes.

Day 3 February 17th Cerro Huitepec & Orquideas Moxviquil

We enjoyed an excellent breakfast in the hotel, tea and coffee, some fresh fruit juice, lots of fresh fruit, yoghurt cereals etc and a full range of fried things both Mexican and from further afield. We left at eight-forty and headed out of town toward the Cerro Huitepec Reserve.

This forested reserve sits on the edge of San Cristobal on a big hill. The reserve is mixed pine and oak, the former on the ridges, the latter dominating in the valleys. There were a goodly number of oak species present including Quercus crassifolia and Quercus rugosa as well as some very large specimens of the strawberry tree Arbutus xalapensis. The path through the forest was well-made and though uphill it was easy walking with the forest being very open with little understory. Birds were really very scarce this morning. We did start with a fine Spot-crowned Woodcreeper but then nothing for a long time, only a leader-only Mountain Trogon. Later there was a couple of gorgeous Golden-browed Warblers and at the furthest point of the walk a pair of Rufous-capped Warblers. As we started to return we found another Mountain Trogon. This stunning male was typically a little flighty when being admired but several of us got decent looks at it.

The flora was varied and including some nice species such as the saprophytic Conophilis alpina, a pretty Viola, and a Begonia. We noted the milkwort relative, Moninna ciliolata, with yellow and deepest blue flowers, and there were various salvias that included a tall red species and Salvia elegans. Ferns were prominent with lots of maidenhair ferns as well as some giant brackens and Pteridium species, also a Woodwardia. A fine red and green flowered Fuschia was very attractive. The oaks were festooned with fabulous bromeliads, with very many spikes of Tillandsia guatemalensis in bloom; long red and green inflorescences that reached more than a foot above the basal rosettes. We found quite a number flowering on the ground. There was another large bromeliad too. There was a fritillary or two and Mexican Crescent as well, and a group of around forty Dingy Purplewings which we found roosting under a high bank.

One the way down we did encounter a mixed group of birds comprising Blue-headed Vireo, a lovely little Crescent-chested Warblers, a Yellow Warbler, a Mourning Warbler, and some White- naped Brushfinches.

We moved to a nearby orchid garden. This is an excellent place. This was started just eight years ago

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 31 by Cisco, an American from Los Angeles. He is (was - just left!) developing quite a facility with orchid houses and botanical gardens, a pond where they are trying to look after the remaining population of a rare endemic fish, and a trail system into the woods. The oaks in the garden here were covered in a rich array of bromeliads. As well as Tillandsia guatemalensis there was huge hanging Tillandsia ponderosa, the grassy-leaved Tillandsia vicentina. The odd-looking Tillandsia eizii, strange upside down Tillandsia seleriana, and the spanish-moss look-a-like Tillandsia usneoides. The place is a veritable wildlife haven. With so many flowers about it was hardly surprising that hummers were in evidence though the views we got were amazing. White-eared Hummingbirds allowed approach to within a metre or so, and a Magnificent Hummingbird was almost as accommodating. We watched a Cinnamon-bellied Flowerpiercer giving a hibiscus bush (actually Abutilon) the once over. There were several very fine orchids around the gardens. The orchids had all been collected inside the reserve and a few rescued during road building schemes in the area. Inside the orchid houses some of the finest were Epidendron ciliare; a stunning spidery concoction, the elegant porcelain Rhyncholaelia glauca and Prostheca cucullata the Black Orchid and Belize's National Flower. There were also Maxillaria variabilis here in a yellow and purple form, Maxillaria densa, Prostheca chocaoensis, Stellis immersa, Stellis leucopogon, Evarionthe aurantiaca, orange Lycaste aromatica, and Lockhartia verrucosa (NB - some of these weren’t in flower this year).

There were plenty of birds about. The impressively large Band-backed Wren made a noisy entrance – we thought a whole party of Jays was arriving. Those of us not used to such a large wren took some convincing that it was in fact a wren! A Greater Pewee sat atop a high tree, as noisy Steller's Jays came through. The lovely rich blue of the southern race is much different from the birds found in the North. We saw a Hairy Woodpecker, some Slate-throated Redstarts, Western Tanagers, Hepatic Tanagers, Black and White Warblers and several Wilson’s Warbler. There were many Rufous-collared Thrushes and we had a Gray Catbird that kept us company for a while. There were Townsend's Warblers, some Rufous-collared Sparrows and a few Spotted Towhees. A pair of Bullock’s Orioles were in the tree by the picnic. Speaking of which Eric prepared us a great picnic lunch with quesedillas, roast chicken, a superb salad and freshly sliced pineapple… It was hard to tear ourselves away but there was still more to do…

We returned to town by four-twenty and twenty minutes later Eric took the group for a wander round the lovely streets of San Cristobal before dinner. The town is full of interest whether it is the architecture or what's on sale that interests you. The shops were full of local arts and crafts and varied from the decidedly ethnic to the very arty! There were no shortage of art galleries and bars and restaurants with a wide variety of styles and cuisines. Tequila was also tested by a number!

Day 4 February 18th Zinacantan & to Montebello

This morning we headed round to the other side of Cerro Huitepec. The drive took us up through a sublime landscape of little campesinos growing all manner of vegetables in cleared areas between the trees with Agapanthus and some Alstroemeria grown for a cash crop. It was a quiet and beautiful landscape.

We parked near the top of the hill and walked very slowly down the other side, I think it took us all morning to cover not much more than a kilometre. The sections of forest we walked through, particularly mid-way down were sublime, reminiscent of the best artistic depictions of cloudforest trees festooned in mosses, orchids (none in flower!) and bromeliads. Some of the bigger trees must Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 32 have had a tonne of vegetation that didn't belong to the tree! The bromeliads were spectacular with several species including two large ones, one Tillandsia guatemalensis, the other unknown to us. Many had fresh brilliant red foliage which looked stunning against the light. There were also at least three species of small bromeliads, one common one with long grass-like leaves. The birdwatching was excellent. We saw several of the endemic Blue & White Mockingbirds, a Guatemalan Flicker and several Spot-crowned Woodcreepers. A superb Yellow-bellied Sapsucker was amongst a larger bird party that contained many of those noisy bromeliad-nosers, the Banded Wrens. With these were lots of Tufted Flycatchers, a Rose-throated Beccard and Hammond’s Flycatcher. There were several Rufous-collared Robins and many Gray Silky Flycatchers, indeed we were to see very many of the latter during the morning. Superb Painted Redstarts flashed red in the trees and later Slate-throated Redstarts appeared too. There were warblers everywhere. We started with a gorgeous little male Olive Warbler and then saw a succession of Townsend’s Warblers, as well as few Nashville, Mourning, Black and White, Black-throated Green and even a single Hermit Warbler.

Butterflies were also rather good. They started slowly, indeed it wasn’t until just before lunch that they started to get really good. On the way down we saw a few Crescents – Pale-banded, Pine and later in a brushy field above the road, lots of Mylitta Crescents. A star turn early on was probably the uncommon Guatemalan Copper, the only 'copper' type butterfly in southern Mexico. There were Cloudless Sulphurs, the huge White-angled Sulphurs and Orange-barred Sulphurs and several skippers, the latter including Common Mellana, Rounded Bolla and the very large Pale Sicklewing. A Montane Sister perched on the road and we saw many Mexican Silverspots cruising up and down. There were Spring Azures too. Reaching the track at the bottom we started finding more species – here were both Clouded Sulphur and Southern Dogface, and a Tailed Sister. In one sunny gully there were Mexican Dartwhites, a Notched Crescent or two, and a lovely male Lamplight Heliconian flashing blue in the right light. Under an underhang we flushed a Black-laced Leafywing, a stunningly sculptured leaf mimic, that then went up and perched in the open for us. Also here was the rare Cloudforst Monarch!

Hanging over the track edge was orange and yellow Lobelia laxiflora, large bushy senecios such as Roldana angustifolia, what looked like Roldana barba-johannis, and the panicles of pink blooms of Fuschia paniculata. There were small red fuschias too and a plant with large red and lime-green tubular flowers that was probably also a fuschia. We saw little yellow patches of Calceolaria mexicana, two red Salvias, one being elegans, blue with a hint of white Salvia polysctahya, blue Salvia lavanduloides, and the strange milkwort relative Moninna ciliolata. Trees included various oaks (rugosa, laurina, and others), pines, alders, a Clethra, Arbutus xalapensis growing to immense sizes, and by the stream Ternstroemia (probably) tepezapote.

Returning to San Cristobal we spotted American Lady and Monarch en route and at the hotel we saw a West Coast Lady!

In the afternoon we drove towards Comitan and thence towards Montebello where we arrived at the gorgeous Hacienda Museo Santa Maria at dusk. We settled in to enjoy our stay. The Hacienda has wonderful rooms. They are huge with very high ceilings and elegant four-poster beds and gorgeous furniture, all of it imported from Europe more than a century ago!

Day 5 February 19th Montebello, Chantulkic & Hacienda Santa

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 33

Maria

We started the day at seven, a coolish morning with mist in the valley below, but the sun soon shone through and the birds were enjoying the warmth. Visible in the carpark were Cassin’s Kingbirds, Western Tanagers, Baltimore Oriole, various warblers, and Blue-gray Tanager. We went outside and looked into the fields which were a veritable birdseed heaven. In the latter were Rufous-browed Wren, Tropical Mockingbird and lots of Lesser Goldfinches. An Azure-crowned Hummingbirds perched well for us. Back by the breakfast room the bottlebrush tree was full of Nashville and Tennessee Warblers, no less than four species of Oriole – Baltimore, Hooded, Bullock’s and Yellow-backed, and a Green-throated Mountain-gem.

Breakfast appeared reasonably quickly and so at eight forty-five we headed for Montebello, less than half an hour away. We stopped at the road to Cinco Lagos. Here we spent the entire morning walking two and a half kilometres of road (or about 7 in Peter’s case!). As we alighted we were greeted by a gorgeous Anna's Eighty-eight which was thoroughly photographed by the entrance. There was also the intricately patterned Splendid Mapwing which became so used to us we could walk right over it!

The forest was beautiful. The tall trees, many of them Liquidambar, were festooned with bromeliads, particularly the oaks which could hardly be seen beyond their covering of vegetation. A Rufous-browed Wren sang from an exposed perch and a group of Yellow-backed Orioles appeared. Birds were generally rather hard to see but we did note a few warblers, a Spot-breasted Wren or two and a load of Banded Pigeons. A striking pinky-purple Polygala was noticeable everywhere and there were several orchids including a Spathoglottis or two, and a very fine terrestrial orchid which had large almost white lips and a complicated set of deep pink and brown petals and sepals. Trees were very varied and taxed Frieda’s ability to put them in a family. Again this road proved exceptional for butterflies. We soon found another Anna's Eighty-eight and in the end must have seen twenty of these really special butterflies. Yellow Kite-Swallowtails cruised past, none stopping for photos, the same was true of Three-tailed Swallowtails, but a Victorine Swallowtail proved more amenable. Mexican Heliconians fluttered from deep shade every now and again and a couple of times we saw the Variegated Ticlear. There were skippers including the elegant Golden-banded Skipper and two long-tailed skippers were seen - Brown and Plain. There was the lovely Frosted Mimic-White, and a variety of sulphurs. Red-rim was seen and there were Black-bordered Tegosias, Gray-based Crescent, and a Red Admiral. Nigel photographed the Lost Sister and an Angled Leafwing was a fine find.

Again there was much in flower and we enjoyed the bright orange knee-height orchid Epidendrum radicans very much. There was a pretty pink Pinguicula growing on a cliff, and red hummingbird- pollinated flowers included Bouvardia tenuifolia, and a large Lamourouxia. We watched an Azure- crowned Hummingbird through the 'scope. Then we met up with Eric and co at the picnic site. This was exquisite. The location was amazing – set above one of the Cinco Lagos with glittering blue water below and cliffs draped in vegetation, and the hillsides above covered in forest. Two Swallow- tailed Kites were a quite wonderful sight and a Bat Falcon flew in and landed just near us allowing great views and great photographs. A Green-fronted Hummingbird also perched here. Just down the road I encountered a flock with Spotted Woodcreeper and lots of Chlorospingus in it, and nearby Gulf Fritillary, a superb Black Swallowtail, and the Dark Purplewing, which looked fabulous as it flew back and forth across the track flashing its upperwings like blue lights.

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 34

In the afternoon we drove back out of Montebello to Chinkultic, a Mayan site. This was a lovely spot, with hardly any visitors, and the site left largely intact amongst great vegetation. It was the wrong time of day for birding but we still saw Rose-breasted Grosbeaks, Magnolia Warblers, Townsend's Warblers, hummers, and overhead were Osprey and White-tailed Hawk. There were a few open-country butterflies such as Tropical Buckeye and Banded Peacock.

We arrived back at Santa Maria by five which allowed us time to potter round the grounds. There were lots and lots of Nashville and Tennessee Warblers in the Bottlebrush Tree which was also visited by Azure-crowned Hummingbirds, Western Tanagers and Baltimore Orioles.

After an excellent dinner there were Barn Owls in the grounds!

Day 6 February 20th Montebello and to Las Nubes

Poorly stomachs meant that many of the group elected to take the direct vehicle to Las Nubes and not stop en route. The rest of the party made some stops on the journey, just a couple of short ones, in Montebello. We took a look at some Cabanas on the lakeside, standing just a hundred metres from the Guatemalan border next to one of the beautiful lakes. Nigel P spotted a Ceraunus Blue here and there were Monarchs flying around. We also took a walk down to Lago Pojoj along a quiet road. It proved quiet this morning for butterflies with just a few choice species seen including Klug’s Clearwing and Anna’s Eight-eights. Birds were rather few too, a couple of Jays went through and evaded identification.

Then it was off to Las Nubes. We enjoyed the wonderful scenery of limestone crags and small mountains dissected by great rivers. We arrived in time to join the others for lunch in the restaurant. Checking into our rooms we spotted a Split-banded Owlet butterfly in the verandah and Rufous- tailed Hummingbird outside. A tree behind the cabins was full of bird including Golden-hooded Tanagers, Green Honeycreeper, Black-headed Saltator, Yellow-throated and Olive-backed Euphonias. Pale-billed Woodpeckers could be seen from the restaurant.

In the afternoon we first explored the forest trail and at the start of this Seda spotted a superb Red Cracker sitting on a treetrunk. Inside the forest we encountered Wedge-billed Woodcreeper and Variegated Ticlears and Postmen fluttered in the deep green interior. We only walked a short distance in here before we came out on the river’s edge just above the ‘tunnel’. This is where the river disappears below ground for a short distance – it is a strange sight seeing such a large river disappear into the rocks! The damp rocks were home to many nice ferns and there was a pinky- purple flowered orchid blooming on one of the tree trunks. Next we headed down to the bridge. The river at Las Nubes is a beautiful thing. Turquoise water cascades gently down past the restaurant before descending in cataracts through convoluted channels under a bridge. The Aristolochia gigantea was not in flower this year on the bridge though Frieda later found some in fruit along the track. Under the bridge was a veritable Cattleheart (swallowtails!) heaven. In just four square metres four species were flying – there were just five individuals! There were a couple of Emerald-patched Cattlehearts, a Pink-checked Cattleheart, a Transandean Cattleheart, and a Variable Cattleheart! We could just sit amongst them and watched them flash their luminous reds and greens… Also here was a superb Tiger Heliconian and a Mexican Cicadian. Overhead great flocks of White-collared Swifts chittered nosily in the blue skies. Four-spotted and Small-eyed Sailors were seen and there was a nice group of Zebras going to roost. Keel-billed Toucans were seen a number

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 35 of times and we eventually had great views of them. Jenny and Richard spotted two White-crowned Parrots sat atop a tree and we had plenty of chance to put the telescope on these.

At the farthest point of the track single Black-cheeked Woodpecker, Ivory-billed Woodcreeper and Grey-headed Tanager sat in a tree.

I went for a long nightwalk up to the viewpoint through the forest and then down across the bridge but saw little, only a Brazilian Rabbit and the White-collared Swifts who were roosting in a crevice on the river bank!

Day 7 February 21st Las Nubes

Several of us met at seven on the bridge that spans the impressive gorge through which the Ixcan River plummeted in a torrent of green and turquoise below us. We headed along the river side from here, a track taking us through a mix of scrubby cultivation and pasture with primary forest never far away. We saw lots of noisy Brown Jays whilst every now and again equally vociferous Red-lored Parrots appeared, one pair giving very good views. A Scaly-breasted Hummingbird sat on an exposed perch and shortly after there was a fine male Beryline Hummingbird too. Early in the walk we came across a group of very fine Crimson-collared Tanagers and nearby was a Wedge-billed Woodcreeper with Green Honeycreeper, Golden-hooded Tanager and Hepatic Tanager. A Variable Seedeater sat singing by a field and under the shrubby Montanoa along the field edge there was a pair of the regional endemic Gren-backed Sparrow. The bare-twigged trees here had several small groups of Keel-billed Toucans. A number of Lesser Greenlets feeding in the Cecropias were joined by a bird party made up of various warblers including Black-throated Green and also American Redstarts. Returning we spotted a Red-capped Manakin in a bird party – a female. During breakfast a pair of Pale-billed Woodpeckers were a wonderful sight and outside was a Deppe’s Squirrel.

After breakfast we headed back to the bridge and beyond where we spent a happy hour and a half enjoying a butterfly pageant. Creamy Crescents and Julias were both frequent. Two Sailors were found along the track. These stunning little butterflies have a shimmering blue or green upperside and a complex and pleasingly marked underside. There were several Four-spotted Sailors their uppersides an amazing golden-green colour. There were also a couple of Small-eyed Sailors too. A Dark Purplewing stopped briefly and there were also Guatemalan Tegosia, Little Banner, Rusty- tipped Page and both Many-banded and Waiter Daggerwing to enjoy. Nearby shrubs held plenty of good species. The little white and brown Common Lenmark, a metalmark, was photographed and there were many new skippers. Postman was busy but did stop occasionally and the found both the Tiger Heliconian and its mimics which included Wide-bordered Dircenna and Black-fronted Prestonian. There were good birds too. One tree held Yellow-throated Euphonias, Black-cheeked Woodpecker, Masked Tityra and Yellow-winged Tanager. Under the bridge we visited the Cattleheart area again. This time there were just Emerald-patched Cattlehearts and a Variable Cattleheart!

I ventured briefly back into the deep forest just before lunch. One Emerald-patched Cattleheart was seen inside and along the trail also came across several Quiet Diaphs, a Variegated Skipper and a tiny Togarna Hairstreak. Heliconians fluttered throughout the deep shade. A Scaly-breasted Hummingbird had built is next close to the track and made for great photos – the delicate structure was so tiny it was rather dwarfed by the bird sitting on it and each time she landed she wiped her

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 36 beak around the outside if the nest – her beak was longer than the nest!

Others during the morning had taken the viewpoint trail through the forest, a highlight being a Tayra watched running through the trees. Nigel had been off on his own chasing butterflies and had found Guatemalan Leafwing amongst many other species.

Another superb lunch was provided by the team on the lawns between the cabanas and the river. The three hour journey to Las Guacamayas included a stop at a road bridge where we had to take photographs of the sublime scene – the forested hills cut by a stunning aquamarine river – the Ixcan River, the same one as at Las Nubes. Two Ringed Kingfishers performed downstream and a Green Kingfisher upstream where we also spotted a Transandean Cattleheart. Then it was on through scenery that was continually fantastic, so we just sat back and enjoyed. Not long before Guacamayas we came to a halt next to a remarkable sight. Fork-tailed Flycatchers right by the road, and these flexing their tails magnificently. They were perched in Glyricidia sepium trees cloaked in pink pea- flowers. It turned out that there about thirty of the them and even better, there were at least a dozen of their equally long-tailed relatives, the Scissor-tailed Flycatchers. Red-lored Parrots flew in to the trees and there were Meadowlarks in the fields.

We arrived at Las Guacamayas half an hour before the sun slipped behind the trees across the wide river Lacantun. What a beautiful lodge! We checked in and walked down the walkway between the very spacious cabins. The gardens consisted of impressive rainforest trees, these draped with orchids and bromeliads, and an abundance of planted Heliconias with colourful flower spikes. The large cabins were beautiful with high thatched roofs, the rooms themselves very spacious and comfortable. The walls are screened on two sides allowing a pleasant flow-through of air and these have shutters for privacy or night-time, certainly though tropical there is never a need for air- conditioning or even fans here for the design keeps the cabins remarkably pleasant. Guacamayas is a local Lancadon initiative heavily funded by the Mexican government, allowing the local people to maintain very high standards even though the remoteness of this lodge means it is little visited and hardly known outside of Mexico. I am sure that will start to change.

Day 8 February 22nd Las Guacamayas

During the night a roaring sound came through the air. It sounded like a dinosaur of considerable size was on its way through the rainforest! The sound of howler monkeys is memorable on every level. From close range (and especially if you've never heard it before and can't see the 'howler') it can be frightening, and it certainly makes the hairs on the back of your neck stand on end. We would hear a lot of this over the next few days!

We all met up on the riverbank at 06.00 am and boarded our boats, dawn already on us. Heavy cloud was left over from yesterday’s rain though it gradually broke up during the morning allowing the odd ray of sun until by lunchtime we had returned to the usual full sunshine.

Guacamayas is the gateway to the Parque Naturales Montes Azules. The wildlife came thick and fast as we turned up the Sendales River a tributary that took us through beautiful forest with giant trees emerging like sky cities from the lower tangle of vegetation. The sound of the Howler Monkeys was never far distant. We saw them every so often during the morning. There were birds appearing almost constantly throughout the morning. It seemed like new species would never let up! We saw several Crested Guans and one group of Plain Chachalacas. Kingfishers were

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 37 wonderful. There were lots Ringed Kingfishers and just a few each of Green and Amazon. Sand bars yielded Spotted Sandpipers and Tricolored Herons, Little Blue Herons and Snowy Egrets. Yellow- crowned Night Herons. Mangrove Swallows gave good views. Back up in the trees we spotted a Lineated Woodpecker and both Kiskadees and Tropical Kingbirds. There were also Yellow-tailed Orioles, Groove-billed Anis, and a good number of Passerini's Tanagers, the male a brilliant creation. Twice Squirrel Cuckoos appeared. Several times we saw those marvellous Keel-billed Toucans flying from tree to tree, and once on the return we came across a group of Collared Aracaris. A highlight was a Neotropical River Otter porpoising downstream. There was a pair of Collared Plovers on the shore.

One of the features of river trips here are the dawn and dusk runs of the parrots. There were many, both Mealy and Red-lored Parrots were noted, and both were seen well, beautifully lit by the morning sun. We also saw Aztec Parakeets flying over, also White-crowned Parrots, and a pair of Brown-hooded Parrots posed well in a tree, another two later starting a fight and falling down through the vegetation in a ball of fiery temper. We saw Short-billed and Red-billed Pigeons, also a Scaled Pigeon or two. Black-headed Trogons were seen so many times and several times we had good views. Just before nine we turned round and headed back purposefully, ignoring the increasing numbers of birds on the sand bars and heading for the lodge. Raptors were good with a couple of Roadside Hawks giving good views, also a Grey-headed Kite, and there were several each of Osprey and Bat Falcon!

Breakfast was much enjoyed and very filling - we were hungry!

Breakfast over, we decided to explore the grounds. There were the orchids - a wonderful Oncidium species (cf cebollata???) and the cascading flowers of Epidendron radioferrans. It was already pretty warm, but that didn't bother us as there were plenty of shadey spots and much to keep us occupied. Yellow Warblers were joined by two gorgeous Slaty-tailed Trogons, and of course Brown Jays. The calls of Roadside Hawk caused us some confusion but we eventually figured it all out. We admired the huge trees and explored the giant leaf-cutter ants nest nearby. The macaws nest proved to be occupied this year and we watched as a Scarlet Macaw extricated himself from the hole and posed on the top of the nest. There were plenty of animal tracks to see in the streamside mud. A few Many-banded Daggerwings were mud-puddling by the waterside, and we also noted Orange- barred, Statira, Cloudless and Apricot Sulphurs. Then it was back for lunch.

During the afternoon most of us relaxed and others pottered about the grounds. An evening walk took us into the ranchland behind the lodge. Here we immediately spotted a pair of Scarlet Macaws in the tree tops. It was a good afternoon for woodpeckers. Two Chesnut-headed Woodpeckers were the highlight. These two were in the same tree as a bunch of Golden-fronted Woodpeckers and we were to see very many of the latter during the afternoon and latterly we also had a couple of Lineated Woodpeckers for company. Aztec Parakeets gave everyone marvellous views in the avocados next to the lodge and further our Red-lored Parrots were almost as obliging. As we returned some Red-lored Parrots were going to roost in the trees around the cabins

At dusk an intrepid group set out in the boats bound once again for the Sendales River. We headed straight down the main channel as dusk descended and turned up the Sendales going as far as seemed sensible and turning round as it became properly dark. We spotlighted all the way back. We saw a goodly number of American Crocodiles and lots of Pauraques. Two of the latter we put the boat close to – we could almost have touched them! Seda spotted eyeshine in a thick tangle along

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 38 the riverbank. It took a minute or two but eventually the ‘culprit’ showed itself – a Kinkajou. We went on to see another one downstream. The other highlight was a Great Potoo sat atop a riverside snag and allowing excellent views.

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 39

Day 9 February 23rd Guacamayas

We met again at six for our trip into the rivers of Monte Azul. We met at 06.00 again at the jetty and set off downriver. This time our plan was to do much the same as yesterday except that we’d travel quickly up to the last navigable point in the Sendales River and then follow the tributary back down slowly. We managed this plan with hardly an interruption on the way up, the boatmen taking us up into a most stunning piece of forest where they took us up (and down) a little water shoot – wonderful!

Again we had endless sightings of kingfishers and parrots. Ospreys again, and Bat Falcons but this time the woodpeckers were Pale-billed and Golden-fronted. We found a Sungrebe sculling along the river edge, it came out of the water for a while and posed on the bank showing us its crazily striped toes! Sometimes drifting down the river allowed us to hear just how noisy the forest is at this time of day. There was a lot of noise! Especially from the Yucatan Howler Monkeys. It also allows one to see some of the forest species. So we watched Yellow-tailed Orioles and Black-throated Saltators, Passerini’s Tangers and White-necked Jacobins. Trogons are often seen on the boat trip, but today was better than ever before with a Slaty-tailed Trogon near the start followed by a long run of Black- headed Trogons, and finally, a Violaceous Trogon too. There was a Striated Heron. Then one of the boatman spotted a White-necked Puffbird sat high in a tree and a little later he also found two more. A Neotropical River Otter suddenly came out on a log for one of the boats posing beautifully. Then there were riverside Green Iguanas too. Raptors were great this morning with two particularly fine species within seconds of each other – a Great Black Hawk, and a Plumbeous Kite. And then it was back for the nine-thirty breakfast.

A King Vulture drew us outside again and then it was back again to enjoy breakfast. Suitably filled up we met again with our local guide who took us to a forest where we were able to walk for the rest of the morning. As is typical of central american rainforests, things were quiet at times, but with perseverance we found some great things. A Blue & White Heliconian flew around steadily. Later we came across Bates’s Sister and a Plain Purplewing, the latter perching on Beto. Birds were difficult to see but we did find some Sepia-capped Flycatchers and a little party containing Yellow- throated Euphonias, Dot-winged Antwrens and Hooded Warbler. We also came across a group that had Red-throated Ant-Tanager and Wedge-billed Woodcreeper in it. There were some immense trees in here! Later we found Plain Antvireo and Orange-billed Sparrow and as we were about to leave the forest a superb male Collared Trogon put in an appearance.

Back at the lodge we discovered that the increasingly sunny and warm day meant that the mud- puddling butterflies were back! There were a number of Many-banded Daggerwings and sulphurs were common, including Orange, Orange-banded and Statira. Androgeus Swallowtails visited, and there were two Kite-Swallowtails – Salvin’s and Short-lined. We found the lovely Red-borderd Pixie and at the same time a Chiapas Stripe-Streak posed beautifully. Walking back along the riverside a Bare-faced Tiger Heron, an immature, posed well and on the riverside we photographed a Red- sided Swallowtail and accidentally flushed a Cecropian.

Later several of us returned to the forest we'd visited in the morning and walked the track. our departure was somewhat delayed by a group of Yucatan Black Howlers at very close range right in the front of the restaurant. There were great photographic opportunities! It was quieter than in the morning but still beautiful and we again found the Blue & White Heliconian. A female Collared Trogon appeared too, and there were Ochre-bellied Flycatchers. There were also plenty of

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 40 encounters with Central American Spider Monkeys.

Back at the hotel we got together for another night boat ride. This followed the same pattern as the first and so as dusk gathered we were speeding up the Sendales tributary fending off the flying insects that were rampant above the river. Then we turned round and motored very slowly downstream. We again soon caught up with Morelet’s Crocodile and with good views of Pauraques. Then an animal appeared on the bank, but too quickly… it was gone. Someway further downstream we found a Gray Four-eyed Opossum who was too shy to join us. Then there was gap, though the starry night filled the void plentifully. Suddenly there was a large animal on the riverbank. It was on a sand bar so the boatman let us land and three of us wandered over to the Baird’s Tapir. It took no notice of us until we were twenty metres away and then it started walking towards us. We took a few steps backwards… it stopped about 7m away from us and we were able to photograph this extraordinary animal for quite a decent spell. After five minutes of it testing the air with its trunk-like nose, it was time for us to go. We still managed another exciting sighting – a rather distant Tayra on the riverbank.

Day 10 February 24th Bonampak

We departed Guacamayas at a very early four-thirty. As daylight spread across the countryside we watched parrots and the like fly across the road in front of us trying not to stop as we needed to make headway. After a brief bathroom and snack stop we stopped 40km short of Bonampak for our breakfast. This was really just a roadside spot with a little forest amongst the pastureland but it produced plenty of birds. Red-lored Parrots and Aztec Parakeets flew over. There were hummers, including a female Black-chinned, and down by a pond Least Grebes. Here there were also Yellow- breasted Chat, White-eyed Vireo, Magnolia and Black & White Warblers, and Green-backed Sparrows. The Buttercup trees (Cochlospernum vitifolium) were a stunning sight. A stunning Thoas Swallowtail sat with its wings open, a bonus for the butterfly-photographers. Eric, seemingly out of the blue, produced a superb breakfast selection of pineapple, eggs, and fried potatoes with cheese, onions and optional peppers!

At Bonampak Grayish Saltators fed as Eric paid at the entrance and as we parked up there was a gorgeous Yellow-rimmed Eight-eight sitting quietly allowing us all a chance to get great photos of one of the region’s most beautiful butterflies. One group headed off with Eric in the van to the ruins themselves ten kilometres down a forested track where they arrived to find themselves all alone at one of the most beautiful little Mayan sites. Eric showed them round explaining the history and significance of the site. They also made several significant wildlife sightings notably the staggering leaf-mimic, the Tiger Leafwing, and there was also a lovely Dot-collared Fire-tip, a large-ish brown snake and also Masked Tityras.

The rest of us spent the morning walking the main track. Butterfly activity was rather slow for quite a while and we wandered where they all were! Exploring small side tracks into the forest allowed us to get to know the gorgeous Blue and White Heliconian and we saw a good number of these, the blue flashing brilliantly as rays of sun caught them. They did not like to settle though so it came as a nice surprise to find a spot where they were visiting a bloom a couple of metres above our heads. A Blue and a White and a gorgeous Dot-bordered Heliconian, the hindwing centre all rayed crimson, visited the flower, sometimes at the same time, and one or two of our shots also revealed a hummingbird coming to the same flower, a Stripe-throated Hermit. We also saw other hummers

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 41 including Rufous-tailed, and a large Wedge-tailed Sabrewing. Generally we concentrated a lot on butterflies this morning, so birds noted were few, but we did see Stub-tailed Spadebill, Black- headed Trogon, Red-throated Ant-Tanagers, Blue-black Grosbeak, and various flycatchers. Back to the butterflies though. There were a few nymphalids perching on the track – Many-banded Daggerwings and a Four-spotted Sailor or two. But starting back we found more activity with the highlight a superb Blue Morpho flapping lazily past – it didn’t stop though! The Postman, various skippers, and a Celadon Sister were enjoyed. In the end though we found where the butterflies were heading – it was back to the vans and the wet patch there! A group of thirty or so mixed Many- banded Daggerwings, Pale Daggerwings and Ruddy Daggerwings were rather eclipsed by half a dozen swallowtails comprised of three Dark-bordered Kite-Swallowtails, and singles each of Broad- bordered, Androgynous and Thoas Swallowtails. There were also American Snout and some confusion when the superficially similar Tailed Cecropian and Godman’s Mapwing arrived! We fought a bunch of german tourists off these butterflies so those on the ruin-watch were able to enjoy them on their return!

Before we knew it, it was time to gather for lunch which was at a very lovely little place a few kms away on the bank of a river. Here there was an excellent lunch under a palapa roof as we looked out on a beautiful spot with little waterfalls linking pools through the forest. It looked an exceedingly nice place for a swim. We found a fruiting tree which was attracting various tanagers, Clay-coloured Robins and Gray Catbirds. Under nearby trees we found a couple of lovely Mexican Cicadians and in shrubbery by the road the intricately-patterned Small Beauty as well as the metalmark Temple Scintillant.

Then it was on the road to Palenque which took us two and a half hours. This took us along the foot of a range of low hills, these forested, whilst the valley to our right was largely cleared with pasture dotted with old rainforest trees. Other than the forest destruction it was a very pleasing scene. However we had to get to Palenque so on we went eventually reaching the Hotel Mision by around six. Settled in, we reconvened for a buffet dinner at seven-thirty.

Day 11 February 25th Palenque

A relaxed start this morning. After breakfast we met up at nine-thirty, a Double-eyed Owl Butterfly outside our rooms the first excitement! Several of the group went into town to go and look at the shops with Cristina and the rest of us relaxed or pottered round the hotel gardens. A fig tree outside our rooms attracted many birds – Clay-coloured Thrushes, various orioles and warblers in the main, though Marilyn did see a Squirrel Cuckoo too. A Yucatan Squirrel was in the same tree. A Mexican Cicadian welcomed us to the world of butterflies and we continued round the Temascal path finding a decent range of species. A clearwing rather got away but we enjoyed Leading Red-ring, Black-fronted Prestonian and Mexican Heliconians. A Scrub Euphonia was a first for the trip and there were three Roadside Hawks in the air. We found no less than five Satyr species – Carolina, Blue-grey, White, Plain and Wide-bordered, and there were many skippers too. Roseate Skimmers and other dragons and damsels were common. A Many-banded Daggerwing posed in the mud to be used in the Temascal. There was a Monstera creeper in bloom and also a sweat bees nest manufactured on a tree trunk and looking like a horizontal vase. Later more Mexican Cicadians and a Cattleheart White were in the woodland.

We took lunch the town – pulled pork paninis was a star attraction and the custard apple drinks

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 42 were superb. Then it was on to the archaeological site. Fifteen minutes later and we were there, disembarking amongst all the little stalls that sell a mesmerising variety of things. Once thorough the gate we had a very short walk up to the first of the temples. Here Eric started his story of the local Maya. The first temple had a bas-relief of a skull and looked pretty intimidating. Eric took us through many of the seemingly bizarre rituals known to have been practised by the local Maya and also told us many stories of their unusual lives. He knew all the best places to stop so that we could hear his tales and see the ruins to the best advantage. Though there were plenty of visitors we never felt like it was crowded and enjoyed the afternoon greatly.

Meanwhile around the site we were also finding some wildlife. A pair of Aztec Parakeets were vying with some hornets for possession of a termite nest in the trees. A female Scrub Euphonia appeared and there were various warblers and orioles. A fine male Summer Tanager shone red in the trees. Roseate Skimmer sat on some ropes and was well-photographed. A small bird party contained Golden-fronted Woodpecker and a Long-tailed Hermit. Walking down towards the museum we saw Pale-billed Woodpecker and a Striped Hermit. Down by the museum we took some refreshment and rescued a few butterflies caught in the shop window including a Little Banner. Meanwhile along the nearby stream I’d been watching a Bold Mimic-White.

Day 12 February 26th Usumacinta Marshes

We met up at breakfast, the sun already shining strongly into the dining area. At eight-fifteen we were off towards the huge Usumacinta River. It is about an hour from Palenque and through pleasant countryside, cattle ranches in the main, a little oil palm too. We crossed the great river, taking a dirt track out into the countryside. Seda spotted a Fork-tailed Flycatcher and we all went on to have great views of this bird, another one appearing too. The annual floods had receded almost fully this year, but there were still a few damp patches and we stopped by one of these. There seemed only a bird or two about, but in twenty minutes we'd racked up quite a number of good birds. Northern Jacanas pottered about, with their young in tow, and we saw Greater Yellowlegs, Lesser Yellowlegs and Least Sandpiper at close range. On the wires were Tree Swallows, Violet- Green Swallows, Barn Swallows, Northern Roughwings and a Cliff Swallow or two. There was a Limpkin too. A tree in front of us had Golden-fronted Woodpeckers in a nest hole.

We stopped by a channel that was full of flowering Utricularia - a yellow species (there are pink ones...). There were lots of Wood Storks along the channel and Broad-winged Hawks were overhead with the vultures.

We explored six kilometres of sometimes bumpy dirt track that went through the most productive marshy countryside. Hardly had we started than a Black-collared Hawk flew overhead, then a Roadside Hawk. By the track a Buff-bellied Hummingbird nectared at flowers of Glyricidia sepium. We stopped for two superb Bare-throated Tiger-Herons which posed in almost gay abandon in front of us, ruffing up their neck feathers and when that didn’t have all of us in camera action at the same time they tried jumping up onto a post and posing this way and that. Meanwhile behind them two Double-striped Tick-knees distracted us. Little Blue Herons and Great Blue Herons and the occasional Tricolored Herons were noted but it was not til later in the morning that we found Little Green Heron and a group of Boat-billed Herons. Near the latter was the day’s first Crested Caracara, and a little later still a superb Laughing Falcon that was beautifully lit for photographers. There were all manner of little birds. A highlight was a Glyricidia tree that had both Black-chinned

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 43

Hummingbird and a fine male Beautiful Hummingbird feeding in it. A Ctenosaur, or Black Iguana, was also wandering the tree munching on the pink flowers. Speaking of pink flowers mentioned should be made of the abundant Tabebueias rosea that showered pale pink blooms all over the landscape and of the pretty golden-yellow Buttercup Flower Trees that added their own spectacular shows. Orchard Orioles, Baltimore Orioles, one Black-cowled Oriole and a couple of brilliant orange Altamira Orioles added their colours to the spectacle. There were not so many butterflies, a few whites and skippers, but also a number of Postmen, quite a few Queens, and a most stunning butterfly, the Banded Orange Heliconian. A Blue Morpho flapped past! By the vehicle we had a flock of Tricoloured Munias and also many White-collared Seedeaters. An Indigo Bunting had some blue in its plumage. A surprise came when Seda spotted a Black-headed Trogon and here was also a Rose-throated Beccard. A Vesper Sparrow was spotted and there were also Meadowlarks in the grassland. Noisy Northern Jacanas were rather common. An Aplomado Falcon whizzed past, and an American Pygmy Kingfisher did the same. In the water was a strange yellow flower with elegant multi-tiered leaves and there were some nice Hibiscus and Clitoria in the verges. Frieda showed us the Calabash Tree and a Dillenia relative Curatella americana. Warblers were abundant in the trees and included lots of Magnolia, Black & White, and Yellow Warblers, but we also noted Orange- crowned Warbler, Northern Parula, Common Yellowthroat and Yellow-breasted Chat.

We found our way to the laguna. There were some lovely little 'crested' water lilies at the water's edge and the shells of some huge apple snails. Across the other side a game of baseball was well- contested with the teams all turned out in proper kit. A group of Royal Terns sat on the shore edge near them alongside Blue-winged Teal. A Crested Caracara sat on a dead tree and an inlet of the lake here held a group of Fulvous Whistling Ducks. More Fork-tailed Flycatchers were enjoyed. Monarchs flew about the field edges, but more common were Queens, mimics of the Monarchs.

Meanwhile Eric and the team prepared lunch. The apple and salmon sandwiches were a winner! Yellow-throated Warbler was found by Marilyn in the property here and there was a superb Hook- billed Kite in a nearby tree.

Leaving we spotted an Iguana staring out of a tree hole and in the next tree a Lineated Woodpecker doing the same! We moved back along the road spotting Green Herons, more Bare-throated Tiger- Bitterns, and Rose-breasted Grosbeak. Soon after a Collared Forest-Falcon belted across the road in front of us and a little later we stopped for a group of Howler Monkeys. These were so close to us and though a little perturbed at the humans within five metres they nevertheless allowed great photographs. Meanwhile a superb Summer Tanager was in front of the vehicles. Further along we stopped for a Solitary Sandpiper and close to this was a superb Amazon Kingfisher which everyone got great shots of. As we were watching this a superbly bright plumaged Blue Grosbeak was spotted in front of us. Three Yellow-crowned Night Heron flew past us.

We headed back to Palenque, the sun cooler as we approached the town. It had been a long day but a very productive one with around one hundred and twenty species of bird noted during the day. We refreshed ourselves at the local Michoacana ice-cream shop!

Day 13 February 27th Roberto Barios

The sun shone as we passed through the gorgeous wooded hill country to the south of Palenque. The last ten kilometres on a quiet road with almost no traffic. Roberto Barrios is a beautiful spot, set

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 44 in hills and valleys that could easily take the name Blue Mountains though they are scenic rather than high. The river too was quite something, another turquoise picture with great pools cut by bands of limestone over which the water fell.... in the end we just had to get in and swim.

We pulled into the picnic area by the river and spent the next five hours filling our boots with butterflies. The range was breathtaking with a wide range of nymphalids, some really stunning metalmarks, a good scattering of whites, and as usual an amazing variety of skippers. Even the swallowtails weighed in with half a dozen species. With so many butterflies we hardly had time to look at any birds, however we did see a few warblers, a few Ant-Tanagers, and a noisy flock of White-collared Swifts. In the morning we spotted Scrub Euphonias and a Keel-billed Toucan as well as Aztec Parakeets.

Butterflies started with a Barnes’ Metalmark, a sign of things to come, for we were to see double- figures of riodinid species today. Mexican Fritillaries deigned not to stop however soon we were finding Postmen and Julias, White Peacocks and Banded Peacocks, all inhabiting the trackside. We found Black-fronted Prestonians by a quiet river and here we spotted Red-rim and the gorgeous Pearly Leafwing who sat quietly confident in its camouflage. A Beautiful Hummingbird visited nearby Glyricidias. A superb Silverdop Skipper was well-photographed. Here there was also the lovely White-banded Grayler which seemed an odd name for a butterfly which is so orange and blue! Female and male are very different in this species. Walking back past the picnic site owner’s pig we noticed large butterflies zipping past us and back to next tree. There were five of them. Two were Guatemalan Crackers and they were doing the cracking thing – a surprisingly loud noise for a butterfly! The other three were all different large fast-flying species, two with brilliant blue uppers – One-spotted Prepona and Two-spotted Prepona, and the other the Tailed Cecropian. Next we headed across the river where we spent the rest of the morning along a quiet track through excellent forest. Immediately a Mexican Ciciadian was noticed and we went on to see half a dozen of these lovely butterflies. Variable Cracker posed by the river and nearby we saw a Blue and White Heliconian fluttering about and in the forest.

Lunch was an Eric-spectacular with marinated pork, pineapple and baked fish with lime and courgettes, all prepared on the grill - superb... Over by the bridge we now had swallowtails. A Red- sided Swallowtail was joined by an Orange Kite-Swallowtail and a Ruddy Daggerwing. Meanwhile a Rusty-tipped Page mud-puddled by the picnic area and a Black-headed Trogon was seen.

After lunch we went back across the river where Skippers were again plentiful – species recorded included Mimosa Skipper, Dusted Spurwing, Veined White-Skipper, Guatemalan Chequered- Skipper, the impressive Yellow-tipped Flasher, the equally large Pale Sicklewing, and the lovely velvety Square Bentwing with its extraordinary crinkled square wings! Two basilisk species were seen – Hernandez’s Helmeted and Striped. Butterflies continued.... A Sister sat above the track. The delicate little Ochre Groundstreak reminded some of us of Indian Sapphires, and a big highlight was the Common Jewelmark, or perhaps the Red-bordered Pixie was even better? Seda spotted an impressive blue-tinted Small-spotted Flasher and in the undergrowth there were a number of gorgeous Purple-washed Eyemarks. Tiger Heliconians were a wonderful sight, and we also spotted Harmonia Tigerwing and Black and Yellow Prestonian.

A stream yielded many damselflies including a Rubyspot and a lovely copper-tailed species. Wedge-spotted Cattlehearts fluttered slowly around a clearing where we found a tiny hummingbirds nest with two eggs. Montezuma’s Oropendulas fed in the trees and there were

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 45 plenty of Wood Thrushes, Gray Catbirds and even an Ovenbird in the undergrowth. Back at the bridge things had got even better as we prepared to leave - five Giant Swallowtails lay there with their wings wide open...

Day 14 February 28th Palenque

We had a relaxed start this morning. Marilyn wandered round the garden noting a Blue-crowned Motmot the moment she left her room and some other good birds including a female Blue-black Grosbeak and some Ant-Tanagers.

This morning we headed back to the archaeological site in Palenque. We spent the first part of the morning walking less than a kilometre of the fabulous Cascada Trail through the rainforest. This trail is very well made and is usually relatively undisturbed, the rainforest beautiful and all the time we could hear the Yucatan Howler Monkeys making lots of noise! From time to time shafts of sunlight illuminated butterflies though they were nearly all Gaudy Patches. We also saw several Erato Heliconians and several Cattlehearts. There was a rather worn Pink-checked Cattleheart, a Wedge-Spotted Cattleheart and a couple of gorgeous Emerald-patched Cattlehearts. Almost the first birds we found was a pair of Royal Flycatchers building their nest in a beautiful spot by a stream. Several of the group stayed to photograph them then found two Blue-crowned Motmots in trees just past there. There was also a Green Kingfisher on the stream by the nest. Further up we found more butterflies. There were two heliconid mimics – the Mimic Tiger-Queen and Varieble Tigerwing. Now the birds started to get more prolific with all sorts of nice things.

We saw both Red-throated Ant-Tanagers and Red-crowned Ant-Tanagers. There was a fine Northern Barred Woodcreeper, and later Wedge-billed and Streak-headed Woodcreepers were also seen. A pair of Green Honeycreepers were a great sight, the male is an incredible turquoise-green colour. There were Worm-eating Warblers, Golden-crowned Warblers and Ochre-bellied Flycatchers. Collared Aracaris and Keel-billed Toucans were noted and a Black Hawk went over. Jane photographed a Purple-washed Eyemark and the tiny Zebra mimic was the Black and Yellow Prestonian.

As we left the trail we found another heliconid like butterfly fluttering around in the sky above us – strange behaviour indeed and it wouldn’t come down, however it fluttered so slowly we were able to get good pictures and identify it as the Acting Heliconian! Just a little further and Nigel found a rather nice skipper resting under a leaf – some kind of Rubyeye. Down by the vehicles Beto had been patiently waiting for us with a Brownish Cracker that he’d made friends with.

Then we headed downhill to the museum where some visited the museum itself and others wandered about to see what they could find around the margins. It was a very bright sunny morning but there were not the butterflies we were expecting. A Blue Morpho did speed past but otherwise there was little – a Common Blue Skipper and again the Black and Yellow Prestonian. By the vehicle was the impressive skipper Spineless Silverdrop.

Lunch was in town where Eric took us a Oaxacan restaurant where we tried a local speciality. These are a large taco served with layers of meat, onions, refried beans etc on top and then roasted briefly. They were exceedingly delicious and most of us finished what were very large servings! Then it was off across the beautifully evening lit landscape to Villahermosa where we arrived in plenty of time.

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 46

We checked-in and then relaxed until it was time to board the aircraft. We arrived into Mexico City on time at half nine and were soon met by our driver who whisked us quickly through the streets of the great city to our comfortable hotel in Zona Rosa.

Day 15 March 1st Teotihuacan

After breakfast we headed out to Teotihuacan where Eric took us on a tour of this the most spectacular of the Aztec pyramid sites. Today the city's atmosphere was rather polluted and so in the haze we could not see the cones of Popacatopetl and Iztaccihuatl to the west. Once out of town though the sun shone brightly and the semi-arid cactus-dotted landscape was very different from the lushness of Chiapas. Eric told us much of the history of the site and the peoples that would have part of its heyday more than seven hundred years before. We also had quite an insight into ancient Aztec mythology and Eric recounted memorable stories of how the sun and the moon were born and of why the four thousand visible stars are chased across the sky every day.

Eric was forced to take occasional breaks as we waded our way through a whole host of new birds for the trip as well as a few new butterflies. The site sits at around 8500 feet above sea level and the flat countryside between the volcanic emergents would have been a lake in the distant past but are now fields where cactus and maize are harvested. Hedgerows consisted of willow and the False Pepper Tree (Schinus molle). So perhaps not surprising that most of the birds were new. We started with Vermilion Flycatchers fire-balling their way into the bluest of skies. Into the ruins and we were soon watching Canyon Towhees, Amethyst-throated Hummingbirds and Cassin’s Kingbirds. A Pipevine Swallowtail sped past. Over by the first pyramids where Eric showed us some amazing jaguar heads and carvings of Tlaloc there was American Kestrel. In the flat areas we found a couple of cute Mexican Ground Squirrels, Sciurus mexicanus, a squirrel endemic to the region around Mexico City. They did a very passable impersonation of meerkats!

A stream lined with trees caused the group to split between wildlife and culture. The ‘wildlifers’ spent much of the rest morning here. Two Texan Crescents were below a little bridge. Upstream there was continual avian excitement with Ruby-crowned Kinglets, Orange-crowned and Yellow- rumped Warblers, Chipping and Clay-coloured Sparrows, Cassin's Kingbird and Amethyst- throated Hummingbirds. The latter came and sat on its nest. There were also Bushtits, a surprise Colima Warbler and a Sharp-shinned Hawk sped through with something in its talons. A little later we had great views of a Cooper’s Hawk too. Below the bridge we found Rufous-backed Thrushes and a Greenish Elaenia. A nice find was a Camberwell Beauty!

Moving on we found a Cactus Wren amongst Opuntias and little bromeliad-encrusted trees in which a Mourning Dove sat on its nest. A superbly-lit Broad-billed Hummingbird shone like a jewel from a tree-top and then we found a couple of Bewick’s Wrens. Around the museum we didn’t find the usual butterflies. Two-tailed Swallowtails deigned not to stop, nor did a Bordered Patch, but a Green-eyed White did. Crevice Spiny Lizards muddled about on the walls and tree trunks. Curve- billed Thrashers were common here and we got better views of Rufous-backed Thrushes. A Black- vented Oriole looked fine in the top of an Erythrinia tree. Near the exit Nigel P took some great photographs of a Two-tailed Swallowtail.

Eric showed those who followed him on to the big pyramid how to be our own archaeologists as we looked into trackside banks and amazingly were soon finding shards of pottery and better still parts of obsidian knives that would have been at least five hundred years old and could have been as Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 47 much as two thousand years old! Eric then took his part of the group on to the second main pyramid and from there several took a look at the Murals Museum which apparently was quite superb – one to include for the future I think.

We went for a late lunch at a nearby restaurant which proved to be just the smallest of restaurants, i.e. we had lunch in the garden table whilst the family ate in the dining room. The food was superb and the shopping opportunities were very impressive. We had a little time to wander outside here and were rewarded with Marine Blue and Reakirt’s Blue. A fine adult Yellow-bellied Sapsucker gave great views and then a Calliope Hummingbird was spotted too. Another fine bird was an Abeille’s Oriole though this was a leader only sighting. Then it was off to the airport which we reached in decent time and checked-in for our flights back to the UK.

Day 16 March 2nd

The next lunchtime we arrived on time back at Heathrow.

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 48

Highlands of Mexico - Systematic List Number 1 Butterflies

Nomenclature and taxonomic order taken from Butterflies of Mexico and Central America (Glassberg 2007). The number of days a species was seen is indicated as 5/14 – so five days out of the 14 in the field (arrival day and landing day at end not included). This list includes only species seen in 2018.

Papilionidae Yellow-spotted Swallowtail Battus laodamus Arroyo Frio & Colorines Pipewine Swallowtail Battus philenor Nevado de Colima Polydamus Swallowtail Battus polydamus 1 Colorines Variable Cattleheart Parides erithalion 1 Colorines Montezuma’s Cattleheart Parides montezuma 1 Santa Maria Pink-spotted Cattleheart Parides photinus 2 El Fuego Broad-banded Swallowtail Papilio astyalus 2 Colorines Magnificent Swallowtail Papilio garamus Mil Cumbres Band-gapped Swallowtail Papilio torquatus 2 ‘hill-topping’ over the church in new Santa Tomas de los Platanos Two-tailed Swallowtail Papilio multicaudatus scattered sightings

Pieridae Surprising White Pereute charops El Fuego Painted White Pieriballia viardi Temascaltepec Mexican Dartwhite Catasticta nimbice scattered. 2/14 Pallid Tilewhite Hesperocharis costaricaensis El Fuego Common Greeneyed-White Leptophobia aripa Temascaltepec Florida White Appias drusilla Colorines Great Southern White Ascia monuste Los Asmole White Angled-Sulphur Anteos clorinde scattered. 4/14 Yellow Angled-Sulphur Anteos maerula only noted in Mil Cumbres this year Cloudless Sulphur Phoebis sennae widespread. 8/14 Orange-barred Sulphur Phoebis philea scattered throughout. 5/14 Apricot Sulphur Phoebis argante scattered throughout. 5/14 Statira Sulphur Phoebis statira Colorines Southern Dogface Colias cesonia El Fuego Bold Mimic-White Enantia jethys El Fuego Barred Yellow Eurema daira locally common. 6/14 Mexican Yellow Eurema mexicana El Fuego Salome Yellow Eurema salome scattered. 3/14 Tailed Orange Eurema proterpia Arroyo Frio Sleepy Orange Eurema nicippe Santo Tomas Mimosa Yellow Eurema nise Colorines Dainty Sulphur Nathalis iole scattered. 2/14

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 49

Lycaenidae Xami Hairstreak Callophrys xami common in the University Botanical Garden, D.F. Also 1 on Cerro Burro Creamy Stripe-Streak Arawacus jada singles El Fuego and Arroyo Frio Fine-lined Stripe-Streak Arawacus sito El Fuego Mexican Elfstreak Laothus erybathis a dead one at Arroyo Frio Marius Hairstreak Rekoa marius ?probably at Santo Tomas (Nigel’s Photos) Red Crescent Scrub Hairstreak Strymon rufofusca Santo Tomas (Nigel’s Photos) Gray Hairstreak Strymon melinus Santo Tomas (Nigel’s Photos) Clytie Ministreak Ministrymon clytie Santo Tomas (Nigel’s Photos) Eclipsed Hairstreak Panthiades bitius Santo Tomas (Nigel’s Photos) Dusky Blue Groundstreak Calycopis isobeon 1 Santo Tomas Sky-blue Greatstreak Pseudolycaena damo singles at Santa Maria and Arroyo Frio Ceraunus Blue Hemiargus ceraunus scattered. 2/14 Reakirt's Blue Hemiargus isola scattered. 2/14 Spring Azure Celastrina ladon El Fuego Eastern Tailed Blue Everes comyntas Temascaltepec Marine Blue Leptotes marina scattered. 2/14

Riodinidae White-rayed Pixie Melanis cephise scattered throughout. 4/14 Red-bordered Pixie Melanis pixe several Santo Tomas Carousing Jewelmark Anteros carausius wow! 1 Arroyo Frio Square-spotted Yellowmark Baeotis zonata Santo Tomas Walker's Metalmark Apodemia walkeri a crescent mimic. 1 Colorines Fatal Metalmark Calephelis nemesis scattered Skipperish Tanmark Emesis saturata 1 Mil Cumbres Common Theope Theope virgilius Arroyo Frio Bell-banded Theope Theope publius near Santo Tomas

Nymphalidae Mexican Fritillary Euptoieta hegesia scattered. 3/14 Gulf Fritillary Agraulis vanilla Colorines and University Botanical Garden, D.F. Mexican Silverspot Dione moneta widespread. 4/14 Juno Heliconian Dione juno Laguna Maria Julia Heliconian Dryas iulia frequent in warmer areas. 5/14 Zebra Heliconian Heliconius charithonia frequent in warmer areas. 2/14 Mexican Heliconian Heliconius hortense 1 El Fuego White-rayed Patch Chlosyne ehrenbergii 1 en route to Patzcuaro and several Santo Tomas Bordered Patch Chlosyne lacinia 1 Santo Tomas Ardent Crescent Phyciodes ardys frequent Colima area, scattered elsewhere Orange-patch Crescent Phyciodes drusilla Laguna Maria Mexican Crescent Phyciodes pallescens scattered. 3/14 Pale-banded Crescent Phyciodes tulcis Laguna Maria Black Crescent Phyciodes ptolyca scattered. 2/14

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 50

Texan Crescent Phyciodes texana Temascaltepec Common Buckeye Junonia coenia scattered throughout. 5/14 Mangrove Buckeye Junonia evarete Pacific Coast – mangroves! Mourning Cloak Nymphalis antiopa Patzcuaro reedbeds Banded Peacock Anartia fatima scattered throughout. 3/14 White Peacock Anartia jatrophae warmer areas. 2/14 Malachite Siproeta stelenes warmer areas. 4/14 Leading Red-ring Pyrrhogyra neaerea several at Arroyo Frio Complete Red-ring Pyrrhogyra edocla Arroyo Frio Orange-striped Eighty-eight Diaethria pamdana El Fuego Red-rim Biblis hyperia Colorines Orange Banner Temenis laothoe Arroyo Frio & Santo Tomas Little Banner Nica flavilla 1 El Fuego and several Colorines Common Banner Apiphile adrasta Fabulous things! El Fuego Black-patched Cracker Hamadryas atlantis 1 seen at Santo Tomas Red Cracker Hamadryas laodamia 1 below Laguna Maria Jazzy Leafwing Hypna clytemnestra 1 Los Asmoles Blomfild’s Beauty Smyrna blomfildia Arroyo Frio & Colorines Karwinski's Beauty Smyrna karwinskii Mil Cumbres Ruddy Daggerwing Marpesia petreus scattered. 3/14 Mexican Bluewing Myscelia ethusa Los Asmoles Blackened Bluewing Myscelia cyananthe Los Asmoles Band-celled Sister Adelpha fessonia Laguna Maria Eyed Sister Adelpha paroeca Mil Cumbres White Morpho Morpho polyphemos 1 at Los Asmoles dry forest, several also at Arroyo Frio and several in the Santo Tomás area. 3/14 Prepona sp Archaeoprepona sp single at Arroyo Frio Great Ur-Satyr Taygetis mermeria Los Asmoles Cramer’s Ur-Satyr Taygetis virgilia Mil Cumbre Hook-lined Ur-Satyr Taygetis uncinata Los Asmoles Big-eyed Gemmed-Satyr Cyllopsis suivalenoides El Fuego Stormy Satyr Cissia similis locally common Santo Tomas Carolina Satyr Hermeuptychia sosybius Santo Tomas Queen Danaus gilippus Santo Tomas. A Monarch mimic Soldier Danaus eresimus scattered. 3/14. A Monarch mimic Monarch Danaus plexippus Quite a few MILLION! Thick-tipped Greta Greta morgana Laguna Maria

Hesperidae Two-barred Flasher Astraptes fulgerator several Arroyo Frio Gilbert’s Flasher Astraptes gilberti 1 Arroyo Frio White-striped Longtail Chioides catillus Santo Tomas White-crescent Longtail Codatractus alcaeus Arroyo Frio Hysterical Skipper Codatractus hyster 1 Arroyo Frio Tawny Mottled Skipper Codatractus bryaxis 1 Arroyo Frio Mexican Zesty Skipper Zestusa elwesi Rancho los Cedros Chisos Banded-Skipper Autochton cincta scattered Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 51

Dorantes Longtail Urbanus dorantes Arroyo Frio and Santo Tomas Brown Longtail Urbanus procne Arroyo Frio Plain Longtail Urbanus simplicius Santo Tomas Pronus Longtail Urbanus pronus Arroyo Frio Long-tailed Skipper Urbanus proteus Arroyo Frio Teleus Longtail Urbanus teleus Arroyo Frio Variegated Skipper Gorythion begga Colorines Mazans Scallopwing Staphylus mazans Colorines (Nigel’s photos) Common Bentwing Cycloglypha thrasibulus Colorines (Nigel’s photos) Aztec Bentwing Cycloglypha thrasibulus Arroyo Frio Jalapus Cloudywing Achalarus jalapus Colorines Fritzgaertner's Flats Celaenorrhinus fritzgaertneri 200 or so roosting in an irrigation pipe Santo Tomas Falcate Skipper Spathilepia clonius Colorines (Nigel’s photos) Guatemalan Pelicia Nisoniades godma Colorines (Nigel’s photos) Rounded Bolla Bolla imbras (Nigel’s photos) White Checkered Skipper Pyrgus albescens scattered Tropical Checkered Skipper Pyrgus oileus scattered Juvenal’s Duskywing Erynnis juvenalis Arroyo Frio Fantastic Skipper Vettius fantasos Arroyo Frio Common Mellana Quasimellana eulogius Colorines (Nigel’s photos) Tropical Least Skipper Ancylocypha arene Colorines Fiery Skipper Hylephila phyleus Santo Tomas (Nigel’s photos) Alkali Skipper Pseudocopaeodes eunus Santo Tomas (Nigel’s photos) Common Glassywing Pomeius pompeius scattered Purple-washed Skipper Panoquina silvicola Arroyo Frio

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 52

Highlands of Mexico - Systematic List Number 2 Mammals

Nomenclature and taxonomic order is a bit of a mish-mash and is borrowed from both ‘Neotropical Rainforest Mammals’ by Emmons (1997) and ‘The Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Mammals’ by Whitaker (1993). 2018 only.

Nine-banded Armadillo Dasypus novemcinctus 5 on the first night at Laguna Maria and 1 there on the last nightwalk Virginia Opossum Didelphis virginiana just one seen at Laguna Maria at night this year Rock Squirrel Spermophilus variegatus widespread more or less everywhere Mexican Ground Squirrel Spermophilus mexicanus University Botanical Garden, D.F. Tropical Ground Squirrel Spermophilus adocetus common in the Colima area Mexican Gray Squirrel Sciurus aureogaster several in the Highlands Collei’s Squirrel Sciurus collaei seen Tlalpujahua & Cuitzeo Eastern Cottontail Sylvilagus floridanus Rancho de los Caedros Gray Fox Urocyon cinereoargenteus one at night Laguna Maria Coyote Canis latrans one across the road on the Sayala Salt Flats Margay Leopardus wiedii One on the trap camera below Rancho las Margaritas White-tailed Deer Odocoileus virginianus Anna spotted 2 on the El Fuego walk

Highlands of Mexico - Systematic List Number 3 Reptiles & Amphibians

Michoacan Stream Salamander Ambystoma rivulare un-patterned dark, narrow-headed small species in stream at Sierra Chincua. Mexican Tiger Salamader Ambystoma velasci aka Ambystoma subsalsum. Large species in stream at Sierra Chincua. Puerto Hondo Salamander Ambystoma ordinarum strongly marbled skin. Second stream we visited at Sierra Chincua Ctenosaur Ctenosaura pectinata a few in the lowlands Crevice Swift Sceloporus torquatus University Botanical Garden.D.F.

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 53

Highlands of Mexico - Systematic List Number 4 Birds

Nomenclature and taxonomic order follows The Sibley Guide to Birds (2000) and Howell and Webb’s ‘A Guide to the Birds of Mexico’ (1995). The number of days a species was seen is indicated as 5/14 – so five days out of the 14 in the field (arrival day and landing day at end not included). 2018 only.

Itinerary Day 2 February 15th Laguna Maria Day 4 February 16th Laguna Maria, Los Asmoles dry forest, Boca de Apiza & Playa Mezcala Day 3 February 17th Laguna Maria & Volcan Fuego Day 5 February 18th Volcan Nevado de Colima & Zapotlán Lake Day 6 February 19th to Pátzcuaro via Uruapan Day 7 February 20th Cerro Burro & Tzintzuntzán Day 8 February 21st Tacámbaro, Arroyo Frio Day 9 February 22nd Morelia or Lago Cuitzeo. Then Mil Cumbres and to Tlalpujahua Day 10 February 13th Sierra Chincua Monarch Reserve Day 11 February 14th El Rosario, Laguna Verde Day 12 February 15th Tlalpujahua & Rancho de los Cedros & to Valle de Bravo Day 13 February 16th Temascaltepec & Los Sauces Day 14 February 17th Santo Tomás de los Plátanos & Colorines. Rancho las Margaritas Day 15 February 18th to Mexico City & the University Botanical Garden

Clark’s Grebe Aechmophorus clarkii Lago Cuitzeo Western Grebe Aechmophorus occidentalis Lago Cuitzeo Eared Grebe Podiceps nigricollis Lago Cuitzeo Pied-billed Grebe Podilymbus podiceps Zapotlán & Patzcuaro Least Grebe Tachybaptus dominicus 1 Patzcuaro Magnificent Frigatebird Fregata magnificens several at both Playa Mezcala and at Boca de Apiza American White Pelican Pelecanus erythrorhynchos abundant along the shore of Chapala and also Lago Cuitzeo. 2/14 Brown Pelican Pelecanus occidentalus noted at Boca de Apiza & Playa Mezcala Neotropic Cormorant Phalacrocorax brasilianus locally abundant. 3/14 Anhinga Anhinga anhinga 1 Boca de Apiza Black-crowned Night Heron Nycticorax nycticorax scattered. 3/14 Yellow-crowned Night Heron Nyctanassa violacea several at Boca de Apiza Cattle Egret Bubulcus ibis widespread. 9/14 Green-backed Heron Butorides virescens scattered. 3/14 Snowy Egret Egretta thula scattered throughout. 6/14 Little Blue Heron Egretta caerulea scattered. 3/14 Reddish Egret Egretta rufescens 1 Boca de Apiza Tricolored Heron Egretta tricolor scattered throughout. 5/14 Great Egret Carcharodius albus widespread at wetlands. 7/14 Great Blue Heron Ardea herodias scarce. 4/14 White-faced Ibis Plegadis chihi widely scattered. 6/14 White Ibis Eudocimus albus only noted at Boca de Apiza & Playa Mezcala Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 54

Roseate Spoonbill Ajaia ajaja c.6 Boca de Apiza Wood Stork Mycteria americana 1 Boca de Apiza and 1 over Zapotlán Fulvous Whistling Duck Dendrocygna bicolor 3 Lago Cuitzeo Black-bellied Whistling Duck Dendrocygna autumnalis 8 Boca de Apiza Mexican Duck Anas diazi Lago Cuitzeo and Temascaltepec Gadwall Anas strepera scattered. 3/14 Green-winged Teal Anas crecca scattered. 2/14 American Wigeon Anas americana Lago Cuitzeo Northern Pintail Anas acuta Boca de Apiza and Lago Cuitzeo Northern Shoveler Anas clypeata most wetlands. 5/14 Blue-winged Teal Anas discors most wetlands. 5/14 Cinnamon Teal Anas cyanoptera scattered. 2/14 Ruddy Duck Oxyrua jamaicensis Patzcuaro and Lago Cuitzeo Black Vulture Coragyps atratus widespread and common. 11/14 Turkey Vulture Cathartes aura widespread and very common. 13/14 Snail Kite Rostrhamus sociabilis 3 at Playa Mezcala. This is an odd record of this distinctive raptor as they are 500km north of their known range on the Pacific Slope! Seventh year running, so presumably resident. Northern Harrier Circus cyaneus 3 Patzcuaro and 1 Rancho las Margaritas Sharp-shinned Hawk Accipiter striatus scattered. 3/14 Cooper’s Hawk Accipiter cooperii singles Rancho los Cedros and Colorines Gray Hawk Buteo nitidus scattered in the Laguna Maria area. 2/14 Roadside Hawk Buteo magnirostris Pacific lowlands Short-tailed Hawk Buteo brachyurus scattered. 3/14 White-tailed Hawk Buteo albicaudatus one near Zapotlán Red-tailed Hawk Buteo jamaicensis scattered throughout. 6/14 Osprey Pandion haliaetus scattered. 3/14 Crested Caracara Caracara plancus scattered in Colima area. 3/14 American Kestrel Falco sparverius widespread. 11/14 Peregrine Falco peregrinus 1 with prey Boca de Apiza Prairie Falcon Falco mexicanus salt flats north of Zapotlán Wild Turkey Meleagris gallopavo feathers found on El Fuego West Mexican Chachalaca Ortalis poliocephala frequent in the Colima area, though more often heard than seen. 3(seen)/14 Banded Quail Philortyx fasciatus El Fuego Purple Gallinule Porphyrula martinica 10+ at Playa Mezcala Common Moorhen Gallinula chloropus most wetlands. 5/14 American Coot Fulica americana widespread at wetlands. 8/14 Collared Plover Charadrius collaris 3 at Playa Mezcala Snowy Plover Charadrius alexandrinus Lago Cuitzeo Killdeer Charadrius vociferous scattered. 3/14 Semipalmated Plover Charadrius semipalmatus noted on the beach at Boca de Apiza American Avocet Recurvirostra americana noted Patzcuaro and 5000+ Lago Cuitzeo. 2/14 Black-necked Stilt Himantopus mexicanus most wetlands. 4/14 Northern Jacana Jacana spinosa various wetlands. 4/14

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 55

Long-billed Curlew Numenius americanus Boca de Apiza Whimbrel Numenius phaeopus 1 at Playa Mezcala Greater Yellowlegs Tringa melanoleuca several at Boca de Apiza and Lago Cuitzeo Lesser Yellowlegs Tringa flavipes several at Boca de Apiza and Lago Cuitzeo Willet Catoptrophorus semipalmatus frequent at Boca de Apiza & Playa Mezcala Solitary Sandpiper Tringa solitaria 1 Patzcuaro Spotted Sandpiper Actitis macularia scattered. 6/14 Long-billed Dowitcher Limnodromus scolopaceus lots Lago Cuitzeo Short-billed Dowitcher Limnodromus griseus several Boca de Apiza Wilson’s Phalarope Phalaropus tricolor several Lago Cuitzeo Common Snipe Gallinago gallinago scattered. 3/14 Sanderling Calidris alba 1 on the coast White-rumped Sandpiper Calidris fuscicollis Lago Cuitzeo Western Sandpiper Calidris mauri Lago Cuitzeo Least Sandpiper Calidris minutilla common on the coast and very common at Lago Cuitzeo Franklin’s Gull Larus pipixican noted on the coast and at Lago Cuitzeo Laughing Gull Larus atricilla noted on the coast and at Lago Cuitzeo Ring-billed Gull Larus delawarensis Patzcuaro and common Lago Cuitzeo California Gull Larus californicus an immature Boca de Apiza Forster's Tern Sterna forsteri 1 at Playa Mezcala and several Lago Cuitzeo Royal Tern Sterna maxima a few at Boca de Apiza & Playa Mezcala Elegant Tern Sterna elegans several at Boca de Apiza Caspian Tern Sterna caspia singles at various wetlands. 4/14 Rock Dove Columba livia scattered throughout Band-tailed Pigeon Columba fasciata several Rancho los Margaritas Mourning Dove Zenaida macroura Lago Cuitzeo White-winged Dove Zenaida asiatica scattered in warm lowland areas. 3/14 Collared Dove Streptopelia decaocto scattered in Rio Bravo, Mex city, areas. 3/14 Inca Dove Columbina inca Locally common on coast and Colima. 6/14 Ruddy Ground-Dove Columbina talpacoti Laguna Maria area. 2/14 White-tipped Dove Leptoptila verreauxi often heard, but just also seen at Laguna Maria, Colorines and Temascaltepec Mexican Parrotlet Forpus cyanopygius 2 seen well below Laguna Maria Lilac-crowned Parrot Amazona finschi almost daily at Laguna Maria. 2/14 Squirrel Cuckoo Piaya cayana scattered throughout. 4/14 Lesser Roadrunner Geococcyx velox 2 between Colima and Zapotlán, 1 Arroyo Frio. 2/14 Groove-billed Ani Crotophaga sulcirostris scattered. 5/14 Mottled Owl Strix virgata heard nightly at Laguna Maria, see in Arroyo Frio Colima Pygmy Owl Glaucidium palmarum 1 Arroyo Frio Mexican Whip-poor-will Caprimulgus arizonae heard Rancho las Margaritas Lesser Nighthawk Chordeiles acutipennis 1 Patzcuaro Chestnut-collared Swift Cypseloides rutilus Temascaltepec Vaux’s Swift Chaetura vauxi El Fuego White-throated Swift Aeronautes saxatilis Colorines Waterfall Green Violet-ear Colibri thalssinus Nevado de Colima & El Rosario. 2/14

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 56

Golden-crowned Emerald Chlorostilbon auriceps 2 Santo Tomas Broad-billed Hummingbird Cynanthus latirostris scattered Laguna Maria area. 2/14 Dusky Hummingbird Cynanthus sordidus 2 Los Asmoles and noted at Arroyo Frio White-eared Hummingbird Basilinna leuctois frequent in the highlands. 8/14 Berylline Hummingbird Amazilia beryllina widespread in lowlands. 6/14 Cinnamon Hummingbird Amazilia rutila singles Los Asmoles and Laguna Maria Violet-crowned Hummingbird Amazilia violiceps Arroyo Frio Blue-throated Hummingbird Lampornis clemenciae 1 Nevado de Colima and 1 Temascaltepec Magnificent Hummingbird Eugenes fulgens frequent in the highlands. 5/14 Plain-capped Starthroat Heliomaster constantii 1 Los Asmoles & 2 Santo Tomas Ruby-throated Hummingbird Archilochus colubris 1 Nevado de Colima and 2+ Cerro Burro Black-chinned Hummingbird Archilochus alexandri Cerro Burro, El Rosario & Temascaltepec. Several that could have been this or Ruby- throated Hummingbird Calliope Hummingbird Archilochus calliope a female above Laguna Maria and 1 El Fuego Broad-tailed Hummingbird Selasphorus platycercus scattered. 3/14 Rufous/Allen’s Hummingbird Selasphorus rufus/sasin above Laguna Maria Bumble-bee Hummingbird Selasphorus heloisa 1 Cerro Burro and 1 Temascaltepec Mountain Trogon Trogon mexicanus 3 Nevado de Colima. Trogons seen briefly Cerro Burro and Mil Cumbres could have been this species or Elegant Trogon Citreoline Trogon Trogon melanocephalus male and female at Los Asmoles Russet-crowned Motmot Momotus mexicanus 1 Santo Tomas Green Kingfisher Chloroceryle americana scattered. 3/14 Acorn Woodpecker Melanerpes formicivorus scattered. 3/14 Golden-cheeked Woodpecker Centurus chrysogenys scattered - lowlands. 3/14 Golden-fronted Woodpecker Centurus aurifrons 1 Patzcuaro Hairy Woodpecker Picoides villosus 1 Nevado de Colima and 2 Temascaltepec Ladder-backed Woodpecker Picoides scalaris scattered. 5/14 Grey-crowned Woodpecker Piculus auricularis 1 Laguna Maria Ivory-billed Woodcreeper Xiphorhynchus flavigaster 2 in the Laguna Maria area, 1 Temascaltepec White-striped Woodcreeper Lepidocolaptes leucogastor scattered above 1500m. 3/14 Greenish Elaenia Mysiopagis viridicata Laguna Maria and Mil Cumbres Tufted Flycatcher Mitrephanes phaeocercus scattered throughout. 6/14 Cassin’s Kingbird Tyrannus vociferans widespread. 12/14 Tropical Kingbird Tyrannus melancholicus Pacific lowlands only. 2/14 Western Kingbird Tyrannus verticalis lowland wetlands. 2/14 Thick-billed Kingbird Tyrannus crassirostris locally frequent in lower areas. 3/14 Ash-throated Flycatcher Myiarchus cinerascens Los Asmoles Dusky-capped Flycatcher Myiarchus tuberculifer Laguna Maria Nutting’s Flycatcher Myiarchus nuttingi Laguna Maria. 2/14 Brown—crested Flycatcher Myiarchus tyrannulus singles Temascaltepec and Rancho los Margaritas Flammulated Flycatcher Deltarhynchus flammulatus 1 Los Asmoles and 1 Laguna Maria Great Kiskadee Pitangus sulphuratus scattered in lower areas. 3/14 Boat-billed Flycatcher Megarhynchus pitangua Laguna Maria Social Flycatcher Myiozetetes similis common at Laguna Maria, scattered elsewhere. 8/14

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 57

Western Wood-Pewee Contopus sordidulus scattered. 2/14 Greater Pewee Contopus pertinax widely scattered. 3/14 Black Phoebe Sayornis nigricans near water. 6/14 Say’s Phoebe Sayornis saya Christina saw one Mexico City Vermilion Flycatcher Pyrocephalus rubinus Widespread and common. 13/14 Pine Flycatcher Empidonax affinis scattered. 2/14. There were many unidentified Empidonax flycatchers Dusky Flycatcher Empidonax oberholseri 1 UNAM Mexico City Botanical Garden Willow Flycatcher Empidonax traillii 1 Rancho los Cedros Hammond’s Flycatcher Empidonax hammondii Temascaltepec Cordilleran/ Pacific Slope Flycatcher Empidonax difficilis Laguna Maria. 2/14 Buff-breasted Flycatcher Empidonax fulvifrons scattered. 2/14 Gray Flycatcher Empidonax wrightii 1 Laguna Maria Gray-collared Beccard Pachyramphus major 1 Los Asmoles Rose-throated Beccard Pachyramphus aglaiae Laguna Maria White-throated Magpie-Jay Calocitta formosa Laguna Maria and quite a few at Los Asmoles Grey-breasted Jay Aphelocoma ultramarina several groups. 3/14 Steller’s Jay Cyanocitta stelleri Sierra Chincua Raven Corvus corax scattered. 4/14 Tree Swallow Tachycineta bicolor scattered. 2/14 Violet-Green Swallow Tachycineta thalassina Rancho los Cedros Bank Swallow Riparia riparia Lago Cuitzeo Northern Rough-winged Swallow Stelgidopteryx serripennis widely scattered. 5/14 Barn Swallow Hirundo rustica scattered. Widespread in low numbers/14 Mexican Chickadee Parus sclateri scattered. 3/14 Bridled Titmouse Parus wollweberi 1 Temascaltepec Bushtit Psaltriparus minimus frequent. 8/14 Brown Creeper Certhia americana Temascaltepec & Rancho las Margaritas White-breasted Nuthatch Sitta carolinensis Temascaltepec & Rancho las Margaritas House Wren Troglodytes aedon ?probably this species at Laguna Maria Brown-throated Wren Troglodytes brunneicollis Laguna Maria and Mil Cumbres Bewick’s Wren Thryothorus bewickii 1 Arroyo Frio and also UNAM botanical garden, D.F. Sinaloa Wren Thryothorus sinaloa Tzintzuntzan and Santo Tomas Marsh Wren Cistothorus palustris 1 Lago Cuitzeo Grey-barred Wren Campylorhynchus megalopterus scattered in the highlands. 5/14 Spotted Wren Campylorhynchus gularis locally common in Colima area and Arroyo Frio. 4/14 Canyon Wren Catherpes mexicanus 1 Tzintzuntzan American Dipper Cinclus mexicanus 1 Temascaltepec Golden-crowned Kinglet Regulus satrapa Nevado de Colima and El Rosario Ruby-crowned Kinglet Regulus calendula widespread. 8/14 Blue-gray Gnatcatcher Polioptila caerulea common. 13/14 Eastern Bluebird Sialia sialis locally common. 6/14 Western Bluebird Sialia mexicana Sierra Chincua

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 58

Brown-backed Solitaire Myadestes occidentalis Heard more often than seen. 4(seen)/14 Orange-billed Nightingale-Thrush Catharus aurantiirostris 1 below Laguna Maria White-throated Thrush Turdus assimilis widely scattered. 7/14 Rufous-backed Thrush Turdus rufopalliatus Colorines American Robin Turdus migratorius locally common in higher areas. 5/14 Blue Mockingbird Melanotis caerulescens scattered. 3/14 Curve-billed Thrasher Toxostoma curvirostre generally higher, drier, areas. 4/14 American Pipit Anthus rubescens Lago Cuitzeo & Rancho los Cedros Grey Silky Ptilogonys cinereus frequent in the highlands. 5/14 Loggerhead Shrike Lanius ludovicianus scattered. 3/14 Dwarf Vireo Vireo nelsoni lowest part of Nevado de Colima Cassin's Vireo Vireo cassinii 1 El Fuego Hutton's Vireo Vireo huttoni 1 El Fuego Golden Vireo Vireo hypochryseus scattered in the lowlands. 3/14 Warbling Vireo Vireo gilvus widely scattered. 5/14 Chestnut-sided Shrike-Vireo Vireolanius melitopys 1 Temascaltepec – superb! Orange-crowned Warbler Vermivora celata mostly lowlands. 5/14 Tennessee Warbler Vermivora peregrina Rancho las Margaritas Nashville Warbler Vermivora ruficapilla widespread. 12/14 Virginia’s Warbler Vermivora virginiae Singles Santo Tomas and Temascaltepec Crescent-chested Warbler Vermivora superciliosa scattered in higher areas. 4/14 Tropical Parula Parula pitiayumi 1 below Laguna Maria Yellow-rumped Warbler Dendroica coronata Widespread and common. 14/14 Black-throated Gray Warbler Dendroica nigrescens scattered. 3/14 Black-throated Green Warbler Dendroica virens scattered. 3/14 Townsend’s Warbler Dendroica townsendi widely scattered in forest. 4/14 Hermit Warbler Dendroica occidentalis scattered throughout. 5/14 Grace’s Warbler Dendroica graciae singles Temascaltepec and Rancho las Margaritas Yellow Warbler Dendroica petechia only noted between Chapala and Patzcuaro Mangrove Yellow Warbler Dendroica petechial bryantii Boca de Apiza Black-and-White Warbler Mniotilita varia scattered. 6/14 MacGillivray’s Warbler Oporornis tolmiei scattered. 4/14 Wilson’s Warbler Wilsonia pusilla widespread and common. 11/14 Louisiana Waterthrush Seiurus motacilla Laguna Maria and Arroyo Frio Common Yellowthroat Geothlypis trichas scattered. 4/14 Black-polled Yellowthroat Geothlypis speciosa Patzcuaro Red-faced Warbler Cardellina rubrifron Christina saw one on Nevado de Colima Red Warbler Ergaticus ruber stunning! Widely scattered in the highlands. 5/14 Yellow-breasted Chat Icteria virens 1 El Fuego Olive Warbler Puecedramus taeniatus a male Mil Cumbres and a female Temascaltepec Rufous-capped Warbler Basileuterus rufifrons widely scattered. 6/14 Golden-crowned Warbler Basileuterus culicivorus Nevado de Colima and El Rosario Slate-throated Redstart Myioborus miniatus widespread. 8/14 Painted Redstart Myioborus pictus scattered. 4/14 Red-headed Tanager Spermagra erythrocephala a female Temascaltepec

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 59

Hepatic Tanager Piranga flava scattered throughout. 8/14 Summer Tanager Pirangra rubra 1 Arroyo Frio Flame-coloured Tanager Piranga bidentata male and female Temascaltepec Western Tanager Piranga ludoviciana scattered. 4/14 Northern Cardinal Cardinalis cardinalis 1 Santo Tomas Black-headed Grosbeak Pheucticus melanocepahlus scattered throughout. 6/14 Rose-breasted Grosbeak Pheucticus ludovicianus scattered. 3/14 Blue Grosbeak Guiraca caerulea El Fuego and Rancho los Cedros Blue Bunting Cyanocompsa parellina Los Asmoles Grayish Saltator Saltator coerulescens below Laguna Maria Orange-breasted Bunting Passerina leclancherii Santo Tomas Painted Bunting Passerina ciris a female Pacific Coast Varied Bunting Passerina versicolor mainly Laguna Maria area. 5/14 Indigo Bunting Passerina cyanea scattered. 4/14 Lazuli Bunting Passerina amoena 1 El Fuego Rufous-capped Brushfinch Atlapetes pileatus singles Mil Cumbres, Sierra Chincua & Temascaltepec Green-striped Brushfinch Atlapetes virenticeps Nevado de Colima and Mil Cumbres Rusty-crowned Ground-Sparrow Melozone kieneri Laguna Maria area. 2/14 White-collared Seedeater Sporophila torqueola mostly lowllands. 4/14 Cinnamon-bellied Flowerpiercer Diglossa baritula Nevado de Colima and Mil Cumbres Rufous-sided Towhee Pipilio erythrophthalmus Arroyo Frio & El Rosario Canyon Towhee Pipilo fuscus frequent in highlands. 6/14 Stripe-headed Sparrow Aimophila ruficauda locally common at Laguna Maria and Colima area. 3/14 Striped Sparrow Oriturus superciliosus widely scattered in the highlands. 4/14 Sierra Madre Sparrow Ammodramus baileyi several Sierra Chincua Vesper Sparrow Pooectes gramineus Arroyo Frio Savannah Sparrow Passerculus sandwichensis Lago Cuitzeo Song Sparrow Melospiza melodia Rancho los Cedros Lincoln’s Sparrow Melospiza lincolnii widespread. 8/14 Chipping Sparrow Spizella passerina scattered. 4/14 Clay-colored Sparrow Spizella pallida scattered. 3/14 Yellow-eyed Junco Junco phaeonotus scattered in the highlands. 6/14 Yellow-headed Blackbird Xanthocepahlus xanthocephalus abundant Zapotlán and a flock Patzcuaro Brewer’s Blackbird Euphagus cyanocephalus Zapotlán Brown-headed Cowbird Molothrus ater scattered. 3/14 Bronzed Cowbird Molothrus aeneus Pacific Coast. 1 Rancho los Cedros Great-tailed Grackle Quiscalus mexicanus widespread. 11/14 Orchard Oriole Icterus spurius below Laguna Maria Hooded Oriole Icterus cucullatus scattered. 4/14 Black-vented Oriole Icterus wagleri 2 Temascaltepec Streak-backed Oriole Icterus pustulatus scattered throughout. 4/14 Audubon’s Oriole Icterus graduacauda 1 Temascaltepec Bullock’s Oriole Icterus bullocki scattered throughout. 5/14 Abeille's Oriole Icterus galbula abeillei Rancho los Cedros Baltimore Oriole Icterus galbula scattered. 3/14 Yellow-winged Cacique Cacicus melanicterus Arroyo Frio

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 60

House Sparrow Passer domesticus by habitation. 8/14 Pine Siskin Carduelis pinus scattered. 3/14 Black-headed Siskin Carduelis notata scattered. 3/14 Lesser Goldfinch Carduelis psaltria widely scattered. 6/14 Hooded Grosbeak Cocothraustes abeillei a male Temascaltepec Evening Grosbreak Cocothraustes vespertinus a female Temascaltepec House Finch Carpodacus mexicanus locally frequent. 6/14

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 61

Plant List Highlands of Mexico 2018

Made by Peter Steiger - [email protected] t tree s shrub v vine h herb f fern

Day 1 Colima - El Fuego (Colima) 500 - 1500 m Tropical and subtropical dry forest

Tabebuia chrysantha t fl deep yellow on lvless tree Bignoniaceae Cupressus lusitanica t lv scaly Cupressaceae Enterolobium cyclocarpum t fr green disc, lv pinn, crown broad Fabaceae Inga flexuosa t fl white, lv w winged rachis Pithecellobium dulce t fl white globose, lv in pairs, Fabaceae fr red/white spirals, flesh edible often dominant tree, thorny Ficus insipida t lv lanc, ladder nerved, fr green fig Moraceae Ardisia compressa t/s fr red/black berry, lv ov Myrsinaceae (Primulacee) Bocconia frutescens t/s fl reddish, fr lilac Papaveraceae Plumeria rubra t/s fl pink Apocyanaceae Galphimia glauca t/s fl yellow upright Malpighiaceae Psidium guajava t fl white, bark eucalyptoide white Myrtaceae Fraxinus uhdei t lv pinn, fr green, moist ravines Oleaceae Heliocarpus occidentalis t fl white, fr pink-lilac, lv Tilia like Tiliaceae Montanoa sp. s fl white Asteraceae Buddleja sessiliflora s fl pale lemon Buddlejaceae Acacia macracantha s fl yellow, long spine, lv pinn Fabaceae Acacia pennatula s fl yellow globose, spine short Fabaceae Coursetia glandulosa s fl white w lemon, lv pinn Fabaceae Mimosa distachya s fl pink lilac, lv pinn Fabaceae Wigandia urens s fl lilac blue Hydrophyllaceae Hyptis albida s fl blue with white hairs Lamiaceae Coffea x arabica s fl white, fragrant (planted) Rubiaceae Urera pacifica s fr orange berry in large panicle Urticaceae Hybanthus elatius s fl green along twig, fr violet Violaceae Passiflora foetida v fl white/lilac Passifloraceae Asclepias curassavica h fl orange-red Asclepiadaceae Asclepias mexicana h fl white Asclepiadaceae Cosmos bipinnatus h fl scarlet Asteraceae Tillandsia juncea h lv very small grasslike, epiphyte Bromeliaceae Tillandsia prodigiosa h fl lilac on hanging red bracts, epiphyte Bromeliaceae Lobelia laxiflora h fl red with yellow lip Campanulaceae Leonotis nepetifolia h fl orange, not native (South-Africa) Lamiaceae Onocidium hyalobulbon h fl yellow, epiphytic Orchidaceae Argemone ochroleuca h fl pale lemon Papaveraceae Phytolacca icosandra h fl white/pink, fr blue black Phytolaccaceae Castilleja arvensis h fl red Scrophulariaceae Lopezia hirsuta h fl salmon red Scrophulariaceae

Day 2

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 62

Colima - Los Amoles - Boca de Apiza (Colima) 400 - 600 m, Playa Mezcala (Michoacan) 0 m Tropical dry forest and costal Mangrove thicket

A Dry forest Los Amoles 400-600 m Tabebuia chrysantha t fl deep yellow on lvless tree Bignoniaceae Bursera fagaroides t bark green papery, no lv Burseraceae Bursera longipes t bark deep cinnamon red, no lv Burseraceae Bursera sp. t/s bark deep coffee brown papery Burseraceae Bursera sp. t bark warty grey resinous not papery Burseraceae Ceiba aesculifolia t fl white, no lv Bombacaceae Jacaratia mexicana t fr 4winged hanging, no lv Caricaceae Ipomoea intrapilosa t fl white Convulvulaceae Hura polyandra t bark spiny warty grey, lv serrate heart Euphorbiaceae Enterolobium cyclocarpum t fr green disc, lv pinn, crown broad Fabaceae Haematoxylon brasiletto t lv two paired, heart shape, spiny Fabaceae Pithecellobium dulce t fl white globose, lv in pairs, Fabaceae fr red/white spirals, flesh edible Platymiscium lasiocarpum t fr in long hanging racemes, no lv Fabaceae Ficus pringlei t bark yellow, lv few heart shaped Moraceae Jacquinia pungens t/s fl orange, lv spiny tipped Theophrastaceae Plumeria rubra s no lv and fl Apocyanaceae Cordia diversifolia s fl white globose, lv ovate opp Boraginaceae Neobuxbaumia mezcalensis s st unbranched to 7 m Cactaceae Pachycereus pecten-aboriginum s st branched to 10 m Cactaceae Opuntia excelsa s fl lemon, low Cactaceae Opuntia karwinskiana s fl magenta, lv long ovate Cactaceae Forchhammeria pallida s lv long linear stiff Capparidaceae Cnidoscolus tepiquensis s lv 5 p on succulent stem Euphorbiaceae Euphorbia tithymaloides s fl red, small at top of twig Euphorbiaceae Bauhinia subrotundifolia s fl white with pink Fabaceae Acacia macracantha s fl yellow, long spine, lv pinn Fabaceae Coursetia glandulosa s fl white w lemon, lv pinn Fabaceae Mimosa arenosa s fl white long cylindric, no lv Fabaceae Senna pallida s fl yellow large, lv pinn Fabaceae Wigandia urens s fl lilac Hydrophyllaceae Gossypium aridum s fl pale pink w purple ground, no lv Malvaceae Combretum farinosum v fl orange brush Combretaceae Ipomoea bracteata v fl pink or white tube in large pink bracts Convulvulaceae Ipomoea sp. v fl lilac blue Convulvulaceae Malpighia sp. v fl yellow Malpighiaceae Hechtia glomerata h lv green thorny on karst w Pachycereus Bromeliaceae Hechtia laevis h lv gray thorny, in rock wall Bromeliaceae narrow endemic, only in limestone hills of SW-Colima Tillandsia juncea h lv very small grasslike, epiphyte Bromeliaceae Tillandsia recurvata s lv gray small, epiphyte on Pachycereus Bromeliaceae Lopezia hirsuta h fl salmon red Scrophulariaceae

B Costal mangrove thicket, Boca de Apiza y Playa Mezcala, 0 m Cocos nucifera t wild along shore and plantations Areaceae Cordia sp. t fl white, fr white berry Boraginaceae Conocarpus erectus t lv alt, fr reddish nut Combretaceae Laguncularia racemosa t lv opp, glossy both sides Combretaceae Talipariti tiliaceum t fl orange, lv heart shaped Malvaceae Coccoloba venosa t fl creme spike, lv ovate Polygonaceae Rhizophora mangle t stilt roots, lv crowded at top Rhizophoraceae Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 63

Solanum sp. t fl white, lv long ovate grey Solanaceae Guazuma ulmifolia t fr green rugose, lv alt long ovate Sterculiaceae Sarcostemma viminale v fl white fragrant, lv linear Asclepiadaceae Ipomoea pes-caprae v fl magenta, sand dunes Convulvulaceae Momocardia charantia v fl pale yellow, lv digit, not native Cucurbitaceae Pistia stratiotes h lv rosette swimming Araceae Cleome hassleriana h fl white, not native Capparidaceae Nymphaea ampla h fl white, lv strongly serrate Nymphaeaceae Eichhornia crassipes h fl lilac blue Pontederiaceae Typha domingensis h fr brown Typhaceae

Day 3 El Fuego (Colima) 1400 - 2100 m Tropical and subtropical dry and montane oak-pine forest

Buddleja cordata t fl whitish, lv long ovate below white Buddlejaceae Cupressus lusitanica t lv scaly Cupressaceae Inga flexuosa t fl white, lv w winged rachis Pithecellobium dulce t fl white globose, lv in pairs, Fabaceae Quercus rugosa t lv ovate rugose leathery Fagaceae Quercus laurina t lv long linear, irreg sharp dentated Fagaceae Carya illionensis t lv pinn, Pecan nut (planted) Juglandaceae Juglans major ssp. glabrata t lv pinn Juglandaceae Galphimia glauca t/s fl yellow upright Malpighiaceae Ficus cotinifolia t lv round ovate Moraceae Ficus insipida t lv lanc, ladder nerved, fr green fig Moraceae Ardisia compressa t/s fr red/black berry, lv ov Myrsinaceae (Primulacee) Psidium guajava t fl white, bark eucalyptoide white Myrtaceae Fraxinus uhdei t lv pinn, fr green, moist ravines Oleaceae Bocconia frutescens t/s fl reddish, fr lilac Papaveraceae Pinus douglasiana t lv in 5, 22-35 cm, fr 5-15 cm Pinaceae Heliocarpus occidentalis t fl white, fr pink-lilac, lv Tilia like Tiliaceae Montanoa sp. s fl white Asteraceae Roldana barba-johannis s fl yellow, lv round-ovate, white below Asteraceae Buddleja parviflora s fl pale lemon Buddlejaceae Acacia macracantha s fl yellow, long spine, lv pinn Fabaceae Acacia pennatula s fl yellow globose, spine short Fabaceae Indigofera sp. s fl lilac pink Fabaceae Opuntia sp. s fl reddish yellow Cactaceae Cornus disciflora s lv opp Cornaceae Wigandia urens s fl lilac blue Hydrophyllaceae Arthrostemma ciliatum s fl white to pink 4p Melastomataceae Hyptis albida s fl blue with white hairs, pioneer Lamiaceae Russelia tetraptera s fl red tube, twig 4edged dark green Scrophulariaceae Urera pacifica s fr orange berry in large panicle Urticaceae Hybanthus elatius s fl green along twig, fr violet Violaceae Clematis rhodocarpa v lv pinn, fr silver hairy Ranunculaceae Rubus adenotrichus v fl white, twig fine prickly hairy Rosaceae Vitis tilifolia v lv Tilia like Vitaceae Asclepias curassavica h fl orange-red Asclepiadaceae Cirsium anartiolepis h fl salmon-crimson, up to 2 m Asteraceae Cosmos bipinnatus h fl scarlet Asteraceae Tillandsia imperialis h lv large light green, pinapple like Bromeliaceae Tillandsia juncea h lv very small grasslike, epiphyte Bromeliaceae Tillandsia prodigiosa h fl lilac on hanging red bracts, epiphyte Bromeliaceae Lobelia laxiflora h fl red with yellow lip Campanulaceae Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 64

Cuscuta corymbosa h fl white on yellow threads Cuscutaceae Lupinus elegans h fl blue violett with lighter top Fabaceae Geranium hernandezii h fl white Geraniaceae Leonotis nepetifolia h fl orange, not native (South-Africa) Lamiaceae Salvia mexicana h fl deep violet blue, subshrub Lamiaceae Cuphea aequipetala h fl blue violet Lythraceae Onocidium hyalobulbon h fl yellow, lv small, epiphytic Orchidaceae Oncidium cavendishianum h fl yellow, lv longer stiff, epiphytic Orchidaceae Argemone ochroleuca h fl pale lemon Papaveraceae Phytolacca icosandra h fl white/pink, fr blue black Phytolaccaceae Castilleja arvensis h fl red Scrophulariaceae Lopezia hirsuta h fl salmon red Scrophulariaceae

Day 4 Zapotepetl / Nevado de Colima (Jalisco) 600 - 3500 m Tropical dry forest (Platanar), montane oak-pine and fir forest and subalpine pine forest (Zapotepetl)

A Dry forest near Platanar, Jalisco 600 m Pseudobombax ellipticum t fl white, no lv Bombacaeae Bursera sp. t bark coppery brown Burseraceae Stenocereus queretaroensis t fl white, stem branched, few ribs Cactaceae Jacaratia mexicana t fr 4winged hanging, no lv Caricaceae Cochlospermum vitifolium t fl yellow, n lv Cochlospermaceae Pithecellobium dulce t fl white globose, lv in pairs, Fabaceae Ricinus communis s fr prickly, lv 7p digitate Euphorbiaceae Senna pallida s fl yellow large, lv pinn Fabaceae Wigandia urens s fl lilac blue Hydrophyllaceae

B Zapotapetl (Nevado de Colima) 2000-3500 m Oreopanax jalapensis t lv 7p digitate, fl white in central spike Araliaceae Buddleja cordata t fl whitish, lv long ovate below white Buddlejaceae Clethra mexicana t fl white horizontal spikes, lv rusty bw Clethraceae Cupressus lusitanica t lv scaly, up to 3300 m Cupressaceae Arbutus xalapensis t/s fl white bells, bark papery redbrown Ericaceae Quercus castanea t lv small linear Fagaceae Quercus rugosa t lv ovate rugose leathery Fagaceae Quercus laurina t lv long linear, irreg sharp dentated Fagaceae Fraxinus uhdei t lv pinn, fr green, moist ravines Oleaceae Bocconia frutescens t/s fl reddish, fr lilac Papaveraceae Abies religiosa t fr upright Oyamel Pinaceae Pinus hartwegii t lv in 5, 10-22 cm, fr 8-10 cm, Pinaceae subalpine 3300-3900 m Pinus montezumae t lv in 5 grey green, fr long ovoi 5-15 cm Pinaceae Pinus pseudostrobus t lv in 5, green, fr broad at base 6-16 cm Pinaceae Tilia americana ssp. mexicana t fl and lv typical Tiliaceae Arracacia atropurpurea s fl black-purpure, lv aromatic Apiaceae Roldana angulifolia s fl yellow , lv 5p digitate Asteraceae Roldana barba-johannis s fl yellow, lv round-ovate, white below Asteraceae Rumfordia floribunda s fl lemon Dahlia like, lv ovate Asteraceae Stevia salicifolia s fl white Asteraceae Verbesina oncophora s fl yellow, lv ovate Asteraceae Buddleja parviflora s fl pale lemon Buddlejaceae Cornus disciflora s lv opp, fr black Cornaceae Desmodium densiflorum s fl lilac in spike, lv lanc Fabaceae Garrya elliptica s lv opp ovate glossy Garryaceae Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 65

Ribes ciliatum s fl white hanging, above 3000 m Grossulariaceae Fuchsia microphylla s fl crimson lv small like Box Onagraceae Monnina ciliolata s fl blue with yellow, fr red berry Polygalaceae Ceanothus caeruleus s fl light blue or white Rhamnaceae Crataegus mexicana s fl white, fr yellow, spiny Rosaceae Salix paradoxa s fl yellow, lv l lanceolate, subalpine Salicaceae Clematis dioica v lv pinn, fr silver hairy Ranunculaceae Rubus adenotrichus v fl white, twig fine prickly hairy Rosaceae Smilax moranensis v lv parallel veined Smilacaceae Iresine diffusa h fl white-pinkish in dense panicles Amaranthaceae Eryngium alternatum h fl green stiff above lv rosette on ground Apiaceae Asclepias curassavica h fl orange-red Asclepiadaceae Asplenium polyphyllum f lvl dentated Aspleniaceae Cirsium ehrenbergerii h fl salmon-crimson, up to 1 m Asteraceae Cosmos bipinnatus h fl scarlet Asteraceae Gamochaeta americana h lv pale yellowish in spike Asteraceae Roldana lineolata h fl yellow, lv oak like digitate Asteraceae Senecio callosus h fl deep lilac-magenta Asteraceae Senecio toluccanus h fl yellow, lv spathulate Bergenia like Asteraceae only above 3300 m Tillandsia juncea h lv very small grasslike, epiphyte Bromeliaceae Tillandsia prodigiosa h fl lilac on hanging red bracts, epiphyte Bromeliaceae Lobelia laxiflora h fl red with yellow lip Campanulaceae Stellaria sp. h fl white fringed Caryophyllaceae Cuscuta matriciformis h fl white on orange threads Cuscutaceae Euphorbia sp. h fl yellow, above 3 200 m Euphorbiaceae Lupinus montanus h fl blue with lighter top, up to 2 m Fabaceae Vicia americana h fl pink-lilac Fabaceae Geranium hernandezii h fl white Geraniaceae Sisyrinchium tenuifolium h fl lemon Iridaceae Salvia curviflora h fl magenta Lamiaceae Salvia elegans h fl deep red Lamiaceae Salvia fulgens h fl fire red, calyx green, subshrub Lamiaceae Salvia gesneriflora h fl fire red, like S. fulgens but calyx black Lamiaceae Salvia longistyla h fl crimson with dark calyx, 3100 m Lamiaceae Salvia lavenduloides h fl light blue in dense spike Lamiaceae Salvia mexicana h fl deep violet blue, subshrub Lamiaceae Salvia polystachya h fl light blue in lax spike Lamiaceae Stachys coccinea h fl red Lamiaceae Cuphea aequipetala h fl blue violet Lythraceae Cuphea jorullensis h fl red yellow Lythraceae Lopezia racemosa h fl pink to brick red Onagraceae Onocidium hyalobulbon h fl yellow, lv small, epiphytic Orchidaceae Oncidium cavendishianum h fl yellow, lv longer stiff, epiphytic Orchidaceae Argemone ochroleuca h fl pale lemon Papaveraceae Phytolacca icosandra h fl white/pink, fr blue black Phytolaccaceae Plantago australis f lv large in ground rosette Plantaginaceae Loeselia mexicana h fl fire red, semishrub Polemoniaceae Pleopeltis mexicana f lv linear small w entire margin, epiphyte Polypodiaceae Adiantum andicola h lv bluish green Pteridiaceae Thalictrum strigi llosum h tall herb Ranunculaceae Acaena elongata h lv pinn, fr prickly Rosaceae Alchemilla procumbens h fl yellow-green, lv 5p digitate Rosaceae Galium aschenbornii h fl white, lv in whorl of 4 Rubiaceae Castilleja auriculata h fl red-greenish, differs in auriculate lv Scrophulariaceae and higher altitude from C. tenuiflora

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 66

Castilleja cryptandra s fl yellow in fire red bract, (sub)alpine Scrophulariaceae endemic of Nevado de Colima only! Castilleja tenuiflora s fl red-yellow Scrophulariaceae Penstemon campanulatus h only in fruit above 3200 m Scrophulariaceae

Day 5 Ciudad Guzman - Lago Chapala (Jalisco) - Jaripo – Paracutin - Uruapan - Patzcuaro (Michoacan) 1500 - 2400 m Subtropical dry forest (Jaripo) and montane pine forest (Paracutin)

A Jaripo 1600 m Ceiba aesculifolia t fr white Cotton like balls Bombacaceae Stenocereus queretaroensis t fl white, stem branched, few ribs Cactaceae Ipomoea murucoides t fl white with brown throat Convulvulaceae Pithecellobium dulce t fl white globose, lv in pairs, Fabaceae fr red/white spirals, flesh edible Psidium guajava t fl white, bark eucalyptoide white Myrtaceae Celtis caudata t lv grey green Ulmaceae (Cannabaceae) Barkleyanthus salicifolius s fl yellow Asteraceae Acacia pennatula s fl yellow globose, spine short Fabaceae Ipomoea purpurea v fl blue violet Convulvulaceae Ipomoea sp. v fl light blue Convulvulaceae Tillandsia recurvata h lv small grey, also sitting on wires Bromeliaceae

B Paracutin 2400 m Pinus leiophylla t lv in 3, fr small 3-8 cm Pinaceae Pinus montezumae t lv in 5 grey green, fr long ovoi 5-15 cm Pinaceae Castilleja arvensis h fl bracts red Scrophulariaceae

Day 6 Cerro Burro (Michoacan) 2800 - 3200 m Montane oak-pine forest

Oreopanax jalapensis t lv 7p digitate, fl white in central spike Araliaceae Alnus acuminata t lv ovate tipped, fr catkins Betulaceae Buddleja cordata t fl whitish, lv long ovate below white Buddlejaceae Clethra mexicana t fl white horizontal spikes, lv rusty bw Clethraceae Cupressus lusitanica t lv scaly, up to 3300 m Cupressaceae Arbutus xalapensis t/s fl white bells, bark papery redbrown Ericaceae Quercus laurina t lv long linear, irreg sharp dentated Fagaceae Quercus magnolifolia t lv broad at tip undulate Fagaceae Quercus martinezii t lv long linear, irreg spiny dentated Fagaceae Quercus rugosa t lv ovate rugose leathery Fagaceae Quercus scytophylla t lv long linear, irreg sharp dentated Fagaceae Fraxinus uhdei t lv pinn, fr green, moist ravines Oleaceae Bocconia frutescens t/s fl reddish, fr lilac Papaveraceae Abies religiosa t fr upright Oyamel Pinaceae Pinus montezumae t lv in 5 grey green, fr long ovoi 5-15 cm Pinaceae Pinus pseudostrobus t lv in 5, green, fr broad at base 6-16 cm Pinaceae Prunus serotina t fl white racemose Rosaceae Arracacia atropurpurea s fl black purpure, lv aromatic Apiaceae Ageratina areolaris s fl pink white Oregano like Asteraceae Ageratina glabrata s fl lilac to white Asteraceae Baccharis conferta s fl greenish white, dense shrub Asteraceae Barkleyanthus salicifolius s fl yellow Asteraceae

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 67

Roldana albonervia s fl yellow, lv dentate Asteraceae Stevia salicifolia s fl white Asteraceae Verbesina oncophora s fl yellow, lv ovate Asteraceae Buddleja sessiliiflora s fl pale lemon Buddlejaceae Cornus disciflora s lv opp, fr black Cornaceae Comarostaphylis discolor s fl white, lv linear, white below Ericaceae Comarostaphylis longifolia s fl white, lv linear, green below Ericaceae Pernettya prostrata s lv linear glossy, small shrub on summit Ericaceae Ribes ciliatum s fl white hanging, above 3000 m Grossulariaceae Ceanothus caeruleus s fl light blue or white Rhamnaceae Crataegus mecicana s fl white, fr yellow, spiny Rosaceae Holodiscus argenteus s fl creamy white racemes Rosaceae Salix paradoxa s fl yellow, lv l lanceolate, subalpine Salicaceae Cestrum thyrsoideum s fl orange Solanaceae Clematis dioica v fr silver white hairy Ranunculaceae Rubus adenotrichus v fl white, twig fine prickly hairy Rosaceae Iresine diffusa h fl white-pinkish in dense panicles Amaranthaceae Eryngium alternatum h fl green stiff above lv rosette on ground Apiaceae Eryngium carlinae h fl blue with white star, small herb Apiaceae Asclepias curassavica h fl orange-red Asclepiadaceae Asplenium monanthes f lv Polypodium like Aspleniaceae Asplenium polyphyllum f lvl dentated Aspleniaceae Bidens anthemoides h fl yellow, lv much dissected, Asteraceae Cirsium ehrenbergerii h fl salmon-crimson, up to 1 m Asteraceae Cirsium subcoriaceum h fl yellow, up to 2 m Asteraceae Cosmos bipinnatus h fl scarlet Asteraceae Gamochaeta Americana h lv pale yellowish in spike Asteraceae Packera sanguisorbae h lv yellow in spike, lv markedly pinn Asteraceae Senecio callosus h fl deep lilac-magenta Asteraceae Senecio toluccanus h fl yellow, lv spathulate Bergenia like Asteraceae Woodwardia spinulosa h lv arge shadow fern Blechnaceae Tillandsia juncea h lv very small grasslike, epiphyte Bromeliaceae Tillandsia usneoides h hanging grey beards like Usnea lichen Bromeliaceae Lobelia laxiflora h fl red with yellow lip Campanulaceae Stellaria cuspidata h fl white Caryophyllaceae Helianthemum glomeratum h fl lemon yellow Cistaceae Sedum bourgaei h fl white Crassulaceae Lupinus elegans h fl violet blue with lighter top, up to 2 m Fabaceae Vicia americana h fl pink-lilac Fabaceae Geranium seemannii h fl pink and white Geraniaceae Salvia curviflora h fl magenta Lamiaceae Salvia elegans h fl deep red Lamiaceae Salvia lavenduloides h fl light blue in dense spike Lamiaceae Salvia mexicana h fl deep violet blue, subshrub Lamiaceae Salvia polystachya h fl light blue in lax spike Lamiaceae Salvia sp. h fl violet Lamiaceae Satureja macrostema h fl orange, lv aromatic Lamiaceae Cuphea jorullensis h fl red yellow Lythraceae Lopezia racemosa h fl pink to brick red Onagraceae Oenothera rosea h fl magenta 4p Onagraceae Phytolacca icosandra h fl white/pink, fr blue black Phytolaccaceae Plantago australis f lv large in ground rosette Plantaginaceae Chusquea aperta g bamboo on peak 3200 m Poaceae Pleopeltis mexicana f lv linear small w entire margin, epiphyte Polypodiaceae Adiantum andicola f lv bluish green Pteridiaceae Cheilanthes bonariensis f fine pinn brown below on rocks Pteridaceae

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 68

Pellea cordifolia f lv round Adiantum like Pteridaceae Acaena elongata h lv pinn, fr prickly Rosaceae Alchemilla procumbens h fl yellow-green, lv 5p digitate Rosaceae Galium aschenbornii h fl white, lv in whorl of 4 Rubiaceae Castilleja tenuiflora s fl red-yellow Scrophulariaceae Penstemon campanulatus h only in fruit on peak 3200 m Scrophulariaceae Selaginella delicatissima f small creeping Moss fern Selaginellaceae

Day 7 Patzacuaro - Tacambaro - Arroyo Frio / Chupio (Michoacan) Tropical dry forest and Pine-Oak forest 1050-1700 m Jaracuaro / Lago de Patzacuaro (Michoacan) Wetland and stony dam 2100 m

A Pine forest above Tacambaro 1700 m Pinus devoniana t lv in 5, fr long ovoide Pinaceae Euphorbia pulcherrima s fl with red bracts Euphorbiaceae Psittacanthus calyculatus s fl orange, fr black, epiphyte Loranthaceae Tecoma stans v fl yellow, lv pinn Bignoniaceae

B Arroyo Frio 1050 -1300 m Spondias purpurea t fl pink on twig Anacardiaceae Pseudobombax ellipticum t fl white, no leaves Bombacaceae Bursera instabilis t irregular stem, bark deep coffee brown Burseraceae Bursera sp. t bark warty grey resinous not papery Burseraceae Ceiba aesculifolia t fl white, no lv Bombacaceae Stenocereus queretaroensis t fl white, stem branched, few ribs Cactaceae Carica papaya t fr yellow, native Caricaceae Jacaratia mexicana t fr 4winged hanging, no lv Caricaceae Ipomoea murucoides t fl white with brown throat Convulvulaceae Diospyros latifolium t fr yellow green apple like Ebenaceae Cojoba arborea t lv pinn, fr long irregular curved Fabaceae Enterolobium cyclocarpum t fr green disc, lv pinn, crown broad Fabaceae Erythrina americana t fl red, lv round ovate Fabaceae Inga flexuosa t fl white, lv pinn with winged rachis Fabaceae Lysiloma acapulcensis t lv pinn, fr regularly striped by seeds Fabaceae Pithecellobium dulce t fl white globose, lv in pairs, Fabaceae Gyrocarpus jatrophifolius t fr maple like long winged, no lv Hernandiaceae Byrsonima crassifolia t fl yellow to orange in racemes Malpighiaceae Trichilia americana t lv odd pinn glossy Meliaceae Ficus citrifolia t bark whitish, lv lanc-ovate Moraceae Ficus petiolaris t bark yellow, lv heart shaped Moraceae Moringa oleifera t fl white, lv opp pinn, native in India Moringaceae Psidium guajava t fl white, bark eucalyptoide white Myrtaceae Bocconia frutescens t/s fl reddish, fr lilac Papaveraceae Salix humboldtiana t Fl yellow, lv linear Salicaceae Thouinidium decandrum t lv long linear dentate Sapindaceae Guazuma ulmifolia t fr green prickly Sterculiaceae

Plumeria rubra s no lv and fl Apocyanaceae Acacia macracantha s fl yellow, long spine, lv pinn Fabaceae Wigandia urens s fl lilac Hydrophyllaceae Piper hispidum s fl white, lv ovate Piperaceae Thunbergia alata v fl yellow w black eye, native SE-Africa Acanthaceae Philodendron hederaceum v lv heart shaped Araceae Syngonium podophyllum v lv arrow like Araceae

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 69

Aristolochia sp. v fl black brown, lv greyish cordate Aristolochiaceae Combretum farinosum v fl orange brush Combretaceae Ipomoea bracteata v fl pink or white tube in large pink bracts Convulvulaceae Ipomoea sp. v fl pink with dark throat Convulvulaceae Merremia umbellata v fl yellow Convulvulaceae Macroptilium atropurpureum v fl reddish black, single or in pair Fabaceae Malpighia sp. v fl yellow Malpighiaceae Serjania mexicana v fl white racemes, lv 3x3 lvl, fr triangul Sapindaceae Solandra guttata v fl yellow large Solanaceae Pachystachys lutea h fl white in yellow quadr bracts, Peru Acanthaceae Adiantum andicola f lv dentate Aspleniaceae Ratibidia mexicana h fl yellow brown Asteraceae Impatiens walleriana h fl salmon red to pink, native E-Africa Balsaminaceae Woodwardia spinulosa f lv large Blechnaceae Canna indica h fl red, native Cannaceae Commelina erecta h fl 3p blue Commelinaceae Tillandsia juncea h lv very small grasslike, epiphyte Bromeliaceae Tillandsia recurvata s lv gray small, epiphyte on Pachycereus Bromeliaceae Cyperus odoratus g fl yellow Cyperaceae Eleocharis sp. g fl at top Cyperaceae Equisetum myrochaetum f lv in whorls Equisetaceae Chamaesyce hirta h fl globular greenish Euphorbiaceae Centaurium strictum h fl pink Gentianaceae Phacelia campanularia h fl deep blue Hydrophyllaceae Hyptis suavolens h fl bluish small, lv aromatic Lamiaceae Ludwigia octovalvis h fl lemon 4 p Lythraceae Saccharum officinarum g fl, planted sugar cane Poaceae Podostemon ceratophyllum h lv digitate moss like, in waterfall Podostemaceae Lopezia hirsuta h fl salmon red Scrophulariaceae Pilea microphylla h lv very small in rock fissures Urticaceae

C Jaracuaro (Lago de Patzacuaro) wetland and stony dam 2100 m Buddleja sessiliiflora s fl pale lemon Buddlejaceae Schoenoplectus americanus g dense reed Cyperaceae Pilularia mexicana f linear stems Marsilaceae Notholaena grayi f lv pinn below light brown on rock Pteridaceae Pellea cordifolia f lv cordate on rock Pteridaceae Selaginella lepidophylla f lv in rosette Selagienellaceae Day 8 Morelia - Mil Cumbres - Tlalpujahua (Michoacan) 1900 - 2700 m Montane oak-pine forest Alnus acuminata t lv ovate tipped, fr catkins Betulaceae Carpinus caroliniana (tropicalis) t lv ovate dentate, fl and fr classical Betulaceae Buddleja cordata t fl whitish, lv long ovate below white Buddlejaceae Clethra mexicana t fl white horizontal spikes, lv rusty bw Clethraceae Arbutus xalapensis t/s fl white bells, bark papery redbrown Ericaceae Quercus candicans t lv broad, whitish below Fagaceae Quercus castanea t lv small irr dentate Fagaceae Quercus laurina t lv long linear, irreg sharp dentated Fagaceae Quercus magnolifolia t lv broad at tip undulate Fagaceae Quercus rugosa t lv ovate rugose leathery Fagaceae Fraxinus uhdei t lv pinn, fr green, moist ravines Oleaceae Bocconia frutescens t/s fl reddish, fr lilac Papaveraceae Abies religiosa t fr upright Oyamel Pinaceae Pinus pseudostrobus t lv in 5, green, fr broad at base 6-16 cm Pinaceae Prunus serotina t fl white racemose Rosaceae Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 70

Ternstroemia lineata t fl white, lv small ovate Theaceae Agave sp. s lv, fl spike white bent over Agavaceae Barkleyanthus salicifolius s fl yellow Asteraceae Roldana angulifolia s fl yellow, lv dentate Asteraceae Roldana barba-johannis s fl yellow, lv round-ovate, white below Asteraceae Rumfordia floribunda s fl lemon Dahlia like, lv ovate Asteraceae Verbesina oncophora s fl yellow, lv ovate Asteraceae Buddleja sessiliiflora s fl pale lemon Buddlejaceae Comarostaphylis longifolia s fl white, lv linear, green below Ericaceae Desmodium densiflorum s fl lilac, lv lin-ovate Fabaceae Wigandia urens s fl lilac Hydrophyllaceae Galphimia glauca s fl yellow in spikes Malpighiaceae Fuchsia paniculata s fl magenta Onagraceae Monnina ciliolata s fl blue with yellow, fr red Polygalaceae Crataegus mecicana s fl white, fr yellow, spiny Rosaceae Russelia tetraptera s fl red tube, twig 4edged dark green Scrophulariaceae Vitis tilifolia v lv Tilia like, fr grapes, edible Vitaceae Iresine diffusa h fl white-pinkish in dense panicles Amaranthaceae Eryngium alternatum h fl green stiff above lv rosette on ground Apiaceae Hydrocotyle umbellata h lv orbicular, moist Apiaceae Asclepias curassavica h fl orange-red Asclepiadaceae Bidens triplinervia h fl yellow single Asteraceae Cirsium ehrenbergerii h fl salmon-crimson, up to 1 m Asteraceae Cirsium subcoriaceum h fl yellow, up to 2 m Asteraceae Coreopsis petrophiloides h fl yellow, lv dentate Asteraceae Roldana lineolata h fl yellow, lv oak like digitate Asteraceae Senecio callosus h fl deep lilac-magenta Asteraceae Senecio stoechadiformis h fl yellow, lv linear Asteraceae Tagetes lunulata h fl orange yellow, lv aromatic Asteraceae Woodwardia spinulosa h lv arge shadow fern Blechnaceae Cardamine flaccida h fl white, lv pinn Brassicaceae Tillandsia prodigiosa h fl lilac on hanging red bracts, epiphyte Bromeliaceae Tillandsia usneoides h hanging grey beards like Usnea lichen Bromeliaceae Heterotoma lobeloides h fl red yellow, more tender then Lobelia Campanulaceae Lobelia laxiflora h fl red with yellow lip Campanulaceae Stellaria vulcanica h fl white Caryophyllaceae Echeveria sp. h fl red, stalk up to 1 m Crassulaceae Geranium seemannii h fl pink and white Geraniaceae Salvia elegans h fl deep red Lamiaceae Salvia lavenduloides h fl light blue in dense spike Lamiaceae Salvia longistyla h fl crimson with dark calyx Lamiaceae Salvia mexicana h fl deep violet blue, subshrub Lamiaceae Salvia polystachya h fl light blue in lax spike Lamiaceae Salvia sp. h fl violet Lamiaceae Cuphea bustamata h fl red yellow with black Lythraceae Cuphea cyanea h fl yellow and red, stamens violet Lythraceae Lopezia racemosa h fl pink to brick red Onagraceae Rhynchostele cervantesii h fl white, epiphyte Orchidaceae Argemone ochroleuca h fl creamy Papaveraceae Phytolacca icosandra h fl white/pink, fr blue black Phytolaccaceae Persicaria sp. h fl pink Polygonaceae Adiantum andicola f lv bluish green Pteridiaceae Cheilanthes bonariensis f fine pinn brown below on rocks Pteridaceae Calceolaria mexicana h fl lemon , moist Scrophulariaceae Castilleja tenuiflora h fl red-yellow Scrophulariaceae Mimulus glabratus h fl yellow, moist Scrophulariaceae

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 71

Day 9 Tlalpujahua - Sierra Chincua (Michoacan) 2600 - 3400 m Montane oak-pine and fir forest

A Tlalpajahua oak Forest 2600-2750 m Quercus candicans t lv broad, whitish below Fagaceae Quercus castanea t lv small irr dentate Fagaceae Quercus laurina t lv long linear, irreg sharp dentated Fagaceae Quercus magnolifolia t lv broad at tip undulate Fagaceae Pinus teocote t lv in 3m, fr 4-7 cm Pinaceae Prunus serotina t fl white racemose Rosaceae Mahonia moranensis s fl yellow, lv pinnate glossy Berberidaceae Symphoricarpos microphyllus s lv opp small, fr white Caprifoliaceae Cornus disciflora s lv opp, fr black Cornaceae Juniperus deppeana s/t lv scaly, bark dark grey cubed Cupressaceae Arbutus tesselata s fl white, bark w small flakes Ericaceae Arctostaphylos pungens s lv grey, bark papery redbrown, fr orange Ericaceae Helianthemum glomeratum h fl lemon yellow Cistaceae Elaphoglossum hartwegii f lv linear on rock Lomariopsidaceae Loeselia mexicana h fl red tubular Polemoniaceae

B Sierra Chincha Reserva de la Biosfera Mariposa Monarca 3100-3400 m Alnus acuminata t lv ovate tipped, fr catkins Betulaceae Buddleja cordata t fl whitish, lv long ovate below white Buddlejaceae Clethra mexicana t fl white horizontal spikes, lv rusty bw Clethraceae Cupressus lusitanica t lv scaly, up to 3300 m Cupressaceae Arbutus tesselata t fl white, bark w small flakes Ericaceae Abies religiosa t fr upright Oyamel Pinaceae Pinus pseudostrobus t lv in 5, green, fr broad at base 6-16 cm Pinaceae Prunus serotina t fl white racemose Rosaceae Furcraea parmentierei s lv on a dense upright stalk Agavaceae Arracacia atropurpurea s fl black purpure, lv aromatic Apiaceae Ageratina glabrata s fl lilac to white Asteraceae Baccharis conferta s fl greenish white, dense shrub Asteraceae Barkleyanthus salicifolius s fl yellow Asteraceae Senecio cineraroides s fl yellow, lv lin silvery below Asteraceae Stevia latifolia s fl white, lv triangular Asteraceae Verbesina oncophora s fl yellow, lv ovate Asteraceae Buddleja sessiliiflora s fl pale lemon Buddlejaceae Celastrus pringlei s lv leathery opp Celastraceae Juniperus monticola s dense flat crowned Cupressaceae Comarostaphylis discolor s fl white, lv linear, white below Ericaceae Comarostaphylis longifolia s fl white, lv linear, green below Ericaceae Crataegus mexicana s fl white, fr yellow, spiny Rosaceae Salix paradoxa s fl yellow, lv l lanceolate, subalpine Salicaceae Iresine diffusa h fl white-pinkish in dense panicles Amaranthaceae Eryngium alternatum h fl green stiff above lv rosette on ground Apiaceae Hydrocotyle umbellata h lv orbicular, moist Apiaceae Adiantum andicola f lv dentate Aspleniaceae Asplenium polyphyllum f lvl dentated Aspleniaceae Bidens triplinervia h fl yellow single Asteraceae Cirsium ehrenbergerii h fl salmon-crimson, up to 1 m Asteraceae Cirsium subcoriaceum h fl yellow, up to 2 m Asteraceae Packera sanguisorbae h lv yellow in spike, lv markedly pinn Asteraceae Senecio callosus h fl deep lilac-magenta Asteraceae Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 72

Senecio toluccanus h fl yellow, lv spathulate Bergenia like Asteraceae Roldana lineolata h fl yellow, lv oak like digitate Asteraceae Senecio callosus h fl deep lilac-magenta Asteraceae Senecio stoechadiformis h fl yellow, lv linear Asteraceae Tagetes lunulata h fl orange yellow, lv aromatic Asteraceae Woodwardia spinulosa h lv arge shadow fern Blechnaceae Cardamine flaccida h fl white, lv pinn Brassicaceae Tillandsia usneoides h hanging grey beards like Usnea lichen Bromeliaceae Lobelia laxiflora h fl red with yellow lip Campanulaceae Echeveria secunda h lv succulent bluish Crassulaceae Sedum bourgaei h fl white, only 3400 m Crassulaceae Dryopteris wallichiana f lv large Dryopteridaceae Euphorbia sp. h fl yellow, only 3 400 m Euphorbiaceae Lupinus montanus h fl violet blue up to 2 m Fabaceae Gentiana bicuspidata h fl blue Gentianaceae Geranium seemannii h fl pink and white Geraniaceae Nama prostrata h fl white single Hydrophyllaceae Phacelia platycarpa h lv pinn in ground rosette, only 3400 m Hydrophyllaceae Salvia elegans h fl deep red Lamiaceae Salvia gracilis h fl violet Lamiaceae Salvia lavenduloides h fl light blue in dense spike Lamiaceae Salvia mexicana h fl deep violet blue, subshrub Lamiaceae Salvia polystachya h fl light blue in lax spike Lamiaceae Salvia prunelloides h fl blue small Lamiaceae Satureja macrostema h fl orange, lv aromatic Lamiaceae Stachys coccinea h fl red Lamiaceae Cuphea bustamata h fl red yellow with black Lythraceae Polypodium madrense f lv reg simple pinnate Polypodiaceae Acaena elongata h lv pinn, fr prickly Rosaceae Alchemilla procumbens h fl yellow-green, lv 5p digitate Rosaceae Potentilla candicans h lv pinn, prostrate in meadow Rosaceae Galium aschenbornii h fl white, lv in whorl of 4 Rubiaceae Castilleja tenuiflora h fl red-yellow Scrophulariaceae Mimulus glabratus h fl yellow, moist Scrophulariaceae

Day 10 Tlalpujahua - El Rosario - Ocampo (Michoacan) 2100 - 3600 m Montane oak-pine and fir forest, subalpine pine Forest

A El Rosario Reserva de la Biosfera Mariposa Monarca 2800-3600 m Alnus acuminata t lv ovate tipped, fr catkins Betulaceae Buddleja cordata t fl whitish, lv long ovate below white Buddlejaceae Clethra mexicana t fl white horizontal spikes, lv rusty bw Clethraceae Cupressus lusitanica t lv scaly, up to 3300 m Cupressaceae Arbutus tesselata s fl white, bark w small flakes Ericaceae Abies religiosa t fr upright Oyamel Pinaceae Pinus hartwegii t lv in 5, only summit plateau at 3600 m! Pinaceae Pinus pseudostrobus t lv in 5, green, fr broad at base 6-16 cm Pinaceae Prunus serotina t fl white racemose Rosaceae Arracacia atropurpurea s fl black purpure, lv aromatic Apiaceae Ageratina glabrata s fl lilac to white Asteraceae Baccharis conferta s fl greenish white, dense shrub Asteraceae Barkleyanthus salicifolius s fl yellow Asteraceae Roldana albonervia s fl yellow, lv angulate Asteraceae Senecio cineraroides s fl yellow, lv lin silvery below Asteraceae Stevia latifolia s fl white, lv triangular Asteraceae Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 73

Verbesina oncophora s fl yellow, lv ovate Asteraceae Mahonia moranensis s fl yellow, lv pinnate glossy Berberidaceae Buddleja sessiliiflora s fl pale lemon Buddlejaceae Celastrus pringlei s lv leathery opp Celastraceae Juniperus monticola s dense flat crowned Cupressaceae Comarostaphylis discolor s fl white, lv linear, white below Ericaceae Comarostaphylis longifolia s fl white, lv linear, green below Ericaceae Ribes ciliatum s fl white hanging, 3400 - 3600 m Grossulariaceae Fuchsia thymifolia s fl dark red, fl small Onagraceae Crataegus mexicana s fl white, fr yellow, spiny Rosaceae Salix paradoxa s fl yellow, lv l lanceolate, subalpine Salicaceae Cestrum thyrsoideum s fl yellow tubular Solanaceae Physalis coztomatl s fl pale yellow with black Solanaceae Iresine diffusa h fl white-pinkish in dense panicles Amaranthaceae Eryngium alternatum h fl green stiff above lv rosette on ground Apiaceae Hydrocotyle umbellata h lv orbicular, moist Apiaceae Adiantum andicola f lv dentate Aspleniaceae Asplenium monanthes f similar to A. polyphyllum Aspleniaceae Asplenium polyphyllum f lvl dentated Aspleniaceae Bidens triplinervia h fl yellow single Asteraceae Cirsium ehrenbergerii h fl salmon-crimson, up to 1 m Asteraceae Cirsium subcoriaceum h fl yellow, up to 2 m Asteraceae Packera sanguisorbae h lv yellow in spike, lv markedly pinn Asteraceae Senecio callosus h fl deep lilac-magenta Asteraceae Senecio toluccanus h fl yellow, lv spathulate Bergenia like Asteraceae Roldana lineolata h fl yellow, lv oak like digitate Asteraceae Senecio callosus h fl deep lilac-magenta Asteraceae Senecio stoechadiformis h fl yellow, lv linear Asteraceae Tagetes lunulata h fl orange yellow, lv aromatic Asteraceae Woodwardia spinulosa h lv arge shadow fern Blechnaceae Tillandsia usneoides h hanging grey beards like Usnea lichen Bromeliaceae Lobelia laxiflora h fl red with yellow lip Campanulaceae Echeveria secunda h lv succulent bluish Crassulaceae Sedum palmeri cf h fl lemon, hanging on rocks only 3600 m Crassulaceae Lupinus montanus h fl violet blue up to 2 m Fabaceae Vicia americana h fl pink-lilac Fabaceae Geranium latum h fl pink Geraniaceae Phacelia platycarpa h lv pinn in ground rosette, only 3400 m Hydrophyllaceae Salvia elegans h fl deep red Lamiaceae Salvia fulgens h fl deep red, shrubby Lamiaceae Salvia gracilis h fl violet Lamiaceae Salvia lavenduloides h fl light blue in dense spike Lamiaceae Salvia mexicana h fl deep violet blue, subshrub Lamiaceae Salvia polystachya h fl light blue in lax spike Lamiaceae Salvia prunelloides h fl blue small Lamiaceae Salvia sp. h fl violet Lamiaceae Satureja macrostema h fl orange, lv aromatic Lamiaceae Stachys coccinea h fl red Lamiaceae Cuphea bustamata h fl red yellow with black Lythraceae Polypodium madrense f lv reg simple pinnate Polypodiaceae Cheilanthes farinosa f lv pinnate brown below Pteridiaceae Pellea cordifolia f lv round Adiantum like Pteridaceae Acaena elongata h lv pinn, fr prickly Rosaceae Alchemilla procumbens h fl yellow-green, lv 5p digitate Rosaceae Castilleja tenuiflora s fl red-yellow Scrophulariaceae Castilleja sp. h fl red, lv broad ovate undulate Scrophulariaceae

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 74

Penstemon campanulatus h only in fruit, summit plateau at 3600 m Scrophulariaceae

B Ocampo pine-oak forest 2100 m Quercus urbanii cf t lv large ovate Fagaceae Prunus serotina t fl white racemose Rosaceae Styrax argenteus t lv ovate Styracaceae Rumfordia floribunda s fl lemon Dahlia like, lv ovate Asteraceae Mahonia moranensis s fl yellow, lv pinnate glossy Berberidaceae Cnidoscolus tepiquensis s lv deeply palmate Euphorbiaceae Cleyera integrifolia s lv ovate leathery, fl white fragrant Theaceae Smilax moranensis v lv ovate heart shaped Smilacaceae Asplenium polyphyllum h sori black Aspleniaceae Coreopsis petrophiloides h fl yellow, lv dentate Asteraceae Heterotoma lobeloides h fl red yellow, more tender then Lobelia Campanulaceae Salvia iodantha h fl crimson Lamiaceae Peperomia galeoides h lv short ovate succulent Piperaceae Thelypteris pilosa h lv soft green, riparian Thelypteridaceae Utricularia gibba h fl yellow Utriculariaceae

Day 11 Tlalpajahua (Michoacan) - Rancho Los Cedros - Valle Bravo (Estado de Mexico) 2200 - 2700 m Montane oak-pine forest

A Rancho Los Cedros 2500 m Quercus dysophylla t lv long ovate, margin entire filty below Fagaceae Mahonia moranensis s fl yellow, lv pinnate glossy Berberidaceae Symphoricarpos microphyllus s lv opp small, fr white Caprifoliaceae Buddleja sessiliiflora s fl pale lemon Buddlejaceae Cornus disciflora s lv opp, fr black Cornaceae Ribes ciliatum s fl white hanging, above 3000 m Grossulariaceae Crataegus mecicana s fl white, fr yellow, spiny Rosaceae Asclepias curassavica h fl orange-red Asclepiadaceae Tillandsia caput-medusae h lv grey recurved, fl violet in pink bract Bromeliaceae Tillandsia sp. h fl yellow hanging in red bracts Bromeliaceae Echeveria secunda h fl red with yellow tip, lv bluish Crassulaceae Salvia lavenduloides h fl light blue in dense spike Lamiaceae Pleopeltis sp. f lv linear small w entire margin, epiphyte Polypodiaceae Polypodium madrense f lv regular polypoide Polypodiaceae Adiantum andicola f lv bluish green Pteridiaceae Cheilanthes bonariensis f fine pinn brown below on rocks Pteridaceae

B Above Valle Bravo 2300 m Psittacanthus calyculatus s fl orange, epiphyte on Pinus Loranthaceae Salvia sessei cf h fl red but lacking red calyx Lamiaceae Pteris orizabae f lv very regular pinnate Pteridaceae

Day 12 Valle del Bravo - San Tomas de los Platanos - Presa Santo Tomas (Estado de Mexico) Tropical dry forest and pine-oak forest 1100 - 1800 m

A El Cerillo 1800 m Jacaranda mimosifolia t fl violet blue, escaped Brazil Bignoniaceae Quercus resinosa t lv large ovate Fagaceae Ficus petiolaris t lv heart shaped red nerved Moraceae

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 75

Cnidoscolus tepiquensis s lv deeply palmate Euphorbiaceae Euphorbia pulcherrima s fl with red bracts Euphorbiaceae Psittacanthus calyculatus s fl orange, fr black, epiphyte Loranthaceae Plumbago pulchella s fl lilac 5p star single Plumbaginaceae Opuntia karwinskiana s lv large ovate Cactaceae Cnidoscolus tepiquensis s lv deeply palmate Euphorbiaceae Ardisia compressa s fr red to back Myrsinaceae Toxicodendron radicans v lv trifoliate, some red Anacardiaceae Tecoma stans v fl yellow, lv pinn Bignoniaceae Tillandsia calothyrsus h lv grey, fl stem deep red Bromeliaceae Tillandsia fasciculata h fl stem red, lv large Bromeliaceae Deiregyne pyramidalis h fl white in spike, terrestrial Orchideaceae

B Cascada Ixtapatongo - San Tomas de los Platanos 1300-1400 m Pseudobombax ellipticum t fl white, no leaves Bombacaceae Cordia dentata t fl white, fr white berries Boraginaceae Bursera instabilis t bark deep redbrown Burseraceae Bursera fagaroides t bark green papery Burseraceae Stenocereus queretaroensis t fl white, stem branched, few ribs Cactaceae Ipomoea murucoides t fl white with brown throat Convulvulaceae Diospyros latifolium t fr yellow green apple like Ebenaceae Enterolobium cyclocarpum t fr green disc, lv pinn, crown broad Fabaceae Erythrina americana t fl red, lv round ovate Fabaceae Lysiloma acapulcensis t lv pinn, fr regularly striped by seeds Fabaceae Pithecellobium dulce t fl white globose, lv in pairs, Fabaceae Cinnamomum sp. t lv triplinerved Lauraceae Byrsonima crassifolia t fl yellow to orange in racemes Malpighiaceae Ficus citrifolia t bark whitish, lv lanc-ovate Moraceae Ficus petiolaris t bark yellow, lv heart shaped Moraceae Psidium guajava t fl white, bark eucalyptoide white Myrtaceae Pittocaulon praecox s fl yellow, succulent, no lv Asteraceae Mamillaria meyranii s st cylindrical on rock, End Mich/Mex Cactaceae Opuntia karwinskiana s lv large ovate Cactaceae Acacia macracantha s fl yellow, long spine, lv pinn Fabaceae Wigandia urens s fl lilac Hydrophyllaceae Heimia salicifolia s fl yellow, lv linear Lythraceae Piper hispidum s fl white, lv ovate Piperaceae Plumbago scandens s fl white, lv glandular Plumbaginaceae Aristolochia sp. v fl black brown, lv greyish cordate Aristolochiaceae Melothria pendula v fl yellow, fr green black pendulous Cucurbitaceae Serjania mexicana v fl white racemes, lv 3 x3 lvl, fr triangul Sapindaceae Solandra guttata v fl yellow large Solanaceae Tetramerium abditum h fl red tubular Acanthaceae Tetramerium nervosum h fl white, 3p Acanthaceae Hymenocallis littoralis h fl white spider like star Amaryllidaceae Adiantum andicola f lv dentate Aspleniaceae Verbesina crocata h fl orange single Asteraceae Woodwardia spinulosa f lv large Blechnaceae Commelina erecta h fl 3p blue Commelinaceae Hechtia podonantha h lv rosette on rock, endemic Bromeliaceae Tillandsia juncea h lv very small grasslike, epiphyte Bromeliaceae Tillandsia recurvata s lv gray small, epiphyte on Pachycereus Bromeliaceae Salvia prunelloides h fl light blue Lamiaceae Pteris orizabae f lv reg pinnate Pteridaceae

C Presa de San Tomas 1100 - 1300 m

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 76

Spondias purpurea t fl pink on twig Anacardiaceae Tabebuia rosea t fl pink Bignoniaceae Bursera instabilis t tree irregular crown no lv Burseraceae Stenocereus queretaroensis t fl white, stem branched, few ribs Cactaceae Taxodium mucronatum t lv deciduous, pinnate Cupressaceae Diospyros latifolium t fr yellow green apple like Ebenaceae Acacia sphaerocephala t flutes large white, no lv Fabaceae Buddleja sessiliiflora s fl pale lemon Buddlejaceae Opuntia karwinskiana s lv large ovate Cactaceae Lantana trifolia s fl lilac Verbenaceae Mascagnia macroptera v fl yellow in spike Malphigiaceae Serjania mexicana v fl white racemes, lv 3 x3 lvl, fr triangul Sapindaceae Solandra guttata v fl yellow large Solanaceae

Day 13 Valle del Bravo - Tehuastepec - Real de Arriba - Temascaltepec de Gonzalez (Estado de Mexico) Tropical dry forest and pine-oak forest 1700 - 2400 m

A Tehuastepec 2100-2400 m pine-oak forest Alnus acuminata t lv ovate tipped, fr catkins Betulaceae Carpinus caroliniana (tropicalis) t lv ovate dentate, fl and fr classical Betulaceae Clethra hartwegii t lv grey haired below Clethraceae Clethra mexicana t lv rusty haired below Clethraceae Quercus castanea t lv small few dents Fagaceae Quercus magnolifolia t lv ovate big Fagaceae Pinus pseudostrobus t lv in 5, fr broad at base Pinaceae Styrax argenteus t lv ovate, fl buds Styracaceae Ternstroemia lineata t fl white, lv small ovate Theaceae Agave sp. s lv rosette w fr stalk 4 m Agavaceae Rumfordia floribunda s fl yellow, Dahlia like Asteraceae Opuntia karwinskiana s lv large ovate Cactaceae Calliandra grandiflora s fl crimson stamens, no lv Fabaceae Galphimia glauca s fl yellow spike Malphigiaceae Serjania mexicana v fr triangular pink, lv 3 x3 Sapindaceae Echeandia mexicana h fl lemon, 6p Anthericaceae Asclepias mexicana h fl whitish Asclepiadaceae Hechtia sp. h lv rosette on rock Bromeliaceae Tillandsia prodigiosa h fl lilac on hanging red bracts, epiphyte Bromeliaceae Lupinus elegans h fl violett blue Fabaceae Lopezia racemosa h fl pinkish Onagraceae Peperomia galioides h lv linear in whorls of 4, epiphyte Piperaceae Loeselia amplectens h fl lilac Polemoniaceae

B Real de Arriba 1800-2000 m Tropical dry forest and pine-oak forest Dracaena americana t lv grasslike, native in SE Mexico Asparagaceae Arbutus jalapensis t bark papery cinnamon Ericaceae Quercus candicans t lv ovate white below, irr dentated Fagaceae Pinus montezumae t lv in 5, fr ovate Pinaceae Ternstroemia lineata t fl white, lv small ovate Theaceae Calliandra grandiflora s fl crimson stamens, fr, no lv Fabaceae Wigandia urens s fl lilac Hydrophyllaceae Cuphea sp. s fl orange, small tubular Lythraceae Monochaetum calcaratum s fl magenta, 4p Melastomataceae Tibouchina longifolia cf. s fl white 4p Melastomataceae Plumbago pulchella s fl lilac 5p star single Plumbaginaceae Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 77

Rhamnus mucronata cf s fr red, spiny Rhamnaceae Pyracantha koidzumii s fr red, spiny, escaped, native in Taiwan Rosaceae Toxicodendron radicans v lv trifoliate, some red Anacardiaceae Cuscuta jalapensis v fl white, tw orange-yellow threads Cuscutaceae Cobaea scandens v fl large violett or white Polemoniaceae Vitis tilifolia v lv and green grapes Vitaceae Ageratum sp. h fl lilac Asteraceae Tagetes lunulata h fl orange yellow, aromatic Asteraceae Woodwardia spinulosa f lv large Blechnaceae Heterotoma lobeloides h fl red yellow, more tender then Lobelia Campanulaceae Lobelia nana h fl lilac Campanulaceae Geranium sp. h fl pale pink Geraniaceae Tigridia sp. h fl white 3p, cultivated Iridaceae Salvia prunelloides h fl blue small Lamiaceae Mirabilis jalapa h fl white Nyctaganiaceae Conopholis alpina h fl white-yellow, no lv root parasite Orobanchaceae Oncidium pachyphyllum h fl yellow brown dotted, lv broad Orchidaceae Pteris orizabae f lv reg pinnate Pteridaceae Calceolaria mexicana h fl deep lemon Scrophulariaceae Mimulus glabratus h fl yellow Scrophulariaceae Selaginella pallescens h lv moss like Selaginellaceae

C Temascaltepec Norte 1800 m Tropical dry forest Acer negundo ssp. mexicanum t fr deep red winged Aceraceae (Sapindaceae) Clethra hartwegii t lv grey haired below Clethraceae Quercus resinosa t lv ovate large, margin undulate Fagaceae Pinus oocarpa t lv in 5, fr short w flat base Pinaceae Lamourouxia xalapensis s fl red tubular Scrophulariaceae Tillandsia calothyrsus h lv grey, fl stem deep red Bromeliaceae Encyclia linkiana h fl brown, white lipped, epiphyte Orchidaceae

Day 14 San Gabriel Ixtla / Rancho Las Margaritas / Valle del Bravo (Estado de Mexico) Pine-oak forest 2000 m

Quercus urbanii t lv ovate. Largest at tip, up to 40 cm! Fagaceae Pinus oocarpa t lv in 5, fr short w flat base Pinaceae Plumbago pulchella s fl lilac 5p star, single Plumbaginaceae Phytolacca icosandra h fl white/pink, fr blue black Phytolaccaceae

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 78

Chiapas - Systematic List Number 1 Butterflies

Nomenclature and taxonomic order taken from Butterflies of Mexico and Central America (Glassberg 2007). Many sightings were provided by Nigel Peace (NP) and Nigel Sawyer (NS).

Papilionidae Polydamus Swallowtail Battus polydamus scattered throughout Pipevine Swallowtail Battus philenor 1 at Teotihuacan Emerald-patched Cattleheart Parides sesostris several at Las Nubes and along the Cascada Trail at Palenque Pink-checked Cattleheart Parides eurimedes several at Las Nubes and along the Cascada Trail at Palenque Variable Cattleheart Parides eithalion quite common at Las Nubes Transandean Cattleheart Parides iphidamas Las Nubes and River Ixcan crossing near there Wedge-spotted Cattleheart Parides panares Cascada Trail at Palenque Orange Kite-Swallowtail Eurytides thyastes 1 at Robert Barrios Yellow Kite-Swallowtail Eurytides calliste several seen at Montebello Thick-bordered Kite-Swallowtail Eurytides dioxippus 3 at the carpark for Bonampak Salvin’s Kite-Swallowtail Eurytides salvini 2 at the carpark for Bonampak Short-lined Kite-Swallowtail Eurytides agesilaus Las Guacamayas (NP) and 1 at the carpark for Bonampak Red-sided Swallowtail Mimoides phaon 1 Guacamayas and 1 Robert Barrios Black Swallowtail Papilio polyxenes 1 Montebello Two-tailed Swallowtail Papilio multicaudatus Teotihuacan Three-tailed Swallowtail Papilio pilumnus scattered records Montebello and Las Nubes Thoas Swallowtail Papilio thoas 1 at breakfast site en route to Bonampak, also 1 at Bonampak (NP) and 5 mud-puddling together at Robert Barrios Androgeus Swallowtail Papilio androgeus Guacamayas and Bonampak carpark Victorine Swallowtail Papilio victorinus 1 along Lagos Cinco road at Montebello was a trip highlight

Pieridae Tiger White Charonius eurytele this heliconid mimic seen at Bonampak Cattleheart White Archonias brassolis superb cattleheart mimic but half the size! Hotel Mision, Palenque Mexican Dartwhite Catasticta nimbice Zincantan and Montebello Common Green-eyed White Leptophobia aripa Cerro Huitepec Mountain White Leptophobia aripa Cerro Huitepec (NP) Great Southern White Ascia monuste scattered Common Melwhite Melete lycimnia common in the Usumacinta Clouded Sulphur Colias philodice Zincantan. Subspecies guatemelana Southern Dogface Colias cesonia Zincantan Lyside Sulphur Kricogonia lyside Robert Barrios Tailed Sulphur Phoebis neocypris Cerro Huitepec, Montebello (NP) Yellow Angled-Sulphur Anteos maerula scattered throughout White Angled-Sulphur Anteos clorinde scattered throughout

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 79

Cloudless Sulphur Phoebis sennae widespread Large Orange Sulphur Phoebis agarithe Las Nubes and Guacamayas Orange-barred Sulphur Phoebis philea frequent in the highlands Apricot Sulphur Phoebis argante widespread Statira Sulphur Phoebis statira Montebello and Guacamayas Straight-lined Sulphur Rhabdodryas trite Guacamayas (NP) Barred Yellow Eurema daira frequent in lowlands, also Sumidero Ghost Yellow Eurema albula Guacamayas and Palenque Sleepy Orange Eurema nicippe Montebello Dainty Sulphur Nathalis iole Sumiderp Salome Yellow Eurema salome Cerro Huitepec (NP) Little Yellow Pyrisitia lisa Usumacinta (NP) Mexican Marbled White Hesperocahris graphites Cerro Huitepec (NP) De la Maza’s Mimic-White Enantia mazai 1 Cinco Lago road, Montebello Frosted Mimic-White Lieinix nemesis several Cinco Lago road, Montebello

Lycaenidae Guatemalan Copper Iophanus pyrrhias Zincantan, Cerro Huitepec (NP) Mexican Cycadian Eumaeus toxea this striking butterfly was noted at Las Nubes, Guacamayas, Palenque and at Roberto Barios Felder’s Hairstreak Paiwarria antinous a rather faded one photographed at Guacamayas (IG) Chiapas Stripe-Streak Arawacus togana Guacamayas Ochre Groundstreak Calycopis trebula Roberto Barrios Togarna Hairstreak Arawacus togarna Las Nubes (NP) Oceia Hairstreak Laothus oceia Cerro Huitepec (NP) Orange-crescent Groundstreak Ziegleria guzanta or denarius? Cerro Huitepec (NP) Ceraunus Blue Hemiargus ceraunus Guacamayas, Usumacinta Eastern Tailed Blue Everes comyntas scattered, mainly lowlands Spring Azure Celastrina ladon frequent Zinacantan Reakirt’s Blue Hemiargus isola Teotihuacan Marine Blue Leptotes marina Teotihuacan

Riodinidae Purple-washed Eyemark Mesosemia lamachus several Cascada Trail Palenque and Roberto Barrios Satyr Eyemark Leucochimona lepida both days at Guacamayas Orange-flushed Eyemark Perophthalma lasus Roberto Barrios Common Jewelmark Sarota chrysus fabulous thing! Robert Barrios Barnes’ Metalmark Detritivora barnesi Roberto Barrios (NP) Fatal Metalmark Calephelis nemesis scattered throughout Scintillant sp Calephelis sp several unidentified ones seen Red-bordered Pixie Melanis pixe both days at Guacamayas, also Roberto Barrios Falcate Metalmark Emesis tenedia Sumidero, Montebello White-spotted Emesis Emesis aurimna Roberto Barrios (NP) Common Lenmark Juditha caucana Las Nubes Variable Lenmark Synargis mycone Roberto Barrios and Palenque White-banded Grayler Hypophylla sudias what a beauty! It needs a new name.

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 80

Several at Roberto Barios

Nymphalidae Variegated Fritillary Euptoieta claudia Montebello (NP) American Snout Libytheana carinenta Sumidero and in the Bonampak carpark Lamplight Actinote Actinote ozomene Las Nubes and Cerro Huitepec Gulf Fritillary Agraulis vanilliae Montebello and Usumacinta Mexican Silverspot Dione moneta Quite common Montebello, also noted Zinacantan Julia Heliconian Dryas iulia widespread Banded Orange Heliconian Dryadula phaetusa several in the Usumacinta Marshes Least Heliconian Eueides aliphera Las Nubes Isabella Heliconian Eueides isabella Palenque & Bonampak Tiger Heliconian Heliconius ismenius several Palenque, Roberto Barios, Las Nubes and Bonampak Zebra Heliconian Heliconius charithonia widespread and often common Erato Heliconian Heliconius erato common in lowlands Dot-bordered Heliconian Heliconius doris fine species. One visiting a flower at Bonampak Mexican Heliconian Heliconius hortense several on both days in Montebello Grinning Heliconian Heliconias cydno Bonampak Blue & White Heliconian Heliconius sapho Guacamayas and Bonampak Variegated Fritillary Euptoieta claudia Montebello Mexican Fritillary Euptoieta hegesia several Roberto Barrios Theona Checkerspot Chlosyne theona Roberto Barrios (NP) Bordered Patch Chlosyne lacinia Teotihuacan Gaudy Patch Chlosyne gaudialis frequent along the Cascada Trail, Palenque, also noted Bonampak Black-bordered Tegosa Tegosa anieta scattered throughout Guatemalan Tegosa Tegosa guatemalena Las Nubes and Roberto Barrioa Notched Crescent Phyciodes dracaena Zinacantan Gray-based Crescent Phyciodes griseobasilis Montebello and Las Nubes Mylitta Crescent Phyciodes mylitta several Zinacantan Mexican Crescent Phyciodes pallescens Zinacantan, probably Sumidero too Chestnut Crescent Phyciodes argentea Sumidero Brown Crescent Phyciodes atronia Las Nubes and probably elsewhere Orange-patched Crescent Phyciodes drusilla scattered in the lowlands Pine Crescent Phyciodes sitalces Zinacantan Pale-banded Crescent Phyciodes tulcis throughout Black Crescent Phyciodes ptolyca Sumidero Texan Crescent Phyciodes texana Teotihuacan Pearl Crescent Phyciodes tharos San Cristobal & Montebello Vesta Crescent Phyciodes vesta San Cristobal and Palenque Square-tipped Crescent Eresia phillyra Montebello Creamy Crescent Eresia clio Frequent at Las Nubes Mayan Crescent Castilia myia Guacamayas (NP) White-dotted Crescent Castillia ofella NS photographed this species at La Nubes American Lady Vanessa virginiensis San Cristobel West Coast Lady Vanessa annabella Orchid Garden in San Cristobal

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 81

Red Admiral Vanessa atalanta Montebello Camberwell Beauty Nymphalis antiopia Teotihuacan Tropical Buckeye Junonia genoveva Usumacinta Banded Peacock Anartia fatima widespread White Peacock Anartia jatrophae frequent in the lowlands Godman’s Mapwing Hypanartia godmanii Montebello and Bonampak carpark Malachite Siproeta stelenes 1 Sumidero Rusty-tipped Page Siptoeta epaphus singles scattered throughout Celadon Sister Adelpha serpa 1 Bonampak Montane Sister Adelpha donysa 1 Zinacantan Band-celled Sister Adelpha fessonia Sumidero Bates’s Sister Adelpha paraena Las Nubes Tailed Sister Adelpha diocles Montebello Lost Sister Adelpha salus Montebello Spot-celled Sister Adelpha basiloides Las Nubes (NP) Four-spotted Sailor Dynamine postverta scattered in the lowlands Small-eyed Sailor Dynamine artemias Las Nubes Yellow-rimmed Eighty-eight Callicore texa 1 mud-puddling at Bonampak carpark Anna’s Eighty-eight Diaethria anna beautiful butterfly. Common at Montebello Astrala’s Eighty-eight Diaethria astala another beautiful butterfly! 1 at Montebello Common Mestra Mestra amymone Sumidero Grey Cracker Hamadryas februa Sumidero, Las Nubes and Bonampak Black-patched Cracker Hamadryas atlantis Sumidero Variable Cracker Hamadryas feronia Las Nubes and Robert Barrios Brownish Cracker Hamadryas iphthime Palenque – the museum area Guatemalan Cracker Hamadryas guatemalena scattered throughout Red Cracker Hamadryas amphinome 1 Las Nubes Orion Cecropian Historis odius 1 both days at Guacamayas Tailed Cecropian Historis acheronta Bonampak & Roberto Barrios Small Beauty Colobura dirce one Bonampak Little Banner Nica flavilla scattered throughout Leading Red-ring Pyrrhogyra neaearia 1 at Palenque Mexican Bluewing Myscelia ethusa Sumidero Canyon Dingy Purplewing Eunica monima single at Las Nubes Dark Purplewing Eunica alcmena Montebello and Las Nubes Plain Purplewing Eunica sydonia Guacamayas Red-rim Biblis hyperia Sumidero, Zinacantan and Roberto Barrios Waiter Daggerwing Marpesia coresia Las Nubes Pale Daggerwing Marpesia harmonia several at Bonampak Many-banded Daggerwing Marpesia chiron locally common in the lowlands Ruddy Daggerwing Marpesia petreus Bonampak and Roberto Barrios White-spotted Prepona Archeoprepona amphimachus Sumidero Two-spotted Prepona Archeoprepona demophoon Roberto Barrios

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 82

One-spotted Prepona Archeoprepona demophon Roberto Barrios – sitting side by side with previous species! Angled Leafwing Anaea glycerium Montebello Guatemalan Leafwing Memphis forreri NP saw one Las Nubes Tiger Leafwing Consul fabius this fabulous leaf mimic was seen by some at the ruins Bonampak Black-veined Leafwing Consul excellens several Zinacantan Pearly Leafwing Consul electra 1 at Roberto Barios Silver Emperor Doxocopa laure Robert Barrios (NP) Double-eyed Owl-Butterfly Eryphanis aesacus Mision Hotel, Palenque Split-banded Owlet Opsiphanes cassina Las Nubes Common Morpho Morpho helenor 1 Bonampak and several in the Palenque area Quiet Diaph Pierella luna only noted this time at Las Nubes White-spotted Satyr Manataria hercyna Cerro Huitepec, roosting under a bank Plain Satyr Cissia pompilia Palenque area Gold-stained Satyr Cissia pseudoconfusa Bonampak and Las Nubes Labe Satyr Cissia labe Montebello (NP) Napaea Satyr Pedaliodes napaea Cerro Huitepec (NP) Guatemalan Gemmed-Satyr Cyllopsis guatemalena Cerro Huitepec (NP) Pallid Gemmed-Satyr Cyllopsis pallens Cerro Huitepec (NP) Wide-bordered Satyr Satyrotaygetis satyrina Mision Hotel, Palenque White Satyr Pareuptychia ocirrhoe frequent throughout the lowlands Hermeuptychia hermes widespread Blue-gray Satyr Magneuptychia libye Palenque and Guacamayas Queen Danaus gilippus A Monarch mimic. Palenque area Soldier Danaus eresimus A Monarch mimic. Lowlands Monarch Danaus plexippus almost throughout in low numbers Cloud-forest Monarch Anetia thirza 2 Zinacantan Harmonia Tigerwing Tithoria harmonia scattered in the lowlands Variegated Ticlear Godyris zavaleta scattered throughout Black & Yellow Prestonian Aeria eurimedia A Zebra Heliconian mimic! Palenque Mimic Tigerwing Melinaea lilis Cascada Trail, Palenque Tiger Mimic-Queen Lycorea halia atergatis Palenque (NP) Disturbed Tigerwing Mechanitis polymnia Montebello and Guacamayas Variable Tigerwing Mechanitis menapis Palenque Klug’s Clearwing Dircenna klugii Montebello Big-bordered Dircenna Dircenna dero Las Nubes

Hesperidae Dot-collared Firetip Jemadia pseudognetus stunning! 1 in the ruins at Bonampak Spineless Silverdrop Epargyreus aspina Palenque museum area Epargyreus sp, Las Nubes, Roberto Barrios Gold-spotted Aguna Aguna asander Palenque Sehaus’s Scarlet-eye Nascus phintius Palenque White-tipped Longtail Urbanus chales Palenque Dorantes Longtail Urbanus dorantes Guacamayas (NP) Brown Longtail Urbanus procne scattered throughout

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 83

Plain Longtail Urbanus simplicius scattered throughout Teleus Longtail Urbanus teleus Guacamayas (NP) Tanna Longtail Urbanus tanna Palenque Small-spotted Flasher Astraptes egregius one at Roberto Barios Yellow-tipped Flasher Astraptes anaphus Roberto Barios Elegant Flat Celaenorrhinus stola Guacamayas (NP) Mimosa Skipper Cogia calchas Roberto Barrios & Usumacinta Dark-fringed Banded-Skipper Autochton vectilucis Montebello (NP) Sharp Banded-Skipper Autochton zarex Palenque Rounded Bolla Bolla imbras Zinacantan Variegated Skipper Gorgythion begga Las Nubes Geyer's Zera Ouleus (fridericus) salvina Las Nubes (NP) Common Blue-Skipper Quadrus cerialis 1 Palenque Brilliant Blue Skipper Paches loxus Wow! Las Nubes (NP) Orange-spotted Skipper Atarnes sallei Sumidero Hoary Skipper Carrhenes canescens Montebello (NP) Dusted Spurwing Antigonus erosus Roberto Barrios (NP) Pale Sicklewing Achlyodes pallida Roberto Barrios and Zincantan Great Bentwing Ebrietas osyris Las Nubes (NP) Blurred Bentwing Ebrietas evanidus ?probably this species at Las Nubes (NP) Square Bentwing Helias cama Roberto Barrios and Las Nubes Tropical Checkered Skipper Pyrgus oileus scattered Veined White-Skipper Heliopetes arsalte Roberto Barrios Common Checkered-Skipper Pyrgus communis Teotihuacan (NP) Guatemalan Chequered-Skipper Pyrgus [communis] adepta Usumacinta marshes, Roberto Barrios (NP) Turk's-Cap White-Skipper Heliopetes macaira Usumacinta (NP) Laviana White-Skipper Heliopetes laviana Sumidero Canyon Tropical Least Skipper Ancycloxypha arene G&M noted at Usumacinta Trailside Underskipper Anthoptus epictetus Las Guacamayas (NP) Perching Saliana Saliana esperi Palenque Common Glassywing Pompeius pompeius scattered in lowlands Sachem Atalopedes campestris San Cristobal Umber Skipper Poanes melane San Cristobal Common Mellana Quasimellana eulogius Zinacantan Purple-washed Skipper Panoquina sylvivola 1 Palenque museum area Hecebolus Skipper Panoquina hecebolus or Panoquina ocola, Palenque (NP)

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 84

Chiapas - Systematic List Number 2 Birds

Nomenclature and taxonomic order follows The Sibley Guide to Birds (2000) for birds also found north of the Mexican border and for those that aren't Howell and Webb’s ‘A Guide to the Birds of Mexico’ (1995).

Fulvous Whistling Duck Dendrocygna autumnalis c.10 Usumacinta Wetland Blue-winged Teal Anas discors Usumacinta Wetland Plain Chachalaca Ortalis vetula several at Guacamayas Crested Guan Penelope purpurascens noted both days at Guacamayas Great Currasow Crax rubra 2 seen very well on boat trip in the Sumidero Canyon and 1 on night trip at Guacamayas Least Grebe Tachybaptus dominicus 2 at the breakfast site en route to Bonampak Wood Stork Mycteria americana widely scattered Neotropic Cormorant Phalacrocorax brasilianus frequent along rivers etc Brown Pelican Pelecanus occidentalus c.10 over the Sumidero Canyon and 1 at Guacamayas Bare-throated Tiger-Heron Tigrisoma mexicanum c.10 Usumacinta and singles on both days at Guacamayas Yellow-crowned Night Heron Nyctanassa violacea scattered singles Boat-billed Heron Cochlearius cochlearius 1 at Guacamayas, 3 Usumacinta Cattle Egret Bubulcus ibis widespread Green-backed Heron Butorides virescens 2 at Guacamayas & 2 Usumacinta Snowy Egret Egretta thula frequent at larger wetlands Little Blue Heron Egretta caerulea scattered at larger wetlands Tricolored Heron Egretta tricolor singles Guacamayas and Usumacinta Great Egret Carcharodius albus scattered throughout Great Blue Heron Ardea herodias scattered throughout Black Vulture Coragyps atratus widespread and very common Turkey Vulture Cathartes aura widespread and common Osprey Pandion haliaetus scattered throughout, seen on 5 days White-tailed Kite Elanus leucurus singles Montebello and Bonampak areas Gray-headed Kite Leptodon cayanensis 1 Guacamayas Hook-billed Kite Chondrohierax uncinatus 1 Usumacinta Swallow-tailed Kite Elanoides forficatus 2 at Montebello Black-collared Hawk Busarellus nigricollis 1 at Usumacinta Plumbeous Kite Ictinia pumbea 1 at Guacamayas Northern Harrier Circus cyaneus 1 at Tuxtla Airport Sharp-shinned Hawk Accipiter striatus 1 Sumidero and 2 Teotihuacan Cooper’s Hawk Accipiter cooperi 1 San Cristobal (in the hotel!) and 1 Teotibuacan Common Black-Hawk Buteogallus anthracinus scattered singles Great Black-Hawk Buteogallus urubitinga 1 at Guacamayas Roadside Hawk Buteo magnirostris frequent in lowlands White-tailed Hawk Buteo albicaudatus 2 Cinkultic Broad-winged Hawk Buteo platypterus 1 near San Cristobal and 2 Usumacinta Gray Hawk Buteo plagiatus noted Guacamayas and Usumacinta

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 85

Short-tailed Hawk Buteo brachyurus 1 near San Cristobal Crested Caracara Caracara plancus frequent in the lowlands Collared Forest-Falcon Micrastur semitorquatus 1 Usumacinta Laughing Falcon Herpetotheres cachinnans 1 Usumacinta American Kestrel Falco sparverius scattered throughout Aplomado Falcon Falco femoralis superb views, briefly, of 1 in the Usumacinta Bat Falcon Falco rufigularis frequent throughout Sungrebe Heliornis fulica 1 at Gaucamayas Limpkin Aramus guarauma 1 Usumacinta Double-striped Thick-knee Burhinus bistriastus 2 Usumacinta Marshes Collared Plover Charadrius collaris 2 at Guacamayas Killdeer Charadrius vociferus Usumacinta Black-necked Stilt Himantopus mexicanus 1 Usumacinta Northern Jacana Jacana spinosa Usumacinta Marshes Spotted Sandpiper Actitis macularia noted throughout Greater Yellowlegs Tringa melanoleuca 3 Usumacinta Lesser Yellowlegs Tringa flavipes 1 Usumacinta Least Sandpiper Calidris minutilla several Usumacinta Wilson’s Snipe Gallinago delicata 1 Usumacinta Caspian Tern Sterna caspia 1 over the River Usumacinta Royal Tern Sterna maxima several Usumacinta Rock Dove Columba livia scattered, around towns Scaled Pigeon Columba speciosa Guacamayas Red-billed Pigeon Columba flavirostris Guacamayas where common, also Roberto Barios Short-billed Pigeon Columba nigrirostris Guacamayas Band-tailed Pigeon Columba fasciata Zinacantan White-winged Dove Zenaida asiatica widespread Mourning Dove Zenaida macroura Teotihuacan Inca Dove Columbina inca scattered in the highlands Ruddy Ground-Dove Columbina talpacoti scattered in lowlands Common Ground-Dove Columbina passerina Usumacinta White-tipped Dove Leptotila verreauxii scattered Green Parakeet Aratinga holochlora Sumidero Aztec Parakeet Aratinga astec frequent in lowlands Scarlet Macaw Ara macao max daily count 4 at Guacamayas. Also some re-introduced birds at Palenque Brown-hooded Parrot Pyrilia haematotis Guacamayas & Bonampak White-crowned Parrot Pionus senilis scattered Red-lored Parrot Amazona autumnalis common at Guacamayas & Bonampak Mealy Parrot Amazona farinosa Guacamayas Squirrel Cuckoo Piaya cayana low numbers throughout Pheasant Cuckoo Dromococcyx phasianellus Nigel was lucky to see one at Zinacantan Groove-billed Ani Crotophaga sulcirostris frequent lowlands Barn Owl Tyto alba 1 or 2 at Hacienda Santa Maria, feathers Palenque Pauraque Nyctidromus albicollis locally abundant Gaucamayas night trips

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 86

Great Potoo Nyctibius grandis one on each night trip at Guacamayas Chestnut-collared Swift Streptoprocne rutila 2 above the museum, Palenque White-collared Swift Streptoprocne semicollaris abundant at Las Nubes Vaux’s Swift Chaetura vauxi Guacamayas Chimney Swift Chaetura pelagica Guacamayas White-throated Swift Aeronautes saxatalis a few in thre Montebello area White-necked Jacobin Florisuga mellivora frequent on the boat trips at Gaucamayas Long-billed Hermit Phaeothornis longirostris widespread – noted in 6 days Stripe-throated Hermit Phaeothornis strigularis scattered in the lowlands Green-breasted Mango Anthracothorax prevostii singles Guacamayas and Hotel in Palenque Scaly-breasted Hummingbird Phaeochroa cuvierii one nesting at Las Nubes Broad-billed Hummingbird Cynanthus latirostris 2 Teotihuacan White-eared Hummingbird Basilinna leuctois Zincantan & the orchid garden Green-fronted Hummingbird Amazilia viridifrons Zinacantan Beryline Hummingbird Amazilia beryllina several at Las Nubes Buff-bellied Hummingbird Amazilia yucatanensis Usumacinta Rufous-tailed Hummingbird Amazilia tzacatl frequent in the lowlands White-bellied Emerald Amazilia candida 1 Las Nubes Azure-crowned Hummingbird Amazilia cyanocephala several Montebello area Wedge-tailed Sabrewing Campylopterus curvipennis 1 Bonampak Green-throated Mountain-gem Lampornis viridipallens San Cristobel and Montebello area where frequent Amethyst-throated Hummingbird Lampornis amethystinus several at Teotihuacan Magnificent Hummingbird Eugenes fulgens 2 at the Orchid Garden in San Cristobal Black-chinned Hummingbird Archilochus alexandri females at Bonampak and Usumacinta Calliope Hummingbird Selasphorus calliope Teotihuacan Beautiful Hummingbird Calothorax pulcher males at Usumacinta and Robert Barrios Slaty-tailed Trogon Trogon massena frequent at Guacamayas Black-headed Trogon Trogon melanoephalus widespread this year in the lowlands Gartered Trogon Trogon caligatus 1 at Guacamayas Mountain Trogon Trogon mexicanus 2 Cerro Huitopec Collared Trogon Trogon collaris 2 near Guacamayas Blue-crowned Motmot Momotus coeruliceps 1 at Roberto Barrios (NP) and 1 at the Mision Hotel Palenque (MP) and 2 Cascada Trail, Palenque (MP) Green Kingfisher Chloroceryle americana scattered Amazon Kingfisher Chloroceryle amazona common Guacamayas, also 1 Usumacinta American Pygmy Kingfisher Chloroceryle aenea 1 Guacamayas Belted Kingfisher Ceryle alycon only noted at Sumidero Ringed Kingfisher Ceryle torquata scattered throughout White-necked Puffbird Notharchus hyperrhynchus 4 seen on one day at Guacamayas Keel-billed Toucan Ramphastos sulfuratus Guacamayas & Palenque where frequent

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 87

Collared Aracari Pteroglossus torquatus Guacamayas & Palenque Black-cheeked Woodpecker Melanerpes pucherani Las Nubes Golden-fronted Woodpecker Melanerpes aurifrons widespread Yellow-bellied Sapsucker Sphyrapicus varius 1 San Cristobal area and 2 Teotihuacan Ladder-backed Woodpecker Picoides scalaris 1 Usumacinta Smoky-brown Woodpecker Veniliornis fumigatus 2 Las Nubes Hairy Woodpecker Picoides villosus 1 orchid gardens, San Cristobal Golden-Olive Woodpecker Colaptes rubiginnosus 1 Guacamayas Lineated Woodpecker Dryocopus lineatus scattered Pale-billed Woodpecker Campephilus guatemalensis scattered Chestnut-coloured Woodpecker Celeus castaneus 2 at Guacamayas ‘Guatemalan’ Flicker Colaptes (auratus) mexicanus noted two days in San Cristobal area Tawny-winged Woodcreeper Dendrocincla anabatina 1 near Guacamayas Spot-crowned Woodcreeper Lepidocolaptes affinis Cerro Huitepec and Montebello Streak-headed Woodcreeper Lepidocolaptes souleyettii scattered Ivory-billed Woodcreeper Xiphorhynchus flavigastor scattered Spotted Woodcreeper Xiphothynchus erythropygius 1 Montebello Wedge-billed Woodcreeper Glyphorynchus spirurus scattered in lowlands Northern Barred Woodcreeper Dendrocolaptes sanctihomae 2 Palenque Plain Xenops Xenops minutus Las Nubes Plain Antvireo Dysithamnus mentalis Guacamayas forest patch Dot-winged Antwren Microrhopias quixensis Guacamayas forest patch and MP saw at Palenque Greenish Elaenia Myiopagis viridicata 1 Teotihuacan Ochre-belllied Flycatcher Mionectes oleaginous 1 Bonampak and 2 Palenque Sepia-capped Flycatcher Leptopogon amaurocephalus 2 Guacamayas forest patch Common Tody-Flycatcher Todirostrum cinereum Bonampak and Palenque Yellow-Olive Flycatcher Tolmomyias sulphurescens frequent in the lowlands Stub-tailed Spadebill Platyrinchus cancrominus 1 at Bonampak Royal Flycatcher Onychorhynchus coronatus 1 at Guacamayas and 2 at a nest in Palenque Greater Pewee Contopus pertinax scattered in the highlands Yellow-bellied Flycatcher Empidonax flaviventris 1 Palenque Acadian Flycatcher Empidonax virescens ?probably this species at Palenque Least Flycatcher Empidonax minimus ?probably this species at Palenque Buff-breasted Flycatcher Empidonax fulvifrons several Zincantan Hammond's Flycatcher Empidonax hammondii several Zincantan Black Phoebe Sayornis nigricans scattered throughout Vermilion Flycatcher Pyrocephalus rubinus scattered throughout Nutting’s Flycatcher Myiarchus nuttingi Sumidero Brown-crested Flycatcher Myiarchus tyrannulus scattered Great Crested Flycatcher Myiarchus crinitus noted twice in the lowlands Great Kiskadee Pitangus sulphuratus scattered throughout Boat-billed Flycatcher Megarhynchus pitangua scattered Social Flycatcher Myiozetetes similis locally common Cassin's Kingbird Tyrannus vociferans common – mostly highlands Tropical Kingbird Tyrannus melancholicus common – mostly lowlands Western Kingbird Tyrannus verticalis Usumacinta Scissor-tailed Flycatcher Tyrannus forficatus en route to Guacamayas – a trip highlight!

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 88

Fork-tailed Flycatcher Tyrannus savanna en route to Guacamayas and Usumacinta - spectacular! Rufous Piha Lipaugus unirufus 1 Guacamayas forest patch Red-capped Manakin Ceratopipra mentalis a female Las Nubes Masked Tityra Tityra semifasciata scattered in the lowlands Rose-throated Beccard Pachyramphus aglaiae scattered throughout White-eyed Vireo Vireo griseus 1 Guacamayas and 1 Bonampak Cassin's Vireo Vireo cassinii 1 Teotihuacan Blue-headed Vireo Vireo solitarius 1 San Cristobal Hutton's Vireo Vireo huttoni 1 Zincantan Warbling Vireo Vireo gilvus scattered in highlands Lesser Greenlet Hylophilus decurtatus Las Nubes and Palenque White-throated Magpie-Jay Calocitta formosa 9 in the Sumidero Brown Jay Cyanocorax morio widespread in lowlands Green Jay Cyanocorax yncas 2 in the Sumidero Unicolored Jay Aphelocoma unicolor Orchid Garden, San Cristobal, and Montebello Steller’s Jay Cyanocitta stelleri Orchid Garden, San Cristobal Mangrove Swallow Tachycineta albilinea frequent Tree Swallow Tachycineta bicolor Usumacinta Violet-green Swallow Tachycineta thalassina scattered Northern Rough-winged Swallow Stelgidopteryx serripennis widespread Barn Swallow Hirundo rustica Usumacinta Cliff Swallow Petrochelidon pyrrhonota Usumacinta Bank Swallow Riparia riparia Usumacinta Gray-breasted Martin Progne chalybea Usumacinta Purple Martin Progne subis Usamacinta Bushtit Psaltriparus minimus scattered House Wren Troglodytes aedon Montebello Rufous-browed Wren Troglodytes rufociliatus Montebello Bewick's Wren Thryomanes bewickii 2 Teotihuacan Cactus Wren Campylorhynchus brunneicapillus 6+ Teotihuacan Band-backed Wren Campylorhynchus zonatus San Cristobal Orchid Garden and Zincantan Spot-breasted Wren Pheugopedius maculipectus Sumidero and Montebello Banded Wren Thryophilus pleurostictus Sumidero Long-billed Gnatwren Ramphocaenus melanurus singles in the forest patch at Guacamayas and Bonampak Blue-gray Gnatcatcher Polioptila caerulea frequent Ruby-crowned Kinglet Regulus calendula Teotihuacan Eastern Bluebird Sialia sialis Montebello Brown-backed Solitaire Myadestes occidentalis heard only in highlands Wood Thrush Catharus mustelinus scattered throughout Rufous-collared Thrush Turdus rufitorques Zincantan & Cerro Huitepec Rufous-backed Thrush Turdus rufopalliatus Teotihuacan Clay-colored Thrush Turdus grayi frequent Gray Catbird Dumetella carolinensis scattered throughout Blue & White Mockingbird Melanotis hypoleucus Zincantan Northern Mockingbird Mimus polyglottis 1 Montebello Tropical Mockingbird Mimus gilvus scattered throughout Gray Silky-flycatcher Ptilogonys cinereus Zincantan

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 89

Curve-billed Trasher Toxostoma curvirostre Teotihuacan Olive Warbler Peucedramus taeniatus 1 Cerro Huitepec Ovenbird Seiurus aurocapilla 1 Palenque Worm-eating Warbler Helmitheros vermivorus 2 Palenque Northern Waterthrush Seiurus noveboracensis mainly Palenque area Louisiana Waterthrush Seiurus motacilla scattered throughout Black-and-White Warbler Mniotilita varia widespread Crescent-chested Warbler Oriothlypis superciliosa just 1 Cerro Huitepec Tennessee Warbler Vermivora peregrina scattered – common Las Nubes Orange-crowned Warbler Vermivora celata scattered throughout Nashville Warbler Vermivora ruficapilla widespread in highlands Common Yellowthroat Geothlypis trichas Usumacinta Hooded Yellowthroat Geothlypis nelsonii Sumidero MacGillivray's Warbler Geothlypis tolmiei Las Nubes and Usumacinta Kentucky Warbler Geothlypis formosa 1 Palenque Colima Warbler Oreothlypis crissalis Teotihuacan Mourning Warbler Oporornis philadephia a few in the highlands Hooded Warbler Wilsonia citrina lowlands Wilson’s Warbler Wilsonia pusilla widespread Northern Parula Setophaga americana 1 Usumacinta Yellow Warbler Dendroica petechia scattered - lowlands Magnolia Warbler Dendroica magnolia widespread Yellow-rumped Warbler Dendroica coronata Teotihuacan Chestnut-sided Warbler Dendroica pensylvanica scattered Yellow-throated Warbler Dendroica dominica 3 Usumacinta Black-throated Green Warbler Dendroica virens scattered Golden-cheeked Warbler Dendroica chrysoparia Orchid Garden Townsend's Warbler Dendroica townsendi highlands Hermit Warbler Dendroica occidentalis 1 Zincantan American Redstart Setophaga ruticilla widespread in lowlands Rufous-capped Warbler Basileuterus lachrymosus both days in San Cristobal area Golden-browed Warbler Basileuterus belli both days in San Cristobal area Golden- crowned Warbler Basileuterus culicivorus Montebello and Palenque Slate-throated Redstart Myioborus miniatus common in the highlands Painted Redstart Myioborus pictus Zincantan Red-faced Warbler Cardellina rubrifrons 1 Cerro Huitepec Yellow-breasted Chat Icteria virens scattered in the lowlands Gray-headed Tanager Eucometis penicillata 1 Las Nubes Crimson-collared Tanager Ramphocelus sanguineolentus Las Nubes Passerini’s Tanager Ramphocelus passeriniii Guacamayas Blue-grey Tanager Thraupis episcopus scattered Yellow-winged Tanager Thraupis abbas scattered throughout Golden-hooded Tanager Tangara larvata some flocks at Las Nubes Red-legged Honeycreeper Cyanterpes cyaneus scattered in the lowlands – superb! Green Honeycreeper Chlorophanes spiza scattered in the lowlands Cinnamon-bellied Flowerpiercer Diglossa baritula orchid garden in San Cristobal Blue-black Grassquit Volatinia jacarina Usumacinta Variable Seedeater Sporophila corvina Las Nubes & Guacamayas White-collared Seedeater Sporophila torqueola lowlands Thick-billed Seed-finch Oryzoborus funereus ?probably this species Guacamayas forest patch

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 90

Bananaquit Coereba flaveola Las Nubes & Bonampak Grayish Saltator Saltator coerulescens scattered in lowlands Buff-throated Saltator Saltator maximus Las Nubes and Palenque Black-headed Saltator Saltator atriceps Guacamayas and Palenque Orange-billed Sparrow Arremon aurantiirostris 1 Guacamayas Forest Patch Olive Sparrow Arremonops rufivirgatus 2 Roberto Barrios Green-backed Sparrow Arremonops chloronotus 2 Las Nubes and 2 en route to Bonampak White-naped Brush-Finch Atlapetes albinucha Orchid Garden, San Cristobal Canyon Towhee Pipilo fuscus Teotihuacan Spotted Towhee Pipilo maculatus Orchid Garden San Cristobal Botteri's Sparrow Peucaea botterii Usumacinta Chipping Sparrow Spizella passerina Teotihuacan Clay-coloured Sparrow Spizella pallida Teotihuacan Black-chinned Sparrow Spizella atrogularis Teotihuacan Lincoln’s Sparrow Melospiza lincolnii scattered Song Sparrow Melospiza melodia Teotihuacan Vesper Sparrow Pooecetes gramineus 1 Usumacinta Grasshopper Sparrow Ammodramus savannarum Usumacinta Lark Sparrow Chondestes gramicus Teotihuacan Rusty Sparrow Aimophila rufescens Montebello Rufous-collared Sparrow Zonotrichia capensis highlands Prevost’s Ground-Sparrow Melozone biarcuata Montebello Common Chlorospingus Chlorospingus flavopectus Montebello Red-crowned Ant-Tanager Habia rubica Palenque Red-throated Ant-Tanager Habia fuscicauda widespread in lowlands Hepatic Tanager Piranga flava widespread in highlands Summer Tanager Piranga rubra widely scattered Western Tanager Piranga ludoviciana frequent in the highlands White-winged Tanager Piranga leucoptera Sumidero Black-faced Grosbeak Caryothraustes poliogastor Las Nubes, Guacamayas & Bonampak Rose-breasted Grosbeak Pheucticus ludovicianus scattered Blue-Black Grosbeak Cyanocompsa cyanoides Bonampak and La Cascada Trail, Palenque Blue Grosbeak Passerina caerulea a male Usumacinta Indigo Bunting Passerina cyanea Usumacinta Varied Bunting Passerina versicolor a male Sumidero Eastern Meadowlark Sturnella magna scattered Melodius Blackbird Dives dives widespread in lowlands Bronzed Cowbird Molothrus aeneus Roberto Barrios Great-tailed Grackle Quiscalus mexicanus widespread Orchard Oriole Icterus spurius scattered in the lowlands Black-vented Oriole Icterus wagleri Teotihuacan Black-cowled Oriole Icterus prosthemelas 1 Las Nubes and 1 Usumacinta Abeille’s Oriole Icterus abeillei Teotihuacan Yellow-backed Oriole Icterus chrysater Orchid Garden, San Cristobal Yellow-tailed Oriole Icterus mesomelas Guacamayas Streak-backed Oriole Icterus pustulatus Sumidero Altamira Oriole Icterus gularis scattered throughout Baltimore Oriole Icterus galbula widespread

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 91

Montezuma’s Oropendula Psarocolius montezuma common in lowlands Yellow-throated Euphonia Euphonia hirundinacea widespread in low numbers Scrub Euphonia Euphonia affinis scattered in the Palenque area Olive-backed Euphonia Euphonia gouldii scattered in the lowlands House Finch Haemorhous mexicanus Teotihuacan Black-headed Siskin Carduelis notata Montebello area Lesser Goldfinch Carduelis psaltria scattered House Sparrow Passer domestricus San Cristobal and Mexico City Tricoloured Munia Lonchura malacca Usumacinta Marshes

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 92

Chiapas - Systematic List Number 3 Mammals

Order and nomenclature follow Reid (1997) Mammals of Central America and south-east Mexico.

Long-nosed Bat Rhynchonycteris naso several small groups roosting along the Sendales River, Guacamayas Greater Fishing Bat Noctilio leporinus several of these spectacular bats seen on both Guacamayas night boat rides Common/Virginia Opossum Didelphis marsupialis/virginiana one at night at Guacamayas – IG only Four-eyed Gray Opossum Philander opossum one on Guacamayas night boat ride Yucatan Black Howler Alouatta pigra Guacamayas where abundant and Palenque area where quite common too Central American Spider Monkey Ateles geoffroyi a few at the Sumidero Canyon and several groups at Guacamayas Kinkajou Potos flavus 2 on the first Guacamayas night boat ride Neotropical River Otter Lutra longicaudis singles on both morning boat trips at Guacamayas Tayra Eira barbara great views of one by some of the group on the viewpoint trail at Las Nubes, and one on Guacamayas night boat ride Baird’s Tapir Tapirus bairdii Fabulous close-up views on the second night boat trip at Guacamayas, several of us walked out on to the sand bar with the Tapir and got as close as 7m! Mexican Gray Squirrel Sciurus aureogastor common at Sumidero, San Cristobal and Montebello Yucatan Squirrel Sciurus yucatanensis Las Nubes and Palenque Deppe’s Squirrel Sciurus deppei Las Nubes and Palenque Mexican Ground Squirrel Sciurus mexicanus Teotihuacan Forest Rabbit Sylvilagus brasilianus 1 at night Las Nubes (IG only)

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 93

Chiapas - Systematic List Number 4 Reptiles & Amphibians

American Crocodile Crocodylus acutus Sumidero Canyon Morelet's Crocodile Crocodylus moreletii Guacamayas

Red-eared Slider Trachemys scripta San Cristobal Orchid Garden

Red Coffee Snake Ninia sebae Las Nubes Speckled Racer Drymobius margaratiferus a dead one in Sumidero National Park

Hernandez's Helmeted Basilisk Corytophanes hernandezii Las Nubes Striped Basilisk Basiliscus vittatus widespread Brown Forest Skink Sphenomorphus cherriei Palenque Metallic Ameiva Ameiva undulata Palenque Crevice Spiny Lizard Sceloporus poinsettii Teotihuacan Iguana Iguana iguana Guacamayas & Palenque Black Iguana Ctenosaurus similis Sumidero, Montebello etc Anolis species Anolis spp more than one noted!

Marine Toad Rhinella marina Guacamayas

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 94

Chiapas - Selected Plant List

Many thanks to Frieda for providing the following list of plants we saw by site.

Tuxtla Guttierez, 16-02-2017

Tabebuia rosea Tabebuia donnell-smithii

Canyon del Sumidero, dry forest, 1200 m, 16-02-2017

Tectona grandis Bauhinia divaricata Cochlospermum vitifolium Justicia pectoralis ? Acanthaceae Combretum sp. Bromelia sp. Anthurium sp. Euphorbia tithymaloides Ruellia sp. Opuntia sp. Iresine diffusa Oreopanax sp. Tillandsia butzii Tillandsia schiedeana Heliocarpus sp. Jatropha sp. (white fl.) Tabebuia donnell-smithii Agave sp. Begonia sp.

Reserva Huitepec, pine-oak forest, 2200 m, 17-02-2017

Quercus crassifolia Quercus rugosa Adiantum sp. Chusquea ? Monnina sp. (ciliolata ?) Oreopanax xalapensis Conopholis alpina Diphasiastrum digitatum Tillandsia guatemalensis Tillandsia ponderosa ? Arbutus xalapensis Epiphyllum sp. Passiflora vespertilio Salvia elegans Styracaceae ? Begonia sp.

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 95

Clethra mexicana Fuchsia splendens Fraxinus sp. Cirsium ehrenbergii Peperomia sp. Woodwardia radicans

Reserva Moxviquil, 17-02-2017

Tillandsia ponderosa Tillandsia prodigiosa ? Sprekelia formosissima Prostechea cochleata Chiranthodendron pentadactylon Justicia aurea

Cerro Huatepec, 2350 m, 18-02-2017

Quercus rugosa ? Quercus magnoliifolia ? Quercus laurina ? Roldana angulifolia Agapanthus sp. Fuchsia splendens Lobelia laxiflora Stachys coccinea ? Coriaria sp. Phytolacca sp. Salvia elegans Monnina ciliata Ternstroemia sp. Citharexylum sp. Arbutus xalapensis Fuchsia paniculata Buddleja sp. Sedum praealtum Passiflora sp.

Parador Santa Marta, garden, 18-02-2017

Pelargonium cv. Sedum morganianum Callistemon citrinus ? Thunbergia mysorensis Lycaste skinneri Laelia halbingeriana Heliconia caribaea ? Coffea arabica

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 96

Montebello Lagunas, pine-oak-Liquidambar forest, 1500 m, 19-02-2017

Liquidambar styraciflua Vriesea werckleana Odontonema callistachyum Clethra suaveolens Gonolobus sp. Urticac. Securidaca sp.1 (not Polygala) Heliocarpus sp. Rhynchostele bictoniense ? Wigandia urens Hauya elegans Rondeletia sp. (not Bouvardia) Commelinaceae Combretum sp. Securidaca sp.2 (not Polygala) Polygala sp. (dwarf) Kohleria ? Pinguicula moranensis

Chinkultic archeological site, 19-02-2017

Tillandsia spp. road to Laguna Pojoj, 1500 m, 20-02-2017

Bocconia sp. Odontonema callistachyum Begonia sp. Hauya elegans

Las Nubes, tropical forest, 250 m, 20 & 21-02-2017

Cuphea hyssopifolia ? Philodendron sp. Syngonium podophyllum Epidendrum stamfordianum Schizolobium parahyba Cryosophila nana ? Acanthaceae (creamy white flowers) Kohleria ? Anemia sp. Begonia spp. Louteridium donnell-smithii Philodendron radiatum Aristolochia grandiflora Rhipsalis sp. Montanoa sp. Miconia sp.

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 97

Monstera acuminata ? Philodendron cf. hederaceum ? Maxillaria sp. Montanoa sp. Burseraceae

Las Nubes, tropical forest, mirador, 21-02-2017

Sabal sp. Pseudobombax ellipticum ? Pitcairnia sp. Melastomataceae Dalechampia sp. Tillandsia bulbosa Ruellia sp. Acacia cornigera Desmoncus sp. Syngonium podophyllum Anthurium sp. Louteridium donnell-smithii

Canyon del Jabali, 300 m, 21-02-2017

Rondeletia sp. Serjania sp. Cassytha filiformis Hauya elegans road to Las Guacamayas, 160 m, 21-02-2017

Glyricidia sepium rio Lacantun, 22-02-2017

Hymenocallis littoralis Bactris sp. Sabal sp. Combretum sp. Desmoncus sp. Malvaviscus arboreus Scheelea liebmannii ? Aristolochia grandiflora Justicia pectoralis Bonnaya antipoda Geophila sp. Crescentia cujete Ipomoea alba Cola sp. Attalea maripa ? Ceiba pentandra

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 98

Philodendron hederaceum ? Sabal sp. sendero Saraguato, 23-02-2017

Chamaedorea sp. Scheelea sp. Desmoncus sp. Heliconia sp. Anthurium kunthii ? Monstera sp. Philodendron spp. Sabal sp. Vriesea sp. Psychotria poeppigiana Lygodium sp. road to Bonampak, 24-02-2017

Cochlospermum vitifolium Dalechampia scandens Mimosa albida Coutoubea spicata Bactris sp.

Bonampak, archeological site, 24-02-2017

Tillandsia schiedeana Tillandsia spp. Trigonidium sp. Dracaena sp. Spathiphyllum sp.

Palenque, archeological site, 25-02-2017

Colocasia gigantea Deamia testudo Ceiba pentandra Ficus sp. Urera baccifera Justicia aurea ? Burseraceae rio Usumacinta, marshland, savanna, 26-02-2017

Tabebuia rosea Schizolobium parahyba Utricularia sp. Mimosa albida Curatella americana

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 99

Paullinia sp. Guazuma ulmifolia Sabal mexicana Nymphoides indica Nymphoides peltata Thalia geniculata Crescentia cujete Nymphaea sp.

Cascadas Roberto Barrias, 27-02-2017

Cojoba arborea Tillandsia streptophylla Hamelia patens Heliocarpus sp. Philodendron cf. hederaceum ? Blepharidium mexicanum Strophocactus (= Deamia) testudo Billbergia sp.

Sendero Motiepa, 28-02-2017

Myriocarpa longipes Odontonema strictum ? Dieffenbachia aurantiaca Syngonium podophyllum Rhipsalis sp.

Greentours Natural History Holidays www.greentours.co.uk 100