REGUA, Atlantic Forest, Brazil: 16 September

Adilei, Rachel and I wanted to set up another camera trap deep in the forest with the aim of capturing Puma. We decided on the top section of the Lost Trail, which is good quality selectively logged primary forest, which has had Puma sightings in the past. Rather than simply walk straight up the trail and back, we chose to drive the trusty blue 4x4 Totoya pickup up the 4x4 track to Casa Anibel, which is another good birding trail at REGUA and access the Lost Trail from here.

A group of 10 Guira Cuckoo showed nicely on the dirt road to the track, and at the start of the 4x4 track itself a Tawny-browed Owl was flushed but bird activity in the forest was otherwise still very quiet. The best sighting on the track was a Crab-eating Fox, that rather bizarrely, kept walking directly towards us and then turning back before stopping a looking at us. It clearly wanted to get past us and eventually turned off into the forest, but not before I managed a few reasonable record shots, despite the extremely low light levels.

Crab-eating Fox Cerdocyon thous, 4x4 track, 16 September 2012. These
carnivores are being seen more frequently at REGUA, a sign that the hunting of
small mammals, on which they prey, has been much reduced by our rangers.

Crab-eating Fox Cerdocyon thous, 4x4 track, 16 September 2012. Note the
raised hairs on the neck and back.

The Lost Trail was more productive with amazing views of a male Slaty Bristlefront walking across the trail (that successfully eluded the camera), a Mottled Owl accidentally flushed from it's daytime roost, 1 Scaled Woodcreeper, 1m Black-cheeked Gnateater, a pair of Chestnut-bellied Euphonia, 1m Yellow-legged Thrush, 1 Sepia-capped Flycatcher, an Olivaceous Woodcreeper and a Yellow-eared Woodpecker. A quick look along the top of the Grey Trail for Russet-winged Spadebill produced another Yellow-eared Woodpecker and not much else.

A shortcut along an unmarked trail from the Lost Trail back the 4x4 track produced few birds but we did find 1 Rufous-capped Motmot, 1f Scaled Antbird, a pair of White-eyed Foliage-gleaners bringing food to chicks hidden in their nest in an earth bank, and an Orange-spined Hairy Dwarf Porcupine.

White-eyed Foliage-gleaner, unmarked trail, REGUA, 16
September 2012

Orange-spined Hairy Dwarf Porcupine Sphiggurus villosus, unmarked trail,
REGUA, 16 September 2012

Returning along the 4x4 track we found 1m Surucua Trogon and 2 Crescent-chested Puffbird, and the drive back along the dirt road to the reserve entrance yielded a Fork-tailed Flycatcher and a few Smooth-billed Ani.