New records and range extensions for birds from the western slope of the eastern andes, santander, Colombia

Abstract

Birds from the western slope of the East Andean Cordillera at Santander have been little studied. Serrania de los Yariguies and nearby areas, just north of El Peñon, have been studied in the last decade with new subspecies described and new range extensions. We studied birds from oak forests from the upper part of the municipality of El Peñon between 2750 and 2850 m a.s.l during eight field days during August 2016. Surveys included vocal and visual observations and mist netting. We report 77 species belonging to 13 different Orders and 29 Families. The best-represented family was Tyrannidae (Flycatchers) with 12 species, followed by Trochilidae (Hummingbirds) with nine and Thraupidae (fruit eaters and allies) with eight. Mayor range extensions were made for the endemic Pyrrhura calliptera – Brown-breasted Parakeet from the eastern to the western flack, confirmed a second locality for Macroagelaius subalaris–Colombian Mountain Grackle south of previously known Serranía de los Yariguies, minor range extensions or confirmed presence records for 18 species and new information for 11 poorly known species for this flank. Almost 45 % of all captured individuals showed reproductive activity (brood patches or developed gonads). 50 % of individuals were molting feathers, where 15 % showed some overlap between reproduction and molt. Even though species are shared with other forests to the north and south, the remnant oak forests are in good condition and immersed in karst ecosystems poorly known.