Hola,

If you've heard news reports of armed attacks in Oaxaca, it's true
but as yet no real cause for worry. These aren't true revolutionaries and
they appear to have no program, unlike to Zapatistas in Chiapas. Just like
to shoot up police stations with AK-47s.

Birds: My trip list since early July stands at 190 species. Mostly
casual birding on my trips in and out of my field site in the Sierra de
Miahuatlan four hours south of Oaxaca City, but including one three day
jaunt to the Pacific Coast, mostly spent about Puerto Escondido (August
16-18). The Pacific coast of Chiapas is not quite as rich as the gulf slope
but has lots of birds. I've now seen 2-8 Red-billed Tropicbirds on the same
rock just west of Puerto Angel off Zipolite Beach three times in three
years, so I suspect they may nest there (though there's as yet no positive
record for Oaxaca). I caught the beginnings of fall shorebird migration at
the mouth of the Colotepec River about 3 miles east of Puerto Escondido
(requires a short walk down the beach from the end of a dirt track which
leaves MX 200 (the main coast highway) just west of the bridge at Barro
Colotepec (in case you're in the area). An nice variety of waders there
(White Ibis, Yellow-crowned Night Heron, Snowy, Great, Green, Little Blue,
Tricolor herons) and a couple dozen Semipalmated and Collared Plovers, a
Black-bellied Plover, Spotted Sandpipers, Whimbrels, Willets, Greater
Yellowlegs, Black-necked Stilts, Least Sandpipers, and a new Mexico bird for
me, two juvenile Baird's Sandpipers (all the rest were worn adults)(thought
this might be of special interest to Dennis). Also had some terns including
Royal and Elegant, Common and one Forster's. There's a cattail marsh here
with a small colony of Red-winged Blackbirds, but they sound rather
different from ours.
Manialtepec Lagoon 10 miles west of Puerto Escondido is great for
mangrove swamp species. You can rent a small lancha with guide for 100
pesos ($14 US) for 2-3 hours. Early AM is best. We were a bit late for the
main nesting season here but did see a few Anhingas, one Boat-billed Heron,
two Bare-troated Tiger-Herons, a Wood Stork, both night-herons, a
White-faced Ibis and bundles of the more common waders; Magnificent
Frigatebirds and Ospreys contending for fish; and a [near] lifer for me, a
real wild Muscovy Duck; the mangroves are full of White-fronted Parrots and
Orange-fronted Parakeets, Tropical Kingbirds, Social Flycatchers, Ringed,
Green, and an Amazon Kingfishers, Mangrove Swallow and Mangrove Vireos,
Rufous-naped Wrens, a Common Black Hawk (and I have seen Great Black Hawk
nearby), Roadside Hawk, the usual passle of Black & Turkey Vultures
(Yellow-headeds are reputed to be here also but I didn't see any),
Great-tailed Grackles, Neotropical Cormorants, and Brown Pellies.
Finding good landbirding near the coast is tough as it's mostly
pasture & farm lands and the roads have heavy traffic and no place to turn
off. I did find a small track off MX 131 at about km 232 where I could get
away from the road into some fair second growth woodland where I heard
[still never seen them] Thicket Tinamous (not recorded from coastal Oaxaca
west of the Isthmus to date), White-throated Magpie-Jays, Rufous-browed
Motmots, Citroline Trogons [both will almost eat out of your hand from the
hammocks at Posada Canyon del Vata in Puerto Angel, the place to stay
there], Rufous-browed and Banded Wrens, White-lored Gnatcatchers,
Red-breasted Chat, Northern Cardinals, Olive Sparrow, Blue and
Orange-breasted Buntings, Cinnamon Hummingbirds, etc.
At a tiny pond at km 168.6 w km west of Sta. Elena on MX 200
(between Puerto Escondido and Puerto Angel) I flushed a nice flock of
Black-bellied Whistling Ducks, found a Least Grebe with three babies,
Jacanas, Crested Caracara, Social Flycatchers, Ruddy-breasted Seedeaters,
and my lifer Flammulated Flycatcher.
If you're on the Pacific Coast you need to gain some altitude to get
into the coffee zone at 1000-5000 feet above sea level for some variety.
Along MX 175 north of Pochutla (at the Puerto Angel junction) I found
Emerald Toucanets, White-faced Quail Doves (a lifer), Audubon's Orioles,
Red-legged Honeycreepers, Black-headed Saltators, Golden-crowned Emeralds,
Yellow-green and Golden Vireos, Green Jays, Tufted Flycatcher and Greater
Pewee, and Gray Hawks.
I could go on but this listing is random enough as it is.
Planning a christmas count in Oaxaca City and maybe one on the
coast. They will be the first for the state.

Adios,

Eugenio.