Eared doves ( Zenaida auriculata) were one of the first birds I identified in Ecuador. Ubiquitous in Quito, they're widespread elsewhere too, and only in Cuenca did I notice they'd largely been replaced by fat feral pigeons. This was one of the few reasonable photos I managed; an eared dove outside my room at the Tutamanda hostel in Quito.
I'm in Peru now, at Chachapoyas. I left Vilcabamba early yesterday morning (Thursday), travelling by bus through a spectacular landscape to Zumba; in the back of a ute to La Balsa and the most informal, friendly border crossing I've ever had, from Ecuador to Peru. Then a wonderful hour and a half squeezed into a car with six others plus the driver and our luggage, to San Ignacio. On to Jaén for the night, then this morning to Bagua Grande and another fast colectivo ride through yet another spectacular, sere landscape to Chachapoyas. I'm now at the hostel Revash, heading for the Sarcófagos de Karajía tomorrow and the pre-inca ruins at Kuelap the next day.
[25 August 2011 [Ecuador], Panasonic Lumix GH1, 100–300 mm at 300 mm, ISO 400, 1/400 at f5.6]
All content © 2011 Pete McGregor
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6 comments:
Looks very much like our rufous turtle doves. The cooing they make is one of those Sunday morning sounds that lulls me to sleep.
It's interesting following you on this trip... very different from your last big trip, when we didn't hear from you for months at a time.
Safe journey!
Pete, the "Eared dove" is very much like the "Mourning dove" here. It is a ubiquitous bird here. In Missoula there is a movie theater that has a place called the "chapel of the dove". The building is called the "Wilma" building. For as long as I lived there it was home to hundreds of doves (https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/wiki/Edna_Wilma_Simons#cite_note-4)
What a wonderful photo! That is a shame they have been replaced by fat, feral pigeons!
Thanks Miguel! Safety has been something I've been conscious of all through the journey, except in a few places like the Galápagos and to some extent Cuenca, Vilcabamba and similar places. Unfortunate, but necessary — I've met so many people with tales of being robbed. One Ukranian woman had everything taken from her at knifepoint, and was stabbed a little to stop her from screaming :^( Peru's buses are notorious, so I'll be extra careful here.
The big difference in communication is threefold: first, I'm carrying a netbook (mainly for the photos); second, many hostels now have free wifi, so I don't have to deal with dodgy Internet cafes; third, the photoblog is much easier to update than Pohanginapete. Whether all this keeping in contact is "good" is a different matter, of course. I'm inclined to agree with Paul Theroux, when he said, “"In the best travel, disconnection is a necessity. Concentrate on where you are; do no back-home business; take no assignments; remain incommunicado; be scarce. It is a good thing that people don’t know where you are or how to find you. Keep in mind the country you are in."
Maureen, they haven't been completely replaced, and I don't mind the feral pigeons; in fact, I love them. Like some other birds — crows, for example — they've been inordinately successful at exploiting us, and I admire that. Actually, I can't think of a bird I don't like :^)
Oh why did I expect to actually see ears? Hah! These birds do look very much like our mourning doves. We see them everyday.
I like Paul Theroux's advice, although I do so much appreciate reading of your journey as you make it.
Robin, this very morning I was discussing Theroux's quotation with some friends. While I think he's right in suggesting contact with the world outside which you're travelling can greatly hinder engagement, as I've said in an earlier comment, I don't travel just for myself, for my own "experience"; in some way I find hard to express, much of my travel is for the sake of my friends. The blogs facilitate that, even if the cost is a degree of disengagement — but not too great a cost, I trust.
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