Which bird species do you think is the biggest attraction to visitors of your lodge (please only name one species)?
White-browed Tapaculo, Scytalopus superciliaris santabarbarae
Yungas Screech-owl
What is the name of your lodge, and since when has your lodge been operating?
Ecoportal de Piedra has been a natural reserve since the early 90s
How best to travel to your lodge?
You can get a guided birding excursion from the airport to the lodges or rent a car and drive to Ecoportal de Piedra. Public transport reaches Palma Sola, a town 17km away, from where we can pick you up.
Toco Toucan
What kind of services – except for accommodation and food – does your lodge offer to visiting birders?
The reserve has guided tours, walking and in our 4WD vehicles, photography blinds, bird feeders, and many km of trails you can bird on, plus many nearby places to visit, for birds and for great landscapes.
What makes your lodge special?
It’s a 900 hectares nature reserve, self-sustained with ecotourism, and it has about 330 bird species, many of them are considered endangered or endemic, we have all the different Yungas strata’s, each one with its particular birds and landscapes, plus we are a short drive from the dry Chaco Forest, that adds a lot of different birds that can possibly be seen. Another great advantage is that the lodges are in the reserve, so you never need to leave the birding area.
Red-legged Seriema
Black-legged Seriema
What are the 10 – 20 most interesting birds that your lodge offers good chances to see?
- Tucuman Amazon, Amazona tucumana
- Andean Condor, Vultur gryphus
- Turquoise-fronted Amazon, Amazona aestiva
- Black-and-chestnut Eagle, Spizaetus isidori
- Yellow-striped Brushfinch, Atlapetes citrinellus
- Short-tailed Hawk, Buteo brachyurus
- Cream-backed Woodpecker, Campephilus leucopogon
- Tataupa Tinamou, Crypturellus tataupa
- White-browed Tapaculo, Scytalopus superciliaris santabarbarae
- Blue-capped Puffleg, Eriocnemis glaucopoides
- Giant Antshrike, Batara cinerea
- Great Rufous Woodcreeper, Xiphocolaptes major
- Black-legged Seriema, Chunga burmeisteri
- Red-legged Seriema, Cariama cristata
- Yungas Guan, Penelope bridgesi
- Stripe-backed Antbird, Myrmorchilus strigilatus
- Yungas Screech-owl, Megascops hoyi
- Black-banded Owl, Ciccaba huhula
- Buff-fronted Owl, Aegolius harrisii
- Rufous Nightjar, Antrostomus rufus
What is the best time to visit your lodge, and why?
From early October on, since the migratory birds are around, giving you more possibilities to see new species.
Red-tailed Comet
Is your lodge involved in conservation efforts? If yes, please describe them.
Yes, Ecoportal de Piedra protects 900 hectares of mountain forest in a direct way, plus we also participate in many educational programs, scientific research, and collaborate with different organizations to promote the conservation of the region and the creation of new protected areas, having done this for nearly 30 years.
Orange-breasted Falcon
What other suggestions can you give to birders interested in visiting your lodge?
The mountain forest can have a great variety of climates, so it is good to be prepared for any weather.
Yellow-striped Brushfinch
Do you have activities for non-birders? If so, please describe.
Many of the excursions in 4×4 and hiking can be very entertaining for birders and non-birders, plus there are neighbors who offer horseback rides.
If any reader of 10,000 Birds is interested in staying at your lodge, how can they best contact you?
You can contact us by email to portaldepiedra@yahoo.com or via WhatsApp to +543886820564 also find us as Ecoportal de Piedra on Instagram and Facebook
Collared Forest-falcon
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