HIGHLANDS OF MEXICO
- NEWS FROM THE 2009 TOUR by Ian Green 05/03/2009
One of nature’s greatest spectacles surely has to be the wintering agglomerations of Monarch Butterflies in the Highlands of Mexico, whole trees glowing orange as the sun warms the millions of wings. There had been disturbing news of poor breeding success and low numbers on migration in Northern America this summer and autumn but the scene which greeted us at Sierra Chincua was great news indeed. A little stream crossed the path and here we had our first real 'wow' experience with these butterflies as many were packed tightly on the ground around the water. We lay on the ground taking close-up and wide-angle photos of this spectacle. Just around the corner though was the really big 'wow!' Here was the wintering colony in its majesty, the Oyamel trees covered in a bustling orange. Even before we arrived we hear the wings in the air. The sun shone warm and bright and as a consequence the outer layers of the many bundles were opening their wings and basking, then flying. The air above was swarming with huge numbers of butterflies. Lichen and moss covered tree trunks looked a picture with the Monarchs landing wings spread orange on them. There followed a rapid filling of memory cards. It is a hard spectacle to photograph but we tried! A favourite was to point one's lens skywards, pre-focussed, and catch a low flying Monarch with the swarm behind it. Hard that one. Back-lit groups nectaring on the Senecios were a favourite, and many of us revisited the stream for more pictures. Above we could see many trees covered in the orange masses, apparently no less than a thousand trees hosting the colony.
Spectacular though the Monarchs are they are only a part of what has become one of Greentours signature itineraries. Eric looks after everyone’s gastronomic needs whether sorting out the menus in any of the fine restaurants we visit, taking over kitchens himself to prepare us meals or putting together some of the tastiest sandwiches I have ever had. He regales us with stories of the Tarascan Indians or Morelia’s rich revolutionary history.
El Fuego, as every year, put on a fine show for us, the perfect cone so quiet and elegant as we arrived suddenly spouting forth spectacularly on our second day there. A walk in Fuego’s forests with Blue-hooded Euphonias, Surprising Whites (all black and red!) and three species of superb yellow Oncidium orchids is followed by an evening by the Pacific where we had a great dinner on the beach and watch baby Pacific Ridley Turtles scurry across the sands, bioluminescent zooplankton shimmering in their wake, as they reach the ocean safely – what a day! Later we marvel at a church still left standing by the cinder and lava flows emitted by Paricutin, the volcano that first appeared in a farmer’s field in 1953. Great flocks of yellow-headed Blackbirds, Red-winged Blackbirds and cowbirds swirl around the bulrush beds by Zapotlan as evening nears. Six species of Oriole feed in the nearby red-flowered Erythrinia trees. Hummingbirds are everywhere on this trip. We see eighteen species including Mexican Woodnymph and one of the world’s tiniest birds, the Bumble-bee Hummingbird. Top of the hummingbird locations goes to the Cerro Burro, Donkey Mountain, where, after a butterfly filled morning in the lowlands we had a fine picnic and then spent the afternoon descending the vehicle-free road.
The masses of flowers, brilliant blue and scarlet Salvias, orange and yellow Castillejas and several metre tall huge-headed Cirsiums attracted Green Violet-ears, Black-chinned and Broad-tailed Hummingbirds, Rufous Hummingbird, the widespread White-eared Hummingbird and the fantastic Magnificent Hummingbird, which has a tendency to look rather drab and dark until it suddenly turns it head and catches you like a spotlight with its shimmering green throat gorgette.
Speaking of beams, my penchant for night creatures yielded some spectacular results on this trip. We did a night trip on Volcan Fuego with views of Coyote, Hog-nosed Skunk, Pauraques and Buff-collared Nightjars and I was lucky to see a Southern Flying Squirrel glide across the road right in front of me! Best though was the last night in the Valle de Bravo where a fine close-up view of a Great Horned Owl was followed by brief but close views of a Bobcat, superb prolonged close-up views of a Cacomistle (Ringtail) and then, just for a few seconds, a Puma crossing the road!
With over three hundred bird species seen including many West Mexican endemics, over a hundred species of butterflies including seven swallowtail species, several Malachites, and the amazing White Morpho, and superb plantlife including Calceolarias, Echeverias, Pinguiculas, various orchids and lots of bromeliads, this tour touches on a very rich and distinctive biodiversity. Night-time viewing of the Michoacan Stream Salamanders, the local variation of the Axolotl, was surely a highlight. Last word then goes to the very last minutes of the last afternoon where by a church whose tower is all that shows out of the reservoir of Santo Tomas, and to the strains of a guitarist strumming in the little village bar, we found some real gems. In the same square metre of hillside as last year was the brilliant Orange-breasted Bunting, whose pure bright colours put even the nearby fiery plumaged Streak-breasted Oriole in the shade. Yellow sprays of Oncidium cebolleta hung from nearby trees and then we found the prize bromeliad of the trip. Just a few centimetres high were little tufts of grey-green mealy leaves, the upper ones a bright clear scarlet, and topped by three perfect purple flowers each with protruding yellow anthers. Tillandsia ionantha – what a prize!
In 2010 we’ll again be offering the Highlands of Mexico tour, one departure in late January and one around the 9th February. The second filled up quickly this year so reserve your places now!
