MEXICO 
they may have been female Purples. Purple 
Martins have been observed migrating south- 
ward in the subregion as early as the 2nd 
week of Jun. A singing vireo that may have 
been Black-whiskered was photographed in 
Xel-ha ruins, Q. Roo 26 Jun (ph. MD). 
Cited collaborators (area compiler in bold- 
face): David Bacab, John Cecil, Robert Cecil, 
Mark Dennis, Jay Gilliam, Hugo Lizama, Bar- 
bara MacKinnon, Guilmer Tun. 
Hector Gomez de Silva, Xola 314-E 
03100 Mexico, D.F., Mexico 
(hector.gomezclesilva@gmail.com) 
I Central America 
'm Ambergris Cay 
BELIZE 
Lf^unta Gorda^ 
HONDURAS 
^ . Guatemala,/ 
Quel# .City /Copan ■ ^ 
San Salvador — 'r— ^ 
EL SALVADOR ' 
L NicaragHa^-yS^:^ 
COSTA RICA 
H. Lee Jones 
Oliver Komar 
I n most regions, the Nesting Season report 
is, understandably, the briefest of the four. 
It covers only two months, and the lull in 
migration in June and July in most species in- 
vites a similar lull in birding activity. But in 
Central America, there is another reason for 
the paucity of reports, one that is clearly re- 
flected in this report — the lack of visiting 
birders. The few contributors to this summer 
report are all nationals or are foreign re- 
searchers either living in the region or con- 
ducting long-term research projects. 
Although officially called “The Nesting Sea- 
son” in this Journal, we prefer to call it the 
“Summer Season,” because bird nesting in the 
tropics, even the northernmost reaches of the 
tropics, occurs throughout the year. In Central 
America, the breeding season for most species 
extends from April to September; however, 
some species, especially nectarivores like 
some hummingbirds and the flower-piercers, 
prefer to breed in the dry season from Novem- 
ber through March. Therefore, the brief two- 
month “nesting” season does not begin to cap- 
ture the full spectrum of breeding in the trop- 
ics. A quick perusal of the spring and fall sea- 
son reports, and even the winter report, will 
reveal periodic reports of interesting nesting 
records — unseasonable nesting dates, unusu- 
ally low- or high-elevation nesting, or range 
expansions confirmed by the discovery of a 
nest (or nests) in a new area — but they never 
mention the many species that routinely nest 
at these other seasons. 
Many of the reports below document “in- 
vasive” species that are expanding into new 
areas, areas once forested that are slowly giv- 
ing way to expanding human populations 
with their agricultural, commercial, industri- 
al, transportation, and urban support sys- 
tems. A few reports like Nazea Booby and 
Sabines Gull add incrementally to our knowl- 
edge of pelagic species in the Region. Two 
others. Magnificent Hummingbird and Ru- 
fous-and-white Wren, are of species recorded 
beyond their normal elevational limits. There 
are no country firsts to report, but Belize got 
its second record of Shiny Cowbird, a species 
sure to become more frequent in the Region 
in the coming years. 
BOOBIES THROUGH 
WOODCREEPERS 
At least 2 ad. Nazea Boobies were observed off 
Los Cobanos, Sonsonate 28Jul (ph. NH). Al- 
though there are still fewer than ten records 
for El Salvador, increasing awareness of this 
species and better coverage of offshore waters 
suggest that it may be a regular and fairly 
common pelagic species in the Region. Two 
Roseate Spoonbills seen at a small pond in 
San Antonio Village 26 Jun+ (ph. RM) pro- 
vided the first record for Cayo and one of the 
few for w. Belize. In Panama, a Lesser Yellow- 
headed Vulture at El Real airstrip 12 Jun 
(JAG, KK, DM, DeM) was the latest of only a 
few that have been recorded in Darien. Rare 
anywhere in Panama, a Black-collared Hawk 
was seen on the Tuira R. between Yaviza and 
El Real, Darien 12 Jun QAC, KK, DM, DeM). 
A Sabine’s Gull in breeding plumage seen off 
Los Cobanos 28 Jul (NH) provided the first 
summer record for El Salvador. Individual 
Plain-breasted Ground-Doves seen at several 
locations around El Real 12-14 Jun QAC, KK, 
DM, DeM) suggest that this species, considered 
rare in Darien, may be on the increase. Lesser 
Swallow-tailed Swift is rare on the Pacific slope 
of Guatemala, so one seen in the Los Tarrales 
Reserve, Suchitepequez 12 Jun (KE) was note- 
worthy. A male and a female Magnificent Hum- 
mingbird were at the unusually low elevation 
of 800 m in the Los Tarrales Reserve 12 Jun 
(KE). They are normally seen above 1500 m in 
Guatemala. El Salvador’s first Spotted Wood- 
creeper in nearly 30 years was banded in Mon- 
tecristo N.P., Santa Ana in 2006. Since then, 6 
other individuals have been banded in the 
park, the latest on 22 Jun (ph. RJ). 
FLYCATCHERS THROUGH 
WEAVER FINCHES 
Establishing the first records for Darien were 
single Bran-colored Flycatchers heard, respec- 
tively, at the El Real airstrip and the cemetery 
12 Jun (DeM). Belted Flycatcher was added to 
the list of species from L. Atitlan’s s. shore 
when 2 were seen 24 Jul in San Juan La Lagu- 
na, Solold (ph. JF). Purple Martin is easily the 
earliest southbound migrant in Central Amer- 
ica. On 18 Jun, a mixed flock of 30 ad. males, 
females, and imms. was seen in Ladyville, Be- 
lize (PB). And this is not an unusually early 
^ /I Last summer we reported on the nesting successes (or lack thereof) of seven beach-nesting bird species at the Xiri- 
3fAhualtique-Jiquiiisco Biosphere Reserve on the Pacific coast in the San Dionisio municipality, Usulutdn, El Salvador. 
Some of these species are not known to nest anywhere else in Centra! America. The nesting season runs from Apr to early Aug, 
and EM and MR visited the nesting sites at Isla San Sebastian and Isla Pajarito weekly during the summer season. In 2008, 
they reported 164 nests that produced 72 juvs. of four species (breeding failed completely for three species). In 2009, at the 
same sites, they documented declines across all of the species, with a total of just 1 1 5 nests, which produced just 26 juvs. This 
season. Collared Plover produced 18 eggs in six nests, but only 3 juvs. survived, IS fewer than last year. Wilson's Plover pro- 
duced 180 eggs in 60 nests and raised 15 juvs., 26 fewer than last year. American Oystercatcher produced 18 eggs in nine 
nests, and just 2 juvs., but this was one more than last year. Black-necked Stilt produced 80 eggs in 20 nests and raised only 
6 juvs., half of last year's production. As with 2008, breeding in 2009 appeared to have failed completely for Black Skimmer 
(no signs of nests). Least Tern (six nests), and Lesser Nighthawk (14 nests). As with the previous year, the culprit responsible 
for most of the failures was tidal overwash that destroyed nesting areas. The future of some of these species as breeding 
species in Central America, in particular the skimmer and oystercatcher, seems tenuous. 
662 
NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS 
