Butterflies of
Wildsumaco Lodge, Ecuador
by Jim and Susan Hengeveld
Wildsumaco Lodge is an ecolodge located on the east slope of the Andes in Ecuador at an elevation of approximately 1450 m. It is a not-to-be-missed destination for birders (see the property list at: http://www.wildsumaco.com/html/birdssumaco.php ) but is also a fabulous site for butterflies.
The primary forests surrounding Wildsumaco are under constant threat from slash-and-burn agriculture from folks in nearby communities. The owners of Wildsumaco Lodge, Bonnie and Jim Olson and Jonas Nilsson, are committed to saving the surrounding eastern foothill forests (see: http://www.riopucunofoundation.org/ for more information and to help them in their efforts). They have initiated projects to work with and to involve the local people in sustainable and economically viable pursuits.
My wife, Susan, and I are faculty members in the Biology Department at Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana. We have taken two birding/butterflying trips to Wildsumaco Lodge – one in 2010 and one in 2011. Although the phenological time frame of these two trips was very limited – both were taken during our spring break, occurring between March 12 and March 26 (for a total of 12 full days) – we managed to photograph at least 150 species of butterflies, including several rare and at least one undescribed species. The 2010 trip was made with Len Reitsma, a professor at Plymouth State University, and the 2011 trip was made with Phil and Joanne Kelly from Kokomo, Indiana.
A visit to Wildsumaco is very easily combined with a trip to one of the eastern Ecuadorian Amazonian lodges (we did such a trip in March of 2011) and the folks at Wildsumaco can even help you make arrangements if you would like to do such a trip. If you are interested in tropical birding AND/OR butterflying, and especially if you are interested in supporting a lodge that is dedicated to preserving the quickly disappearing eastern foothill rainforests, we strongly recommend Wildsumaco as one of your destinations.
All photos on this website are copyrighted. The majority of photos were taken by Susan Hengeveld, though contributions were made by both Phil Kelly and Len Reitsma. The bulk of the identifications were made by Jim Hengeveld, with generous help from Kim Garwood, Richard Lehmann, Dr. Keith Willmott, and Dr. Andy Brower. Please bring to our attention any mistakes in identification.