Spectacled bears and Andean condors in Ecuador - Before It Is All Gone | Short Episodes - #4

As the only bear species native to South America, finding a spectacled bear in its natural habitat was high on my list. Once I actually managed to see a spectacled bear from real close but did not manage to take any photos. So this time I set out to not only see one, but manage to get a long and good enough encounter for some photos, and of course for videos, to use in this new episode of Before It Is All Gone.

To maximize our chance to see a spectacled bear, I chose to go to Papallacta. This is one of the best locations anywhere in the globe if you want to encounter this South American bear species. Since it is the paramo, there are big mountains, and vast spaces, which both help to maximize the chance for an encounter.

Of course, this also means you will probably see the bear from a good distance since you have very little chance to sneak up on them (like what I did before in Maquipucuna). So I came prepared to Papallacta with the necessary gear, with my Nikon D7500 and Tamron 150-600 mm zoom, ready with a tripod and all.

And the magic did happen. On our second day looking for spectacled bears, as a private tour with a very experienced local guide, in the distance we spotted (well, he spotted) a huge male spectacled bear munching on the vegetation. We managed to spend around 30 minutes with the animal, which gave me plenty of chance to set up all the gear and try to get the best video possible. Considering the huge distance, I am very happy with the result, and the video quality.

My other target species in the paramo was the Andean condor. These huge birds of prey can be found in the Antisana national park about one and a half hours away from Quito. We spent the full day in the park, looking for condors, and actually, we managed to observe at least 15 different individuals. Some of the condors were resting at the nesting sites, while most of them were soaring high above us. It was very challenging to film these epic birds, and the best results I got from my new Sony RX10 MIV, which did surprisingly well while panning at high speed with 400+ mm zoom...

All in all, we had a very successful expedition to the Ecuadorian paramo, where I managed to observe and film both of the target species. Of course, finding a mountain tapir could have sweetened the deal, but for that, I will have to return another time.

Special thanks to Malcolm and Claire Ross for the cover photo which they took on the trip to Papallacta I set up for them a week before I got there. Yes, they were super lucky! :D

#bears #spectacledbear #Andeanbear #Andes #condor #Condors #beforeitisallgone #paramo #paramowildlife #Andesnature #Andesanimals

00:00 Title
00:18 Intro
00:47 Paramo
01:53 Found the bear
02:43 The bear
04:37 Condor intro
04:52 Condors
06:12 Some more wildlife
06:32 Outro