February 2, 2015, Chapada dos Guimaraes, Brazil — This morning Giuliano, Bianca and I targeted an area of nice Cerrado habitat and were in position at sunrise to hear the dawn chorus. We spent a productive couple of hours wandering down a dirt road through low, scrubby trees, enjoying birds like Rusty-backed Antwren, White-eared Puffbird, White-rumped Tanager, Coal-crested Finch, and a heard-only Pheasant Cuckoo. When things got hot around 9 a.m., activity died and we repositioned to a denser, shadier area of nearby forest for a while before heading back to Giuliano’s dad’s place for rice, beans, a dip in the waterfall, and a siesta. I actually set an alarm for a one-hour nap after lunch, my first nap of the year! But, after 20 minutes, I awoke to a commotion of shouting and footsteps in the house: An Amazonian Motmot had flown inside and got trapped in the kitchen. I held the bird for a while before letting it go; it was interesting to inspect such a beautiful creature up...