Trip
Information
Dates:
October 30 - November 2, 2008 (4
days)
Price: $1350
USD, $1415 CDN, Single supplement $150 USD, $160 CDN
Highlights:
• A superb introduction to Argentinean birds of the Pampas, wetlands, riverine
forests and coastal sand dunes and beaches. Lots of interesting and quite spectacular
species
•
Excellent birding areas; the Costanera Sur Nature Reserve is marvelous, as are
the Pampas, the wetlands south of Buenos Aires, the bird-rich Entre Rios province,
and the important Punta Rasa peninsula
•
A delightful birding pre-tour before embarking on the Antarctic Voyage
Featured Birds:
• Southern Screamer
•
Greater Rhea
•
Black-necked Swan
•
Many-coloured Rush-Tyrant
•
Hudson’s Canastero
•
Maguari Stork
•
Whistling Heron
•
Spectacled Tyrant
•
Scarlet-headed Blackbird
Trip Summary:
• Diverse birding habitats
•
Easy to moderate walking
•
Temperate climate
•
Modern accommodation
•
Bus or van with driver
•
All meals included
•
Flight to Ushuaia is not included |
An
introduction to the immense bird riches of Argentina! We visit three
distinct areas – the flood plain and riverine forests of Entre
Rios province, the famed pampas and productive wetlands south of Buenos
Aires, and the sand dunes and open beaches of Punta Rasa along the
coast of the Atlantic Ocean. The Pampas are flat and fertile plains
covering over  one-fifth of Argentina, famous for not only gauchos but
unique species such as Greater Rhea, South America’s version
of the Ostrich, Southern Screamer, the flying Jumbo Jet, and a whole
host of interesting and captivating birds including some rare and very
local species. Wetlands close to Buenos Aires support remarkable concentrations
of swans, herons and egrets, rails and ducks, including the peculiar
Black-headed Duck, the only duck in the world that breeds solely by
laying its eggs in nests of other birds. The peninsula at Punta Rasa
juts out into the mouth of the Rio de la Plata and is an important
gathering area for thousands of waterbirds, including impressive concentrations
of Chilean Flamingos. The plains and forests of Entre Rios support
very rich and diverse wildlife, from storks to spinetails, parakeets
to plantcutters. Join us for an introduction to a very diverse and
exciting avifauna.
See detailed itinerary
below.
Click
here to download a list of birds seen on our November 2005 tour
Click
here to download a list of birds seen on our February 2005 tour
Click here to
see our Antarctic Voyage Tour.
Click
here to download a registration form |
Itinerary
Day
1 – Arrival and Orientation
Upon arrival at the Ezeiza International Airport in the outskirts
of Buenos Aires, transfer to our hotel in the city. Likely your
first birds will be Chalk-browed Mockingbirds, Rufous Horneros
and Southern Lapwings on the grassy verges of the entrance road.
The tour will begin with an excursion in the afternoon to the
Costanera Sur reserve in Buenos Aires. Costanera Sur is wonderful,
and a mistake! Originally this landfill site was created to accommodate
a housing development and new soccer stadium, the funds ran dry
half way through the project and the site was allowed to go wild.
Argentine naturalists rallied together and were able to pressure
the city to protect the area as a nature sanctuary, truly a success
story in Argentine conservation. You will be glad that the stadium
did not go up as you watch flocks of Black-necked and Coscoroba
Swans, White-faced Tree Duck, Silver and Speckled Teals, and
three species of coots. Smaller numbers of Lake Duck, Red Shoveler,
and the stunning Rosy-billed Pochard, a relative of scaup and
Redhead, but much more colourful, occur here along with waterbirds
that are harder to see, such as the Black-headed Duck, the only
duck in the world that breeds solely by parasitising other birds,
or Rufescent Tiger-heron. Land birds are plentiful, and include
several seedeaters, thrushes, warbling-finches, Masked Gnatcatcher,
the splendid Many-colored Rush-Tyrant and much more. The tour
begins in the evening in Buenos Aires. Night in Buenos Aires.
Day
2 – The Pampas
Today we start early, driving out of the huge city of Buenos
Aires. As we exit, the scenery quickly turns rural and is more
reminiscent of the Pampas that W.H. Hudson wrote about in the
early 1900s. We stop in at Magdalena and Atalaya where we bird
some wetlands and thickets near the shores of the Rio de la Plata.
We will have no trouble seeing White-rumped Swallow, Rufous-collared
Sparrow, Great Kiskadee and waterbirds such as Bare-faced Ibis,
Plumbeous Rail, Whistling Heron and many others. The key birds
we want to spot here are the local Curve-billed Reedhaunter,
and the not so rare but difficult to see Sulphur-bearded Spinetail;
both are odd marsh inhabiting members of the Furnariidae, the
ovenbird family. Driving the highway to San Clemente del Tuyu
we’ll encounter large concentrations of waterbirds as well
as having a good shot at seeing Greater Rheas, South America’s
version of the Ostrich. Punta Rasa is a bird rich peninsula north
of San Clemente del Tuyu. Here we could see some rather rare
birds like Dot-winged Crake, Hudson’s Canastero, Bay-capped
Wren-Spinetail and Olrog’s Gull. The crake is so little
known that its vocalizations and nest are still unknown to science!
We should see a wide variety of wintering shorebirds, such as
both yellowlegs, American Golden Plover possibly with Buff-breasted
Sandpiper among them, White-rumped Sandpiper and Hudsonian Godwit.
A major wintering roost of Common Terns at the tip of Punta Rasa
can turn up many other species, an astonishing 11 species of
terns have occurred here including Snowy-crowned Tern! There
usually are large flocks of Black Skimmers on the beaches and
groups of Chilean Flamingos and Roseate Spoonbills in the shallows.
Night in San Clemente del Tuyu.
Day 3 – Estancias near San
Clemente and Otamendi Natural Reserve
Land birding in the woods near Punta Rasa will be fruitful. We search
for the often overlooked Screaming Cowbird along with its more common
relative the Shiny Cowbird and its host the Baywing Cowbird. We look
for singing White-throated Hummingbirds among the Gilded Sapphires, and
we should obtain great looks at some spectacular flycatchers like the
Fork-tailed, Vermilion and the singular Spectacled Tyrant. Much of the
day will be spent inland in the large estancias, or ranches. Here there
are great numbers of waterbirds, including some beautiful ducks like
Chiloe Wigeon, the Argentine race of the Cinnamon Teal and perhaps a
White-cheeked Pintail. Three birds that you are unlikely to forget are
the abundant, noisy, but endearing Southern Lapwing; the flying Jumbo
Jet, the Southern Screamer; and the gorgeous Scarlet-headed Blackbird
a slim black bird with the most vivid red head and thighs. We will also
search the area for a local prize, Hudson’s Canastero, which occurs
in open pasturelands with Correndera Pipits and Austral Negritos.
Buenos Aires lies at the boundary of two life zones, and many birds reach
their southern range limits near the city. Today we drive northward to
see some of these birds. Our first stop is at a little train station
known as Ingeniero Otamendi where we walk along a track beside marsh
and thickets. Here we hope to find several interesting birds including
the rare and local Straight-billed Reedhaunter. Other birds we should
see are Masked Yellowthroat, Many-colored Rush-Tyrant, Warbling Doradito,
and perhaps Diademed Tanager, Dark-billed Cuckoo, and Green-barred and
Checkered Woodpeckers. In 2005, we found a Marsh Seedeater, a very rare
species. Night in Campana.
Day
4 – Otamendi Natural Reserve, Entre Rios and return to Buenos
Aires
We visit Otamendi Natural Reserve early in the morning, then we continue across
the rivers that make up the delta of the Rio de la Plata to Ceibas in Argentina’s
Mesopotamia. Ceibas is a site not known to most birders, but is incredibly
diverse. We spend the afternoon here looking for birds such as Suiriri Flycatcher,
the enigmatic White-naped Xenopsaris, White-fronted Woodpecker, Brazilian and
Ringed Teal, White-tipped Plantcutter, White Monjita, Rufous-capped Antshrike,
and several species of ovenbirds more typical of the Chaco, the Chotoy Spinetail,
Brown Cachalote, Short-billed Canastero, Little Thornbird and the Stripe-crowned
Spinetail. We should see Scimitar-billed Woodcreeper, a bizarre woodcreeper
that forages on the ground! It is not unusual to see over 100 species of birds
in a day in this varied region. We then return to Buenos Aires to catch a flight
to Ushuaia, where we will join the Antarctic Voyage tour this evening.
What
to Expect
Most days begin with breakfast at 6:30 - 7:00 a.m.,
followed at mid-day by a picnic lunch. Generally, the tour proceeds
at a relaxed pace;
walking will be for short durations over fairly level ground and
will be easy to moderate. We may rest for a mid-day siesta on a
couple of days. Drives will be moderate in length.
Weather on the pampas in late October/early November is usually
pleasant, with warm days and cool nights. It could be hot by early
afternoon,
and rain is a possibility. It is a good idea to bring footwear that
is waterproof.
We should not encounter significant numbers of mosquitos; however,
you may wish to bring mosquito repellent especially for the day we
visit the province of Entre
Rios. Each evening, the list of birds and other wildlife will be reviewed during
dinner, and plans for the next day will be discussed.
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