Trip
Summary
Date: TBA
Duration: 10
days
Leader: Cam
Gillies & Ernesto Carman
Limit: 12
people
Cost: TBA
From:
San Jose, Costa Rica
Featured
Birds:
• Swainson’s Hawk
•
Broad-winged Hawk
•
Turkey Vulture
•
Mississippi Kite
•
Hook-billed Kite
•
Double-toothed Kite
•
Peregrine Falcon
•
Black Hawk-Eagle
•
Black-chested Jay
•
Snowy Cotinga
•
Canebrake Wren
•
Green and Rufous Kingfisher
•
White-vented Euphonia
Trip
Summary:
• Moderate 1 to 1.5 hour walk uphill to observation tower
•
Comfortable Oceanside accommodation
•
Warm humid tropical climate
•
4 to 12 participants with two guides
•
Tens of thousands of migrating raptors
•
Excellent forest birding
•
Air conditioned transportation |
Witness an amazing migration spectacle as raptors from across North America travel to wintering grounds in South America. Every fall Swainson’s Hawks, Broad-winged Hawks and Turkey Vultures in the hundreds of thousands
plus smaller numbers of other species funnel along Costa Rica’s
Caribbean coast. Imagine seeing 286,000 raptors in one day on October
27, 2003! Or 189 Peregrine Falcon on October 21, 2003! At the peak
time, which coincides with our visit, raptors can travel by literally
in clouds. We also bird the forest of the Caribbean lowlands and slopes,
which feature a diverse array of tropical
birds including many resident raptors. An amazing spectacle set against
a beautiful backdrop of primary
forest and Caribbean beaches.
Click here to download
registration form.
Click here to download a checklist of the birds seen on the 2003 Costa
Rica Hawk scouting trip.
Photos: Migrating
hawks by Cam Gillies, Swainson's Hawk
by Al Grass |
Itinerary
Every
fall, an amazing migration spectacle occurs along the Caribbean coast
of Central America. Raptors from across North America
converge along this coast for their southward migration. Over 2 million
raptors have been counted each fall from the hawk monitoring tower on
Costa Rica’s Caribbean coast. It is one of only three sites in
the world where more than 1 million raptors are counted per season. Imagine
seeing 286,000 raptors in one day on October 27, 2003! Or 189 Peregrine
Falcon on October 21, 2003! At the peak time, which coincides with our
visit, raptors can travel by literally in clouds. This is a great location
for observing this spectacle because the topography concentrates the
raptors and a local conservation organization in partnership with a local
indigenous reserve has constructed a 10-meter tower for observation.
All of this is set against a beautiful backdrop of hills of primary forest
and beautiful Caribbean beaches.
Cam, our leader writes, “I spent an amazing morning counting hawks
with Ernesto, who works at the observation tower. At one point in the
morning, a huge group of migrating hawks approached and Ernesto quickly
started clicking his mechanical counter. After about 20 minutes the majority
of the birds had passed. Ernesto showed me the counter for the number
of Swainson’s Hawks ‘1,121’, but he was counting in
10s. 11,210 Swainson’s Hawks had just gone by! It was incredible!”
We spend most of our time on the Caribbean coast, watching this spectacle,
but we will also visit middle elevation habitats on our travel to and
from the coast to sample some more of the diversity that this amazing
country has to offer. We stop in the Caribbean foothills of Braulio Carrillo
National Park on our way to the coast and in the cloud forests of Tapantí National
Park on our return to San Jose. While on the coast, we spend our mornings
at the observation tower or birding some of the excellent low elevation
forest that remains in this relatively intact and infrequently birded
corner of the country. In the afternoons, we mix excursions to nearby
areas with relaxing by the pool or at the beach by our hotel. We are
guaranteed to see tens of thousands of migrating raptors and the surrounding
environs are likely to hold many wonderful surprises!
Day 1 – Arrival in San José
The tour begins in the evening after dinner. We will meet for a brief
introduction and discussion of the coming adventure. Night at our hotel
in San José.
Day 2 – Travel to the Caribbean Coast
After an early breakfast we head for the Caribbean coast, stopping
along the way to spend the morning birding in Braulio Carrillo National
Park.
This is a superb area of the Caribbean foothills that holds many species
that we will not see at the coast. We will look for these specialties
and hope for views of resident raptors such as Great Black Hawk, Barred
Hawk,
White Hawk, or Barred Forest-Falcon. After a walk along the forest trails
and a lunch, we continue on to the Caribbean coast and arrive in the
afternoon. Night near Puerto Viejo.
Days 3 to 7 – Hawk watching at the Caribbean coast.
Enthusiastic to see the spectacle, we walk to the observation tower on
our first morning. We start near sea level and walk up a hill in the
Kekoldi Indian Reserve to the observation tower. We walk at a relaxed
pace to enjoy
the birding in the forest and abandoned cacao plantations. This is a
beautiful walk where we will encounter many forest birds such as Spotted
Antbird,
Bicolored Antbird, Purple-throated Fruitcrow, and Black-chested Jay.
We will also see two brilliantly colored species of Poison-Arrow frogs.
The observation tower rises 10 meters up to the level of the canopy to
provide clear views of the horizon and the sky above while still being
shaded. Our first views of raptors will come as the land begins to warm
and warm air starts to rise as thermals. Large groups will appear out
of the forest and begin circling in ‘kettles’. Once they have
gained some height, they will begin moving southward. The majority of the
migrating raptors are Turkey Vultures, Swainson’s Hawks and Broad-winged
Hawks, but there are also Peregrine Falcon, Merlin, Osprey, Mississippi
Kite, Cooper’s Hawk, and Sharp-shinned Hawk. There will also be thousands
of migrating swallows and swifts. The migration begins early in the day
and continues all day unless there is a strong rain shower.
Beyond the raptors moving by overhead, the birding from the tower can
be excellent. It is very enjoyable to be at the treetops and have species
such as Collared Aracari, Blue Dacnis, Shining Honeycreeper, or Black-headed
Tody-Flycatcher moving by at eye-level or below. Here and elsewhere several
other raptors are possible including King Vulture, Double-toothed Kite,
Hook-billed Kite, White-tailed Kite, Common Black Hawk, Roadside Hawk,
Short-tailed Hawk, White Hawk, Black Hawk-Eagle, Bat Falcon and Laughing
Falcon.
During our five full days on the Caribbean coast, we will likely spend
two mornings and a full day at the observation tower watching the migrating
raptors and other birds. We will choose these days based on the current
weather conditions to try to be there for the best days possible. This
area receives a large amount of precipitation so we have to be a little
flexible to adjust for rain. On our other mornings we will enjoy some
of the superb and easily accessible forest birding in this area. We may
encounter
migrants such as Bay-breasted Warbler and Summer Tanager, and many resident
species-some of them with spectacular coloration including honeycreepers,
seven species of parrots, euphonias, tanagers, trogons and motmots. We
look for Sulfur-rumped Tanager, which is very hard to find in Costa Rica,
being restricted to this corner of the country. There will also be many
other forest birds including tinamous, antbirds, and woodcreepers. In
the afternoons, we will have several options including a tour by canoe
of a
wetland in the Gandoca-Manzanillo National Wildlife Refuge. Here we will
hope to see some of the waterbirds in the area such as Green Ibis or
Green-and-rufous Kingfisher. Because the forest birding is slower in
the afternoons, we
will also be able to spend time relaxing on the shores of the Caribbean
or by the pool. All while still watching raptors migrate overhead! We
will also likely try a little evening owling for species such as Central
American
Pygmy-Owl and Spectacled Owl.
Day 8 – Travel
to the highlands
After a final morning on the coast, we leave mid-morning and head inland
and upward to the Caribbean slopes of the central mountains. We will
stop along the way to bird a few good spots along the way. We will stop
in to tour and bird an organic coffee farm, where we can learn more about
organic coffee and buy some truly fresh coffee! Night in Orosi.
Day 9 – Tapanti National Park and return to San José
We leave early to do some excellent birding in the primary forests of
Tapanti National Park. The Tapanti reserve is an area of Caribbean forest
that is higher elevation that Braulio Carrillo. We will look for Black
Guan, Brown-billed Scythebill, Black-bellied Hummingbird, Red-headed
Barbet and other higher elevation specialties. With luck we may see the
amazing Resplendent Quetzal! We will also be looking closely for any
other raptors such as Black Hawk-Eagle that may be soaring in the valley
below us. In the afternoon, we will return to San José. Night
in San José.
Day 10 – Departure
Our tour concludes in San José after breakfast. We will all head
home to develop our film and recount the stories from this amazing adventure.
What
to expect:
On this tour we combine observing the raptor migration with birding for
other species in the forest and other habitats. Our daily schedule will
vary depending on the weather conditions for migration and birding. Each
day will start early to enjoy the best birding and migration, but there
will be options to skip the early morning if you need a break. This is
a very wet area so we can except that we may get a full day of rain and
showers on other days. At the coast it will be warm and humid, but the
nights are still comfortable. Birding at the higher elevations will be
a very comfortable temperature, but may be wet because this will be in
the rainy season. We have the luxury of staying in the same locale so
it will give us flexibility to adjust our schedule to fit the conditions.
We will also have time midday or in the afternoons for relaxation on
the beach or by the pool.
The walk up to the observation tower will take one to one and a half
hours. This will be at a moderate pace to give us chances to enjoy the
birding along the way, but it will require a reasonable level of fitness
because we gain about 150 meters or 500 feet of elevation. The trail
itself is a dirt road part of the way and a relatively smooth dirt trail
with moderately inclined sections. At the tower, we will spend much time
sitting or standing and staring at the sky, so bring your sunglasses
to give your eyes a rest. You will need sturdy footwear for the walk,
and a hat and light cotton clothing for the sun and the heat.
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