Bald Eagle art

Costa Rica - Keel-billed Toucan

Tremendous diversity in a small country!

Trip Information

Date: March 12 - 26, 2010

Duration: 15 days

Leaders: Richard Knapton

Limit: 12 people

Cost: $3975 USD, $4395 CDN
Single supplement $350 USD, $390 CDN

From: San Jose, Costa Rica

Featured birds:
• Snowcap
• Resplendent Quetzal
• Scarlet Macaw
• Coppery-headed Emerald
• Spectacled Owl
• Snowy-bellied Hummingbird
• Fiery-billed Aracari
• Volcano Junco
• Black-crested Coquette
• Three-wattled Bellbird
• Black-hooded Antshrike

Trip Summary:
• Diverse birding habitats
• Easy to moderate walking, some hill climbing
• Tropical and temperate climates

• Good to very good accommodation
• 400 + bird species
• 4 to 8 participants with one leader
• 9 to 12 participants with two leaders
• Air-conditioned bus with driver

Costa Rica – the Rich Coast! Over 870 species of birds have been recorded from this small country, renowned for its relatively easy birding, good accommodation, comfortable and pleasurable infrastructure and peaceful policies. Costa Rica with neighbouring western Panama is a major centre of avian endemism, with nearly 70 species found nowhere else! This small country hosts tremendous diversity and we visit all major habitats to sample its amazing variety of birds. We spend two great days birding the lush Caribbean foothill forests around Rancho Naturalista, a very special place with an impressive list of birds and other forms of wildlife - our stay here will be one of the highlights of the trip. We bird the amazing Carara and Rio Tarcoles, and the incredibly bird-rich foothills of Braulio Carillo and lowlands of La Selva which has some of tbirdwatchinghe best Caribbean lowland forest remaining in Costa Rica with many unique birds. We visit cloud forests at the Tapanti Reserve and the high elevation forests and paramo of Cerro de la Muerte in search of Resplendent Quetzal, Silver-throated Jay and many others. Finally, we explore the dry forest regions of the Pacific Northwest, which hold a whole new suite of birds. As many participants comment, each day just keeps getting better and better!

See detailed itinerary below

Past checklists from our Costa Rica tour:

2009 Costa Rica tour (199 k pdf)
2007 Costa Rica tour (pdf)
2006 Costa Rica tour (148k pdf)
2004 Costa Rica tour (pdf)
2002 Costa Rica tour (pdf)

Click here to download a registration form

Photos by Cam Gillies


Itinerary

Day 1 - Arrival in San José
The tour begins in the evening after dinner with an orientation at our hotel, possibly finding Prevost’s Ground-sparrow in the hotel grounds. Night in San José.

Day 2 - Dry Forest Birding
After birding the hotel grounds, we head for the dry tropical forest biome of Guanacaste where we have our first introduction to several neotropical families – trogons, toucans, motmots, puffbirds and antbirds. We visit several different habitats in this area: evergreen forest, tropical dry forest, savanna pasture, mangroves, saline ponds and lakes, and freshwater marsh. Species typical of dry forests include Thicket Tinamou, Collared Forest-Falcon, Yellow-naped Parrot, Banded Wren, Cinnamon Hummingbird, Scrub Euphonia, White-lored Gnatcatcher, Olive Sparrow, Streak-backed and Spot-breasted Orioles, and Lesser Ground-Cuckoo. Night near Canas.

Day 3 – Wetland Birding
We spend the morning birding various habitats; salt pans support a rich assortment of shorebirds, terns and skimmers, savannah pastures have Double-striped Thick-knee and Spot-bellied Bobwhite, freshwater marshes are home to nesting Jabirus as well as Wood Stork, Limpkin, many herons, Black-bellied and Fulvous Whistling-ducks, Muscovy Duck, and Snail Kite. Pacific Screech-owls occur in gardens. After lunch, we depart for Villa Lapas and the marvelous park at Carara. Night at Carara.

Days 4 - 5 Carara
Carara preserves a large tract of beautiful and bird-rich tropical semi- evergreen forest. It is an amazing place and birding can be marvelous. The site offers a wonderful array of woodcreepers, trogons, and manakins including the stunning Orange-collared, likely displaying when we are there. We could see several species of woodpeckers, flycatchers, antbirds, antwrens and antpittas— the possibilities seem endless! We may find American Pygmy Kingfisher by a woodland pool, or a Boat-billed Heron perched in a tree along the lagoon, or a Long-billed Gnatwren busily hunting insects—or a troop of coatimundis seemingly oblivious to our presence. We look for Baird’s Trogon, Black-hooded, Giant and Barred Antshrikes, Yellow-billed Cotinga, Golden-crowned Spadebill, and many more. We also visit mangroves along the Rio Tárcoles to look for the endemic Mangrove Hummingbird, Panama and Northern Scrub Flycatchers, Mangrove Black Hawk, and shorebirds and waders such as Roseate Spoonbill. We stay at a hotel only a few minutes from the preserve. Trails close to the hotel lead to leks of Long-tailed and Orange-collared Manakins, as well as Rufous-and-white Wren, Black-faced Antthrush and much more. In the evening we travel to a spot where Scarlet Macaws and other birds fly over on their way to their roosts and American Crocodiles loaf along the river bank. Nights at Carara.

Day 6 - San Isidro

Leaving Carara we drive south along the Pacific Coasts where we should encounter species such as Red-crowned Woodpecker, Pearl Kite and American Swallow-tailed Kite. We stop at Hacienda Baru for lunch, and birding the trails and ocean shore could produce specialties such as Snowy-bellied Hummingbird and Fiery-billed Aracari, whilst offshore Brown Boobies should be fishing. We then head to our lodge near San Isidro del General. Here we encounter yet another suite of birds, such as Smooth-billed Ani, Turquoise Cotinga, Orange-billed Nightingale-Thrush, Lesser Elaenia, Cherrie’s Tanager and Streaked Saltator. Night near San Isidro del General.

Days 7 and 8 - Cordillera de Talamanca

In the morning we head to the cloud forest and páramo of the Cordillera de Talamanca. Along the way we stop at a location for White-tailed Emerald and Red-headed Barbet, and visit the high paramo for Volcano Junco and Timberline Wren. Then it is off to our lodge in the Valley of the Quetzals. Here, along dirt roads and forest trails passing among trees draped in epiphytes, we find a new suite of birds such as Fiery-throated Hummingbird, Ruddy Treerunner, Buffy Tuftedcheek, Black-capped Flycatcher, Long-tailed and Black-and-yellow Silky-Flycatchers, Collared Redstart, Large-footed Finch, Silvery-throated Jay, and the magnificent Resplendent Quetzal. Nights at Savegre Lodge.

Day 9 - Tapantí
We leave in the morning and head for the Tapantí Reserve, where we spend most of the day. The Reserve is a great example of middle to high elevation Caribbean forest. Here we look for Black Guan, Brown-billed Scythebill, Streak-breasted Treehunter, Black-bellied Hummingbird, Green-fronted Lancebill and Chestnut-headed Oropendola. Night in Orosi.

Day 10 - Rancho Naturalista
We may revisit Tapanti early in the morning, then we drop into an organic coffee farm, before driving to Rancho Naturalista, a 125-acre ranch and preserve located in premontane rain forest at 300 feet. Rancho has a rich diversity of mid-elevation species and is a location for some exceptionally scarce birds. We spend the rest of the day first on the balcony of the lodge, enjoying an astonishing parade of exceptional birds from hummingbirds to tanagers and oropendolas, and then explore the nearby rich forests, searching for such local species as Tawny-chested Flycatcher, Snowcap, Black-crested Coquette, Dull-mantled Antbird, Tawny-throated Leaftosser, Whistling Wren (an amazing singer!) and many other goodies. Night at Rancho Naturalista.

Day 11 – Rancho Naturalista and transfer to Selva Verde
We spend the morning at Rancho, taking in trails not visited the day before. After lunch, we head towards our lodge along the Río Sarapiquí. Night at Selva Verde.

Days 12 & 13 - Caribbean Lowlands

We make the lodge our central point for birding several diverse locations in some of the richest areas in Costa Rica. During our stay, we visit La Selva, a wonderful tract of wet lowland rainforest where some 400 species of birds have been reported. We’ll see a fine array of neotropical fauna—tinamous, motmots, puffbirds, cotingas, trogons, toucans, chachalacas, maybe ant-followers at an ant swarm or a Great Curassow walking stealthily on the forest floor, lots of tanagers, as well as monkeys and who knows what else. A boat ride along the Sarapiqui could turn up Fasciated Tiger-Heron, Sungrebe, Sunbittern and American Pygmy Kingfisher! We spend time at mid-elevation forest at Virgen del Socorro, where birding can be fabulous! We will likely encounter mixed-species flocks here, sometimes containing over 15 species, especially tanagers. White Hawks soar over the valley, Violet-headed Hummingbirds sing endlessly from open perches - the list seems endless. Nights at Selva Verde.

Day 14 – Braulio Carrillo and back to San Jose

We leave the Caribbean Lowlands and head through the magnificent Braulio Carrillo National Park. Here we will walk trails looking for specialties such as Lattice-tailed Trogon, Ornate Hawk-Eagle, and several antbirds and antwrens. Night in San Jose.

Day 15 - Departure

Our tour concludes in San José after breakfast.


What to Expect

Our daily travel schedule will vary to account for weather, bird species and habitat. Expect some early morning, before-breakfast walks, as well as late evening viewing. Almost without exception it is best to begin birding at daybreak in the tropics, when bird activity and song are at their peak. In forest regions, we concentrate on “edge” birding until the light is sufficient to enter forest trails. Often bird activity will slacken off by noon, when we may return to our hotel for lunch and a short siesta. On occasion, we will have picnic lunches prepared for us so that we can eat in the field, maximizing our time in the field and allowing us a more flexible schedule.

We bird again in the coolness of the late afternoon, occasionally staying out after dusk to search for nightbirds. Weather conditions on the trip will range from hot to cool; mostly, it will be warm with a mixture of sun and cloud. Walking conditions range from easy to moderate; if there has been rain, then trails could be muddy. Strong, waterproof footwear is advised and a light rain-jacket and waterproof hat are often essential. There will be opportunities for photography, as many birds and other wildlife allow close approach. Bring mosquito repellant - mosquitoes are not usually a problem but can be active after rain In the evening we eat at a favored restaurant or at the hotel or lodge where we are staying. At this time we discuss the day’s activities, review the list of birds and other wildlife that we have seen and heard, and prepare for the next day.


 

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