Trinidad & Tobago Trip Report (Dec 5 – 16, 2025)
Day 1 – Arrival
Just after sundown we met as a group for the first time to go through a brief presentation about the adventure ahead of us, and to hear what those participants who arrived early had already observed at the feeders!
Day 2 – Asa Wright and Blanchesseuse Road
“BOCK!” call the Bearded Bellbirds from the canopy as Orange-winged Amazons and Blue-headed Parrots come out of their roosting sites. As soon as the fresh fruit was served on the feeders, a display of colors began to parade: Purple and Green Honeycreepers, Silver-beaked, Palm and White-lined Tanagers, Spactacled Thrush and Bananaquits. Hummingbirds are the stars at Asa Wright and we could spot and photograph them at the feeders and from natural perches: White-necked Jacobin, Copper-rumped Hummingbird, White-chested Emerald, Green Hermit, Brown Violetear and the skulky Blue-chinned Sapphire and Little Hermit also showed up.
Purple Honeycreeper © Ernesto Carman
Brown Violetear © Ernesto Carman
White-necked Jacobin © E Carman
Our incredibly knowledgeable local guide Dave Ramlal picked us up after breakfast and we began birding along the road that continues up the Arima Valley where we saw White-winged Becard, Crested Oropendola, Short-tailed Hawk, Olive-sided Flycatcher, brief glimpses of Swallow Tanager and White Hawk. Continuing down towards the village of Brasso Seco we encountered a small army ant swarm and had views of the skulky White-bellied Antbird and Barred Antshrike. We ate our picnic lunch in this village and we had a short rain shower which we hoped would bring out the birds, and so it did! We stopped along the roadside on the drive back and had great views of Channel-billed Toucan, Golden-headed Manakin, White-necked Thrush, Southern Beardless-Tyrannulet and the gorgeous Bay-headed and Speckled Tanagers! We returned to Asa Wright in time for afternoon tea and some birding from the veranda before nightfall.
White-bellied Antbird © E Carman
Channel-billed Toucans © E Carman
Day 3 – Asa Wright, Aripo Savanna, Nariva Swamp
We began our day as usual watching the bird feeders from the deck while drinking our morning cup of coffee, enjoying views of the multitude of hummingbirds including a male Tufted Coquette! After breakfast Dave picked us up once again and we drove down the Arima Valley. We made our first stop soon after and spotted two amazing tropical raptors, an Ornate Hawk-Eagle flying low over the forest and a Gray-headed Kite perched on a snag. At our next stop we found Savanna Hawk, White-headed Marsh-Tyrant, Giant Cowbird and many Grassland Yellow-finches flying around us, seemingly disappearing in the dense bushes. After lunch we drove through some rain as we neared Nariva and it stopped just in time for us to get out and bird. We began with fantastic scope views of Orange-winged and Yellow-crowned Parrots, Crested and Yellow-headed Caracaras, many Southern Lapwings, Blue-and-yellow Macaws, Striated Heron and the best views ever of Long-winged Harrier as a dark morph slowly patrolled the marsh at very close range. After our afternoon tea we began our drive back, only making a brief bathroom stop where we also saw Green-rumped Parrotlets.
Orange-winged Parrot © E Carman
Yellow-crowned Parrot © E Carman
Day 4 – Asa Wright
We met again on the deck for coffee and birds, continued practicing our hummingbird identification and even found Channel-billed Toucan, Common Black Hawk and Bearded Bellbird through the spotting scope. After breakfast we met Mukesh, the senior resident guide at Asa Wright who was going to take us to Dunston Cave to see one of the most unique birds on Trinidad, the Oilbird. After he gave us a history about the cave and facts about the bird’s ecology we began our hike through the rainforest and enjoyed great views of White-bellied Antbird, a denizen of the dark forest floor. Once we reached the cave we took turns, following strict protocols, walking through the stream to have a look at the Oilbirds which were looking back at us with their large, dark eyes.
Oilbird Cave © Ernesto Carman
We slowly walked back to the lodge for lunch and a siesta before we ventured out in the afternoon down the Discovery Trail. Here we had two targets, the Bearded Bellbird and White-bearded Manakin, and we succeeded at both! The male bellbird gave us prolonged views as it sang from a low tree and the manakins performed their display at their lek near the ground only a few meters in front of us.
Bearded Bellbird © Ernesto Carman
After dinner (and our share of the multiple flavors of delicious ice cream) we went for a night walk and found Yellow Tree frog, Lesser Antillean Whistling Frog, Thick-tailed Scorpion, mountain crabs, a small snake called the Long-tailed Machete and many more interesting invertebrates.
Long-tailed Machete © Paz Angulo
Day 5. Asa Wright, Waterloo and Caroni Swamp
Before breakfast we had our usual coffee and birds from the deck and did some birding from the parking lot as well where we had decent views of three species of swift, Gray-rumped, Band-rumped and Chestnut-collared. After breakfast we headed out for the day again with Dave and visited several different habitats. At our first stop we saw a Little Egret which is a scarce bird on Trinidad, coming from Africa. We also found Red-breasted Meadowlark, Black-necked Stilt and Lesser and Greater Yellowlegs.
Our next stop was near Waterloo where we birded the mudflats being exposed by low tide and a small patch of mangroves. Here we saw our first Scarlet Ibis, American Flamingo, Red Knot, Semipalmated Sandpiper, Short-billed Dowitcher, Willet, Hudsonian Whimbrel, Ruddy Turnstone feeding on the mudflats and Black-crested Antshrike, Bicolored Conebill, Mangrove Cuckoo and Rufous-browed Peppershrike in the mangroves.
Scarlet Ibis © E Carman
For lunch we stopped at a popular roti shop for lunch and had a delicious, traditional Trini-curry meal. After lunch we birded a side road near the mangroves called Sumaria Trace and saw Common Gallinule, Green-throated Mango, Yellow-hooded Blackbird, Ringed Kingfisher, Yellow-chinned Spinetail, Tricolored Munia and Common Waxbill.
Green-throated Mango © Ernesto Carman
Our next stop was a very special one: the Caroni Swamp boat tour where we were going to spend the rest of the afternoon. We boarded our boat and began cruising down the canals through the mangrove forest and spotted Straight-billed Woodcreeper, Black-crested Antshrike, Green Kingfisher, Bicolored Conebill, many American Redstarts and Yellow-crowned Night-Heron, as well as two Ruschenberg’s Tree Boas. The main objective of our boat ride however, was occurring on a small mangrove island in the center of the reserve. Here literally thousands of birds come to roost every evening including hundreds of egrets and herons, American Flamingos and well over a thousand Scarlet Ibis which make the island change from emerald green to scarlet red by sundown! Once the sun was gone we slowly worked our way back out of the mangroves searching for critters as we went and we spotted Common Pauraque, Common Potoo, a sleeping American Pygmy-Kingfisher and several Spectacled Caimans.
Caroni Swamp © Paz Angulo
Day 6 – Asa Wright, Grand Riviere
Before breakfast we went birding along the entrance road and found Gray-throated Leaftosser, Cocoa and Spectacled Thrush and a mixed feeding flock with Plain Antvireo, White-flanked Antwren, Red-crowned Ant-Tanager, Golden-fronted Greenlet and White-shouldered Tanager. After breakfast we packed our bags and began making our way to the north eastern part of Trinidad. We made our lunch stop at Bajnath’s Estate where Josh and his family maintain a dozen hummingbird feeders and go through one hundred pounds of sugar per week! Needless to say, the hummingbird numbers and diversity were phenomenal, including good views of a new species for us, the Ruby-topaz Hummingbird! We also enjoyed an amazing home-made traditional lunch with Trini-curry, buss-up shot and dal-pouri. Memory cards and stomachs filled to the brim, we continued on to Mount Plaisir Lodge in the small sea-side village of Grande Riviere.
After checking in to our rooms we went for a short walk and saw Rufous-browed Peppershrike, Yellow-rumped Cacique, Shiny Cowbird, Yellow Oriole and Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl.
Birding at Bajnath’s Estate © Paz Angulo
Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl © Ernesto Carman
Day 7 – Grand Riviere
At 6a.m. sharp we took a very short drive to the top of a forested hill with one target in mind: the Pawi, or Trinidad Piping-Guan. While we waited we were entertained by the hummingbirds, including a male Tufted Coquette which was busy showing off his outrageous plumage to a female. After about an hour the guans began to make their appearance, coming into a fruiting wild nutmeg tree from which they were feeding. We all had superb and extended views and once the guans moved away we went back to the hotel for our own breakfast. Mid-morning we walked through the village and down to the big river, or Grand Riviere, and despite the heat we saw Giant Cowbird, Green Kingfisher, Gray-lined Hawk, Common Black Hawk and a Black Hawk-Eagle. After lunch we birded a road through old cocoa plantations and saw White-bearded Manakin, Black-tailed Tityra, Rufous-breasted Wren, Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl, many Orange-winged Amazons and even another guan, resting in a tree alongside the road.
Trinidad Piping Guan © E Carman
Tufted Coquette © E Carman
Day 8. Grand Riviere, Port of Spain, Blue Waters Inn
Before breakfast we walked the same road from the evening before and had great birds including Crimson-crested Woodpecker, a Streaked Xenops excavating it’s nest cavity, Olive-gray Saltator, Trinidad Euphonia and the extremely skulky Silvered Antbird. After breakfast we drove to the main airport outside of Port of Spain for our flight to the sister island of Tobago. Here we were met by Gairy who drove us to Blue Waters Inn, our home for the next three nights.
Crimson-crested Woodpecker © Ernesto Carman
Streaked Xenops © E Carman
Day 9. Blue Waters Inn and Little Tobago Island
We met before breakfast for our usual early morning walk and saw many Magnificent Frigatebirds flying against the moon, Yellow-headed Caracara, a Peregrine Falcon seeming weightless as it effortlessly kited against the steady ocean wind, Brown-crested Flycatcher, Northern White-fringed Antwren, Gray Kingbird, Brown Pelican and fantastic views of a perched Great Black Hawk, all while Rufous-vented Chachalacas accompanied us with their raucous calls. After breakfast we met Troy who took us on a short boat ride to the island of Little Tobago. Here we had several Trinidad Motmots, Brown-crested Flycatcher and fleeting glimpses of Scaly-naped Pigeons. We did have to wait under a roof for a bit of rain to pass before we walked up to a view point overlooking the sheer cliffs facing the Atlantic and here we had spectacular views of Red-footed and Brown Boobies and the elegant Red-billed Tropicbirds constantly harassed by the pirates of the sky, the frigatebirds. On our return to the hotel we went slowly over the coral reef looking through the glass-bottom windows, seeing all sorts of tropical fish and corals. After lunch the rain set in and we took the opportunity to get some rest.
Brown Pelican © P Angulo
Day 10. Blue Waters Inn, Main Ridge Forest Reserve and Hummingbirds Paradise
Our early morning walk took us a bit further this time to the old sugar mill near Speyside where we saw the usual suspects but also had Black-faced Grassquit, Yellow-crowned Night-Heron and Little Blue Heron. After breakfast Gairy picked us up again and drove us to the Main Ridge Forest Preserve which is the oldest protected area in the world created for conservation purposes. We birded along the roadside in this unique rainforest habitat and had fantastic views of Blue-backed Manakin, Barred Antshrike, Golden-olive Woodpecker, Rufous-tailed Jacamar and Rufous-breasted Hermits feeding from the pink Centropogon flowers along the roadside. We drove over the mountain and dropped down towards Bloody Bay where we visited Junior Thomas’ house to enjoy his “meet-and-greet” hummingbird experience. Although we had seen most of the hummingbirds present at his feeders, we had splendid views of White-tailed Sabrewing! We also had the opportunity to use tiny hand feeders, a fun experience indeed!
Rufous-tailed Jacamar © Paz Angulo
After we enjoyed our sandwiches we made our way back to Roxborough where Gairy had some intel on a Common Potoo that had been spotted a couple days prior, but with this species, even if you know the trees where it was seen, it is very difficult to spot! After some searching though, eagle-eyed Gairy called us over because he had found it! We had great scope views and before we left we also enjoyed some very close views of another Trinidad Motmot. We returned to the hotel and had some downtime to rest and dip our toes in the ocean.
Common Potoo © P Angulo
Trinidad Motmot © P Angulo
Day 11. Adventure Farms, Bon Accord Sewage Lagoons and Centre Ponds, Port of Spain.
After Breakfast we got on the bus with Gairy again and made the drive to Adventure Farms where the bird feeders were crazy! We had all the usual hummingbird suspects plus at least eight Ruby Topaz Hummingbirds showing off, glowing with their multicolored plumage in the sun. At the fruit feeders we had clear and close views of Trinidad Motmot, Spectacled Thrush and Barred Antshrikes until they were all scared-off by a Great Black Hawk that flew into the trees just behind the feeders! The only thing that could make the situation any better would be a cup of good icecream…and we had that too. After Adventure Farms we made a stop for our picnic lunch near the beach where we saw a Royal Tern and Eared Doves. From here we visited two spots with ponds, Centre Ponds and the Bon Accord Sewage treatment plant where we added some waterbirds including Black-bellied Whistling-Duck, American Wigeon, Blue-winged Teal, the elegant White-cheeked Pintails, Common and Purple Gallinules, Least Grebe, Glossy Ibis, Wattled Jacana, Green-rumped Parrotlet and Anhinga. From here we made the short drive to the Tobago airport for our flight to Port of Spain. After checking into our hotel we went for our final dinner and said our goodbyes. Hasta pronto!
Our group
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