Birds come and go with the seasons. When you begin avian appreciation methods, this is one of the first things you learn. As a child, winter birding in Niagara was a frosty adventure where the mighty woods echoed with the calls of crows and the chatter of chickadees.
Niagara’s rushing, cold waters are a blizzard of gulls and diving ducks. There was a lucky flock of January redpolls, maybe a few other things but where were the Baltimore Orioles? How about fancy warbler pages?
Of course, there were many in Costa Rica but in my 80s universe, they were birds of the distant summer months and wilder places than our street. Eventually, I learned how to catch them, to coincide May’s visit to the old-growth forests on Goat Island with waves of warblers and other migrating birds.
Birds in Costa Rica also come and go, not nearly as much as the northern areas, but we do experience some avian changes. Over the seasons, it is mostly wet or dry but we also have migration times, weeks when birds pass through Costa Rica.
We have just started one of the transit periods, this is what is happening now.
The First Raptors of Spring River
The first of the raptors began migrating to Costa Rica. Birders see circling flocks of Turkey Vultures along with a scattering of Swainson’s Hawks. These birds are the first drops of the growing current in the twice-a-year River of Raptors.
They flow north in the spring, then back south in the fall. It is an absolute wonder, a wildlife spectacle that must be shown to all students on its path.
“Look! Can you see all the flying birds? Take a closer look at these binoculars. Those vultures and hawks fly over Pennsylvania, Utah, and Canada. Where are those places? Here’s a map, check it out! Some will fly over the Bison, others will hear the howls of wolves. People can watch a lot in those places, even young people like you.”
swallow
During one of my first stays in Costa Rica, in 1995, I learned a word. Maybe I’ve read it somewhere but I’ve never actually said “Hirundines” out loud, certainly never deployed it in a sentence.
I learned (or re-learned) the term from Steve, an English birder my friend Alec and I met while birding in Carara National Park, when the River Trail was almost too birdy to believe and ended at a lake of oxbow.
Dedicated Steve carries heavy gear, a scope and I don’t know what else but enough to generate waves of sweat. He kept wiping his glasses, cleaning his personal coolant. That’s what he was doing when we asked Steve what he saw.
“This and that, some Hirundines…”.
I thought, “What is that bird?” and he must have noticed my confusion.
“You know, swallows. Martins.”
These days, the Hirundines are beginning to return to Costa Rica, beginning to fly back north to colonial nests for another season of bugs, nesting, and caring for young.
I saw my first Cliffs of the year the other day, the pioneers of millions on the verge of flying in Costa Rica. A few Banks have also arrived as flocks of Purple Martins are streaming up the Caribbean coast.
I hope to see some of those martins, I’m eager to scan the sky for Hirundines.
Prothonotary Warblers and Louisiana Waterthrushes are leaving
Some birds arrive in Costa Rica from wintering grounds in South America, while others who have wintered here are packing their bags. It is not surprising that the first migrants north were birds that first left these mountains and mangroves.
Recently, I watched the Prothnotary Warbler in dry forest, far from their usual watery habitat. I suspect they are migrants soon to join the winters here. Like all night migrants, they left secretly. No goodbyes, no last calls as they leave and mark their way north.
A bunch in the mangroves one day, just a few the next, and then, before you know it, it’s gone. It is the same for the Louisiana Waterthrush except that the tail bobber departs from the rushing mountain stream. You know, like its nests but with cloud forests on the banks.
Costa Rica Summer Birds are Back!
Technically, our year-round residents are also summer birds. Technically, we don’t really have summer. However, we do have some birds that migrate to Costa Rica for the same months of baseball, fireworks, and other outdoor summer fun up north.
Recent birding has shown me that those birds are back. Reminded me of yellow-green Vireos with constant caroling phrases. The first Piratic Flycatchers whistle with anticipation for the upcoming breeding season, not to nest mind you, but to steal or pirate another bird’s nest. I heard the squeak of my first 2024 Sulphur-bellied Flycatcher and witnessed the elegant antics of Swallow-tailed Kites.
Wintering Birds Tuning up Vocal Chords
Another sign of spring in Costa Rica is the voices of winter birds. We rarely hear warblers sing but, in March, some couldn’t resist. They haven’t sung in a long time, the young birds haven’t sung yet. It shows when a Black-throated Green tries a song or two, when a Wilson’s Warbler chats or an Indigo Bunting with a strange mix of jubilant notes.
Their songs are weak and tend to be quiet, almost what you would expect from restarting vocal chords.
Other birds can also sing, March and early April is the one time in Costa Rica when we hear Chuck-will’s-Widows and Eastern Whip-Poor-Wills saying their names. A few lucky birders heard Chuck-will sing before they left, and I know a couple of very lucky birders who heard Whip-poor-Will near Athens.
That is a rare bird for Costa Rica, we have no idea how many winters here but the numbers must be low. They told me how, one early morning in April, they heard the distinctive song of a Whip-poor-will, a species with which they were familiar. Because of their account, I like to go out there in the early morning, to be in the green space and just listen to the start of the day.
I want to see who sends their goodbyes, to see which birds are ready to fly back into the night sky and set the compass for the north.
Birds in Costa Rica are on the move. Migrants moving across the country, and Three-wattled Bellbirds and other resident species tune up as well. Some sing more to mark their territories. Whether you’re thinking about where to go birding in Costa Rica for an upcoming trip, or are already here, it’s a great time to go birding in Costa Rica. Hope to see you here!
