I slept in this morning, not even birding! That will change tomorrow when I wake up before dawn to guide in the Poas area. It will be good, in the mountains of Costa Rica, the birding is always. I experienced some unforgettable mountain birding last week along with another week of lowlands and middle elevation birding while guiding several birders from one corner of Costa Rica to the next.
This is a biodiverse birding rush, an immersion in natural Costa Rica to see how much we can find in an itinerary carefully planned to experience as much Costa Rican avifauna as possible. There was a little driving, a lot of walking, less rain than expected, amazing hospitality, and great food in a variety of small, out-of-the-way places.
The plan was a success as there were also over 475 species of birds seen including 40 that were only heard of. Highlights are a daily occurrence including the last bit of birding yesterday morning when we spotted the elusive Cabanis’s Ground-Sparrow (a fitting final bird for the list!).
I’m still wrapping my head around the trip, wondering which highlights to mention. Wandering through the salt pans at Punta Morales and seeing dozens of caged Black Skimmers along with hundreds of Marbled Godwits, Willets, and other shorebirds? Spectacular, glowing sight of a male Mangrove Hummingbird on the Caldera quickly followed by a Lesser Ground-Cuckoo hopping into view? Or, how about the Resplendent Quetzal shining jade green in the majestic oak forests adorned with lichen and bromeliads?
Those are a few highlights that come to mind, here are a few more.
Last Minute Birding in Los Chiles
After a long drive from the Pocosol Biological Station, we arrived in Los Chiles just in time for the afternoon birding action. As soon as we got out of the car, the new birds were fast and furious. It didn’t matter that people were talking and walking around the river “dock” and nearby park.
Spot-breasted Wrens scrambling in the vines here! Flyover Red-lored Parrots, flyby Roseate Spoonbills, whoah…Black-collared Hawk! A swift Harris’s Hawk follows, Lesser Swallow-tailed Swifts over the trees, Barn Swallows zipping by, kingfishers rattling and flying, it’s all around and all at once!
As dusk fell, a Bat Falcon stalked the river’s currents and nighthawks blazed into view. The first is an unusual migrant Common Nighthawk! Others with blunt wingtips and smaller white spots are Lessers!
Birding is welcome after the trip and preparation for birding action the next morning.
Marsh Action Half Cheese
After a night at the CyC Hotel (much recommended for a night or two), we headed to the nearby Medio Queso marsh before dawn. I was hoping for a Striped Owl, wishing for an Ocellated Poorwill. I suspect we almost got the owl; we noticed a pale owl flew out of a ditch. However, we didn’t get a good look at it, never saw it again and couldn’t discount an American Barn Owl. No longshot poorwills either but we had a perfect view of Pacific Screech-Owls before a beautiful morning in a flooded swamp.
The water level was high and we probably didn’t see Snail Kite and Limpkin but we still saw a lot of birds. There were good looks at Pinnated and Least Bitterns, the pinkish-beaked Nicaraguan Seed-Finch, a distant Sungrebe, an unexpected White-tailed Hawk, and more.
Yellow-breasted Crakes walked and flew into view without playback, a White-throated Crake swam across the channel, and a wintering Sora briefly flushed the grass. Luckily, before leaving, we focused on Lesser Yellow-headed Vultures making their harrier movements over the marsh.
Tirimbina
We have an afternoon, a full day, and a bit of a morning in Sarapiqui. That’s a bit of an injustice for this birdy region but we have other places to visit, can’t afford to spend more time in the Caribbean lowlands.
To bird the forest, I chose the Tirimbina Reserve. This reserve has a beautiful lowland rainforest, a “canopy” path over a cliff, a rushing river, and an abundance of birds. I also like Tirimbina because it is open to the public at 6. Walk in, pay the entrance fee and the birds are yours to see.
Our morning visit was more or less unremarkable. Fasciated Tiger-Heron from the bridge, Grey-cheeked Thrushes, White-collared Manakins, and other garden birds, and we haven’t even gotten to the forest yet.
Once we got there, it wasn’t long before we lucked into a dream Neotropical birding situation; Army Ant swarm!
There are a bunch of birds including point blank Ocellated Antbirds, furtive Spotted Antbirds, woodcreepers, and more. It’s hard to pick the best bird but three Olive-backed Quail-Doves are a good contender! We had a perfect look as they walked along the edge of the swarm, probably wondering if they should stay or get away from the biting ants.
There was also the Great Tinamou that walked towards us on the trail, White-fronted Nunbirds going crazy, Black-capped Pygmy-Tyrant, puffbirds, and the Black Hawk-Eagle that circled over the river at eye level as we walked back to across the bridge Yes, Tirimbina is a great site!
An eBird list from that morning.
Paint-billed Crakes in Flight
Wait what? Um, yeah…maybe not like flying around but still flying! During our morning visit to the rice paddies and swamps south of Ciudad Neily, we encountered a tractor couple preparing a field for planting rice. When I noticed that the most tractored field was already filled with egrets, caracaras, and other birds, I thought we should stay and see what happens.
Sure enough, while watching one of the tractors, I noticed a Sora fly out of the old, marshy rice. We kept watching and much to our luck, eventually we saw at least 6 Paint-billed Crakes flush from the grass. Actually, we may have seen more. The birds quickly flush and then hide although one flew in front of us, close enough to see the red in his beak!
From a distance, they look like thick, dark gray rails with red legs, and are more irregularly shaped dark blue-grey than white-bellied Soras. I also witnessed a small crake blush, possibly a Grey-breasted. But, after a few seconds of waiting for a better look, an adult Peregrine suddenly snatched it from my sight!
The raptor immediately dispatched the little bird, I can still see its legs and neck dangling from the falcon’s talons as the master hunter carried the crake.
We also witnessed a Savannah Hawk catching something as well as egrets and a Wood Stork grabbing mice, and a Crested Caracara unsuccessfully staking a Paint-billed Crake.
Tonight we stayed at Fortuna Verde, definitely the best place to stay while touring this area. They have some forest behind and their hospitality is second to none. Highly recommended!
Snowcap and 36 other Hummingbird Species
I’m happy to say we did pretty well on the hummingbird front. Violetears, sabrewings, Blue-throated Goldentails. Coppery-headed and White-tailed Emeralds, Black-crested Coquettes, and more. However, the prize may go to Snowcap.
After the briefest look at Pocosol, we needed better views. We got them at the end of the day at one of the few reliable sites for this species; Centro Manu.
It took some anxious waiting but just before 5pm, like fairies with headlamps, two guys flew into our field. Even better, one of them lands and we admire its deep wine, beetroot colors for minutes.
Enigmatic Birds Heard but not Seen
It may not be as much of a highlight as other birding experiences but birders with a keen ear may appreciate it. I enjoy the visual experience that birds bring, I always like to see them but I also like to hear them. I might listen to the birds more than look for them. I’m not sure if I can help it, I don’t think I could turn off my ears if I wanted to. Hearing the birds shows me who and where they are just like seeing them visually.
With that in mind, it’s a special gift to hear the unspoken “Puntarenas” Screech-Owl calling near Mirador de Osa. We tried it before dawn and eventually found one a few kilometers east of the cabins and small restaurant (great service, food and drinks, also recommended). Unfortunately, the owl did not move from its hiding place but it was still amazing to hear its short hooting as the sun rose in the rainforest.
Earlier in the trip, in Pocosol, we had another songbird we wanted to see. While walking the beautiful but steep Fumaroles trail, a Lanceolate Monklet finally decided to respond to my imitation of its call. Whenever I’m in monklet land (ravines and rivers in the foothill rainforest), I call like one. They rarely respond but I try anyway because every once in a while, one of the shy little puffbirds flies by.
In Pocosol, unfortunately, the monk just called back somewhere out of sight but it was still cool to hear. I should also mention that, from what I’ve seen, I don’t think Costa Rican monks are anything like the birds from the eastern Andes. I still match them with recordings of Andean birds but, this may require further investigation.
Other notable birds heard but not seen were Unspotted Saw-whet Owl. Like the previous two birds, this one is also hard to find and doesn’t necessarily fly and look at you. Like in May of this year, before dawn, someone called from the forest adjacent to Myriam’s Cabins. It called several times but did not fly closer to see. Good to hear that mysterious owl, hopefully, next time we can track it down!
Well, those are the highlights that come to mind but they are not the only ones. As I say, the birding highlights are daily and consistent; pretty par for the course for Costa Rica. To learn more about the sites mentioned in this post and hundreds of birding sites throughout Costa Rica, support this blog by getting “How to See, Find, and Identify Birds in Costa Rica”.
Get ready for your Costa Rica birding trip, I hope to see you here!
