Birding in Costa Rica means lots of birds. I often say something along those lines but hey, good news is worth repeating. But seriously, there really are so many birds in Costa Rica! Fortunately, many places are home to many birds but what is unique about Costa Rica is the number of bird species you see in a short period of time.
In a week of birding in Costa Rica, you can easily see over 300 species, maybe even 400. Heck, even in a few days of birding, you can see an impressive number of birds. You have to go to the right places, take your time, and it helps to know how to find birds in Costa Rica but it’s not that hard to see 100 plus species in a day.
Last week, a full day of birding yielded more than 100 species, and another morning turned up fewer but included some rare species or regional endemics. Then there was the birding that yielded more than 170 species, all in one morning.
where did i go What did I see? Highlights? Lowlights? Look-
Sunday Morning on Bijagual Road
This place is the name I give to the road from Villa Lapas to the village of Bijagual and the Macaw Lodge. This birdy byway runs alongside and near the southern edge of Carara National Park. There are forests, secondary growth, fields, and 200 or more species (or more). I’ve been wanting to do some dawn birding in that area for a long time. Despite the early, late night drive down to the lowlands, I’m glad we made it!
Honestly, I’d like to see how the road might work as a Big Day starting point. Can I hear some prime Carara birds from the road? Can I find someone else?
Although it didn’t produce the Big Day results I was hoping for, it was still a great morning of birding. In addition to the expected macaws, trogons, and many other birdies, we also had some unexpected finds. I know the White-crested Coquette is possible but I also know it is elusive in fashion. I can’t blame the bird, it’s about the size of a bug and has to constantly hide from its larger, more aggressive family members.
BUT, among some flowering trees full of hummingbirds, sure enough, we found one! The bird was a female that came out and out of view, not good for a photo but this is birding, NOT bird photography.
Other great finds were hearing the expected Marbled Wood-Quail, some Olivaceous Piculets, finding a Pale-breasted Spinetail, and seeing the perched King Vulture shown above!
I can’t complain, in four hours of birding, we had 145 species.
eBird Checklist – 17 Mar 2024 – Road from Villa Lapas to Pura Vida Waterfall Gardens – 145 species
Afterwards, we did some quick birding around Tarcoles, mostly checking the shoreline and working on picking up Black and white Owls. We ended the morning with 171 species. Bijagual road and Tarcoles – eBird Trip Report
A Morning in Irazu
A few days later, I birded the Irazu area for the morning. The first stop was a stop for the Bare-shanked Screech-Owl. As it often does, a bird was calling early in the morning but try as we might, we couldn’t find it. I think it burrows deep into some heavily vegetated high elevation bush.
As we examined the owl from different angles, a Maroon-chested Ground-Dove started calling! I usually see this bird in Nochebuena but sometimes I hear them on the main road just south of there. The pigeon came close and I did catch a glimpse of it once in flight but no, it didn’t land where I could put it in range.
The next stop is a road next to the entrance to the national park. It didn’t take long to find our two main targets; the Timberline Wren and the Volcano Junco. After that, we went to Nochebuena cafe and trails to find another ground-dove. It took a while but we finally found a perched man!
We also enjoyed other regular birds, had brief but great views of Buffy-crowned Wood-Partridge, and amazing glimpses of a Bare-shanked Screech-Owl. Since we didn’t need to see the quetzal or pygmy-owl, we didn’t spend much time looking for those quality species before driving back at 11 am
Irazu area March 20 2024 – eBird Trip Report
A Full Day From Poas to Virgen del Socorro
The following day was a full day of birding in highland habitats in and near Poas. Different habitats and elevations always make for a good selection of birds and March 21 is no exception. On this day, we were inundated with quetzal sightings along with sightings of other bird prospects at high altitudes.
Wrenthrush was sadly quiet but we still saw a bunch of other birds in the Varablanca area and then on to Cinchona and Virgen del Socorro. Of those 129 species, highlights include the Buff-fronted Quail-Dove, Black-bellied Hummingbird, silky-flycatchers, Flame-throated Warbler, and Yellow-winged Tanager.
Of yeah, and there was also an antswarm in Virgen del Socorro! Nothing too crazy but a close up look at some Zeledon’s Antbirds was great and an Ocellated Antbird singing in full view was even better!
Poas, Cinchona, Virgen del Socorro – eBird Trip Report
On another day of birding that included some lower elevation sites, I had more species (153)- March 13 2024 – eBird Trip Report
Generally, the total from two mornings of birding and a full day is 254 species. As I say, in a short period of time, you can really see an incredible number of birds in Costa Rica!
