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Month: August 2023

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5 Key Strategies for Your Best Birding Trip to Costa Rica

Wrenthrush.

What does it take to have the best birding trip to Costa Rica? The birding trip that surpasses your goals?

Make no doubt about it, the birds of Costa Rica are calling- literally and figuratively. This morning, in my residential neighborhood, I heard the laugh of a Lineated Woodpecker. There were Rufous-collared Sparrows bringing some morning cheer and groups of excited Crimson-fronted Parakeets screeching overhead.

Looking to the north, I can see green mountains topped with clouds. There’s different bird voices up there and they might be too far to hear but as I gaze into the distant living jade, I still know what’s calling.

Black-billed Nightingale-Thrushes sing like Hermit Thrushes from the top parts of Poas Volcano.

birding Costa Rica

Their voices are joined by the odd cascading calls of Large-footed Finches (think big, weird, olive-colored towhees), the chips of Sooty-capped Chlorospinguses, and even the high-pitched calls of the unique Wrenthrush.

You will also hear the soft mournful calls of Golden-browed Chlorophonias.

There are dozens of other birds up there, even more on the way to the mountains, and hundreds of species on the other side. All are calling, beckoning birders to come see them.

At least that’s the way I see it. I hear them and my perpetual hope is that birders everywhere can hear those birds too, can come and witness this treasure of biodiversity, this natural gift.

It’s also why I hope that when you do go birding in Costa Rica, you have the best birding trip to Costa Rica. To make that happen, consider these five suggestions. Whether birding Costa Rica a tour or on your own, stick to these tips and you can’t go wrong.

Decide how you want go birding in Costa Rica and know what that means

These days, birding isn’t just looking at birds. There is strict bird photography, adventurous full on focused birdwatching, relaxed birding combined with beach visits, you name it. It’s still birding but before you take a birding trip anywhere, you need to decide what sort of birding you want to do and arrange your trip accordingly.

For example, if bird photography in Costa Rica is your thing, you won’t want to spend a lot of time in low light situations. You’ll be on the road to surpassing expectations if you focus on the very best sites for bird photography. This means that you’ll probably sacrifice seeing some other species but you’ll get great shots of lots of other birds.

If you want to see as many birds as possible and are willing to work to make that happen, true full monty birding requires early starts, long days, and maybe some visits to sites off the beaten track. This is giving yourself over to the birds and although that means no coffee tours or beach time, it could also translate to 400 species and some of the best birding days of your life.

Relaxed birding in Costa Rica? Sure! Most people actually do this type of birding and it just means watching birds at a less frenzied pace. Maybe birding with some pool time, maybe some time on a beach, and perhaps doing a few other things. You’ll still see a lot but know that you probably won’t see various shy birds or other species that require focused birding ay key sites.

Go birding with friends

I like to bird on my own too but let’s face it, the best birding is shared with like-minded people whom you enjoy spending time with. Yeah, you gotta pick the right travel companions but there’s nothing like experiencing the unreal nature of a Three-wattled Bellbird and the magnificent madness of a Resplendent Quetzal with birding pals.

Your local birding club will work too!

Hire an experienced local guide

No matter where you go, the birding trip will be much better if you hire a good, local guide. Even one or two days of guiding can help you see dozens more birds, and maybe even owls and rare species.

However, to make this work, you can’t just hire any old guide. Sure, a number of guides will help you see some new birds and will be alright but you’ll have a better chance of surpassing expectations if you find a birding guide with lots of experience, who truly knows where every bird is, what it takes to see them, and how to identify them in an instant.

Your guide should be able to recognize every elaenia species in Costa Rica.

If you go the birding tour route, do your research and see which company has the best local guides.

On your own? Research where to go

If you do the trip on your own instead of taking a tour, research that trip far in advance. Do that and you’ll find the places best for you and your birding needs with as little in-country travel as possible.

But where to find the best birding information for Costa Rica?

Checking out other trip itineraries and eBird hotspots are good places to start. Keep in mind, though, that they aren’t the final word. I can promise there are dozens of other fantastic sites for birding in Costa Rica that are not visited on tours. Such sites don’t work with the tour route or just with the logistics of a group. However, they can be perfect for birding on your own.

However, many of these sites don’t stand out on eBird either. This is because, in Costa Rica, a high percentage of eBirding takes place at the same places commonly visited on birding tours, and there isn’t nearly as much coverage as in the USA and Canada.

So how can a birder know about other good, possible birding sites? Satellite maps. As with everywhere, in Costa Rica, the birds are where the habitat is. Check maps and it won’t take long to find the largest areas of forest.

You have to factor in accommodation and access but at least you will know where a lot of the best birding sites are.

Sites with a better chance at seeing Yellow-eared Toucanet for example.

But what about suggestions on social media sites? While you will get plenty of answers on where to go birding, from what I have seen, the majority of answers come from people who simply enjoyed their time in Costa Rica, are selling something, or are submitted by local casual birders. In other words, there’ll be lots of suggestions but few answers from the real experts.

Think of someone asking where to go birding in your region and a dozen people answer how they had wonderful times at local parks seeing common birds. They are giving answers based on their experiences but what do they really know about birding in your region? Probably very little. This doesn’t mean their experiences aren’t valid and that they didn’t have a good time, but maybe they didn’t visit places where owls roost, nor the best places for certain species.

You’ll get the best answers from expert local guides or from other, more detailed information (my 900 page birding site guide for Costa Rica will probably help).

Accompany early morning coffee with the dawn chorus

One of the simple joys in life is sipping high quality Costa Rican coffee while listening to the dawn chorus, especially in tropical habitats. I was going to start that sentence with “For the birding crowd” but then I realized that this is a simple joy suited for everybody.

Well, as long as you like coffee but seriously, sipping fantastic coffee as the rainforest comes to life? Hard to beat my friends, hard to beat.

Bonus Tip- Study Your Field Guide (learn some sounds too!)

As with birding in any new place, even if you go with the best birding guide, your trip will always be better if you study beforehand. Take time to see which birds to expect, and which ones you want to see the most. Learn about their habits, habitats, and what to expect. It’s also worth learning some of their songs.

The Boat-billed Flycatcher’s song is a good one to learn.

Maybe not all 930 plus species (yes, that many, sites that say 800 species either don’t know what they are talking about or need a serious update) but learning vocalizations for 50 or even 20 common birds can enhance your trip.

At the moment, there are a couple must have field guide books. They are “The Birds of Costa Rica- A Field Guide” by Garrigues and Dean, and “The Birds of Costa Rica” by Dyer and Howell. Both are good for any birding trip to Costa Rica.

The best digital field guide is the Costa Rica Birds app. Yes, Merlin is free but this app has:

  • All species on the Costa Rica list and various expected species that could occur including all pelagic birds.
  • Sounds for most species on the app.
  • Tips for identifying and seeing each bird.
  • Filters to show birds by region, habitat, and more.
  • It can be personalized to show target species, birds that you see, and more.
  • At this time, it’s only available for IOS.

I could always say more but at least the tips mentioned above will help you set up your best birding trip to Costa Rica. If you need help arranging a trip or guiding for yourself or for a group, I’m happy to help! Contact me at information@birdingcraft.com

As always, I hope to see you here while watching some White-fronted Parrots or marveling over a roosting Great Potoo.

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bird finding in Costa Rica Birding Costa Rica

Losses, Connections, and Costa Rica Birding Reflections- August and September, 2023

There is no late summer in Costa Rica. In this nation of uplifted land and high biodiversity, it’s August all year long. There is only the arrival and departure of rain, at times, on a daily basis. Even so, we are still touched by the weather cycles of the north.

Up north, the waning summer was and is marked by movements of Canada Warblers, Black-and-white Warblers, and sandpipers. These were the “early” migrants, the avian signals of another nesting season come to an end.

During the 80s up north, August was walking on the northern Lake Erie shore and looking for shorebirds feeding in the algae. Migration was also happening in the fields and woodlands that approached the lake; utterly fantastic migration with Accipiters flapping by and passerines parading through the woods.

Sometime 1980s, maybe 1984, I had great August lifers there; my first Yellow-billed and Black-billed Cuckoos, warblers, and a fantastic Loggerhead Shrike. During those years, there were lots more birds.

There was also wonderful music including this gem by the recently passed Robbie Robertson (RIP and so many thanks for the music!). To me, it was and still is a song of beautiful mystery, northern nights, and being 16 years old. At that time, I would have never have guessed that one of my brothers would eventually have children with one of Robbie’s relatives. We are all connected, eventually, in some way.

Sadly, Robbie wasn’t the only gifted person to have recently passed away. The extremely talented Sinead O’Conner has also passed on, always too soon. I loved her music, it was one of a kind, there was just nothing like it! Around the same time that CFNY was playing “Somewhere Down the Crazy River”, I was also seeing posters outside record stores that showed a bald woman and read, “The Lion and The Cobra”.

I wondered, what on earth is that? Answers came in the form of CFNY playing “Troy” by Sinead, over and over. There were other songs too, including “Just Like You said It Would Be“.

I could never have imagined that, in 1999, I would meet and befriend the guy playing guitar in that video while we both searched for our lifer Black-cheeked Ant-Tanager near Golfito.

Yes, not only has Robert Dean illustrated several field guides for birds, he also helped make lots of wonderful music, including songs with Sinead. He hasn’t stopped making music either, check out, Light of Day.

In the birding world, we have also lost a couple of cherished and irreplaceable people. Tom Johnson was one of the most innovative, expert, and well-liked birders in North America. His tragic passing was and will continue to be a terrible loss for his loved ones and the birding community at large. I often marveled over his amazing night photography of migrating passerines and saw him a couple times in Costa Rica while he led tours. I wish I would have had the fortune of knowing him as well as so many other birders did.

Sadly, Ron Pittaway also passed on recently. Ron created the fantastic Winter Finch Forecast and had an impact on birding in Canada, Western New York, and elsewhere in a number of ways. He was such a nice guy and I will always remember his smile while sharing the Niagara Gorge gull experience with his partner Jean Iron, friends Willy D’Anna, Betsy Potter, Dean DiTommasso, and other Larophiles. I particularly like this image and post by Alvaro Jaramillo.

These days, as I watch tanagers pick berries from cloud forest trees, and scan eternal ocean waters for seabirds, I’ll be thinking of these people and how they helped make the world a better place.

I will also think of them as I watch for the birds that connect us to Cape May and those northern shores of Lake Erie. I’ll be looking for many of the same shorebirds, and those “early” warblers, but we also find the first flocks of migrating kites, and Pacific shorebirds like the Surfbird.

It’s a good time to be birding in Costa Rica, it always is. Here are a few things to reflect and note while birding Costa Rica this August and September.

Helping a Hook-billed Kite in Costa Rica

Recently, Paz Irola and Ernesto Carman of Get Your Birds! and the Cabanisi Project helped rescue a young Hook-billed Kite. Watch this impressive video to see how they saved the life of this young bird by feeding it snails! It’s also interesting to hear the juvenile vocalize. Perhaps it’s antbird-like song is yet another adaptation to help hide these young kites from larger raptors that would eat them.

A young Hook-billed Kite from another day.

The First Fall Warbler Count for Costa Rica

A lot of warblers winter in and migrate through Costa Rica. Cerulean Warblers, Bay-breasted Warblers, and other species make important stops in the country as they make their way to South America. To promote this annual passage, encourage eBird use, and get more data about numbers of migrant warblers, some local guides and birders have organized a country-wide warbler count.

If you will be birding in Costa Rica in September, you can participate too! All you need to do is go birding in Costa Rica on September 9th, and share your lists with user name, “ReinitasCR”.

Oilbirds

Recently, an Oilbird was sighted in a night tour in the Monteverde area. August is a great time of year to see this bird in Costa Rica. If you will be visiting the Monteverde area soon, ask if they have been seeing Oilbirds at the night tour for the Monteverde Wildlife Refuge as well as other night walks. If so, you have a very good chance of seeing one on that night walk tour!

Umbrellabirds and Tiny Hawk at Centro Manu

Umbrellabirds are definitely back at Centro Manu. Recently, several local birders have gotten excellent shots of this rare and endangered cotinga. It may take a while to see one but birding this site will give you a fair shot.

Not to mention, the lowland-foothill forests are good for lots of other species too. Great Potoo has been roosting near the parking area, Song Wren has been seen in the forest, and local birders have also had good looks at a Tiny Hawk!

Ciudad Neily

Last but not least, this is one of the best times to year to go birding near Ciudad Neily and visit the Coto marshes. It’s probably also the easiest time to find Paint-billed Crake, see other crakes, and find Masked Duck. Check for vagrant shorebirds and other odd, rare birds among the thousands of waterbirds that use the area! Not to mention, folks are still seeing a pair of Lesser Kiskadees on the road in the Las Pangas sector of Coto 47.

To get ready for your trip and see where to go birding in Costa Rica, check out my 900 plus page ebook, “How to See, Find, and Identify Birds in Costa Rica”. As always, I hope to see you in Costa Rica!

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Birding Costa Rica planning birding trip Costa Rica planning for a birding trip to Costa Rica preparing for your trip

The Top 5 Questions about Birding in Costa Rica

Male Snowcap one of the signature birds of El Tapir. It also shows up at Quebrada Gonzalez.

Questions about birding in Costa Rica. As with any birding destination, there’s a lot to think about. Where to stay? Where to watch birds? Can I find good New York style pizza? Well, maybe that last question isn’t as common but it’s still valid to wonder if you can have coffee each morning. Heck, when you travel, there’s a lot to think about, even if you are “just” visiting Cape May for the weekend.

No matter where you don those birding shoes, no matter where you sport them bins, all our questions are meant to fulfill our birding needs. You want your trip to be the best it can be, hopefully, to surpass expectations and give you a life experience high that lasts long after you walk back through your own front door.

Oh yeah, that is possible. Do the birding trip to Costa Rica right and you’ll be dreaming about quetzals for days to come. Yearning for twittering tanagers while trudging through traffic? Wondering why you are still haunted by the hidden words in woodcreeper whistles as you sip a choice craft brew? That’s Ok! All of it means your trip was a success, that it went way beyond the boundaries of average expectations.

Those are the type of results we would love for every birding trip, the type of birding that makes us feel fire-eyed alive. I suppose that if you move with the right type of expectations, you can have them fiery eyes any day of the week. Easier to have them after birding though, especially after watching the dizzying passage of a mixed flock in Costa Rica. Certainly after experiencing the ancient cries and flights of macaws in the humid skies of a late afternoon rainforest.

Expectations and state of mind will always be key factors for fire-eyed birding success but maybe answers to the following questions about birding in Costa Rica will help too.

Is there a quetzal season in Costa Rica?

A male quetzal is always the star of the avian show.

In a word, no. There is no real quetzal season in Costa Rica. At least I don’t believe there is. Yeah, for some reason, a number of people talk about there being a season to see quetzals but I think there are confusing “nesting season” with some actual best time for seeing the birds.

So, yes, the mega dream birds mostly nest in March and so, if you know where a nest is, yes, you can go and wait until they appear. But, not only should people NOT bother quetzals at nest sites, you don’t need to visit during their nesting season. Check out this birding truth; the Resplendent Quetzal is a permanent resident.

Yeah, unlike its famous cloud forest cotinga counterpart, the Three-wattled, ye olde quetzal is not migrating to some remote corner or playing hard to get.

Seeing a quetzal in Costa Rica is like seeing most birds. The formula goes like so- bird in the right habitat, visit the right place, know how to look for them, and you’ll probably see them. At least I see quetzals on just about every visit to their habitat, in every month of the year.

So, when planning a birding trip to Costa Rica, don’t worry too much about it being a so-called “quetzal season” or not. Think more about where the best places are to see them, how to find them, and if you should hire a local guide who knows what they are doing. Hint- if the guide tells you that no, sorry, it’s not quetzal season, find someone else.


When is the best time to visit Costa Rica?

This question is probably the top one and rightly so. I mean I wonder about the best time to visit places like Borneo and Argentina, it makes sense to concern oneself with choosing the best time to see the most birds.

That said, in Costa Rica, heck, no matter when you visit, yes, you will see lots of birds. Just like quetzals are here all here all year long, in Costa Rica, more than 600 other birds are also in this birding house, 24/7.

To figure out the best time to visit, I suggest asking yourself a few sub-questions:

-Do I really want to see a bellbird?- If so, visit any time from March to July and include the Monteverde area.

-Can I chance getting rained out for part of most days?- If yes, then you can visit any time of the year. If not, bird Costa Rica from January to April. The rains tend to be especially challenging in November and early December.

-Do I need to see wintering birds?- If yes, November to March will work (and part of April too).

-Should I experience migration?- I am a firm believer in experiencing migration no matter where you are. Visit the Caribbean coast of Costa Rica in April or October and you’ll be in for some major bird passage.

Where should I go birding in Costa Rica?

Another common and all important question. However, it’s one that doesn’t have any easy answers. Where you go depends on what you want to see, how you want to go birding, or if you want to focus on bird photography.

Figure those things out and then go from there. In the meantime, here are a few recommendations:

-Don’t necessarily base your trip on eBird hotspots. Whoah, but what? Isn’t that where the best birding sites are? Well, yes and no. Like, yeah, the top hotspots have great birding and you can’t go wrong birding at them but they aren’t the only places to watch birds in Costa Rica. AND, most hotspots have inflated site lists because they include birds that are no longer there or, most of all, include species at other, separate sites.

It’s still Ok to visit those eBird hotspots. I’m not saying they are bad, most are wonderful but remember that the birds are where the habitat is. Just because a site in good habitat has fewer species than a hotspot doesn’t mean that it isn’t as good. It only means that many more people have birded the hotspot and that sites in good habitat with low lists probably haven’t been adequately surveyed.

-Spend at least two nights in each major habitat. For lowland and foothill rainforest, three nights will be even better. You won’t see all the birds in an area in one day. No one can see them all in one day, not even psychic birding ninjas. But, you can have a fair chance at connecting with a good percentage of them during three or four days of birding.

-Think about where you would like to stay. If eco-lodges and good ,easy going birding in comfort is necessary, by all means, visit Hotel Quelitales, Rancho Naturalista, and Quinta Sarapiqui among other places. However, if you just need a place to spend the night, look into air bnbs and book your own cheap cabinas. However, be warned that cheap cabinas often also mean loud surroundings and possible bugs.

How can I see a Snowcap? What about an umbrellabird? Macaws?

The Snowcap is unreal. It looks like burgundy come to life and crowned with powdered sugar. I mean, yeah, that’s one heck of an enticing bird! And yes, you can and should see one. To make it happen, the best sites are Rancho Naturalista, El Copal, Nectar and Pollen, and Centro Manu. It can also show up elsewhere but those places are good for some of that lovely hummingbird madness.

Umbrellabird? The crazy crow-like bird is never easy but you’ll have a better chance at Veragua Rainforest, the Rainforest Aerial Tram just outside of Braulio, and Centro Manu. Keep in mind that it can also occur at various other sites but it’s easy missed; sadly, the umbrellabird of Central America is endangered.

Macaws! Compared to the other species mentioned above, thankfully, these fantastic birds are a piece of cake. That’s always good but especially for giant, larger than life, must-see parrots as these. The Scarlet is wonderfully easy in many places and the Great Green ain’t that tough either. Bird Sarapiqui, Puerto Viejo de Talamanca, or Tortuguero and you’ll have a good chance of seeing them.

great-green-macaw

What field guide should I use?

Another common and important question indeed. These days, in terms of books, there are two main field guides for Costa Rica. There is the classic Birds of Costa Rica by Garrigues and Dean, and the Bird of Costa Rica by Dyer and Howell.

Both will be good but personally, I still like the Garrigues and Dean. However, the Dyer and Howell is more recent, and has some interesting and insightful takes on taxonomy. In any case, either book will be good to have and I know many people who have bought both.

In terms of a digital field guide, there is the Costa Rica Birds Field Guide app and the Merlin app. The Costa Rica Birds Field Guide app is currently only available for IOS while the Merlin app is available on IOS and Android devices. I admit that I am one of the creators and co-owners of the Costa Rica Birds Field Guide app but everything I say here is true. Both apps are good, here’s how they compare:

-Bird species- The Costa Rica Birds Field Guide app includes all birds on the Costa Rica list and several species that could eventually occur. Merlin has most of the species but leaves off some rare ones and some pelagic birds.

-Bird sounds- Merlin includes several sounds for most species. The Costa Rica Birds Field Guide app also includes sounds for most birds on the app- vocalizations for 870 species.

-Customization- Merlin is a great, easy to use app with good information but the Costa Rica Birds Field Guide app includes more features. You can customize it to include target lists, show regional endemics, show birds by region, and more. This makes it a good study guide before your trip as well as a handy tool during your trip.

-Accuracy- The maps on the Costa Rica Birds Field Guide app are up to date and pretty accurate. The ones on Merlin are mostly accurate but not entirely. The information for the Costa Rica Bird Field Guide app is also written specifically for Costa Rica and now includes tips on how to see each bird.

-Cost- Merlin is free and that is obviously a major bonus but the Costa Rica Birds Field Guide app has more features and more overall information.

Planning a birding trip to Costa Rica? I hope these questions can help! Just keep in mind that no matter where and when you visit Costa Rica, as long as you go birding in quality habitat in different eco-regions, you’ll see a lot! I hope you get here, I hope to see you here.