Carara National Park is one of the premier birding locations in Costa Rica. In addition to the easily accessible rainforests of the park, the area also boasts tropical dry forest, mangroves, and estuarine habitats and other wetlands. It’s a must on every birding trip to Costa Rica but ironically, there are few places to stay [...]
Continue reading about Some Thoughts on Birding Costa Rica at Punta Leona
Whether guiding or not, I try to get out birding at least once a week. It provides a much needed escape from the greater San Jose area of Costa Rica (an over-urbanized place with skinny, twisting streets frequented by a plethora of bad drivers). It also gets me up into natural habitats where I can [...]
Continue reading about Birding in Costa Rica on the Providencia Road
A lot of birders automatically assume that they have to stay at La Selva when birding the Caribbean lowlands near San Jose. Although that was probably true 30 years ago, birders have had their pick of accommodations ranging from Bed and Breakfasts to full scale eco-lodges since the early 90s. Although you can still stay [...]
Continue reading about Easy, Great Caribbean Lowland Birding in Costa Rica at El Gavilan Hotel
Woodpeckers are one of those bird families that are so cool and distinctive that they are even immediately recognized by most non-birders. Thanks to Woody Woodpecker and the unforgettable antics of birds that thrive on “head-banging”, someone who has no idea what a chickadee or flycatcher is can still correctly identify a woodpecker when they [...]
Continue reading about What Woodpeckers are You Going to See When Birding Costa Rica?
Playa Hermosa is a beach in the northwestern part of Costa Rica. There may be other places called “lovely beach” in the country but this is the official one. The beach is decent but, for birding, you should really head inland. I went up that way this past weekend for a short family vacation with [...]
Continue reading about Good Birding in Costa Rica near Playa Hermosa
Last weekend came and went like a flash. Not this past weekend but the weekend before. Although I did see a bunch of high-flying Chestnut-collared Swifts foraging above the house with a light phase Short-tailed Hawk taking to the thermals beneath them, that was a muuuuch more relaxed experience than the last Saturday of March [...]
Continue reading about A Rundown of a Big Day in Costa Rica (or Getting and Missing Birds part Dos)
As every birder knows, a “Big Day” doesn’t refer to some sort of sales scheme, the Super Bowl, or the day when an expectant mother gives birth. Depending on who you talk to, yes, those dates are certainly auspicious BUT when it comes to birding, there is only one “Big Day”. This is a 24 [...]
Continue reading about Getting and Missing Birds during a Big Day in Costa Rica
I had been looking forward to guiding this past Saturday. My client wanted to see as many birds as possible and a combined trip to Virgen del Socorro and Poas Volcano seemed like the perfect choice for a birdy day. I figured we would see quite a few birds and some good ones at that [...]
Continue reading about How to see 11 Raptors and 16 Hummingbird species when Birding Costa Rica
Poas Volcano is somewhat overlooked as a birding destination. Birders in search of highland specialties head off to the more extensive forests on Cerro de la Muerte and have a grand old time with the R. Quetzal, Collared Redstarts, Zeledonias, and other birds that got an evolutionary foothold in the rising Talamancas. Nevertheless, you can [...]
Continue reading about Check out the Good Birds on Poas when Birding Costa Rica
I had a long, bird-filled day while guiding in and around Carara National Park yesterday and thought that I might share some news, tips, sightings, what have you. In no particular order: 1. Stay on the trails: While looking for birds along the Laguna Meandrica trail (the “river trail” of Carara birding fame), our group [...]
Continue reading about Recent Birding News from Carara National Park, Costa Rica
