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Category: Birding Costa Rica

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Costa Rica Birding News- May and June, 2023

Wet season birding in Costa Rica is just getting started and it’s late. Usually, our tropical downpours get their rain thing on by April. Not this year. Up until the past week, we’ve seen very little rain and even the showers that have occurred haven’t been the soaking events they should be.

Looking at nearby mountains, I have seen more rain falling up that way but we should have had more by now, everywhere. In Costa Rica, abundant water keeps the biodiversity gears moving, it boosts productivity that our resident bird species rely on. Like I was saying, though, the rains have started, let’s hope we keep on getting that precipitation on a daily basis.

On another, related note, here’s some of the latest in birding news for Costa Rica:

Lanceolated Monklet at Arenal Observatory Lodge

Last week, fellow guide and friend Anthony Arce saw a Lanceolated Monklet perched on a roadside wire just as he was leaving the lodge with a client. If you happen to be birding around there, this was on the entrance road between the Casona and the main gate.

This isn’t the first time the reclusive mini puffbird has been seen at the lodge but there have been very few sightings from this birding hotspot. His sighting is a reminder of how unobtrusive and local this species can be. It’s also a reminder to have bird species in mind even if they aren’t recorded that often on eBird.

In the case of the monklet, several pairs probably occur on the Observatory Lodge property. As is typical for this species, they are probably overlooked and just occur in spots that don’t get as much coverage.

Local guides should give a solid search for them along ravines around there and other suitable spots, especially near waterfalls. As with all birds, they occur where the habitat is, monklets are just naturally hard to find.

Photo Sessions of Blue-and-Gold Tanager Nest at the San Luis Canopy

Another fantastic find happened in the form of a nesting Blue-and-Gold Tanager. This uncommon near endemic can be a challenge. As is typical for local species, you gotta know where to look for them and even then, the birds can be elusive.

In Costa Rica, one good spot for this species is the San Luis Canopy area and vicinity. On a recent visit, Lifer Tours owner and birding guide Juan Diego Vargas found that one was nesting at this cloud forest hotspot.

Amazingly, it is literally nesting at the San Luis Canopy, as in right by the main buildings. He spoke with the owners about and they have been building a photography hide to accommodate visiting birders.

This hide can be safely visited and offers close views without affecting the birds. Photo sessions for this rare opportunity can be booked at the Ground Cuckoo site.

It’s a Good Time to See Swifts

I think I say this every year but it’s worth repeating. The wet season is the best time for seeing swifts in Costa Rica. I don’t mean the usual White-collared and Vaux’s Swifts, I’m talking about getting good looks at those other swift species in the field guide.

Those would be Chestnut-collared Swift, and Black, Spot-fronted and White-chinned Swifts. During the sunny days of the dry season, often, these birds are flying too high for adequate looks, and the Black Swift might be off wintering in the Amazon.

Go birding in Costa Rica in the wet season and you might see all of them flying within reasonable binocular distance. Heck, you might even identify them without binos during a walk in your neighborhood!

I had that happen just the other day. During a late afternoon walk on a cloudy day, there were a couple of calling Black Swifts and two Spot-fronteds that flew low, just over the houses. There were also several Chestnut-collared flying around with the usual Vaux’s and White-collareds.

Seeing these swifts nice and low and identifiable is all about cloud cover. Approaching storms are good too.

New Update for the Costa Rica Birds Field Guide App

Lastly, we recently finished another update for the Costa Rica Birds Field Guide app. As with the recently updated Panama Birds Field Guide app, our Costa Rica birding app now includes tips on how to see each species.

A few examples of text for:

Agami Heron

Azure-hooded Jay

and Harpy Eagle.

Since I have also included bird species not yet on the list for Costa Rica but which are good candidates for occurring, this is what I wrote for Garganey.

There are also additional photos and a filter to show regional endemics along with other features to personalize the app to your needs.

If you are headed to Costa Rica soon, I hope this information helps with your trip. The birds are waiting, a lot of them.

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Global Big Day, 2023 and Speckled Mourners in Costa Rica

birding Costa Rica

May 13 was Global Big Day! GBD celebrates birds and birding but we don’t get festive with cakes, beer, and football. On GBD, us birders celebrate by giving ourselves over to birding.

Yeah, a lot of us do that on weekends and other random dates anyways and all year long, but this birding day is different. It’s GBD, we have this official excuse to go all out with birding, to make it our main thing no matter what else is happening.

Cars and traffic? Pay them motor vehicles no heed (unless they are barreling down on you), there goes a Short-tailed Hawk!

People watching sports or boating or celebrities wearing weird crap on runways…sorry but they become background noise on GBD. On May 13, it’s the Anhingas, the warblers, and the grouse that take center stage.

Gotta work? If the boss doesn’t seem to understand why you can’t go to work on May 13th, you just point them to the GBD eBird page.

Tell them it’s an international holiday, a sacred feast day for the league of avian appreciators. Sorry no, I can’t work today bossarola…it’s Global Big Day!

You might still work, though, especially if your job involves birdwatching. I mean, that way you can still partake in our birding feast day without worrying about calling in. Unlike other GBDs I typically celebrate with my partner (we are Team Tyto) but this past May 13th, I couldn’t. I had to work.

Luckily, that day of work was guiding someone in the Poas and Varablanca area. This destination is one of the best spots for birding near San Jose, Costa Rica. As usual, it was a fine day of birding with close views of a male Resplendent Quetzal, silky-flycatchers, and 100 plus other species.

Even better, when I got home, I picked up a few more birds. My partner and I took a last minute walk in the neighborhood and a pair of Yellow-naped Parrots flew over. They were followed by groups of flyby White-fronted Parrots and other common species. The best was a bunch of swifts driven low by rain clouds. Chestnut-collared Swift made it onto the day list and then, two dark swifts with bat-like wing beats zipped into view.

No big white spot on the face but….yes, a white chin! Yep, low enough to see the tiny white chin on a White-chinned Swift. A sweet species for GBD and right from a tiny, urban backyard. That’s urban birding for you, especially in birdalicious Costa Rica.

Further afield, birders were out in force in other corners of the country. A pelagic trip found Tahiti Petrel (now known to be regular) and other open sea goodies, Chambita and friends picked up the specialties of Medio Queso, and many other birds were found, 703 species total!

Oddly enough, I may have seen the only Barred Becard for the day. Other, much less common species seen by others were Great Jacamar at Veragua, Botteri’s and Rusty Sparrows at Rincon de La Vieja, and Lanceolated Monklet at La Marta.

A monklet from some years ago at Quebrada Gonzalez.

The prize for the “best bird” may go to Speckled Mourner. This rufous guy is one of the rarest and little-known bird species in Costa Rica. Given the extreme paucity of sightings, I have wondered where it still occurs. I have my suspicions and one of those spots was where two birds were found.

Last month, local birders found one or two of these odd megas in the foothill rainforests at the Pitilla Biological Station on OrosiVolcano. Several local birders have gone and seen this special species, at that time, arguably, the only reliable spot to see a Speckled Mourner in Costa Rica.

I figure they live in other spots too and it is worth checking those areas but it’s always good to know of a reliable spot. As luck would have it, just yesterday, another spot for Speckled Mourner came to light!

Meche Alpizar and Lisa Erb saw and photographed one of these elusive birds at Selva Bananito. It makes sense that one was seen at this site, a spot with ample lowland rainforest habitats. What’s interesting is that even though the species hasn’t been seen at this site before, they saw it right at the reception.

Given the habitat, it makes sense to see it there. Maybe there are previous sightings from Selva Bananito, but I haven’t heard of any.

It’s also interesting that this bird was seen shortly after the other sightings up north. Before these sightings, there hadn’t been any documented Speckled Mourners in Costa Rica for many years. There should be but nope, nothing.

Are they showing in more places? No, I bet it’s just more birding coverage by experienced observers. We really don’t have a lot of coverage in the remote areas where these birds are most likely to occur. Throw in their unobtrusive nature with low density populations and it’s easy to see why more Speckled Mourners have not been seen.

In any case, these and other sightings on GBD, 2023 are encouragement to get out there and explore, get into the good forests and see what you can find. You gotta pay close attention, you gotta listen carefully to those woods, the birds are out there.

To see where to find birds in Costa Rica and how to find them, support this blog by purchasing “How to See, Find, and Identify Birds in Costa Rica”.

it’s sort of like an international holiday

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Potoos: the Pseudo-Owls Of Costa Rica

Who doesn’t love owls? Philosophically, it’s hard not to be intrigued by the dichotomy represented by these wild and wonderful birds. Soft, quiet, and cute yet completely lethal, owls are the straight up bird bomb. Visually appealing, they have big gazing eyes, some have fake costume accessory horns, and yet, these special birds avoid the birding red carpet.

The living leaf known as the Pacific Screech-Owl.

Thanks to their nocturnal nature, owls tend to not be seen as often as tanagers and other birds of the day. Finding one requires careful and patient checking of branches, maintaining a search image for odd dark shapes, and looking for them when they are active.

This holds true for Costa Rica just as owl watching does in so many other places. Several owl species live in Costa Rica and they can be seen with the right knowledge and attitude but they aren’t the only nocturnal birds on this tropical block. Just like the summertime north, we also have nighthawks (mostly Lessers but also the bat-like Short-tailed), and other nightjars but unlike birding in the temperate zone where so many warblers flit and vireos sing, we also have potoos.

Owls are cool and cute but potoos are in a weird category all on their own. Like owls, they also have big eyes but those peepers are more like the staring orbs of an alien kind, or perhaps a puppet come to life. Their big hidden gapes on large round heads make them resemble real life muppets and their vocalizations are the stuff of birding dreams (or nightmares).

The first time you see a potoo, don’t be surprised if you exclaim, “Well, that looks like an owl” because they do sort of look like the Strigid stars we know and love. Look closer though and you’ll probably realize that no, this odd clump of feathers might look soft but it ain’t no owl. More a muppet, more a fake feathered branch, more a pseudo-owl.

In Costa Rica, we are fortunate to have three fantastic species of potoos that sally into the dark tropical night. These are the pseudo-owls of Costa Rica:

Great Potoo

Great Potoo

The first time I came to Costa Rica, I had seen potoos in the book of that time, The Birds of Costa Rica by Stiles and Skutch. I figured I wouldn’t have much chance to see them, sort of left them on the birding back burner and I was right. I did not see them, had no idea how to see a potoo nor what any sounded like. I was surely near all three, if I had known where and how to look for them, I probably would have seen a pseudo-owl on that first trip.

On subsequent trips, local guides told me that the Great Potoo was more common that you think, that they heard it quite often around La Selva. Assuming such a large and wild looking bird to be rare, I found those statements hard to believe but they were right. In Costa Rica, the Great Potoo is not that rare. Bird the right places and it’s not that hard to see.

The size and pale color of the Great Potoo makes it easier to see than the other two species. Go birding in and near rainforest in the Caribbean lowlands, check those odd pale lumps on trees, and you might find one. Listen and look for them at night and you might see one too.

The Great Potoo occurs in many places but some of the better sites are the Cano Negro area, Tortuguero, Sarapiqui, and forests near Limon.

Common Potoo

birding Costa Rica

Despite the “common” part of the name, this bird is not all that common. You won’t go birding in Costa Rica and run into a bunch, you won’t casually find them on every birding trip. It’s not rare but you do have to look for it in the right places.

The Common Potoo in Costa Rica is fairly widespread but, in general, this muppet seems to be more common along rivers and in mangroves on the Pacific slope from Carara south to Panama. The Sierpe River is especially good for it but other good sites include San Vito and the General Valley, and Cano Negro. You can also find it in other places on the Caribbean slope, especially in open and semi-open areas.

Northern Potoo

Historically, this cool bird probably lived in the Central Valley. It doesn’t seem like that’s the case any longer but maybe a few still occur here and there in less accessible, under-birded pockets of habitat?

In the meantime, you are better off looking for Northern Potoos in the dry forest habitats of Guanacaste. Some good sites include riparian zones around Liberia, Rincon de la Vieja, Barra Honda, Ensenada, and the mangroves at Punta Morales and Mata de Limon.

As with other potoos, watch for an odd shape on a branch, listen for them at night, and watch for them perched on the tip of a stick or other perch, especially near streetlamps next to good habitat.

On the complicated side of things, if you do see a Northern Potoo from Cerro Lodge to Ensenada, you should hear it call to clinch the ID. In that area, Common Potoos have also been heard and (gasp), based on vocalizations of some birds in northern Costa Rica, I can’t help but wonder if some hybridization could be happening.

Going birding in Costa Rica? Don’t be fooled, potoos are out there! They aren’t super common and live in low density populations but we do have three species. Go to the right places, put in the time, and you might see them. In the meantime, learn more about where and how to see these pseudo-owls and all the birds of Costa Rica with “How to See, Find, and Identify Birds in Costa Rica”. Plan that birding trip to Costa Rica, study bird vocalizations and mark target species on the Costa Rica Birds field guide app and get ready for major tropical birding. I hope to see you here!

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Birding Costa Rica

Chasing Common Pochards in Costa Rica

Like all people, birders have hopes and dreams too. Some of us dream of seeing glittering tanager flocks or laying eyes on the wacky Bornean Bristlehead (yes, that is a real bird, check it out!). Others hope to see cool species in uncommon places with good friends, or chancing upon a fallout at our favorite birding spots. Years ago, I was fortunate to have that latter dream come true on more than occasion but one September morning in 1984 stands out. I was on Goat Island, right above the Cataracts of Niagara, and it seemed like every bush and tree was full of warblers. On that dreamy day of yore, it was birding madness, I got my lifer Prairie Warbler without even using binoculars.

Us birders also literally dream about birds; amazing dreams of multicolored species that don’t actually exist, of birds that talk, or finding a shrike in Costa Rica (I had that dream once, it was incredibly vivid, I suppose a reflection of how much I would love such an unlikely occurrence to take place). The title of this post sounds like one of those dreams because ha, how could you ever chase a Pochard in Costa Rica? A Pochard is basically a Redhead-Canvasbackish bird that lives in Europe. It’s pretty common there but it doesn’t usually fly across the Atlantic.

Well….it looks like one might have done just that in recent times. On April 21st, one of the excellent birding guides at Rancho Naturalista, Steven Montenegro, found a duck of great interest at Lago Angostura. It looked like maybe a Redhead, or maybe a Canvasback, or maybe a hybrid of the two. When bird photographers Adrian Alvarado Rivera and Danny J Alvarado got much better images of the bird, two other top guides at Rancho; Meche Alpizar and her husband Harry Barnard, thought of another possibility; the Common Pochard. Since Harry had seen plenty of those, I thought, “Well, I suppose it just might be one of those ducks!”

After taking into account that there have been a couple records from the Caribbean Sea, and that the color of the head and, especially, the pattern on the bill looked very much like that of a Common Pochard, we couldn’t stay home. No, not when a crazy possible Costa Rica first was within range!

Check out a photo of the bird here.

On Sunday morning, dreaming of Common Pochards, we ended up making the hour and 45 minute, very scenic drive to Turrialba. It was a beautiful, sunny morning of roads winding through pasture on verdant volcanic slopes above Cartago. We surely passed through territories of the uncommon Grass Wren, but not wanting to waste any time, we made a bee-line for the lake. This involved passing through the town of Turrialba, driving past the entrance to CATIE, and taking the road by the new hospital. This road then continued through fields of sugarcane before reaching a wooded area on the left. At the first rocky road through the woods on the left, we drove on in and down towards the lake.

Our hopes weren’t exactly lifted when a local birding couple mentioned that they had NOT seen the duck and that perhaps the birds had been scared by a kayak moving back and forth, in the open waters between the water hyacinths. However, they did tell us where to look and already being in the area, we of course decided to do just that. On we went, reaching the lake overlook where we also met Adrian Alvarado, one of the bird photographers who had seen the bird, had taken a key photo. Adrian told us where to look and where he and other local birders have seen ducks, marsh birds, and other interesting species over the years.

Unfortunately, he had not seen the duck on that bright Sunday morning. American Golden Plover, yes (!) but no duck. Not ready to give up, we moved along the road near the lake and carefully scanned as many nooks and crannies of hyacinth that we could, eventually even paying a small entrance fee to check for ducks from an overlook.

The overlook would have been great, I bet there are rafts of ducks on other days but the birding at this choice spot was likewise marred by watersports; in this case, by a loud and very obtrusive jetski. Our Pochard dream nearly became a nightmare as a man zipped around the edge of the lake. He was taking his three or four year old for a ride, she was surely enjoying it but also literally hanging on to the handlebars for dear life. Thankfully, the only tragedy was an absence of birds but at least we didn’t leave that part of the lake empty-handed!

We managed to see a year Limpkin, and, after hearing several birds fussing over something, I found a Bird-eating Snake in a tree!

We got to watch the snake as long as we wanted before heading back to the first spot to see if the jetskis had scared any birds over that way. Alas, no dice on the ducks but at least a Snail Kite flew into view, and we also briefly met Diego Ramirez (Mr. Birding) teaching a group of local birders before we made the trek back to the other end of the Central Valley.

The possible Pochard hasn’t been seen again and it may have moved on but I hope it’s nearby, I hope we or someone else finds that fantastic and unexpected mega for Costa Rica. I mean, that’s the sort of stuff birding dreams are made of.

The bird in question hasn’t been accepted yet for the official list, it may still end up being a hybrid. No matter what it is, hopefully it will be found again!

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4 Good Reasons to Start Planning a Birding Trip to Costa Rica Now

Plan a birding trip to Costa Rica now? Isn’t it still the high season? Why start thinking about visiting Costa Rica for birding now when you probably won’t visit Costa Rica until 2024? Valid concerns but just as its worth listening to the tremulous dawn song of a tinamou, it might also be worth it to hear me out.

The Great Tinamou has a mystical, whistled song. You’ll probably hear it and might see one while birding in Costa Rica.

The High Season Gets Busy and Booked Far in Advance

First and foremost, even though 2024 is a long ways off, in terms of hotel reservations, the next high season is just around the corner. I know, it’s crazy but that’s how reservations roll for popular global destinations like Costa Rica. In 2022, Costa Rica registered well over 2 million tourists. I bet this year even more flew to these beautiful shores and next year, the numbers will go up.

A Crowned Woodnymph from Rancho Naturalista, one of the most popular, classic birding sites in Costa Rica.

A lot of birders will be visiting on tours, some on their own, and many will want to stay at various birding hotspots. There’s only so much space and you can bet that a lot of rooms are already being blocked and booked by agencies and tour companies, even into 2025. Based on years of experience, if you want to do your own birding trip and are set on staying at the popular spots, I suggest picking dates ASAP and making those reservations now.

There’s a Heck of a Lot of Birds- More Time Studying Translates to a Better Birding Trip

Another major advantage of starting to plan a trip to Costa Rica today is giving yourself plenty of time to study for what’s in store. No, seriously, birding in Costa Rica won’t be anything like birding at your local refuge. For example, as I write, I know for a fact that there are at least 500 bird species (and probably more) living within two hour’s drive from my home.

speckled tanager

Check out the tanagers in Costa Rica to get psyched about your trip!

Yes, that many, including trogons, Resplendent Quetzals in nearby mountains, flocks of glittering tanagers, dozens of hummingbirds, and lots more. Trust me, with such a big avian treasure trove waiting to be seen, it will be worth your while to study for birding in this major birdy place, the more the better. When I say “studying”, although that could mean trying to learn field marks for hundreds of bird species, it could also just be reading the must have “The Birds of Costa Rica” by Garrigues and Dean, and checking out images and sounds for common species on a complete birding app for Costa Rica.

Costa Rica- a Small Country with the Birding Options of a Continent

Costa Rica might also be a small place but don’t be fooled. This country is a complex place where the driving is naturally slow (it’s mountainous), and there are several hundred bird species, many of which only live at certain elevations and in certain regions.

If you had all the time in the world, yes, you could stay for a couple months and try and see everything but since most of us vacation for a couple of weeks, we have to figure out exactly where we want to go. Costa Rica has more options than you think. There is tropical dry forest where Turquoise-browed Motmots perch on fence posts, rainforests replete with tinamous, antbirds, and woodcreepers, and high mountains beckon with the calls and views of a bunch of endemics shared with western Panama. Then there are other endemics restricted to southern Costa Rica, specialties of the northern marshes, the seriously underbirded, fantastic birding south of Limon, and more…

The Fiery-throated Hummingbird- one of those cool montane endemics.

There’s a lot to consider, I suggest picking out some favorite target birds and working the trip around that (contact me, I’m here to help). My 900 plus page bird finding book for Costa Rica will also help you get an idea of possible birding routes in Costa Rica, and what to expect at popular places as well as the better birding sites located off the regular beaten track.

You Just Might Want to Visit Costa Rica Sooner than 2024

Who says you have to wait until the high season to go birding in Costa Rica? This place is off the cuff for birds all year long and the ones you want to see the most might even be easier during the so-called “off season”. Yep, although you’ll see lots of birds any month of the year, I believe that the best birding in Costa Rica might be from April to July. This is when a lot of birds are breeding and the cloudy weather also boosts bird activity.

Yes, it will rain more but guess what? If I had to choose between birding with occasional rain, and birding in Costa Rica in dry and sunny weather, I would choose that cloudy day every single time. The birds are way more active on cloudy days with occasional rain, and in the high season, the Caribbean slope sees a lot of rain anyways.

buff-fronted-quail-do

You might have better chances at the Buff-fronted Quail-Dove.

Other benefits of visiting Costa Rica during the next few months are probable lower prices for accommodation, more ample options for reservations, and still seeing lots of birds.

If you are hoping to visit Costa Rica next year or sooner, start planning now. You’ll have a better trip experiencing the avian delights in one of the top birding hotspots on the planet.

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Costa Rica Birding News- March and April, 2023

You might see a Three-wattled Bellbird around there.

It’s late March and we are at the tail end of the high season for birding in Costa Rica. April will still bring a good number of birders but, as with previous years, most birding trips to Costa Rica happen during the first three months of the calendar year. If you do happen to be visiting Costa Rica in April, you are in luck because the fourth month is a fantastic time for birding. It might even be the best time to bring the binos to this beautiful, birdy nation.

April is high time for our spring migration and although the warblers and other migrants won’t be singing like they do up north, this month features large numbers of swallows, Chimney Swifts, Eastern Kingbirds, Red-eyed Vireos, raptor migration, and other birds that winter in South America. This impressive spectacle of migration adds a nice cherry on top of a birding cake flavored with hundreds of resident bird species.

With that in mind, let’s start recent birding news with some tips on the best sites for spring migration in Costa Rica.

An eddy in the river of raptors.
  • Tortuguero– Situated on the Caribbean coast, this national park also sits smack in the middle of a flyway that features millions of birds. Watch the skies for flocks of kingbirds, swifts, swallows, and raptors as well as other odd birds making their way north. When I visit, I also check the coastal scrub and gardens in the village for small migrants like warblers, the occasional cuckoo, and various other species, and the beach for shorebirds and occasional pelagic species.
  • Cahuita-Manzanillo– This general area is also excellent for migration and a wonderful area to mix migrant birds with fantastic birding in lowland rainforest. The seabirding seems better at Tortuguero but it’s still worth scoping the ocean around here too. I have seen Brown Noddy, Bridled Tern, and a jaeger or two, and other species are certainly possible.
  • Sarapiqui– Another classic site for lowland rainforest, it can also be very good during migration. Although there won’t be any seabirding, you might find Cerulean Warbler, flocks of Scarlet Tanagers, a river of raptors, and several other species.
  • Puntarenas and the Gulf of Nicoya– Puntarenas is a good place to do some seawatching and look for migrant terns and other species. Mud flats and other sites on the Gulf of Nicoya also act as important stopover sites for shorebirds.

In other birding news, here are some other items of interest for birding Costa Rica:

Gullmania in Puntarenas– Costa Rica isn’t really known for gull watching and with good reason. Although a good number of Laridae are on the official bird list for Costa Rica, most are vagrants, even bird species like Herring Gull and Ring-billed Gull. Our regular species only include Laughing Gull, migrant Franklin’s Gulls, and various terns.

Given the lack of birding coverage along extensive coastlines, inaccessible shrimp ponds, and other gullish sites, I bet more gulls visit Costa Rica than we realize. Not a huge number by any means but choice rarities surely slip by and over our local birding RADAR; we just don’t have enough people putting in the hours. However, we do have enough focused birders to come up with some really good finds. One of the best was a Heerman’s Gull at Puntarenas! A first year bird discovered by Daniel and Robert Garrigues, and Daniel Fernandez Duarte is the first officially documented record for Costa Rica. This species has been on my personal birding RADAR for some time, it’s great to see that one was found and that it has also stayed long enough to be seen by a number of local birders (my partner and I included).

The Heerman’s will probably be Costa Rica’s “best bird” of 2023 but, even better, it came with two consolation prizes; a Herring Gull and Ring-billed Gull in the same area! For many local birders, all three of these species were key lifers. Once again, it pays to bird Puntarenas.

Pacific Golden-Plover in Puntarenas- What was I just saying about Puntarenas? A very rare migrant Pacific Golden-Plover was found by local guide Beto Guido during a recent visit. It was with two American Golden-Plovers and although they seem to have flown north, the Pacific has stayed for several more days. As of March 26th, it was still present. Look for it on the beach and jetties from the lighthouse to parts of the beach east of the jetties.

Pacific-Golden-Plover-Puntarenas-Costa-Ric
A Pacific Golden-Plover I found at Puntarenas in 2022. Perhaps the same indfividual as this year?

8 quetzals in a day at and near Poas– Most birders visit the Dota Valley or Monteverde for their fill of quetzals but the ultra fancy birds also live in other places. I don’t always see or hear them on Poas but have a pretty good success rate. Last week, though, was exceptional with two quetzals heard on Poas and at least 6 (maybe more) heard and seen at a site near Varablanca.

Speckled Mourner seen!– This odd little bird is one of the rarest resident species in Costa Rica. With very few confirmed sightings, and not really knowing what they need for survival in Costa Rica, we really have no idea how many still occur in the country. On a high note, a bird was seen and photographed by a local birder and biologist at a site within the Guanacaste Dry Forest Conservation Fund Area (which also protects important rainforest and cloud forest habitats). This important sighting hints at the quality habitats protected by the fund and (along with the 2017 Harpy Eagle sighting) provides further impetus to explore and bird sites around those remote northern volcanoes.

Bellbirds near San Ramon- Lastly, the bellbirds are back at sites near San Ramon. Last week, we had excellent views of a calling male near the end of Calle Chaves, the Pagan Poetry Bed and Breakfast road. It’s four wheel drive only but the trip might be worth it. The bellbirds at this and other sites near there do move around but might still be possible until May or June.

These are some of the latest local birding news items and with dozens of birding hotspots, I could always say more. Learn more about where to watch birds in Costa Rica with my 900 plus page, recently updated ebook, “How to See, Find, and Identify Birds in Costa Rica”. I hope to see you here!

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Two Ebird Hotspots in Costa Rica that Have Gone Cold

Who doesn't want to see a Snowcap?

Birding is inherently dynamic. Even in patches as small as a backyard, supposedly tiny changes can have major impacts on the numbers and types of birds that visit. Put in a water feature and suddenly, your morning coffee can be accompanied by views of warblers and other migrants. Stop cutting (destroying) part of the back lawn, let more vegetation grow, and birds will find that new bit of habitat too.

In Costa Rica, a new backyard addition can take the form of a Barred Antshrike.

On the contrary, replace your personal green space with plastic grass and the patch will only be suitable for birds adapted to the new melted carbon paradigm (unfortunately, no species have attained such special traits). In essence, whether your birding takes place in a backyard or in a massive wilderness area, changes to have habitat have consequences.

When it comes to birding in Costa Rica, luckily, many sites are intact and not subject to the destruction so commonly and horribly seen in many parts of the world. Even so, changes have still occurred in some places, some for better and others for worse. A few such places in Costa Rica are listed as eBird hotspots but the truth of the matter is that (1) they have changed to the point where they are no longer worth visiting, or (2) you simply can’t visit because of lack of access.

This means that in Costa Rica (and elsewhere), eBird hotspots can still be listed as hotspots even when the hotspot status is more of a label harkening back to better birding days. Although the birds won’t be the same, keeping such places listed as hotspots can at least give us hope and data to eventually, properly restore natural places back to how they should be.

The following are two of the most impacted eBird hotspots in Costa Rica:

El Tigre Wet Fields

Check the species list for this site and you might pencil it in as a chance for Pinnated Bittern, Paint-billed Crake, and other choice wetland birds. Get over-enthused and you might even scratch Cano Negro from the itinerary in lieu of more time spent at the Tigre Fields. Before you make those changes, check when such birds were seen there last, better to get an idea of what’s being seen by reviewing recent lists from the site.

You’ll find that the best place for Pinnated Bittern is Medio Queso wetland.

If you don’t see much of note, don’t be surprised for this former gem of a spot is nothing like it used to be. Whether because of draining or a drying climate, wet, flooded pastures have become dry stomping grounds for cattle. As for the large area of rich second growth across the street, the places that used to be full of chattering Scarlet-rumped Tanagers and other birds, well, that was eliminated and replaced with poisoned earth pineapple (not many birds there).

Sadly, although a few wetland birds can still occur, this particular hotspot has become an average birding site at best. Who knows, maybe some day, it can be restored? In the meantime, stopping there is probably not worth your while.

El Tapir

El Tapir still boasts great foothill rainforest habitat but it has become a major tease; you can’t really bird it. If you can gain access, maybe you can but rights to this wonderful site appears to have been purchased by someone who has yet to give any indication of opening it to the public. For the sake of easy views of Snowcap and a host of other species, hopefully, access issues will change but in the meantime, it’s best to allocate birding time in foothill rainforest to other sites.

Male Snowcap.

Fortunately, there’s not many birding hotspots in Costa Rica that have seen changes to habitat nor access as radical as these. Even so, this situation is a good reminder to view hotspot eBird information for Costa Rica with a grain of salt. Check dates for the latest sightings of target birds and always remember that the bird birding doesn’t necessarily happen where people bird the most. It takes place at sites with the highest degree of intact habitat.

Get local information for the best birding sites in Costa Rica and support this blog by purchasing “How to See, Find, and Identify Birds in Costa Rica”; a 900 page ebook that shows you where to see birds in Costa Rica, how to find them, and identification tips. I hope to see you here!

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One Day Birding in Costa Rica = 5 Owl Species Plus Potoo

How many birds in Costa Rica can be seen in a day? The answer depends on how you go birding just as much as where you go birding. Make a focused bird run through different avian-rich habitats in different habitats and well over 100 species are probable. Go the relaxed route at one or two sites and you might not have as much but you’ll still see a lot, and might connect with a few true blue rarities.

You might see a lancebill.

However, no matter how you do your birding thing, days with multiple owls are far and few between. I’ve done all sorts of birding in Costa Rica as well as a bunch of other places but owls are always the exception. They hide incredibly well, most don’t become active until it gets dark and even then, they ghost around the woods and fields on silent, moth-like wings. No wonder we hardly ever see them! One would think owls are rare, birds that you just don’t see, just can’t see.

Truth is, owls in most places are more common than expected, they just require a different way of birding, or, in depth local knowledge. That’s how we saw so many owls on the annual Buffalo Ornithological Society owl field trip. That special, memorable day was the exception, the day when you knew you had a good chance of seeing not one or two owls but a bunch and it was all because of invaluable local knowledge.

The owl trip was an all day winter event, a time when several of us would carpool to a meeting point with Glen Coady or other Canadian birders who would then graciously bring us to several sites in and near Toronto, Ontario. There were groups of Short-eared Owls coursing over snow-covered fields, a Northern Hawk Owl or two in suburban neighborhoods, Snowy Owls, and stacks of Long-eared Owls in a waterfront park. A closer, fine toothed check of the same park might turn up a Northern Saw-whet or maybe even a Boreal Owl (!).

Eastern Screech Owls would be scoped and revealed hiding in big, craggy trees, we might get lucky and see a Great Gray Owl, and we would usually round out the day with views of Barred and a Great Horned Owl or two.

Yeah, that many owls! An incredible day indeed and one that would have been impossible without the help of expert local birders who had put in countless hours to find those birds. I’ll always be grateful to those Canadian birders, other B.O.S. birders, and my father for taking me on those memorable, magical trips.

Although laying eyes on 8 to 10 owl species in one day of birding in Costa Rica is unlikely, the same sort of local knowledge can still turn up an owl or two just about every day of your trip. Play your birding cards right and you might even see several. This past March 2nd, I had one of these rare and special days.

It started with a visit to one of more reliable places to see an owl or two; Cope’s place at Union de Guapiles. Cope often know where the owls are hanging out but as with all things birding, you just really never know if they are gonna be there! Luckily, on March 2nd, the two hoped for species were present on roosts that Cope knew of. We still had to look for a bit, still had to check a few roosts, but yes (!), ended up with great looks at Crested Owl,

followed by Spectacled Owl.

While looking for other birds, Cope had mentioned that the night before, he had also heard a Central American Pygmy-Owl calling repeatedly from a nearby site. Would we like to look for that uncommonly seen species? Oh, I think so! Shortly after arrival, while scoping Masked Tityras and other lowland species, it didn’t take long for the teensy tiny owl to start tooting and a minute later, we were looking at one. Even better, it was calling from a nest!

We got more than our fill of the bird looking at us from its nesting hole as well as views of its mate before moving on to a stake out for another nocturnal specialty, the Great Potoo. Sure enough, the large, pseudo owl was present and with that sighting, we had four nocturnal species for the morning.

After lunch at the Hacienda La Isla (very much recommended, and for birds too), we made our way back to the Hotel Bougainvillea and birded the rest of the afternoon there. Wind and sun put a damper on birding activity but it didn’t stop us from seeing a known but well hidden Mottled Owl (!). Not long after, we saw our 5th owl species for the day when a pair of Ferruginous Pygmy-owls perched in the open.

That finished off yet another memorable day of birding in Costa Rica. Now, if we had known where Black-and-White Owl was hiding at Hacienda La Isla, and knew of a spot for roosting Tropical Screech-Owl, we would have had an impressive 7 owl species (!). Oh well, those will have to wait for another day.

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Costa Rica Birding Highlights- Nectar and Pollen

White Hawk Costa Rica
Find more birds in Costa Rica like this White Hawk.

Where to go birding in Costa Rica? Where to see birds in Costa Rica? These are pertinent question for any birder, and, for some, all important concerns. The right answers vary; they wholly depend on what you would like to see. Walk outside and look around, as the Urban Birder says, “Look Up!”, and you will see birds, even in the concrete byways of San Jose. However, if you carry out that same action in and near primary rainforest, you could see ten times as many birds.

If “quetzal” is in your personal birding equation, any number of forested sites in the highlands will work. The same goes for many of Costa Rica’s near endemics including birds like Yellow-thighed Brushfinch, an arboreal towhee with legs that sport yellow pom-poms.

Yellow-thighed Brushfinch

As you can see, I wasn’t kidding!

Looking for tanagers? Well of course you are! The best sites tend to be in quality foothill and middle elevation rainforest. How about hummingbirds? Yes please and with sabrewings on top! You’ll find those and much more at various middle elevation sites.

Violet-Sabrewing-male

Nothing like seeing a massive purple hummingbird to get the birding blood flowing!

Now if you would like to see lots of cool, choice tropical birds, all at once, there are good birding sites in Costa Rica for that fast and furious happiness too. One such place is Nectar and Pollen, these are some recent highlights and birds to look for at this easily accessible, gem of a spot:

Raptors

Some of best places to see raptors in Costa Rica are sites with good views of the canopy and sky over extensive primary rainforest. Walk into the pasture at Nectar and Pollen and you’ll see what I mean, especially during a sunny morning, right around 9:00 a.m. This is high time for raptors to take to the skies and if you hit a good day at Nectar and Pollen you could see several of these species:

King Vulture

Hawk-eagles, even the rare Black-and-White

White Hawk

Barred Hawk

Great Black Hawk

Gray Hawk

Broad-winged Hawk

Short-tailed Hawk

Double-toothed Kite

Rarely, you could also see Hook-billed and Gray-headed Kites

Scan the canopy at an early hour and you might also get lucky with finding a perched Tiny Hawk, Bicolored Hawk, Laughing Falcon, or other raptor species.

White-tipped Sicklebill and Other Hummingbirds

Plantings can attract sicklebill, hermits, and several other hummingbirds. A recent visit turned up:

White-necked Jacobin

A male White-necked Jacobin.

Blue-chested Hummingbird

Violet-headed Hummingbird

Rufous-tailed Hummingbird

Scaly-breasted Hummingbird

Crowned Woodnymph, and

Green-breasted Mango.

On other visits, I have also had Bronze-tailed Plumeleteer, Green Thorntail, Black-crested Coquette, Brown Violetear, Long-billed Starthroat, and that minute mega, the Snowcap.

A Flurry of Birds

If you do pay a visit, be prepared, the birds often happen fast and furious! One after another and sometimes, all at once. So as not to miss anything, your best bet is to let go and do what the guide says. A good guide will get you on the birds that need to be seen at that moment instead of looking at species more likely to be seen later the same day or on other days.

Be forewarned, whether birding with a guide or not, sensory overload is likely! Just try to stay focused, try to recall field marks, and wait until a lull in the bird action to check your birding app for Costa Rica or field guide book. Trust me, if you try to look up each bird as you see them, you could miss a lot.

As with any site, the fast birding at Nectar and Pollen varies but often includes troops of Black-faced Grosbeaks and Carmiol’s Tanagers, other tanagers in fruiting trees, euphonias, hummingbirds, parrots doing flybys and more. It’s bird action at its best!

Red-fronted Parrotlet and Other Uncommon Species

Although you can’t expect it on every visit, this is a perfect site to see the rare Red-fronted Parrotlet fly past in the morning and late afternoon. Watch for them from the small hill in the pasture while also enjoying views of Long-tailed Tyrant, Cinnamon, Rufous-winged, Black-cheeked, and Smoky-brown Woodpeckers, and other species.

If you walk the forest trail, keep a close eye out for Olive-backed Quail-Dove on the ground, Dull-mantled Antbird in the ravines, and White-flanked Antwrem and other small birds in understory mixed flocks. The umbrellabird and other rare species are also always possible!

Tanagers and White-vented Euphonia

The number of tanagers can vary but fruiting trees usually attract Green and Shining Honeycreepers, Scarlet-rumped and Crimson-collared Tanagers, and various other species. Emerald, Silver-throated, Speckled, and Bay-headed are regular and once in a while, Rufous-winged, Black-and-yellow, and even Blue-and-Gold Tanagers occur! On a recent visit, although the tanager scene was somewhat subdued, we still had uncommon White-vented Euphonia and several other nice birds.

As you may have surmised, the birding at Nectar and Pollen can be pretty darn good. The same goes for bird photography, especially for hummingbirds, Rufous Motmot, and tanagers. Visits must be arranged in advance but that’s easy enough to do. Just send Miguel a message at the Nectar and Pollen Facebook page and give him the date of your visit. A visit for one to two people costs $25 per person, $20 per person for groups of three or more. If you go, please leave a comment with your sightings or link to eBird list at the end of this post. I hope to see you there!

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Costa Rica Birding in Primary Forest- Most Accessible Highland Sites


Birding in Costa Rica is like birding everywhere; better habitat means better birding. In Costa Rica, the best habitat translates to large areas of mature tropical forest; the principal vegetation cover in much of this birdy country for thousands of years, the habitat that provides the complex structure and ecological connections that boost bird diversity.

Primary forest might not provide the easiest of avenues for birding but it does open the door for more raptors and the full complement of expected and rare species. While a birder will see more bird activity in young second growth, they won’t see nearly as many species and won’t have nary a chance at seeing dozens of birds that require the shade, vine tangles, and peculiar situations found in mature forest.

In the highlands of Costa Rica, the most intact, large areas of mature forest occur in the Talamanca Mountains. Check out satellite maps of southern and eastern Costa Rica and you’ll notice that big swath of deep green covering ridges and mountains from near Cartago on into Panama. As inviting as all that habitat looks, unfortunately for us birders, much of it is simply inaccessible. We shouldn’t complain though, that inaccessibility is why so much of that primary highland rainforest still stands.

On the fortunate side of the coin, thanks to protection being given to mature forests in Costa Rica, there are some places in the highlands where intact, fantastic forest can be visited. The following are the most accessible of those sites.

Quetzal National Park and Other Sites on Cerro de la Muerte

The main road that links Cartago to Perez Zeledon is also the primary conduit to the largest area of mature high elevation rainforest in Costa Rica. It only reaches a corner of the large forest block but it is enough to get you birding in groves of massive tropical oaks draped with lichens, moss, and bromeliads.

There are several places where such forest can be experienced but the most accessible spots are roads to and near Providencia. These roads pass through mature forests of Quetzal National Park and true to its name, yes, this is a good area to see that spectacular species. Roadside birding is excellent and can turn up all possible species (including Silvery-throated Jay). Trails are also present, to use them, visit the national park headquarters where the road to Providencia meets the main road between Cartago and Perez Zeledon.

If not using the trails, the public roads can be birded for free and at any time of the day or night.

Santa Elena Forest Reserve in Monteverde

Although an entrance fee is charged, this reserve has a number of good trails accessing excellent cloud forest in the Monteverde area. You will see some other people on the trails but not nearly as many as in the Monteverde Reserve or in Curi-Cancha.

The trails in this reserve can be especially good for Highland Tinamou, Buff-fronted Quail-Dove, and other shy species.

buff-fronted-quail-do

Bajos del Toro

Roadside birding in mature forest is possible on the main roads from Zarcero and Sarchi to Bajos del Toro. Be forewarned, they can be steep and narrow in parts but do pass through excellent habitat offering chances at rarities like Black-banded Woodcreeper and Azure-hooded Jay along with more common species like Flame-throated Warbler and Collared Redstart.

Honorable Mentions

In terms of easy access, entrance fees, and quality habitat, the three sites and areas mentioned above offer the easiest access to the best highland habitats. That said, many other sites are also possible, including these ones.
-Roble Trail at Savegre: Excellent forest at Savegre accessible with an entrance fee and hike or ride uphill. Inquire at the Savegre reception desk.
-La Georgina: Somewhat steep, free trails through excellent forest can be found just behind the La Georgina cafe on the highway through Cerro de la Muerte.
-The NocheBuena area on Irazu Volcano: Although the forest here is more fragmented than in the Talamancas, the trails at the NocheBuena do pass through quite a bit of good high elevation habitat. Most species are present, notable misses being Silvery-throated Jay and Ochraceous Pewee (although maybe they will eventually occur too?). A small entrance fee is charged.
-Tapanti National Park: This national park has excellent birding on the road through the park and on a few trails. The road to the park is also good and suitable for any vehicle but, as with most national parks in Costa Rica, Tapanti is only open from 8 to 4 and thus not during optimal birding times. Entrance fees must also be purchased online.

The sites mentioned above are particularly suited for DIY birding in Costa Rica. To learn more about where to watch birds in Costa Rica, support this blog by purchasing, “How to See, Find, and Identify Birds in Costa Rica”, a 900 plus page ebook that covers every corner of the country. Happy birding in Costa Rica, I hope to see you here.