October isn’t the most popular month for visiting Costa Rica but, as far as us local birders are concerned, pumpkin season is the best month for birding. Yes, we are deep in the heart of the wet season and yes, it rains a heck of a lot (especially this year) but, you know where the sun still shines?
Try the southern Caribbean zone. That would be the area from Limon southeast to Sixaola. I’m talking places like Cahuita, Puerto Viejo de Talamanca, and Manzanillo-Gandoca (and Tortuguero ain’t that shabby either!). It only takes a quick eBird check to see that several local birders have been in that area as of late, with luck, we’ll pay a visit soon too.
I want to go to catch the tail end of migration, to see the final movements of swallows and Peregrines and raptor movements. With that hurricane churning in the northern Caribbean basin, I’m also hoping it might send a weird bird or two our way, both on sea and on land.
I’ve also noticed a few more international tours to that area happening in October. I think more agencies have realized just how good it can be, how exciting the birding is when you mix a major migration corridor with a plethora of resident rainforest birds.
Here’s some specifics why, the things that keep me coming back and wishing I had a migration vacation house down that way:
Migration is fantastic
I didn’t mention major migration corridor for kicks. The Caribbean coast of Costa Rica really is migration central, especially in the southern part where a low coastal mountain approaches the sea. As happens in such geographic situations, birds tend to get funneled between the hills and the water. Stand in that funnel and you’re likely to witness an aerial avian stream, sometimes for hours.
The Hirundines, Chimney Swifts, and Eastern Kingbirds move through in the thousands, occasional birds getting caught by fair numbers of Merlins and Peregrines. Keep watching and you might catch a Black Swift or two in the bunch, maybe some Common Nighthawks flying way up there too.
Check any and all vegetation and you’ll see the less aerial birds on their way to South America. There’s Scarlet Tanagers, Bay-breasted Warblers, wood-pewees, Dickcissels, and other birds moving through.
Chances at something rare, maybe something new
As with any migration hotspot, a birder also always has a chance at the rare ones, the needles in the foliage haystack. Some, like rare swallows, could easily pass overhead unnoticed among the thousands of similar species (I bet it happens with one or more Sinaloa Martins). Others are waiting to be found in an abundance of rainforest vegetation, naturally hiding way up there in the canopy or in too many areas to check.
How many Connecticut Warblers skulk through? Even if a dozen were in the area, they’d still get missed. What about Swainson’s Warbler? Yeah, that’s a stretch but despite it not being on the official list, one was seen in 2017. There’s gotta be a few more quietly absconding in wet swampy woods that no one birds.
Out on the ocean, other intriguing birds pass by, get the right conditions and pelagics do occasionally show. There’s just not enough people officially watching for long enough to document them.
Then there’s the truly new birds for Costa Rica, the ones likely to be documented at some point. These are birds like Carib Grackle, Cocoi Heron, White-tailed Trogon, and maybe Rufous-breasted Hermit, Blue Cotinga, and Pacific Antwren. All live pretty close, all are possible, and are why I include them on the Costa Rica Birds app as “not seen” birds.
Top notch resident rainforest species
If you don’t find a new bird for Costa Rica, you’ll still see lots of the regular ones. One of the great things about birding this region is the degree of accessible mature forest habitat, even around many hotels.
Birds like toucans, parrots, puffbirds, Great Potoo, Black-crowned Antshrike, and Purple-throated Fruitcrows are all fairly common. There’s also plenty of woodcreepers, flycatchers, and other expected lowland species, even chances at Agami Heron, kingfishers, and other waterbirds along forested creeks.
Raptors can be good too and include Common Black-Hawk, hawk-eagles, Bat Falcon, Gray-headed Kite, and other species. Although it would be lottery rare, who knows if a Harpy or Crested Eagle might also wander in from populations in Panama or the lower slopes of the Talamancas? That would be very lucky but forest connections indicate that it is possible.
Other rare or uncommon birds to look for include Black-crowned Antpitta, Snowy Cotinga, Slaty-backed Forest-Falcon, Ocellated Antbird, and Sulphur-rumped Tanagers among others.
Underbirded
The area gets a lot of visitors but, it’s not exactly on the main birding tour route. That leaves much of the southern Caribbean underbirded even with several local guides and birders living there. There’s just not enough birders to adequately cover the amount of habitat.
That underbirded label means that there’s more places to explore and that you shouldn’t be too surprised to find some birds absent from eBird hotspots. As always, birds are where the habitat is and there’s a lot of it south of Limon. To learn more about where to go birding in this area, check out my Costa Rica birdfinding ebook.
Great food, lots of accommodation options, and some nice beaches too
Having come into its own as a tourist destination some years ago, this part of Costa Rica also boasts a number of choices for accommodation. Many are small hotels and house rentals but you’ll also find some cheaper and larger more expensive options too.
There’s lots of good restaurants too, some pricey, others more affordable but at least you have lots to choose from. Oh and there’s some nice beaches too although I tend to do more seawatching from them than venturing into the water. Just a note that if you do enter the water, not all beaches are good places to swim and you have to be be extremely careful of rip tides (tragically, one took the life of Malcom-Jamal Warner earlier this year).
If you are in Costa Rica these days, you might want to consider making your way to the southern Caribbean coast. I’m hoping I do, there’s a lot of birds waiting for me down that way.
Raptor Festival! Who doesn’t love the sound of a festive gathering that celebrates raptorial birds? Such venue are destined to be cool. And it was. We nearly missed the gig but thanks to a casual Facebook check Friday evening, I noticed a quick, short video that mentioned the second annual raptor festival taking place at Refugio Lapa Verde, October 18th.
That sounded fun and it was free but yikes! We were talking the following day and although the LapaVerde Refuge is straight line close, sans flying car, getting there would mean 2 hours driving up and over the Central Cordillera mountain range (a common situation in Costa Rica). That actually isn’t so bad, especially if you like watching birds; the route passes through a few different life zones that hide 100s of bird species.
It’s the getting back part that can be tiresome (and whoah nelly, read on to hear about that challenge) as well as the leaving early enough part to get there in time (if you like to sleep in). However, on Saturday morning, we shrugged off any worries about those potentially challenging parts of the trip and made our way to the festival. Here’s how that day went along with recommendations and other hopefully helpful tidbits.
The height of fall migration in Costa Rica
This is it, third week of October in Costa Rica, the major final push of birds headed here and onward to the rich wintering forests of South America. See them while you can, see if you’ll get lucky with a quick cuckoo sighting or ironic, non-red Scarlet Tanager flocks and kingbird movements.
There’s also the raptors, the thousands of TVs and Swainson’s Hawks and Broad-wings soaring overhead, many of which pass over the hawkwatch at the Refugio Lapa Verde. Those big winged flyers are the main reason for the raptor festival but there’s other birds too, hiding and foraging in the vegetation of the refuge.
Even before we left for our cross mountain drive, I went looking for those migrants. I did my usual brief walk in our neighborhood, one that passes near a rare adjacent farm and narrow riparian zone. The Traill’s Flycatcher sallying down to the cut grass, a few pewees, Dickcissel, my first Bay-breasted Warbler of the year and a few other birds were a reminder of peak migration happening. A quick message from another local birder who had heard tons of Swainson’s Thrushes passing over pre-dawn skies was another reminder as were the birds we saw later that day.
An important, multi-faceted refuge
The Lapa Verde Refuge is privately-owned protected land that encompasses some of the last sizeable remaining areas of Caribbean lowland rainforest in Costa Rica. Just across the road from the Selva Verde forests and northwest of La Selva, the habitat is also loosely connected to other patches of forest that eventually reach the Nicaraguan border.
These connections and location make the refuge an ideal area to help conserve the Great Green Macaw. We need more reforestation for better forest connections outside of the refuge but Ecovida (the organization that owns and manages the refuge) has certainly been doing an excellent job.
Since 2013, through active reforestation and just letting the forest grow back on its own, they have reforested more than 300 hectares. The remaining 1500 hectares protects older rainforest, swamps, and other wetlands. This wealth of habitats is of course ideal for maintaining the complex biodiversity native to northern Costa Rica including important second growth habitats used by warblers and other small migrant birds (the same type of habitat frequently eliminated for pineapple farms).
Great Green Macaws and more
Thanks to the forests in the refuge, Great Green Macaws are regular (we saw several during our visit), and most expected lowland species have been recorded. This includes Slaty-backed Forest-Falcon (rare), Tiny Hawk, Ornate Hawk-Eagle, Snowy Cotinga, puffbirds, motmots, and more.
Although Agami Heron, Rufescent Tiger-Heron and some other birds aren’t on the list, I’m sure they are at least occasionally present too, probably just in less accessible spots.
On our visit, we didn’t see too much but our birding was also limited to sunny mid-day weather and a short tour mostly meant to educate visitors about the refuge. Even so, we still encountered several expected warblers (as well as a beautiful male Prothonotary), other migrants, some migrating kettles, King Vulture, and some other birds.
Raptor celebration
In addition to free tours to learn about the refuge, festival attendants also enjoyed everything from DJ’d music to face painting, story telling, and an honest to goodness magic show. There was a lot going on and it sometimes got loud but I was impressed!
Local kids had also submitted artwork, there were vendors selling arts and crafts, a Vortex optics stand with binos and scopes to sample, snow cones, and other raptor festival foods.
Although we didn’t stay until the finale, the festival ended with a concert and fire juggling! We made up for missing that by watching the fun folks from dance around in identifiable raptor costumes. As was befitting their aggressive nature, the Ornate Hawk-Eagle and Black and white Hawk-Eagle also chased a couple of kite flying kids around.
The Ecovida hawkwatch tower
Part of our tour included a visit to the refuge’s crown jewell; the hawkwatch tower. Situated on a hill, it provided a fantastic view of the surrounding forests and skies. It somewhat reminded me of canopy towers in the Amazon, I’d love to be up there pre and post dawn. It would also be the perfect spot to do a big sit and raise funds for refuge projects.
Although we weren’t at the tower at an ideal time, the counters do see many thousands of raptors during the migration season along with lots of other cool birds.
Visiting the refuge
The raptor festival was an open house, fun, celebratory event but that’s not the norm. It seems like the refuge is mostly there for research and protecting habitat. Although their site does mention ecotourism and they do receive visits, there’s not a lot of information about entrance fees and so on.
If interested in visiting, it would be best to contact them to get the full deal. I’ll also be doing that and including that information in the next update for my Costa Rica bird finding book. I’ve already got a list of other places to update and include, it’s amazing how many new birding sites pop up for well-birded Costa Rica!
What I can say is that if you do visit, you should have a fair chance at a wide variety of lowland birds while watching from their trails and the tower.
The insane drive back
On another note, the drive back wasn’t as easy going as the drive there. Not quite. Driving up and over the mountains in dry weather and daylight is another world compared to doing that at night and in pouring rain.
The problem with night driving there and in much of Costa Rica is the lack of illumination coupled with a concurrent lack of painted roads with reflectors. That’s bad enough in the driest of weather but when you throw in slick roads and constant rain, you’re faced with a potentially life and death situation.
Seriously. It’s hard to see the edge of the road and if you venture off of it, you’re vehicle will likely be rolling down the mountain. Luckily, the rain was too bad on our drive up and, by taking it slow and easy, we made it to the to without too much anxiety. However, from there, as we descended towards Alajuela, the rain got heavier to the point of deluge level craziness with some road flooding (albeit shallow enough to drive through). Add in other drivers, some of whom insist on passing and it’s no wonder we ran into an accident. Not us thank goodness but it did close the road and made us take a detour to get back on track.
The moral of that story is to avoid driving at night in Costa Rica, especially in mountains and during the wet season. Fortunately, you don’t really have to and it’s much easier during the dry season. Happy birding, I hope to see you here!
In Costa Rica, there’s a lot of cool birds everywhere. Parakeets and parrots make morning flybys over busy urban roads, Gray Hawks call from above while doing their daily soaring over my minimally green neighborhood, tityras oink from big trees, and so on and so on. Those birds are definitely cool and I’m happy to notice them but if I want to see trogons and quetzals and hundreds more species, I need to move a bit further afield.
One of the great things about Costa Rica is that I don’t need to move very far. It only takes a 30 minute drive to reach cloud forest remnants with fancy chlorophonias and Bare-shanked Screech-Owls, only an hour to get low enough on the Pacific side to reach fantastic Scarlet Macaws. There’s also the other side of the mountains, the wet and mossy habitats on the Caribbean slope. Looking north, I can just about see it, at the edge of where the rain clouds hit way up there on the continental divide.
Go just a bit further and most of that water is destined for the Atlantic. Follow the highland streams and they become rivers that transect middle elevation forest before rushing through foothill rainforest to eventually slow down in the Caribbean lowlands. On the way, a birder also passes through different avian communities, each one more or less related to elevation.
The lowest, hottest parts have some of the highest diversity. Those Caribbean lowlands also have birds that don’t occur in other parts of Costa Rica. These are species that live in the La Selva area, inhabit the beautiful rainforests of Tirimbina, and call from the fantastic forests around and near Laguna del Lagarto. To see the following bird species in Costa Rica, you’ll have to travel to the Caribbean lowlands; they rarely occur above 300 meters in elevation and aren’t usually on the other side of the mountains.
Rufescent Tiger-Heron
Costa Rica’s rare tiger-heron likes marshes, usually near rainforest, and forested streams and swamps. It’s a lot easier to see in Panama and South America (where it replaces the Bare-throated Tiger-Heron) but if you need to check it out in Costa Rica, try looking for it in Tortuguero, around Boca Tapada and Laguna del Lagarto, and any suitable habitat in the Caribbean lowlands.
Harpy Eagle
This monster raptor is such a rare bird in Costa Rica, it’s almost not worth mentioning it. You probably won’t see one in the Sarapiqui area nor most other lowland sites but, vigilant birders replete with amazing birding luck could spot one in the Boca Tapada area and perhaps in the lowland forests north of Rincon de la Vieja.
Although individual Harpy Eagles could also feasibly move into foothill rainforests, on the Caribbean slope, they seem to be more of a lowland bird (or “were” since they have largely been extirpated). However, on a bright note, perhaps they could be reintroduced to the Gandoca-Manzanillo area, and, with reforestation, other sites too.
Gray-rumped Swift
For the most part, it seems like these small swifts are lowland birds. I’m not sure if I’ve ever seen any in the foothills but I always see them fluttering just above the canopy of lowland forest, even over second growth and remnant forest meandering along lowland waterways.
If you’re birding the Caribbean lowlands and see a group of small, rather low flying swifts, those would be Gray-rumpeds. In migration, there’s also similar Chimney Swifts but they are darker brown, have slightly longer wings, and are typically actively migrating (flying either straight north or directly south). In the summer months, there’s also a rare chance for a couple of Austral migrant Chaeturas but I’ll save that can of worms for another post.
Pied Puffbird
This tanager-sized, sort of batis looking puffbird is a true lowland species. I often find at the edge of rainforest as it calls from some super tall tree, usually after whistling like one. If not, if the small canopy dwelling bird doesn’t call, you’ll need a lot of luck to notice one.
Chestnut-colored Woodpecker
Chestnut-colored Woodpecker.
This beautiful woodpecker lives in lowland rainforest and adjacent gardens and second growth habitats. It took me a while to finally see this species, I think because I was mostly birding in foothill habitats. They seem to have a penchant for coconuts; I often see a pair pecking into big green coconuts on the La Selva entrance road.
Olive-throated Parakeet
See some small, long-tailed parakeets flying over or near lowland forest? You’re probably seeing this species. Olive-throated Parakeets are regular in most parts of the Caribbean lowlands but are especially common around Cano Negro.
Compared to the larger, brighter green Crimson-fronted Parakeets, Olive-throateds also lack red, and have scratchier voices.
Purple-throated Fruitcrow
A canopy view of a Purple-throated Fruitcrow.
This wonderful bird mostly occurs in South America but also ranges north to Costa Rica and adjacent southeastern Nicaragua. It lives in tall lowland rainforest and, in Costa Rica, seems to be more common near and south of Limon.
They also live in and around La Selva but are much less common north of there. Bird in the right places and it’s not that tough to see especially if you know its vocalizations. Fruitcrows usually occur in small, noisy flocks that swoop through the canopy. I often see them flocking with other medium to large birds like oropendolas, woodpeckers, woodcreepers, and Rufous Mourner.
Snowy Cotinga
Another lowland cotinga, this special bird is one to look for when birding any Caribbean lowland rainforest. They might also be more frequent near and south of Limon but occur in forest throughout the Caribbean lowlands, even in Cano Negro.
Snowy Cotingas don’t seem to be as common as they used to be but are still regular in most forested areas. Watch for a chunky pale bird perched high in a tree.
White-ringed Flycatcher
This Social Flycatcher look-alike is fairly common in any sort of lowland forest habitat, even tall second growth. If you see a “Social Flycatcher” perched high in a tree and making a trilled vocalization, you’ve found a White-ringed Flycatcher.
They usually occur in pairs or small groups, are quite vocal (thankfully), and tend to perch in the canopy. White-winged Flycatchers can also join mixed flocks and are separated from Social Flycatchers by their broader white eyebrow that meets on the back of the head, a white crescent above the eye, pale edging to the tertials, and trilled call.
Black-capped Pygmy-Tyrant
This tiny, tricky bird occurs in a few foothill areas but is mostly a lowland bird. Since it loves the canopy and about the same size as a large beetle, you’ll have to learn its bug-like call to find one. Luckily, it usually vocalizes over and over.
Listen for it in any site with Caribbean lowland rainforest.
Honorable Mentions
The following birds are more common in Caribbean lowland habitats but also occur in the foothills. Several have moved upslope in response to warmer temperatures.
Slaty-breasted Tinamou– Although you can see this tinamou at sites like Quebrada Gonzalez and north of Rincon de la Vieja, it’s a lot more common in lowland rainforest. For whatever evasive reason, they do not normally occur south of the Revantazon River in southeastern Costa Rica.
Sungrebe– This funny little waterbird is a lowland species that mostly occurs on the Caribbean slope but since it also locally occurs in and near the Osa Peninsula, it’s much more of a Caribbean lowland species.
Watch for it at Cano Negro, Tortuguero, on the Sarapiqui River, and on any other lowland river, lagoon, or marsh with vegetation that hangs over the water near the bank.
Olive-backed Quail-Dove– This elusive dove is a challenge but it’s probably more common than it seems. Keep an eye out for it in any lowland and foothill rainforest, perhaps especially beneath fruiting trees. Once, I also had perfect views of two or more at an antswarm in Tirimbina.
Blue-chested Hummingbird– This dull hummingbird is fairly common in lowland forest habitats but also occurs in various foothill sites. If you are birding the Caribbean lowland and see a small grayish, plain hummingbird with a grayish tail, its probably a Blue-chested.
Blue-chested Hummingbird
Middle American Screech-Owl– Like the quail-dove, this owl is likely more common than most birders realize. It makes a long, quiet trilling (typical screech-owl) call and, to escape larger owls, is pretty skulky and usually sticks to the undergrowth.
Look for it at night in any area with lowland rainforest. You might also find it in more foothill sites; this species seems to be moving upslope in some areas. As a bonus, the local guides at La Selva often know of one or two roosting birds.
Slaty-backed Forest-Falcon– A tough bird anywhere, in Costa Rica, small numbers sneak around lowland and some foothill forest sites. Maybe there’s more around than we know of? Hard to say because, like other Micrasturs, they are mostly detected by voice so if they don’t call, you have no idea they are around.
All of that said, in Costa Rica, they seem to be most frequent in the lowland rainforest near and south of Limon.
Semiplumbeous Hawk– Listen and watch for this Broad-winged sized raptor in any Caribbean lowland rainforest. These days, they also occur in most foothill areas too.
Great Green Macaw– Although primarily a lowland species, in the wet season (like now), Great Greens move into foothill rainforests. Good places to see them from May to perhaps November include Quebrada Gonzalez and nearby, and the area around San Miguel de Sarapiqui.
It’s surreal to stand in a gas station to watch groups of Great Green Macaws do late afternoon flybys over a fairly busy crossroads!
Great Potoo– Happily, this crazy muppet-like bird is fairly common in Caribbean lowland forests. Over the past ten years, it has also been moving into foothill rainforest.
White-fronted Nunbird– Small groups of this rambunctious species haunt mature lowland rainforest at and near La Selva, Hitoy-Cerere, Laguna Lagarto, and other places. They also live in foothill sites, especially near Bijagua and on the Peninsula Road near Arenal.
Although deforestation has made them pretty uncommon, if you look for nunbirds in the right places, they aren’t too tough to find.
Black-crowned Antshrike– Learn the calls of this antshrike to see how common it is. Its antshrike laughing vocalization is a typical sound of lowland rainforest. In several areas, we have also been seeing it in foothill rainforest.
Fasciated Antshrike– Like the antshrike, this cool zebra-like bird is another typical Caribbean lowland bird that has also been moving into the foothills. Watch for them un vine tangles.
White-flanked Antwren– Although this species has become uncommon at La Selva, I routinely find it at most other mature lowland forest sites in the Caribbean lowlands. I also see it at quite a few foothill rainforest sites.
Watch for them in mixed flocks with Streak-crowned Antvireos and other small insectivores. I usually find them by imitating their vocalizations.
Plain-brown Woodcreeper– A regular understory woodcreeper of the Caribbean lowlands, smaller numbers also occur in the foothills.
Yellow-winged Flycatcher (aka Flatbill)– Same goes for this flycatcher although it’s much more common in lowland rainforest.
Long-tailed Tyrant– This cavity-nesting flycatcher species occurs in foothill sites with suitable broken snags but is much more common in the lowlands.
Canebrake Wren– Learn this wren’s calls and you’ll see how common it is in the Caribbean lowlands. You might also find that it has also followed grassy roadside habitat into the middle elevations! Although I’m not sure if they have become established, I have heard this species at sites above the Peace Lodge.
Olive-crowned Yellowthroat– Like the Canebrake Wren, this warbler has also moved upslope. Even so, it’s most common in lowland marshes and wet, marsh-like grass. It can live in the same places as Gray-crowned Yellowthroats and both respond to each other’s vocalizations, certainly for inter-specific competition.
Red-throated Ant-Tanager– Much more common in lowland forest and second growth but, in some areas, you also encounter them in the foothills.
Dusky-faced Tanager– Same as the ant-tanager and usually in the same sort of second-growth habitat.
If you go birding around La Selva, Laguna del Lagarto, and other Caribbean lowland rainforest sites, watch for the birds mentioned above. You probably won’t see them in other parts of Costa Rica! To learn more about the birding sites mentioned in this post and hundreds of other birding sites in Costa Rica, support this blog by purchasing “How to See, Find, and Identify Birds in Costa Rica”.
I hope to see you here, hundreds of birds are waiting!
Costa Rica may be state-sized but it’s still got regions! What I mean is that this small nation has distinct areas with their own ecological and cultural flavors. That’s a fine bonus for birding, especially with regions being so close to each other.
After watching Great Green Macaws flap through warm humid airs of the Caribbean lowlands, you can head uphill and get refreshed with tanagers, Collared Trogons, and more in the cool highlands.
Go to the southeastern part of Costa Rica and you might get your bird groove on with Purple-throated Fruitcrows, Snowy Cotingas, and a bunch of toucans. Oh, and there’s that ocean too with its Caribbean waters, and a local culture strongly influenced by the descendants of Jamaican settlers.
I like it. So do lots of other locals who visit the beaches south of Limon every weekend. You might run into more people than expected but the birding’s still exciting, there’s still very good reasons to make the trip, especially in October.
These were some of our reasons and highlights for making the trip this past weekend.
Costa Rica’s First American Flamingo
Whoah! With all of those flamingos flying as far as Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, it was about time one showed in Costa Rica! Heck, we aren’t all that far from flamingo colonies in northern Colombia either. Only thing is, those birds don’t usually fly this way. They likely veer to more appropriate places, sites better suited to their hyper haline tastes.
I can’t blame the cool pink birds; they can’t exactly thrive away from shallow waters and salt pans. In Costa Rica, although we do have a bunch of tropical habitats, we don’t have much for flamingos.
Even so, they may visit on rare occasions; some fishermen claim to have seen flamingos now and then. I bet some have but none have been officially documented, at least not until the past week!
First seen on a beach near Moin, the pink star bird was refound by local birders at a roadside estuary south of Limon. When passing through the area, I suppose sort of like a flamingo, I also stop at the Estero Negro and other estuaries. These spots are no strangers to rare birds and often host something of feathered interest.
I have also figured they would to be good spots to get super lucky with a flamingo but even then, my visions were of a few birds flying by, out over the ocean. They would be distant flamingos, ones where you would exclaim in triumphant disbelief, “Holy crap! Flamingoes!! There they go….” The birds stopping and staying for a while was too much for my flamingo dreams.
Thankfully, this pink mega proved my visions wrong. It has done nothing but stay in the estuary and casually dip its serpentine neck to “baleen” feed in the shallow waters. Is it truly a wild bird or one that escaped confinement? I’m not sure but either way, Costa Rica’s first flamingo has been a fantastic automatic ambassador for birding. It’s got an easy job too; just stand around, do some foraging, and please stay alive.
The bird has also been impossible to miss. On Friday morning, when our small contingent from the Birding Club of Costa Rica arrived, it was the first thing we saw and we were very pleased to enjoy prolonged, pink-heavy views. Some other folks also watched it that Friday morning but that was nothing like the crowds on Sunday.
In typical people gathering fashion, someone had set up a food stall like they had been selling grilled chicken since the year 2000. Cars were stacked up on each side of the road, people were talking and laughing…I’m surprised no one cranked up some reggae or other loud, dance inspiring tunes. I bet someone did later on.
I mean, this flamingo shindig was turning into a real party and best of all, every person was present to see the bird (expect the vendors). Some birders were there but there were waaay more non-birders and that’s the best thing. Don’t get me wrong, I hope for all birders to see every bird but I also wish that every non-birder would convert and become bonafide birders.
Future birders?
If you’re a non-birder reading this, don’t worry, you don’t necessarily have to run out the door to see a soaring hawk, you don’t need to get a floppy hat or decorate with bird decor. You just need to see beauty in birds and have some desire or inkling to watch them in your backyard or further afield.
That’s all I’m asking, hopefully that flamingo did some natural marketing magic. It certainly looked magical.
Wattled Jacana
Yep, there was another nice tropical bird in the area! The Wattled Jacana isn’t as wild and crazy as a flamingo but it’s still a rare bird for Costa Rica. With exact instructions in digital hand, we made the 60 minute drive from Cahuita to near Gandoca, way close to the border.
We had to wait for a bit as we stared into a small, marshy cow pasture but eventually, yes, there it was. Wattled Jacana and American Flamingo in the same day! What was next? Crowned Slaty-Flycatcher? Perhaps an extra large raptor. One can avian dream after all…
Many thanks to the local birders who had found the bird. They showed us the exact spot and one even let us into his mom’s backyard for better views! He should get a medal or subscription or some other just reward.
Thousands of Swallows, Kingbirds, and Raptors (oh my!)
Flamingoes weren’t the only reason for our weekend excursion. Oh no, we were there for other birds too! You can’t go wrong with October in southeastern Costa Rica.
Migrants galore, sunnier weather than other months, and a nice big selection of resident species; I’ll take it!
I really love the swallow migration. It’s simply out of hand bird migration madness. Go birding there in October and you’ll see a near constant movement of swallows; mostly Barn, Cliff, and Bank. There’s other birds too, especially those swallow look-alikes, the Eastern Kingbird. Oh yes, they do look sort of like swallows, especially when flocks of hundreds mix and aerial mingle with the waves of swallows flying overhead.
On Sunday morning, to get an estimate of numbers, I counted swallows and kingbirds from one spot for five minutes. Extrapolating from that, during two hours, I figured at least 1,600 Eastern Kingbirds flew over along with at least 2,000 bank Swallows, and 6,000 each of Cliffs and Barns.
And honestly, those numbers are very conservative, I bet there were more. That only makes sense, the majority of the North American population of these species probably fly through Costa Rica.
Other migrants included Dickcissels, a few Veerys on their way to and near southern Brazil (where I fear climate-induced habitat destruction will seriously affect their survival), Prothonotary Warbler and a few other warblers, and lots of Traill’s and wood-pewees.
Oh yeah, there were all those raptors too- hundreds of kettling TVs and Broad-wingeds with occasional Osprey, late Swallow-tailed Kite, Miss. Kites, Peregrines, Merlin clutching its hirundine prey, a few Purple Martins and Chimney Swifts, a few Common Nighthawks, and some other birds.
If this were the 1930s, I’d probably say, “Ain’t migration grand?”
Black-chested Jay
Black-chested Jays aren’t that common in Costa Rica. Around here, they reach the northern limit of their range, the edge of their ecological existence. It can make them a challenging bird to see, especially during a brief window of birding.
Lucky for us, our window was in one of the best places to see this cool bird; Playa Negra, Cahuita. While birding near “Bridgette’s Place” (you’ll see it in Google), we had great looks at 8 of these fine year birds.
Cahuita National Park
Southeastern Costa Rica has lots of accessible habitat but it’s still nice to be able to visit a national park. Now if they could open at 6 instead of non-birdy 8, that would really help but on your hot walk, you’ll still see some birds anyways.
We actually did fairly well in the parking lot with a few fruitcrows, good raptor migration, and some migrants. On the pleasant boardwalk trail, we also saw such nice birdies as Brown-capped Tyrannulet, Acadian Flycatcher, Checker-throated and White-flanked Antwrens, and were entertained by the constant calls of Black-crowned Antshrikes.
Peer as I did into the swampy understory, I didn’t see any Agami Herons nor Rufescent Tiger-Herons. No Uniform Crakes calling back either but it was still a nice walk. If you make that hike, keep in mind that it won’t look around. After 2.1 kilometers, you’ll reach the beach (which is nice) and then have to walk back the way you came.
Calle Cahuita
This road is one of a few roads in the area that passes through good forest. We only birded it one afternoon and it was kind of quiet but I would sure love to be there at dawn!
Our best bird was a male Snowy Cotinga but many other species are possible and we also had some tanagers, and various expected common rainforest birds. No Sulphur-rumped Tanagers but they should still be possible. Black-crowned Antpitta might also still occur, who knows what else?
Yep, as with so many places in Costa Rica and the globe in general, prices have risen in southeastern Costa Rica. Some restaurants are pretty expensive and lodging is a far cry from much cheaper days.
However, there are lots of options, especially with Air BnB. If you are flexible and look enough, you can find some good deals. The same goes for places to eat. The Atlantida was good, especially for breakfast, and another place we really liked was the Restaurant and Bar Peruanita. We tried to go to the much acclaimed “Cahuita’s Taste Caribbean Soul Food” but they had run out of food! It’s a small place with home-cooked meals, make sure to get there early.
As always, when visiting southeastern Costa Rica, I wish we could have stayed longer. When I leave that birdy zone, I drive off knowing that there are many underbirded places to check, sites that might host Great Jacamar and other rare species. Which migrant birds arrived after I left? Was there a Gray Kingbird just around the corner? Uncommon and rare warblers skulking in the woods? Flamingo or not, there’s plenty of reasons to return.
Costa Rica is not a vast country. We don’t have endless landscapes that leap past the horizon and yet, there’s still much to discover. The humid tropical forests are packed with dense vegetation, looped with life. Hidden wetlands beckon and lurk from valleys, and even old overlooked fields could hide a Lesser Ground-Cuckoo.
Lesser Ground Cuckoos are fairly common but skulky.
What else shelters in “the weeds”?
As with every coast, seawatching is an open window to tantalizing opportunities. What will fly by today? What might wander in from distant marine realms, however small the possibility? Costa Rica’s dual shores provide two such chances at lottery birding redemption.
Even in the same old birding places, there’s always more to see. Bird some of the richer spots and you could get lifers on every one of a dozen visits (no kidding, you just gotta know where to go birding in Costa Rica). You could also stick to the popular birding circuit and connect with literally hundreds of species.
You can’t go wrong but, for the more adventurous, additional birding corners await exploration. These are places off the beaten track, too far from other sites to fit into tours or just too plain far. For a country the size of West Virginia, as one might surmise, such less visited sites tend to be close to Panama or Nicaragua.
Last weekend, we visited one of those far off places. It’s a spot I have wanted to check for some time but have always ended up birding similar sites that were just a little bit closer. That place is Gandoca and it’s pretty much right at the end of the road.
Gandoca is a tiny settlement just on the other side of the Gandoca-Manzanillo Reserve. Go there and you’re almost in Panama. Heck, on the way there, you can see forested hills in Panama that probably host Harpy Eagle. No such mega massive eagle welcomed us in Gandoca but we still had some fun and exciting birding. Check out the eBird trip report and some observations and suggestions based on this past trip:
The Road in to Gandoca is Bumpy and Not very Birdy
The highway is wonderful. Really. No holes, quick, easy-going, that’s not what you usually find in Costa Rica! However, once you turn off the highway, you’ll be in for several kilometers of classic, rocky road bumpiness.
It’s not too bad but just saying, it’s good to be prepared. The birding on the way in isn’t so great either. Yes, it’s Ok but at least half the road passes through banana farms, tree farms, and some pasture. We rode in at night with hopes of uncommon nightjars but nope, only Common Pauraques, at least on that night.
The Best Habitat is near Gandoca and the Colibri Ecolodge
The title says it all. The best habitats are the forests closer to Gandoca and the Colibri Ecolodge (Colibri Cabinas). Although they weren’t primary forest, they were still old enough to host a fair number of forest birds. I bet they could also host a surprise or two.
Black-striped Woodcreeper was present along with several Cinnamon and Chestnut-colored Woodpeckers.
Rufescent Tiger-Heron! Uniform Crake! Hermits in Abundance!
I suppose these were our “best birds”. The tiger-heron was hanging out in a backyard ditch at the Colibri. Amazingly, we almost missed it! Luckily, we ran into Richard Garrigues (author of the Birds of Costa Rica) and some of his family. Richard told us about the tiger-heron and a few seconds later, we were all admiring this uncommon Costa Rica bird at close range.
The crake wasn’t surprising, this species is actually quite common in Costa Rica. However, you don’t get to see those mammal wannabes all that much. On our final morning, while admiring a caiman in a roadside pool, a juvenile Uniform Crake came scooting out of the forest and let us watch it pick at the edge of the water. We were pleased that the caiman didn’t turn around and try for a crake sandwich.
As for the hermits, they were just nice and common. It’s always nice to constantly hear and see Long-billed Hermits in action but the birding gets better when all four possible species appear.
Serious Migration
We truly lucked out on Saturday. On Friday night, there must have been a huge wave of migration. In the morning, invisible, buzzing Dickcissels passed overhead while small flocks of Rose-breasted Grosbeaks, Scarlet and Summer Tanagers, and Swainson’s Thrushes foraged in the trees.
The foliage was also full of Bay-breasted Warblers, and wood-pewees and a few Empids sallied from the forest edge. An Olive-sided Flycatcher topped a snag, and Eastern Kingbirds flew into view.
No cuckoos seen nor other rare birds but it was still marvelous.
Not to mention, the migrants busied fruiting figs with trogons, Crested Guans, chachalacas, tanagers, and other local birds. Stuff was busy, it was deep chocolate goodness.
Plain-colored Tanagers were there too.
Check for New Birds for Costa Rica
One other thing I highly recommend while visiting Gandoca is looking for new birds for Costa Rica. I’m ashamed to admit I did not carry out this honorable task as much as I should have. However, in the future, I would suggest seriously looking for Pacific Antwren, White-tailed Trogon, Blue Cotinga, Cocoi Heron, Cattle Tyrant, Carib Grackle, and Rufous-breasted Hermit.
I daresay any of these birds are possible in that area (perhaps more along the main highway) and is why I included them on the Costa Rica Birding App as “not seen” birds. The hermit in particular could be easily overlooked. I mean it looks extremely similar to a Bronzy Hermit, you’ll need photos that show the undertail coverts and the face.
Bird Other, Nearby, Little Birded Sites
Bird Gandoca for sure but if you can, it’s also worth dedicating time to birding other sites in the area. Those would be places like the Paradise Road, sites near Bribri, Manzanillo, and the RECOPE road to name a few.
Visit Gandoca and you gotta be ready to drive for a good ways. Make sure your car is charged and don’t expect many stores in the area but you will find peace. You’ll also see a lot of birds, maybe something mega.
The concept of paradise may be subjective but most would agree that it encompasses feelings of happiness in absolutely beautiful surroundings. Most would also equate those beautiful surroundings with natural beauty, often, tropical places with textured vegetation that appeases in a dozen shades of jade. However, peaceful green isn’t the only color on the paradise block. It’s a lovely garden au-naturelle highlighted with the purples, yellows, and deep reds of tropical flowers, and the plumages of “exotic” birds.
In Costa Rica, those birds include toucans, parrots, tanagers, and a few dozen hummingbirds, each adorned with their own set of refracted jewels.
Crowned Woodnymph is one of the more common rainforest hummingbirds in Costa Rica.
With so much tropical beauty beaing easily accessible, refering to birding in Costa Rica as a certain type of paradise becomes easy. Perhaps it’s no surprise that some places have “paradise” as part of their name. In celebration of October Global Big Day, 2022, my partner and I birded one such place in southeastern Costa Rica, a site known as “Paradise Road“.
Paradise Road is a rural gravel road that connects the coastal road near Punta Uva with another route that leads to Sixaola and the border with Panama. I’ve done some birding on it in the past but never at dawn and never enough for my liking. I guess I end up feeling that way about most sites that host extensive habitat, and especially when they see very little birding.
On this trip, I was pleased to finally bird this road at dawn. These were some highlights:
Owl Chorus
Most lowland tropical forest sites are good for owls and other nocturnal birds. You can spend hours at night looking for and finding some but the best time to hear them call is just before dawn, say from 4 until 5, maybe most of all from 4:30 to 5:00.
On our morning, shortly after our 4:30 arrival, a Middle American Screech-Owl started trilling close by, a Crested Owl vocalized a couple of times, and the mournful whistles of a Common Potoo sounded off in the humid distance. Closer to dawn, as the decibals of Howler Monkeys filled the air, the screech-owl continued, a Short-tailed Nighthawk called, and we heard Spectacled Owls gruffing from the woods.
If we had arrived earlier and maybe checked a few more sites, I’m sure we would have also heard the two other common owl species of lowland sites in Costa Rica; Mottled and Black-and-White Owls. It was also surprising to not hear Great Potoo, a fairly common bird in that area. However, we couldn’t complain with hearing the voices of four nocturnal species with such little effort.
Constant Birds
As the light grew, as is typical for morning birding in lowland rainforest, things got busy with the calls of forest birds. Woodcreepers sounded off (we eventually got all 6 possible species), a few antbirds sang, and other species revealed themselves, one by one.
There were groups of Tawny-crested Tanagers, a few Dusky-faced Tanagers, various flycatchers, Swainson’s Thrushes hopping in the road, toucans in the treetops, and a Collared Forest-Falcon calling from its hidden foliaged lair.
Dusky-faced Tanager.
From dawn until 8, it was a morning of constant birds, and I’m sure more than we managed to identify.
Migration Happenings
Many of those birds were migrants, species arriving on wintering grounds or stopping to feed before moving to the Andes and the Amazon. As expected, the most common migrants were Red-eyed Vireos and Eastern Wood-Pewees, each flitting through trees and sallying from the tips of dead snags. There were also a few swallows flying ovehead, Broad-winged Hawks taking to the air, a few warblers here and there, Scarlet Tanagers, Great-crested Flycatchers, and a Peregrine Falcon watching and waiting to see what it could catch. My favorites were the Kentucky and Mourning Warblers that skulked in their wintering territories, and, by the grace of its “chip” call, an Alder Flycatcher that made it onto my year list.
Snowy Cotingas
Thanks to good areas of lowland rainforest, the southern Caribbean zone of Costa Rica is also a good place to see Snowy Cotinga. We had wonderful views of a surreal white-plumaged male that foraged in a tree with semi-cotinga tityras and other birds.
We didn’t have anything super rare but more than 120 species in four hours is nothing to complain about. With more effort, I bet we could find uncommon and rare species like Slaty-backed Forest-Falcon, Black-crowned Antpitta, and Spot-crowned Antvireo. Not to mention, birding this road and area also comes with the odd chance of adding a species to the Costa Rica bird list. I look forward to my next visit.
On this trip, we rented a cabin at Olguita’s Place, a friendly, locally owned spot close to the beach at Punta Uva. To learn more about where to watch birds in Costa Rica, including dozens of insider sites off the beaten path, get How to See, Find, and Identify Birds in Costa Rica. Support this blog by buying it in October, 2022 and I’ll also send you the updated version as soon as it becomes available (it’s almost ready).
October is migration season in Costa Rica. It can also be heavy afternoon rain season or even rain all day season but the massive influx of birds is fair compensation. This is the month when us local birders do well by watching green space and inspecting the many Red-eyed Vireos for birds with black whiskers. I’ve put in a fair amount of vireo checking time and although I’m still whiskerless, I’ll keep on looking.
Looking at every gray-capped, pale white and olive bird is worth it and not just because one might have black whiskers. I enjoy each and every one because they have flown from the leafy green summer woods of Ohio, New York, and Ontario. I owe it to them; these are the birds that survived the window gauntlets of the north. I admire their soft, unobtrusive ways and knowing that Costa Rica is just one stop on the flyway train to Amazonia makes these foliage-colored birds sort of unbelievable.
During October Global Big, 2021, I had expected to pass the time checking vireos and other less mobile species right around the home. On account of local driving restrictions, we weren’t allowed to use the car on October 9th, I had become resigned to the idea of local exploration. Not to mention, I had things to do on the day after Global Big Day so why go anywhere? It was birding from home or no birding at all. That was alright, there’s always stuff to see, especially during migration times.
At least that was the idea until my Sunday plans were changed to a later date. Suddenly, the door of possibilities opened to going somewhere for the big eBird count on October 9th! We would have to leave on Friday in order to stay overnight in a place where we could bird on foot or bicycle on Saturday (because of those driving restrictions). Since we would have to wait until Sunday to drive home, well, we would just have to watch birds on that morning too.
It took some quick planning and very few places had availability but before we knew it, our later afternoon and evening plans for Friday included a long drive to Costa Rica’s promised land for migration; the southern Caribbean zone.
The South Caribbean region of Costa Rica includes any of the lands south of Limon. I always love visiting this underbirded part of the country because there is a good amount of nice forest habitat, beaches and estuaries that turn up interesting seabirds, cool resident species, interesting Caribbean culture, and fantastic bird migration.
Stay just about anywhere south of Limon and you will see a lot. Partly because of room availability, we ended up in Manzanillo. I’m not complaining. This little town near the end of the line around 15 kilometers past Puerto Viejo de Talamanca is surrounded by the rainforests of the Gandoca Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge, an excellent underbirded area that host a healthy variety of lowland species along with a big helping of migrants. Since the village of Manzanillo acts as a clearing in that forest, it can attract some interesting open country species as well as be a great place to see birds in flight as they make their way south.
Some suggestions and highlights from our trip:
Guapiles-Limon Highway- Night Driving is a No No
This principal highway has been under construction for some years now. It will still be some years before it’s finished. When it is finished, the driving should be fantastic, day and maybe night too. Until then, I highly advise only driving that road during the day. On Friday, we found ourselves doing some night driving and…it was like participating in a road trip from another dimension, one where nightmares are the norm. No illumination, no painted road lanes, the only reflectors being some small posts that marked the edge of the road (which happened to be a small cliff that dropped a meter or more). There were also big trucks, a few confusing lane changes, and a few random criminally negligent road craters.
If you do find yourself driving that particular byway during the dark hours, if you make it to Limon and its any consolation, the driving after that point is sweet and easy-going. Time your trip accordingly.
Birding in Manzanillo Village- Check the Streams
In the early morning of October 9th, I walked a block or two up the road to a small stream that passes next to an empty weedy lot and heads straight into wetlands with Raffia palms. As soon as I got there I heard a splash followed by soft ticking calls. I knew it had to be one of the small kingfishers and as I had suspected, yes (!), it was the smallest one.
That American Pygmy-Kingfisher flew downstream but right after its departure, I heard more ticking calls, this time from the part of the stream next to the vacant lot. A quick scan and I couldn’t believe my luck, it was the rarest of the small kingfishers, a Green-and-Rufous! Next thing I knew, it was zipping my way, seemingly pursued by a Clay-colored Thrush. The jade and burnt orange kingfisher flew about a meter next to me as it jetted past.
This is a Green-and-rufous Kingfisher from Cano Negro.
Birding that same spot also gave us nice looks at Prothonotary Warbler, Canebrake Wren, and some other birds, the most interesting being a surprise Yellow-crowned Tyrannulet, a bird much more normally encountered on Costa Rica’s southern Pacific slope.
Pay an Early Visit to the Trails in Gandoca Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge
We ended up visiting the official trails of the refuge after in the later par of the morning. We hadn’t planned it that way, in fact, we hadn’t planned on doing that at all. But since we were walking over that way, we ended up entering and walking the trails for a short ways.
We saw several Tawny-crested Tanagers (very common in this area) and some other birds but if I could do it again (and I would like to), I would enter the trails right at the opening time of 6:30. That would result in much more bird activity coupled with less people activity. On our weekend visit, the place was crowded like Disney.
I should mention that visiting the trails (of which there are a few, most follow the beach) was as easy as writing down your name and some other information, having your bag briefly checked for alcohol beverages (leave the wine back at the hotel!), and visiting a hand washing station (commonplace in Costa Rica since the start of the pandemic).
Check Out the Soccer Field (Football Pitch)
As with settlements of all sizes in Costa Rica and most parts of the world away from Canada and the USA, Manzanillo had a soccer field (football pitch). This is always a good place to check, especially during migration. It’s where Costa Rica’s sole record of Whistling Heron was made and where other occasional vagrants have appeared.
On our visit, the field hosted a bunch of Eastern Kingbirds, Dickcissels, and a few resident species. The kingbirds were perched on the ground either resting and/or fluttering after bugs. I have never seen anything like it! As a major bonus, one of the only kingbirds perched in a tree next to the pitch just happened to be a long overdue country bird; a Gray Kingbird!
The pale Caribbean version of a TK gave us fantastic looks in perfect light. At some point, we had to stop watching it, a shame we didn’t bring the camera!
Bird the RECOPE Road or the Road Towards Puerto Viejo for Great Forest Birding, or Bird Both
Both of these options are just outside of the village and both are excellent for a number of Caribbean lowland species. We didn’t see anything crazy but the birding early Sunday morning was nevertheless excellent. I heard fruitcrows and Central American Pygmy-Owls, had fun watching Northern Barred and Black-striped Woodcreepers, and was challenged by trying to watch dozens and dozens of small birds way up there in the canopy. Most were Red-eyed Vireos but other bird were with them too, it was the fun type of busy.
Don’t Forget About the Village Birding
Manzanillo itself also makes for some nice birding. We enjoyed flocks of Eastern Kingbirds and streams of migrating swallows. Common Nighthawks in the evening and plenty of parrots, tanagers, flycatchers, and other birds during the day. There were also the two aforementioned kingfishers, a calling Great Potoo at night, the Yellow-crowned Tyarnnulet, and other species. It’ the type of place where every bird should be checked and where a Tiny Hawk can suddenly appear at the tip top of a tree.
Our October Global Big Day turned out to be a pleasant 127 species surprise. Not bad for doing all of our birding on foot, taking a short afternoon nap, and meeting with friends for drinks on the beach. I can’t wait for my next birding trip to the southern Caribbean zone of Costa Rica.
Each October, I organize a trip to the southern Caribbean zone for the Birding Club of Costa Rica. Easy access to mature forest always makes for a worthwhile visit but we go during the month of Halloween because this is when we can also catch fall migration. A sky river of swallows, Chimney Swifts, and raptors is a special event but there’s more than enough to see at at any time of year.
Little coverage, lots of habitat, and proximity to Panama always lend excitement to birding in the southern Caribbean. What’s hiding in those mature forests in the hills? Black-crowned Antpittas? Great Jacamars? Some new addition to the country list? Yes. Discoveries are waiting, you just need the time, resources, and know-how to find them.
Last week, we found ourselves doing a bit of exploration in the Playa Chiquita area. Basing ourselves at the lovely Tierra de Suenos, our small group looked for birds at this site for yoga retreats, in the nearby hills, and at Manzanillo. A couple of days is never enough for this bird-rich area but we still had fun! How not when Purple-throated Fruitcrows are common? When there is a nice mix of migrants, Great Green Macaws, and other birds of the lowland rainforest?
A few highlights from the trip:
Birds at Tierra de Suenos
Tierra de Suenos has bungalows nestled in greenery and shaded by massive trees. As one might expect, this makes for a bunch of birds including species like Black-crowned Antshrike, Chestnut-backed Antbird, toucans, woodcreepers, and more. Many species are possible and some no doubt wander in from larger areas of forest in the hills behind the lodge. This was surely the case for the Great Jacamar that was heard earlier this year by birder and part owner Jason Westlake!
Breakfast at Tierra de Suenos
Nothing like sharing breakfast time with Bronze-tailed Plumeleteers and other rainforest birds. I enjoyed that a well as the tasty, healthy food. The blended ginger and passionfruit juice was simply fantastic, and although I enjoy “pinto” (Costa Rican rice and beans), delicious grilled sandwiches and burritos made for a pleasant change.
Birding the Paradise Road
Some of the best forests near Puerto Viejo de Talamanca occur in the low coastal range behind town. Although much of those rainforests are inaccessible, we can still do a fair bit of birding along a few roads that go up and over the forested hills, one of which has the official inviting name of “Paradise Road”. Located between Playa Chiquita and Cocles, this gravel road passes by the edge of promising mature forest. I have made short visits to this road during the past three trips to the southern Caribbean zone and each time, I drove back feeling like we only scratched the surface.
On this recent trip, we had several Purple-throated Fruitcrows, many red-eyed Vireos and Bay-breasted Warblers, White Hawk, and various other forest species. The best find was a pair of Sulphur-rumped Tanagers! An uncommon and challenging species in Costa Rica, their presence was given away by their distinctive call that sounds a bit like that of a Black-and-yellow Tanager. As is often the case with this bird, our views were limited by their canopy-loving ways but we did see them!
On past trips, I have also had Pied and White-necked Puffbirds and various expected species. The next time I go to this area, I hope to do some serious surveys on this road that include pre-dawn starts.
Roadside Birding
With tall, old growth trees right on the side of the main road, it’s no surprise that roadside birding between Puerto Viejo and Manzanillo can be pretty darn good. Roadside birding on past trips have revealed sightings of many toucans, woodcreepers, and both Rufous-winged and Sulphur-rumped Tanagers. On this trip, we enjoyed Northern Barred Woodcreeper, Great Green Macaws, and several other birds during a memorable early morning stop.
Roadside afternoon birding in Manzanillo was pretty quiet but along the Recope Road, we had some nice looks at Cinnamon Woodpecker, Semiplumbeous Hawk, fruitcrows, Yellow-margined Flycatcher, and some other birds.
Recommendations for Future Trips
Tierra de Suenos is definitely suitable for birders and even better if you enjoy a blend of yoga and birding! If you stay there, ask Jason what he has been seeing, and enjoy the meals! As always, I also suggest making stops at the Italian bakery, Gustibus. Authentic focacia, pizza rossa, and other Italian baked goods, man, this place is good! It’s also an excellent lunch stop for sandwiches and other truly serious treats.
If you do bird down the way of Tierra de Suenos and Manzanillo, keep an eye out for any birds that look odd or out of place. Take pictures, you might end up documenting something new for Costa Rica.
I have mentioned from time to time how much I enjoy birding near Limon, Costa Rica. Also referred to as the Southern Caribbean zone, this part of the country still features a good deal of mature lowland rainforest, much of which is accessible. Not to mention, since the area is very much underbirded, there’s always a chance of finding something unexpected. Add forested streams, swamps, other wetlands and a migration corridor to the birding equation and we have an impressive bird list with nearly 400 species (see bird lists at the end of this post).
The only downside of the Southern Caribbean zone is that it is located around four to five hours by car from where I live. This prevents me from visiting more than once or twice a year, or staying for longer than a weekend. If the new road to Limon is ever finished (maybe in 4 years), it should be an easy, quick ride but until then, the long, slow haul keeps me from visiting more often. I sure wish I could though because the birding is always great and if a birder gets lucky with a good wave of migrants, the avian experience is fantastic.
This past weekend, I made my annual trip while guiding the local Birding Club of Costa Rica and, as with last year, we stayed at Olguita’s Place. Also known as Cabinas Olguita, this friendly spot offers tranquil accommodation in basic yet cozy and equipped cabins within easy walking distance of a beautiful beach and good birding habitat. If you don’t feel like cooking, dine at any of several good restaurants in the area and then look for Great Potoo and any of five owl species on the drive back.
The Black-and-white Owl sometimes occurs at Olguita’s.
Some other information from this recent trip:
Migration
On this trip, unfortunately, we more or less dipped on migration. We did have some Chimney Swifts and swallows flying over and some raptor migration on the way to Punta Uva but there were few other migrants. We may have done the trip a bit late or perhaps the good weather kept the birds on the wing long past Costa Rica but whatever the case, we had rather few migrant species and low numbers of the most common migrants; Red-eyed Vireo, Bay-breasted Warbler, and Swainson’s Thrush. There were quite a number of Eastern Wood-Pewees around as well as Alder/Willow Flycatchers but very few warblers and nothing rare. All of that said, we still saw some migrants and it was fun watching them.
If you feel like studying Eastern Wood-Pewees, visit Costa Rica in October.
Birding at Cabinas Olguita
The birding at Olguita’s was easy-going yet productive. Some Eastern Kingbirds flew into the surrounding trees, and we also saw other migrant species like Olive-sided Flycatcher, Empids (including a likely Least Flycatcher), Scarlet Tanager, and a few others. On good days, this place can see waves of migrants passing through the surrounding vegetation. As for resident species, the thick wet grass and hedgerows held Slaty Spinetail, Olive-crowned Yellowthroat, Canebrake Wren, and some other birds. The edge of the forest in back of the grassy area turned up White-necked Puffbird, Plain-colored Tanagers, and White-vented Euphonias among more common expected species.
Plain-colored Tanagers were common.
Paradise Road
One of a few roads that go up and over the nearby coastal hills, it provides access to the mature rainforests that occur there. Many species are possible even White-fronted Nunbird, interesting raptors and antbirds. We only had one afternoon to bird this road but we still did alright with looks at Pied Puffbird, Brown-capped Tyrannulet, Tawny-crested Tanagers, Double-toothed Kite, and Central American Pygmy-Owl among other species. A lot more is possible, I would love to spend a few early mornings just counting everything that calls and makes itself otherwise known. Does Great Jacamar occur? How about cotingas or Red-fronted Parrotlet? It would be fun to try to answer those questions via dawn birding.
Recope Road
One of the other classic sites in the area, this flat road passes through beautiful, tall forest, much of it former shaded cacao farms. We got in some birding there as well as on the main road between Punta Uva and Manzanillo. The birding was great with fine looks at Purple-throated Fruitcrows, toucans, Cinnamon Woodpecker, Black-striped and other Woodcreepers, White-flanked and Checker-throated Antwrens, and other species. I also heard Semiplumbeous Hawk. This was actually where most of our migrants were, I can’t help but wonder how many other migrants were out there in the forest? What rarities were hiding back in the woods?
Checker-throated Antwren
Manzanillo
On Sunday morning, I figured we would visit the town of Manzanillo as a last chance for migrants. This hardly worked out although we still saw both Cinnamon and Chestnut-colored Woodpeckers, Gray-cowled Wood-Rails, and a few other birds. We also saw that the official entrance to the wildlife refuge now has a bridge over the creek that we used to wade across, and that they charge an entrance fee.
Cahuita
As a bonus, our car made a quick stop in Cahuita on the way back, mostly to check for Black-chested Jay. We stopped at the Puerto Vargas entrance for that but even though we dipped, some last minute birding still managed to give us close looks at a male Snowy Cotinga, Gray-headed Chachalacas crashing through bushes, and White-faced Capuchins eating coconuts. After that, we went on an unsuccessful ice cream quest in mid-day Cahuita. Several bars but no ice cream! On the drive out, the jays still managed to elude us but we did get lucky with one final bird and a key one at that- Yellow-billed Cuckoo!
While driving out of Cahuita, I noticed the quick, sleek shape of a cuckoo zip into a tall tree. It was brief but I was sure it was a cuckoo. I stopped and after scanning the tree, sure enough, there it was, a Yellow-billed Cuckoo! Eventually, the stealthy migrant positioned itself higher up for a better view. One last bird for the trip, I was happy to see it before the long drive back.
Birds from the vicinity of Cabinas Olguita including the beach and both resident and migrant species.
240 species
Little
Tinamou
Blue-winged
Teal
Gray-headed
Chachalaca
Crested Guan
Pale-vented
Pigeon
Short-billed
Pigeon
Ruddy
Ground-Dove
White-tipped
Dove
Squirrel
Cuckoo
Yellow-billed
Cuckoo
Groove-billed
Ani
Lesser
Nighthawk
Common
Nighthawk
Common
Pauraque
Chuck-will’s-widow
Black Swift
White-collared
Swift
Chimney Swift
Gray-rumped
Swift
Lesser
Swallow-tailed Swift
Band-tailed
Barbthroat
Long-billed
Hermit
Stripe-throated
Hermit
Blue-chested
Hummingbird
Rufous-tailed
Hummingbird
White-throated
Crake
Gray-cowled
Wood-Rail
Black-bellied
Plover
Semipalmated
Plover
Whimbrel
Ruddy
Turnstone
Sanderling
Least
Sandpiper
Spotted
Sandpiper
Lesser
Yellowlegs
Willet
Greater
Yellowlegs
Laughing Gull
Brown Noddy
Royal Tern
Wood Stork
Magnificent
Frigatebird
Brown Booby
Neotropic
Cormorant
Anhinga
Brown Pelican
Bare-throated
Tiger-Heron
Great Blue
Heron
Great Egret
Snowy Egret
Little Blue
Heron
Tricolored
Heron
Cattle Egret
Green Heron
White Ibis
Green Ibis
Black Vulture
Turkey
Vulture
King Vulture
Osprey
Swallow-tailed
Kite
Double-toothed
Kite
Tiny Hawk
Mississippi
Kite
Plumbeous
Kite
Common Black
Hawk
Roadside Hawk
Gray Hawk
Broad-winged
Hawk
Short-tailed
Hawk
Swainson’s
Hawk
Zone-tailed
Hawk
Central
American Pygmy-Owl
Mottled Owl
Black-and-white
Owl
Slaty-tailed
Trogon
Gartered
Trogon
Ringed
Kingfisher
Belted
Kingfisher
Amazon
Kingfisher
Green
Kingfisher
White-necked
Puffbird
Pied Puffbird
Collared
Aracari
Keel-billed
Toucan
Yellow-throated
Toucan
Black-cheeked
Woodpecker
Cinnamon
Woodpecker
Chestnut-colored
Woodpecker
Lineated
Woodpecker
Pale-billed
Woodpecker
Laughing
Falcon
American
Kestrel
Merlin
Bat Falcon
Peregrine
Falcon
Olive-throated
Parakeet
Great Green
Macaw
Crimson-fronted
Parakeet
Orange-chinned
Parakeet
Brown-hooded
Parrot
Blue-headed
Parrot
White-crowned
Parrot
Red-lored
Parrot
Great
Antshrike
Barred
Antshrike
Black-crowned
Antshrike
Dot-winged
Antwren
Dusky Antbird
Chestnut-backed
Antbird
Northern
Barred-Woodcreeper
Cocoa
Woodcreeper
Black-striped
Woodcreeper
Streak-headed
Woodcreeper
Plain Xenops
Slaty
Spinetail
Snowy Cotinga
Masked Tityra
Black-crowned
Tityra
Cinnamon
Becard
Ochre-bellied
Flycatcher
Common
Tody-Flycatcher
Black-headed
Tody-Flycatcher
Yellow-olive
Flycatcher
Yellow
Tyrannulet
Yellow-bellied
Elaenia
Paltry
Tyrannulet
Bright-rumped
Attila
Dusky-capped
Flycatcher
Great Crested
Flycatcher
Great
Kiskadee
Boat-billed
Flycatcher
Social
Flycatcher
Gray-capped
Flycatcher
White-ringed
Flycatcher
Streaked
Flycatcher
Sulphur-bellied
Flycatcher
Piratic
Flycatcher
Tropical
Kingbird
Eastern
Kingbird
Olive-sided
Flycatcher
Eastern
Wood-Pewee
Tropical
Pewee
Yellow-bellied
Flycatcher
Acadian
Flycatcher
Alder
Flycatcher
Willow
Flycatcher
Least
Flycatcher
Long-tailed
Tyrant
Lesser
Greenlet
Yellow-throated
Vireo
Philadelphia
Vireo
Red-eyed
Vireo
Yellow-green
Vireo
Purple Martin
Gray-breasted
Martin
Mangrove
Swallow
Northern
Rough-winged Swallow
Southern
Rough-winged Swallow
Bank Swallow
Cliff Swallow
Barn Swallow
House Wren
Black-throated
Wren
Canebrake
Wren
Bay Wren
Long-billed
Gnatwren
Tropical
Gnatcatcher
Veery
Gray-cheeked
Thrush
Swainson’s
Thrush
Wood Thrush
Clay-colored
Thrush
Gray Catbird
Yellow-crowned
Euphonia
Olive-backed
Euphonia
White-vented
Euphonia
Orange-billed
Sparrow
Black-striped
Sparrow
Chestnut-headed
Oropendola
Montezuma
Oropendola
Scarlet-rumped
Cacique
Black-cowled
Oriole
Orchard
Oriole
Baltimore
Oriole
Shiny Cowbird
Bronzed
Cowbird
Giant Cowbird
Great-tailed
Grackle
Ovenbird
Worm-eating
Warbler
Northern
Waterthrush
Golden-winged
Warbler
Blue-winged
Warbler
Black-and-white
Warbler
Prothonotary
Warbler
Tennessee
Warbler
Mourning
Warbler
Kentucky
Warbler
Olive-crowned
Yellowthroat
Common
Yellowthroat
Hooded
Warbler
American
Redstart
Cerulean
Warbler
Magnolia
Warbler
Bay-breasted
Warbler
Blackburnian
Warbler
Yellow
Warbler
Chestnut-sided
Warbler
Buff-rumped
Warbler
Canada
Warbler
Dusky-faced
Tanager
Summer
Tanager
Scarlet
Tanager
Red-throated
Ant-Tanager
Black-faced
Grosbeak
Rose-breasted
Grosbeak
Blue-black
Grosbeak
Blue Grosbeak
Indigo
Bunting
Painted
Bunting
Dickcissel
Blue-gray
Tanager
Palm Tanager
Golden-hooded
Tanager
Plain-colored
Tanager
Green
Honeycreeper
Blue-black
Grassquit
Tawny-crested
Tanager
White-lined
Tanager
Scarlet-rumped
Tanager
Shining
Honeycreeper
Red-legged
Honeycreeper
Blue Dacnis
Bananaquit
Variable
Seedeater
Morelet’s
Seedeater
Black-headed
Saltator
Buff-throated
Saltator
Grayish
Saltator
Additional bird species that occur in the forests of Gandoca-Manzanillo, some may also show up at Cabinas Olguita. This makes for 383 species recorded from the Gandoca-Manzanillo area.
143
additional species
Great Tinamou
Northern
Shoveler
Muscovy Duck
Great
Curassow
Black-eared
Wood-Quail
Least Grebe
Scaled Pigeon
White-crowned
Pigeon
Blue
Ground-Dove
Ruddy
Quail-Dove
Olive-backed
Quail-Dove
Gray-chested
Dove
Mangrove
Cuckoo
Black-billed
Cuckoo
Short-tailed
Nighthawk
Rufous
Nightjar
Great Potoo
Chestnut-collared
Swift
White-necked
Jacobin
Bronzy Hermit
Purple-crowned
Fairy
Green-breasted
Mango
Bronze-tailed
Plumeleteer
Crowned
Woodnymph
Uniform Crake
Purple
Gallinule
Sungrebe
Black-necked
Stilt
American
Golden-Plover
Collared
Plover
Northern
Jacana
Baird’s
Sandpiper
White-rumped
Sandpiper
Franklin’s
Gull
Herring Gull
Black Tern
Common Tern
Sandwich Tern
Sunbittern
Least Bittern
Rufescent
Tiger-Heron
Reddish Egret
Agami Heron
Black-crowned
Night-Heron
Yellow-crowned
Night-Heron
Boat-billed
Heron
Roseate
Spoonbill
White-tailed
Kite
Hook-billed
Kite
Gray-headed
Kite
Black
Hawk-Eagle
Black-and-white
Hawk-Eagle
Ornate
Hawk-Eagle
Black-collared
Hawk
Crane Hawk
Snail Kite
White Hawk
Semiplumbeous
Hawk
Middle-American
Screech-Owl
Crested Owl
Spectacled
Owl
Black-throated
Trogon
Rufous Motmot
Broad-billed
Motmot
Green-and-rufous
Kingfisher
American
Pygmy Kingfisher
White-whiskered
Puffbird
White-fronted
Nunbird
Rufous-tailed
Jacamar
Yellow-bellied
Sapsucker
Red-rumped
Woodpecker
Rufous-winged
Woodpecker
Barred
Forest-Falcon
Slaty-backed
Forest-Falcon
Collared
Forest-Falcon
Red-fronted
Parrotlet
Mealy Parrot
Fasciated
Antshrike
Spot-crowned
Antvireo
White-flanked
Antwren
Checker-throated
Antwren
Bare-crowned
Antbird
Spotted
Antbird
Bicolored
Antbird
Ocellated
Antbird
Black-crowned
Antpitta
Black-faced
Antthrush
Plain-brown
Woodcreeper
Wedge-billed
Woodcreeper
Buff-throated
Foliage-gleaner
White-collared
Manakin
Red-capped
Manakin
Purple-throated
Fruitcrow
Bare-necked
Umbrellabird
White-winged
Becard
Rose-throated
Becard
Royal
Flycatcher
Ruddy-tailed
Flycatcher
Sulphur-rumped
Flycatcher
Golden-crowned
Spadebill
Black-capped
Pygmy-Tyrant
Northern
Bentbill
Slate-headed
Tody-Flycatcher
Eye-ringed
Flatbill
Yellow-margined
Flycatcher
Brown-capped
Tyrannulet
Rufous
Mourner
Gray Kingbird
Green
Shrike-Vireo
Tawny-crowned
Greenlet
White-eyed
Vireo
Black-whiskered
Vireo
Brown Jay
Black-chested
Jay
Scaly-breasted
Wren
Band-backed
Wren
Stripe-breasted
Wren
White-breasted
Wood-Wren
Song Wren
Tawny-faced
Gnatwren
Yellow-billed
Cacique
Yellow-tailed
Oriole
Northern
Parula
Black-throated
Green Warbler
Wilson’s
Warbler
Western
Tanager
Carmiol’s
Tanager
Rufous-winged
Tanager
Sulphur-rumped
Tanager
White-shouldered
Tanager
Crimson-collared
Tanager
Thick-billed
Seed-Finch
Slate-colored
Grosbeak
Other species that may occur or are very rare visitors in the area because they have been recorded nearby or because appropriate habitat is nearby.
In the not very distant past of Costa Rica, all of the other side of the mountains was cloaked in dense forest. The cloud forests of the highlands merged into eternally wet and mossy foothill forest and then became majestic lowland rainforest that swept across the rolling ground all the way to the coast. The lowlands might be flatter than the naturally broken highlands but it was never parking lot flat. The waterways still managed to break the ground and produce a mosaic of hills and low lying areas where rivers still run, streams flow, and swamps do their aquatic ruminating thing. These factors in turn produce a greater array of microhabitats where Northern Bentbills buzz from the vine-tangled gaps, where motmots make their burrow nests on steep slopes above the creeks, and where Agami Herons creep around the low, wet places.
Now, it’s very different. Well, at least what grows on the land is vastly different from what was there for thousands of years. The form of the land is still pretty much the same but many of the trees (especially the big old ones) have been cut down and the flattest places now host sugar cane, pineapples, bananas, or cattle. The biodiversity is drastically less, who knows which plants and insects have gone extinct or are close to becoming effectively doomed because remnant trees can’t be pollinated or produce seedlings that grow enough to produce their own offspring. That said, the northern lowlands of Costa Rica aren’t entirely shorn of trees. There are still quite a few growing in pastures and along riparian zones, and there are a few patches of forest here and there. Things grow with a quickness in the wet tropics, there’s still hope for reforestation, to reconnect and grow at least some patches of forest.
I was birding in one of those remnant forested spots this past weekend during a visit to the San Carlos area of Costa Rica. At a small comunal reserve known as “Juanilama”, Marilen and I had a taste of what can still occur in forest fragments in Costa Rica. Some observations:
A good number of birds
During a brief two hour visit, we had more than 80 species including standouts like a pair of Great Green Macaws, Pied Puffbird, and Royal Flycatcher.
But not like the complex array of life that is a larger area of mature forest
Juanilama did have some nice big trees here and there but just not enough habitat to support more specialized frugivores like Snowy Cotinga and Purple-throated Fruitcrow. Nor was there enough habitat for most of the understory insectivores or raptors. Basically, this is because those birds are more adapted to larger areas of mature forest, they are acting players, working parts in the mature forest ecosystem. They just aren’t a part of, can’t play a role in other forest community games.
Some migrants
The main reason we birded Juanilama was twofold; the place is close to where Mary’s family lives, and it being migration season, I figured we had a chance at Veery and some other nice year birds. Although that wasn’t the case on Sunday morning, we still managed to see a couple warblers, Red-eyed Vireo, and Scarlet Tanager.
More birding outside the reserve
I found the surrounding countryside especially interesting in that more trees were present than I had expected. We didn’t see too much but still had a fair number of species including White-winged Becard, Laughing Falcon, and toucans. Although these were the expected species that can survive in some edge situations, we still had birds we could watch.
Some questions
While birding that morning, I wondered about a thing or two, things that could act as research projects. Like, how important is a forest patch like Juanilama for migrants? Are there more than in riparian zones and other nearby edge habitats? Is there more or less competition with resident species in edge habitats? Does Middle American Screech-owl occur? How about other owls and do those owls limit the occurrence of the screech-owl? Did Harpy Eagles prefer to nest on some of the hill tops near there? How about Orange-breasted Falcon (along with the eternal question of why populations of this Neotropic raptor are so limited and localized)? These are the sort of things that can run through your head when the bird activity drops and is replaced by the snoring of cicadas and buzzing of mosquitoes.
No Mississippi Kite nor other year birds on Sunday but at least we did connect with our 2019 Baird’s Sandpiper the previous morning. There were a few in a nearby temporary mudflat. They were feeding a bit like dowitchers, we had great looks, it was and is cool to contemplate the Arctic-Costa Rica-South American connections made by this amazing migrant. Still hoping for cuckoos near the homestead or an Upland to call at night. I wonder what will be next for the year list of TeamTyto?
