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Tag: Birding Costa Rica

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Birding Costa Rica Global Big Day

Global Big Day, May 9, 2026, Costa Rica

I didn’t do much birding this weekend. Yes, there was the automatic birding that happens when Crimson-fronted Parakeets exclaim their presence from urban ledges, Clay-colored Thrushes sing outside, and Brown Jays call from a neighboring farm but, I did not specifically venture outside and look for birds. As eBird would say, my birding the past two days has been completely “incidental”.

I’ll tell you what though; I made up for it last weekend (Saturday in particular) and while guiding in the Poas area a few days later. On the 13th, we had 100 plus species while birding cloud and middle elevation forests near Poas Volcano. There were silky-flycatchers, Resplendent Quetzal, Flame-throated Warblers, a glimpsed Nightingale-Wren, eye-catching Swallow-tailed-Kites, and a whole lot more but, even that wealth of birds didn’t compare to the birding bonanza that took place on the 9th of May.

birding Costa Rica

That auspicious day was Global Big Day and, as befits such a bird-focused date, the birding was fierce, nonstop, trying, tiring, and simply glorious. I saw a lot but what makes Global Big Day especially fantastic is knowing that other birders from around the world are likewise focusing on birds; watching and listening and counting and noting and birdbathing in the magnificence of our feathered world.

On May 9th, 2026, those other birders celebrating the avian side of life included 81,000 plus people and although I only ran into a handful, I love knowing that all these other folks are also out there in Nebraska and Oaxaca and Japan and Tanzania and so many other places digging birds too. See some of their stories at the Global Big Day results page, and check out country and world totals at the main Global Big Day page. You’ll notice that, this year, us Global Big Dayers collectively identified more than 8,000 species! Here’s some of what happened in Costa Rica:

Good participation in Costa Rica

Although I only saw a few other birders, according to the Costa Rica results page, more than 1,000 birders were submitting lists on May 9th! That’s fantastic because, as with everywhere, the more birders the better. We also submitted a lot of checklists (more than 3,400), and had some major team results on the international stage.

In looking at the results, it looks like we had birders covering most corners of the country, including one or more pelagic trips off the Pacific Coast. Thanks to those boats, somewhat elusive birds like Christmas Shearwater and Tahiti Petrel made it onto the Costa Rica GBD list.

703 Species

Together, we identified more than 700 species, an excellent total given that a high proportion of migrants have already flown north. Some were still around, principally shorebirds, but overall, most birds on the GBD list are residents.

These included all regularly occurring hummingbird species, all tinamous, most woodcreepers, most cotingas, and so on. Of note were 37 species of diurnal raptors! That’s a good reminder that even though raptors in Costa Rica are generally uncommon, we have an impressive number of species and if you cover enough ground, you’ll end up seeing quite a few. The only regular one missing was the Pearl Kite.

Pearl Kites are uncommon, shrikeish, mini raptors.

Missing birds

Most of the resident species not recorded read like a typical wish list for folks who have birded Costa Rica on several occasions or, the rarities that tend not to be seen on a birding trip. These included challenging species like Masked Duck, Tawny-faced Quail, Violaceous Quail-Dove, Olive-backed Quail-Dove, White-tailed Nightjar, Buff-collared Nightjar, Ocellated Poorwill, Spot-fronted and White-chinned Swifts, Rufous Nightjar, Lanceolated Monklet, Great Jacamar, Slaty-backed Forest-Falcon, Spot-crowned Antvireo, Scaled and Black-crowned Antpittas, Black-banded and Strong-billed Woodcreepers, Lovely Cotinga, Gray-headed Piprites, and Botteri’s Sparrow.

These species are tough but still regular in the right places. On past GBDs, we’ve recorded all of them by having birders looking for them in key spots. This time, I think we just didn’t have that going on.

That especially rings true for species like Spotted Rail, Mangrove Rail, Brown Booby, Pearl Kite, Middle American and “Puntarenas” Screech-Owls. All of these are fairly expected when birding certain areas or sites (although I do wonder if the two species of screech-owls aren’t vocalizing these days).

The highest total for Costa Rica

It was a long day but I was pleased to get the highest non-team species total for Costa Rica (and one of the top ten totals on the global stage). 283 species in one day also shows how darn birdy Costa Rica is especially considering that we started at midnight (although 2 a.m. was still pretty early), detoured into the Central Valley, and had some breezy and hot conditions that limiting bird song.

As is often the case, some odd birds failed to show in places where I typically record them but, I also had lots of highlights. The rare and unexpected bird experiences included Least Bittern calling once from a brushy wetland near Orotina, hearing Harris’s Hawk call just before dawn, hearing a couple of late lingering Indigo Buntings, and having a few Uniform Crakes call to each other at the end of the day, just before the rains poured down.

Carara also worked out despite being hot and home to way too many cicadas. Back in the more humid part of the forest, the areas with the biggest trees and farthest from the road, I was treated to tough and iffy birds like Piping Long-tailed Woodcreeper, Green Shrike-Vireo, Black-striped Woodcreeper, Baird’s Trogon, and Scaly-throated Leaftosser.

This eye-smacking bird has become iffy at Carara.

My raptor day was pretty low but lots of other birds showed, especially at and near Carara, and in the Poas area. What’s kind of crazy is that I’m sure I would have identified even more if I had not detoured into the Central Valley and, if conditions were slightly better for bird activity. Not to mention, very few wintering birds were still present, if so, I probably would have broken 300.

It’s also worth mentioning that all these birds also happened while driving an electric vehicle and even stopping to charge it mid-morning (where we picked up Rock Pigeon ta da!). Regarding that, I’ll be writing more in detail about electric vehicles in Costa Rica as well as the Global Big Day experience in other places. In the meantime, I’ll just mention that my GBD, and the Costa Rica GBD totals in general remind again how incredibly birdy Costa Rica is.

To learn more about the Costa Rica birding sites mentioned above, you’ll find lots of information at this blog as well as in my 900 plus page ebook, “How to See, Find, and Identify Birds in Costa Rica“. I hope to see you here!

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Costa Rica Birding News April, 2026

April is the spring month, the one where the flowers come back to bloom, migrating Red-shouldered Hawks flap and turn high above the thawing grounds of the Lake Ontario plain, ducks are on the move, and Yellow-rumped Warblers brighten the local birding scene. Those and kinglets, and singing sparrows, and tail bobbing phoebes.

At least that’s how I recall birding on the Niagara Frontier, in the western edges of New York State. Birds are also on the move in Costa Rica but the scene is several layers of difference. Exciting layers of migration and local birds and a change in the weather. Here’s some news about some changes and what’s been happening and expectations for birding in Costa Rica this 4th month of 2026.

Cinchona…a lack of hummingbirds

Violet-Sabrewing-male
Even the sabrewings were absent.

The construction has been completed at Cinchona and it has brought more and needed elbow room. It probably hasn’t affected the surrounding habitat too much and birds still come to the fruit feeder but the hummingbird scene is at an all time low.

The lack of hummingbirds is probably at least partly related to the lack of feeders (just one was present on the last visit), but it seems like there should still be more. Maybe there’ll be days when they are more? Sadly, lately, there haven’t been so don’t be surprised if you visit and see very few hummingbirds. If not, don’t fret, you can still find them elsewhere, maybe at a few other roadside sites higher up the road and definitely at other places.

Watch the feeder and surrounding trees though. Highlights from a recent visit included Black-breasted Wood-Quail being furtive behind the feeders, and Scarlet-thighed Dacnis among other birds.

Hot weather but rains are starting

April is hot in Costa Rica but ends with fresh, rainy airs. Instead of that March lion start and lamb ending, we’ve got April beginning like a furnace and ending like a cool shower. Sort of. In any case, visit now and you’ll get hot days but you can also expect some cloudy weather and at least some afternoon rains.

Those rains and clouds are good for birding, get out there and watch, especially after the rain stops!

Swifts are in the air

One thing that the rains bring are swifts or, better to say that the rains bring the swifts lower and into view. The aerialists were always up there, just beyond speck visibility, up there riding the highest airs or chasing storms to Panama. Who knows?

What I can say is that with the rain clouds here now, you have a good chance of watching swifts within bino viewing range. Watch for them just before the storms arrive, right at the misty edge. It’s a good way to test your skills and patience trying to identify uncommon White-chinned and Spot-fronted Swifts. Hopefully they’ll call, that makes it easier.

Raptors flying too…

April is also raptor flying time in Costa Rica. In fall, the river of raptors flows south but, in spring, it reverses course and the flow gets a big pulse in April. The birds can fly anywhere (we saw a nice group of Swainson’s on Poas) but the Caribbean lowlands are typically best.

There be Broad-wingeds, Swainson’s, TVs, Mississippi Kites, and a few other birds. As The Urban Birder says, “Look Up”!

Ground-cuckoo may still be showing at San Luis Canopy

A Rufous-vented Ground-Cuckoo has been showing at an ant swarm near the San Luis Canopy for some weeks now. Since they are still seeing it, apparently, local guides keep track of ant swarms and can bring you to the bird!

Although that could change at any time, one of the local guides told me that they are still seeing it as of yesterday. To see it, inquire at the San Luis Canopy (opens at 8) and expect to pay $20 per person.

Big morning of birding on the Pacific coast- 226 species by 10 a.m.

On another nice and birdy note, my partner Maryllen and I started a Big Day a few days ago. Notice I only mention “started” meaning that we ended up aborting it pretty early. That was a shame but it had to be done; all the fast car chargers had stopped working overnight (and thus stranding several drivers) and since having them available was essential to the electric car Big Day plan, we had to abort the mission.

Nevertheless, we still had an exciting, successful morning of birding and the attempt helped me realize how I could tweak it to maybe break a record. Starting at midnight at Punta Morales and birding until 10 a.m. around Carara and Tarcoles, we identified 226 species. Yes, that many and mostly in the same area. That high number emphasizes how incredibly diverse the Carara ecotone is. For myself, it also helped me realize that, given the right factors on the rest of the route, reaching 350 or even 400 species is possible in one day of birding in Costa Rica.

Check out the trip report.

I’ll be writing more about this exciting day and idea perhaps here and elsewhere, stay tuned!

Third Edition of the Garrigues and Dean Field Guide Coming Soon!

It’s official, the third edition of the Birds of Costa Rica: A Field Guide is coming out! It’ll be available in October and, based on what I’ve seen will be yet another boon for birding in Costa Rica. The authors and publisher redid many illustrations, added various behavioral and habitat illustrations, and have included all species on the Costa Rica list.

If you are headed to Costa Rica after September, you’ll want to definitely get this book for the trip.

The Costa Rica Birds Field Guide app– customizable, updated with more bird finding tips, shows 1020 plus species.

If you’d also like to have a birding app to boost your birding experience in Costa Rica (and have an Apple device), this is the one to get. I admit I work on this app but that’s also why I know why it’s such a helpful tool before, during, and after a birding trip or tour to Costa Rica.

For the recent update, I went through every one of the 1020 plus species to refine their descriptions, habitat information, and tips for seeing them. I also included more birds, images and a vocalization or two. Why more birds? Since you can fit a heck of a lot in a digital format, I figured it would also be worth including species that could occur in Costa Rica. Those would be birds like Altamira Oriole, Yellowish Pipit, some Siberian vagrants, and various pelagic species.

Sure, a birder can download the Merlin pack for free but with this app, you can make target lists, mark birds seen and heard, take notes, look at species while listening to their vocalizations, and have more accurate, updated, locally written information and tips (along with other perks).

I could say more but I’ll leave the local birding news at that for now. If you’re headed to Costa Rica soon, I hope you enjoy your trip!

To support this blog and learn about 100s of birding sites in Costa Rica, ID tips, and more, please consider purchasing my 900 plus page ebook, “How to See, Find, and Identify Birds in Costa Rica”. I hope to see you here!

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A Productive Morning of Birding at Villa San Ignacio

cabani's ground-sparrow

Costa Rica can be a crowded place, especially in the Central Valley. While San Jose is technically only in one part of the valley, that’s how most visitors refer to this ever popular region. It’s not the only city or town in the Central Valley but no one can blame them for calling all of the urban sprawl and winding streets and small stores and quaint churches with shaded parks “San Jose”.

From a bit east of San Jose on west to the edge of Alajuela (that’s the actual name of the city where the airport is), it all seems to blend together. At one point in time, it certainly didn’t but we could say the same about Los Angeles, Dallas, Bangkok, and so many other modern mega-cities.

The Greater Metropolitan Area or (GAM as it is locally referred to) hosts a fair portion of Costa Rica’s 5 million people population and yet, birds are there too. Not as many as are even marginally wilder areas but in the GAM’s parks and riparian zones, urban birds persist. There are Crimson-fronted Parakeets roosting on and screeching from buildings, Blue-gray Tanagers and Great Kiskadees calling from parks and other birds too, more than you think.

However, species numbers really jump when you finally reach a good amount of green space, especially when you can bird in fair bits of remnant forest and other habitats. You’ll find those habitats in Estes Park as well as other Costa Rica birding sites shortly after leaving the edge of the main urbanized front. One such bit of green space is at Villa San Ignacio, a small hotel situated at the edge of the urban perimeter, just northwest of Alajuela.

Villa San Ignacio is a bastion for birds because although the hotel does have some landscaped grounds, it’s done in a manner that preserves and showcases biodiversity. Unlike so many other places, this hotel also hosts several large and mature trees, especially massive figs that provide critical food for a wide variety of species.

You can also check out short and easy trails in regenerating forest and watch the skies for flyover raptors, swifts, and other birds. Some road noise reminds you that you’re still in an urban area but the wealth of birds seems to convince you otherwise or, at least show what mature trees and habitat preservation does for birds, butterflies, and more.

On Monday, I spent most of a morning at Villa San Ignacio and the birding was good as always. As per usual, it was also unpredictable with some birds appearing and others staying hidden or being no-shows. That’s normal for tropical birding, at least in Costa Rica. It’s why it’s worth staying longer and birding the same rich areas more than once, why it’s worth always watching and keeping an eye out for the unexpected.

These are some of the highlights and happenings from that morning.

Cabanis’s Ground-Sparrow

Right off the bat, we hit the local jackpot with this rare and threatened species. Shortly after 6, while walking up the road towards the upper rooms, I was happily surprised to hear the high pitched tick of this special bird.

Even better, the pair and what looked like a juvenile foraged right in the open. They didn’t stray far from the hedgerow at the edge of a green, metal fence but you can’t ask much more from these major skulkers. As is typical for this special towhee, you’ve got to see it early and get onto it quick. It won’t take long for them to get into cover and be essentially invisible for most of the day.

Short-tailed Hawks and other Raptors

Around 9, as the cicadas pumped up the volume and heat waves swirled into the tropical skies, raptors did their morning dance. Black Vultures circled and gained height, a couple of migrant or wintering Broad-winged Hawks followed suit and were followed by high flying views of Gray and Short-tailed Hawks.

No Zone-tailed that day but later on, we also had both caracaras and additional Gray Hawks. It’s worth it to keep watching above, to keep looking up (as the Urban Birder David Lindo reminds us). Other days I’ve also seen migrating Swallow-tailed Kite and Swainson’s Hawk, Peregrine Falcon, and even Double-toothed Kite.

Long-tailed Manakin and other forest birds

Down in the forest, fewer birds showed than I had hoped but we still heard and saw some things. One or two Long-tailed Manakins called, “Toledo” while White-eared Ground-Sparrows gave cascading calls from the undergrowth and Rufous and white and Rufous-breasted Wrens dueted from the vines.

Those birds stayed hidden but we did manage to see Common Squirrel Cuckoo, Olive Sparrow, saltators, Cabanis’s Wren, Barred Antshrike, Gray-headed Chachalaca, and some other species.

Indigo Buntings

One of those species,, one of those surprises, was the Indigo Bunting. Not just one either but several! An uncommon bird in Costa Rica, it was fun to see fully plumaged deep blue males, molting patchy blue males, and at least one plain sparrowish female.

We probably had 10 in total, they were either migrating through or grouping together and getting ready to migrate. One also sang its prolonged, jumbly song that we hear at this time of year in Costa Rica. I included this vocalization on the recently updated Costa Rica Birds – Field Guide app but, in checking it, I realized that I also need to include the bunting’s commonly heard call notes. I’ll probably get to that in May but hopefully sooner (I recently included better habitat information, more birding tips, and images).

Speaking of buntings, on that morning at Villa San Ignacio, I was reminded that Painted Buntings can make a call that sounds a lot like the one-noted call of a Mourning Warbler (at least to my ears). While pishing by a hedgerow, a bird responded and I figured it would be a Mourning. Much to my surprise, I found myself focusing on a leafy green female Painted Bunting! It was a good reminder to brush up on their calls.

Plain-capped Starthroat and 69 other bird species

How many bird species can you see in a day at Villa San Ignacio? I figure that varies but I can say that 70 in a morning is possible. That’s what we had on Monday and that was also lacking several regular species! Some of the other nice ones were Plain-capped Starthroat on the walk up to the upper rooms, close Cinnamon Hummingbird, Scrub and Yellow-throated Euphonias, and a bunch of other birds, many feasting on the fruiting figs.

Check out the bird list!

That constant birding activity is why I always look forward to birding back at Villa San Ignacio. Along with the good service, friendly vibe, and beautiful habitat, it’s a hard blend to beat.

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A Day of Birding near Carara, Costa Rica- Updates and Tips

Going birding around Carara National Park, Costa Rica? If so, good choice, a birder can’t go wrong with such a mega meeting of biodiversity. Too much for one day but you can still try, the constant new bunch of birds can keep you going, keep you seeing more birds until you can’t see no more. Of course you don’t have to throw all your birding eggs into a one day basket; not an ideal choice for any area with more than 100 possibilities and far from the best option for birding areas with species lists that run into the hundreds.

However, if you only have one full day to work with or, one day and morning, what are you gonna do? Throw up those birding hands and sip creative cocktails? Heck no, if you got the energy, what you do is bird as much as you can and then celebrate with post birding cold beers or cocktails or wild and crazy kombucha. Don’t do yourself in, pace yourself but, you might as well keep on birding, at least in places where hundreds of lifers are waiting.

Carara National Park and surroundings is one such “place”. This major ecotone blends so many bird rich habitats, you’d be much better off patiently birding the zone for 3 or 4 days. One day is a lot, one day can be a major challenge, especially if you go for humid forest birds in the morning and dry forest birds in the afternoon.

I did that yesterday with a few guys from Toledo. The weather cooperated, I forgot to put on sunblock and it was a marathon day of birding in Costa Rica but it all worked out. After birding two main routes from 6:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., we finished with more than 150 species. Yeah, some of those were heard onlys but lots more were seen including such niceties as King Vulture, Black Hawk-Eagle, Crane Hawk, Double-striped Thick-Knee, Mangrove Cuckoo, Velvety Manakin, Riverside Wren, Golden-naped Woodpecker, etc., etc.

It’s pretty birdy up in the Carara area, if you plan on checking it out, aside from suggesting working in at least 3 days for the area, here’s some other updates and tips.

Road Work on the Tarcoles Bridge

Roadwork on the famous “Crocodile Bridge” continues and won’t end at least until May. It is open but the new speed bumps can cause some traffic jams both ways and, traffic jams will be worse during one lane closures. These will take place as so:

-Feb. 23 to March 27

-May 4 to May 9

-Closed at night from 9 PM to 5 AM on yet to be determined dates from March 15 to April 20.

During roadwork, crocodile viewing is also prohibited from the bridge but, I’m not sure how much that will be enforced. However, if you still want to see crocs, don’t frown yet! There are plenty of boat trips for close looks and a brand new thingee has also just opened at the bridge. It’s called the Croc Skywalk and looks like it will eventually offer crocodile viewing along with other tourist activities. As I drove past, I saw a whole bunch of buses and people there yesterday. I look forward to checking it from a birding perspective and including it in the next update for my Costa Rica birding site guide.

Start the Bijagual Road Back as Far as You Can Go (use 4 wheel drive)

Carara isn’t just the national park. There’s also several other birding options including the Bijagual Road. This great birdy route starts near the coast and then makes its way into the hills adjacent to and in back of the national park. Follow Route 320 long enough to Route 319 and you’ll even access the very little birded but excellent eastern part of Carara. You’ll need a four wheel drive and that might not be good enough for the furthest stretches of route 319 but it will be exciting!

At the least, if you do spend some time on this road, I suggest driving back on it pre-dawn so you can start the birding near El Sur. This is a bit past the turn off to Macaw Lodge and gets you way back into the wild and least accessed part of Carara. As I was saying, past El Sur, road conditions might be impossible for a 4 wheel drive but it will still be worth starting way back in there. You can look for various owls and other nocturnal birds en route and will be in the right place at dawn.

Try to bird the road past El Sur but, if not, it would still be worth checking roadside forest near the turn off for Macaw Lodge and on other parts of the road. The combination of mature rainforest, second growth, canopy views, and some open fields is a good recipe for a very birdy, high total morning.

It’s the best area around Carara for Black Hawk-Eagle (although we got one soaring high over the Pura Vida gardens), has birds not generally found in the park like Yellow-crowned Tyrannulet, Pale-breasted Spinetail, Thick-billed Euphonia, and even occasional Streaked Saltator and White-lined Tanager. Other weird stuff could also occur, maybe even Tiny Hawk and there should be chances at the rare Turquoise Cotinga.

You’ll still need four wheel drive to get to the Macaw Lodge area and El Sur but it will be worth it.

Hummingbirds?

We had a good, long day with lots of birds but, I can’t help but mention one downside and it’s a reoccurring one; the lack of hummingbirds. Yes, they are still out there but not nearly in the numbers they used to be and it is disturbing to say the least. And no, it’s not just a lack of flowers or that they are all somewhere else. There are fewer hummingbirds overall. For example, some ten years ago or even less, any trip to Carara National Park or nearby would easily result in a dozen species (and several of each species). Yesterday, in humid forest, I only had Rufous-taileds and maybe a couple other species on the Bijagual Road.

Sadly, this appears to be the new normal for humid forest habitats in several parts of Costa Rica and must be a consequence of climate change having disrupted flowering and insect productivity. So far, those hummingbirds are still out there and can be found, but it’s not the easy, expected task it used to be. Imagine suddenly seeing one tenth of the hummingbirds you used to at feeders and flowering gardens and you’ll get the picture.

Eyes on the Sky for Raptors

When birding anywhere around Carara, it’s worth to keep checking the sky. Several raptors occur in the area and the Bijagual/Macaw Lodge area is an excellent area to watch for them. The hilly topography makes it possible to scope the canopy for perched raptors and there’s plenty of sky to scan for birds in flight.

On our morning visit, we didn’t have too many raptors but, I bet more dedicated raptor viewing would turn up more. On the Bijagual Road, we had:

-A couple of Broad-winged Hawks

-One calling Gray Hawk

-One or two Roadsides

-Both caracaras

-Calling Laughing Falcon

-Black Hawk-Eagle

-Double-toothed Kite

-King Vulture and the other two vultures

In dry forest on the Guacimo Road, we also had excellent views of a Crane Hawk and a Common Black Hawk.

Bajamar Mangroves were Frighteningly Dry

While birding the Guacimo Road, I was eager to get back to the mangroves at Bajamar. On past visits, whistling like a pygmy-0wl was an easy way to bring in mangrove specialties like Panama Flycatcher and Mangrove Hummingbird and with various other species.

Not this time. I was surprised to see that hardly any mangrove birds responded. I also noticed that the mangrove forest floor was uncharacteristically dry. It should have been muddy and buggy but, instead, it looked like the water hadn’t reached there for a while. Nearby lagoons had water but nothing seemed to be reaching the mangroves, I can’t help but wonder if that explained those bird’s absence.

With that in mind, you’ll need to get in your mangrove birding at other spots (like Tarcoles or elsewhere).

As always, after coming back from birding such high biodiversity sites in Costa Rica, I can’t wait to go back. I go home with all sorts of questions and the only means of answering them is going right back there and birding again. How many owls are out there? Potoos? Wintering nightjars? Cotingas and other uncommon species? No matter how often you go birding in Costa Rica, there’s always lots more to see. I hope you get the chance to experience it.

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A Reminder to see These Birds in Costa Rica

Who doesn't want to see a Snowcap?

Going birding in Costa Rica? I know, like you need a reminder to see birds! You’re gonna be looking for them, you’re gonna be seeing them, and you’ll be celebrating a fine cornucopia of lifers, photos, and priceless experiences. However, this being the high season, I figured it might be useful to mention a certain set of species, a group of avian taxa worth your while.

Yes, all birds are worth your while, all birds merit connection and you watch whatever floats your personal birding boat but, you might not be so aware of the importance of the birds I’m going to cover. If so, great! If not, check this out:

Streak-chested Antpitta on the Caribbean slope

If you see a Streak-chested Antpitta in Costa Rica, there’s a good chance it’s going to be on the Pacific slope, probably at Carara. That’s great, I hope you see one or more and I wouldn’t wish you otherwise. However, if you can, it’s also worth laying eyes on Streak-chested Antpitta from the other side of the mountains.

You see, that bird is not exactly the same as the ones from Carara or Panama or further south. It’s also just enough not exactly the same to be considered a separate species. Nope, no official study yet but, based on the same number of differences used to separate related species of antpittas, those Caribbean slope birds should be given species status too.

I’m pretty sure the Birds of Costa Rica by Dyer and Howell mention this along with several other likely splits. They don’t mention exactly where to see it but that’s not really the scope of a field guide anyways. It needs large areas of mature rainforest and one of the best sites is Quebrada Gonzalez. Although I haven’t had as many there as I used to, it still occurs.

Sharpbill

Like the antpitta mentioned above, this species also has disjunct populations in need of detailed studies. They don’t live near each other, sound different, and look different so, there might be 3 or 4 species involved.

If you saw one of those more common and easy ones in Brazil, I’m sorry but it’s probably not the same species. If splits eventually happen, the subspecies in Costa Rica and Panama will very likely be elevated to species status (and I’n guessing probably subsequently red-listed as Vulnerable).

Watch for this special bird in mixed flocks and fruiting trees in foothills and middle elevations, especially at Skytrek, the San Gerardo Station at Monteverde, and Tapanti.

Elegant Trogon

It’s worth seeing this bird because those Arizona and Mexican trogons were split from it. Yep, if you saw one from Cave Creek or wherever, that is currently known as a Coppery-tailed Trogon.

To see Elegant Trogons in Costa Rica, watch for them in dry forest on the Nicoya Peninsula and in Guanacaste. Rincon de la Vieja is a good spot as is Santa Rosa National Park.

Paint-billed Crake

I mention this cool looking little gallinulish bird because it seems to be more common in Costa Rica than previously believed. Nope, not exactly common and it moves around but, you go to the right place and do the work, you have a fair chance of seeing one.

Try wet rice fields just about anywhere but especially in the Ciudad Neily area. They can also occur in dense vegetation along ditches and other odd wet spots.

Ruddy Pigeon

birding Costa Rica

This one’s a bit debatable but, I think it’s still worth mentioning. Although the Ruddy Pigeon has an official big range in South America, most of those birds live in the steamy lowlands. So what are they doing in cloud forests and high elevations in Costa Rica and Panama?

Exactly, how come “our Ruddys” live so high and cold when the other ones aren’t? It might because they aren’t quite the same species. Yeah, they sound similar but then again, not exactly and, vocalizations aren’t everything so…even if you have seen them in the Amazon, it would be good to see this bird in Costa Rica too.

Volcano Hummingbirds on Poas and Irazu

If you do any high elevation birding, there’s a fair chance you’ll be living the bino/camera life on Cerro de la Muerte (The good old “Mountain of Death”). You’ll see Volcano Hummingbirds but, what you won’t see are Volcano Hummingbirds with pinkish or rose gorgets. That’s cause those little jammies live on other high mountains; one on the Irazu-Turrialba massif and the other one on Poas and Barva Volcanos.

They are still considered the same species but, it wouldn’t be surprising if more detailed studies split them into separate species. Fortunately, they are pretty easy to see. Watch any high elevation vegetation on Irazu and Poas and you should see both. Watch for large bugs that are actually tiny hummingbirds. Oh yeah, and make sure you watch for them above 2,200 meters to rule out the similar Scintillant Hummingbird (more or less).

Ochre-breasted Antpitta

Have you seen Shakira and those other dancing Ochre-breasted Antpittas in Ecuador or Colombia? I hope so but I also urge you to see the one that lives in Costa Rica. Yeah, it’s still the same species but, yet again, more detailed studies could easily split it.

I mean, it looks a bit different, sounds slightly different, and has quite the disjunction range so, it could be split. Unfortunately, it is not an easy bird to see in Costa Rica. Try quality middle elevation forests such as El Copal, Hotel Quelitales, and Tapanti.

Azure-hooded Jay and Slaty-backed Nightingale-Thrush

You’ll want to see these beautiful cloud forest birds anyways but, it’s also good to know that the ones in Costa Rica and Panama are waiting to be split from birds in other parts of their range.

The jay isn’t easy or common but, if you watch for it high quality cloud forest, you might see them. The nightingale-thrush is much easier in middle elevations, if skulky.

Ashy-throated Chlorospingus

This is an uncommon and cool bird to see, even if it’s not as brightly colored as the Emerald Tanagers it often flocks with. It might be a future split or, might not be but, since it only lives in quality habitat, looking for it is birding in the best of places. Nope, not the easiest of birding but, foothill rainforest with chances at uncommon species like Yellow-eared Toucanet and so on and so on.

There’s lots to see in Costa Rica and you don’t need to see these species but, if you want to see some likely splits, these are some good ones to go after. There’s also taking closer looks at Nutting’s Flycatchers to see if the very cryptic Salvadoran Flycatcher also occurs but I can’t blame you for leaving that ponderous task to local birders or another trip.

No matter what birds you look at or how you go birding, I hope to see you here!

To learn more about sites mentioned in this post and how to find these and more than 900 other birds in Costa Rica, consider supporting this blog by purchasing my 900 plus page Costa Rica bird finding guide, “How to See, Find, and Identify Birds in Costa Rica”.

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Costa Rica Birding News January, 2026

Happy New Year! Happy days of seeking birds; both new and pseudo new (for the year listers). Happy birding wherever you are, especially in Costa Rica, a land of quetzals, Wrenthrushes, macaws, and waaaay more.

Some of that waaaay more.

If you are headed to Costa Rica now, plan on visiting in January or, any time the rest of the high season, this birding news is for you.

Sandhill Crane and Aplomado Falcon Still Present

Two star birds in Costa Rica are still showing at the Mistico fields. Both Sandhill Crane and Aplomado Falcon have been recently spotted at farm fields near Mistico. Although the fields have been converted from rail friendly rice to not so many birds melons, let’s hope that the falcon and crane stay there at least for another month.

They could leave at any time but, if you want to add a couple excellent birds to your Costa Rica list, now would be the time to visit this hotspot near Mistico. Go to the end of the road where there is a gate. You can look from there or, go to the other side of the gate and walk to where you can get better looks.

Snowcaps at Quebrada Gonzalez

Snowcap, that much desired hummingbird, has been frequenting the parking area at Quebrada Gonzalez. On a recent trip, we saw two females and one young male visiting Porterweed and feeding from small red flowers at the forest edge.

Although the species is more reliable at Rancho Naturalista, El Copal, and sites near there, especially the crazy, wine-colored males, it’s always good to know about more sites for this beauty.

Cinchona Feeders

The fruit feeders at the Hummingbird Cafe in Cinchona have been turning up the usual good birds like barbets, Northern Emerald Toucanet, Buff-fronted Quail-dove on the ground, and other birds. However, it’s been another story for the hummingbird feeders.

On a recent visit, we had very little activity, something that could be related to the folks at Cinchona putting out the feeders with less frequency. This is related to Ministry of Environment employees making them take the feeders down and warning them that they could be fined if they put them back up.

Yes, you read that right, in Costa Rica.

Unfortunately, based on interpretation of laws that prohibit feeding wild animals, some people would like to stop any feeding of birds. Never mind the lack of studies demonstrating a negative effect on bird populations and putting more emphasis on that than the real and much larger impacts on animals and ecosystems caused by pesticides, human caused climate change, and outright destruction. It’s just easier to make people take down feeders (which might even harm hummingbird populations since many seem to have declined). It doesn’t happen everywhere but, once in a while, businesses are told to remove their feeders.

With luck, we can change this law or, at least find a way to regulate bird feeding so it can always take place. In the meantime, be aware that the authorities in Costa Rica do make some places take them down from time to time.

Monteverde Reserve Changes

If you plan on visiting the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve, be aware that they have made some changes regarding entrance times and fees. To enter, you must pick an entrance time, trail, and pay in advance via their online booking site. This only covers one trail, to visit another trail, you would have to pick another entrance time and pay again. Parking has also been completely moved away from the reserve and there is a shuttle bus that brings you to the entrance.

These changes must have been implemented to manage the high visitation rates at the reserve. However, it also means some local guides won’t guide there any longer. Instead, they mostly guide at two other great birding sites; Santa Elena Reserve and Curi-Cancha.

Improvements at Cope’s Place

Cope’s Place has continued to make improvements at this classic, very special hotspot. There is a larger, cement floored area for bird observation at the house, and a larger overhang to keep you from getting rained on. Not that this great birding site needed any changes but now, it just looks a bit nicer.

Sicklebill and other Birds at Nectar and Pollen

Just up the road from Cope’s, we have another excellent site for bird photography; Nectar and Pollen. Owner Miguel continues to plant and carefully manage the site for birds, especially hermits and the White-tipped Sicklebill. Lately, that crazy-billed hummingbird has been a regular visitor and, some days, he has had that and every possible hermit species in Costa Rica!

There’s also Rufous Motmot, oropendolas, toucans, tanagers, and various other birds to look at. Although Black-crested Coquette and Snowcap haven’t been there recently, they could also occur at any time. Not to mention, the skies are always good for raptors (we had a pair of Great Black Hawks and King Vultures), and the forest can have good mixed flocks.

Need Sunbittern? Take the Green Ship Sarapiqui Boat Trip

Sunbittern

Sunbittern is a much wanted bird and with good reason. The bird’s odd, unique shape, sunburst wing pattern, and elusive nature combine to drench it with allure. Being the sole member of its family only adds to the must see qualities of this special bird.

In Costa Rica, despite most sightings happening in certain spots, this species is actually fairly common. It just prefers being unobtrusive in less accessible spots.

I’ve found that one reliable way to see Sunbittern in Costa Rica is taking the Green Ship Sarapiqui boat trip. Tell boatman Oscar you want to see “Garza Sol” and he’ll keep a close eye out for it. You’ll have a very good chance at close views along with fair chances at Sungrebe and various lowland forest species. I’ll just also mention that Oscar has been very accommodating and professional, I can’t recommend him enough.

Quetzals Near Poas

Resplendent Quetzal always occurs somewhere in the Poas area. There aren’t as many as on Cerro de la Muerte but, if you know where to look for them, you’ve got a fair chance. Sometimes, I see them on the way to the national park but, if not there, I can usually find them on the San Rafael de Varablanca road.

A couple days ago, we had great looks at a pair that flew out and over the road. Find the right fruiting tree and sometimes, you can see 6 or more quetzals in a day!

Driving to San Jose from the Pacific in January? Go on Sunday Afternoon

If you need to drive to the San Jose area from the Pacific, see if you can drive up Route 27 on a Sunday afternoon. This month, every Sunday afternoon, this highway turns into a much quicker, one way route uphill. If not, it would be a slow going, traffic ladened trip.

Are you birding in Costa Rica this January? I hope these tips help. There’s always a lot more to say,; to learn more about birding at sites mentioned above and others, how to see Sunbittern and other species as well as identification tips, support this blog by getting my 900 plus page ebook, “How to See, Find, and Identify Birds in Costa Rica”.

Happy birding, I hope to see you here!

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Tis The Season for Umbrellabirds at Centro Manu

The holiday season has been unleashed and Costa Rica is no exception. Arrays of blinking and flashing Christmas lights, inflatable Santas and reindeers, candy cane and nutcracker themed decor…my neighborhood’s got it all. Christmas carol tracks are also on replay in supermarkets hawking everything from pseudo fruitcakes to panettones imported from Verona.

Growing up in Niagara, I don’t recall panetonnes (a fun, sort of brioche-like bread with mini chocolate chunks and candied fruit), but we did exchange tins of Christmas cookies. Those home-made treasure boxes featured a fine assortment of sugar-butter creations, even cucidati, Italian wedding cookies, mini brownies, pizzelle, you know, the good stuff!

In Costa Rica, people exchange tamales. They belong to a heftier food category than a flat, lightweight pizzelle but the kind, gift giving feelings are the same. Tamales aren’t bad either; if you’re in Costa Rica in December, make sure you try one accompanied by a fine cup of locally grown and roasted coffee.

Something else to enjoy in Costa Rica these days are umbrellabirds. Tis the season for these rare crow-like cotingas, especially at Centro Manu. After breeding in remote cloud forests, Bare-necked Umbrellabirds move to lower elevations, sort of “wintering” there until they head back uphill in February and March.

Costa Rica birding
Umbrellabird breeding habitat.

Alas, umbrellabirds can’t spend post breeding season in any old place. These special birds need mature rainforests that provide them with plenty of their preferred tamales and cucidati; local tropical fruit, small lizards, and a fine assortment of big bugs. Sadly, unlike toucans, they won’t go for bananas and would rarely if ever visit a fruit feeder. Nor will they hang out in second growth or forest edge; those places just don’t have the stuff that umbrellabirds need.

Based on their extra large eyes, I also wonder if they might be better adapted to the dim conditions of the forest interior, and thus avoid brightly lit areas. Given their penchant to forage in the upper understory of wonderfully shaded forest made even dimmer by frequent cloudy conditions, I would not be surprised.

That’s what yesterday’s umbrellabird at Centro Manu was up to. The subadult male would perch on a branch about 12 feet above the ground and peer this way and that, looking around until it swooped to snatch some bug, or move to another branch. On occasion, the mega bird also swooped to snatch a small “wild avocado” fruit in flight, gulping it down after regaining a perch. I’m not kidding about the swooping either, this species flies a bit like a woodpecker.

Yep, all of that show and right in front of us, for extended photo sessions, and walkaway views. That’s what’s going on at Centro Manu right now, you might want to visit! However, I’d be lying if I said it was simple as pie. It probably won’t be. We had to walk to the back part of the trail and still get lucky to cross paths with the bird. That trail is also famously muddy and has some slippery roots and rocks, and the forest is pretty humid and features a healthy population of mosquitos.

Even so, as long as you can walk fairly well and have repellent, you’ll be alright. You’ll still need some luck to run into an umbrellabird (that endangered status ain’t for nothing) but, you also have a fair chance at Centro Manu, especially right now. Heck, their guide Kenneth has also recently seen one in the early morning right above the office!

A different Bare-necked Umbrellabird from Manu last winter.

I don’t know how many umbrellabirds are hanging out at Centro Manu but I bet there’s more than one. When you aren’t looking for this serious mega, there’s also lots of other stuff to search for too. We also saw White-crowned Manakin, Black-crowned Antshrike, Spotted Antbird, the roosting Great Potoo, and Rufous-winged Tanager among other 90 plus bird species. You might also want to check out the fruiting figs near the hummingbird garden, they’re bound to attract some uncommon birds, maybe even a Lovely Cotinga or Red-fronted Parrotlet? Those would be a couple of additional mega birds indeed but, since they also partake in the Costa Rican altitudinal shuffle, it’s not out of the question.

Want a guided trip for umbrellabirds and other species at Centro Manu? Let me know! I hope to see you here!

Learn how to look for this bird and find information for dozens of other birding sites in Costa Rica in my Costa Rica bird finding ebook (buying it also supports this blog).

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A New and Unexpected Bird for Costa Rica

How many birds can you see in Costa Rica? A couple hundred? Yes and a lot more. As with birding anywhere, your final Costa Rica tally depends on where you go birding, how often you go birding, the number of birding days, and how you carry out the avian observing endeavor (like, if you just hang in a hotel garden or spend hours on forest trails to track down quail-doves and glimpse RVG cuckoos).

Ten days can easily reach 300 species, two weeks can turn up 400 plus, and more than 600 in a year is pretty normal. That’s a healthy bunch of birds and yet, Costa Rica’s got more! The current official bird list for Costa Rica stands at 942 (947 if we count additional, yet to be accepted species) and now, as of November 15th, we’ve got one more bird to add.

That most recent addition is a bird I saw yesterday on a Tarcoles River boat trip. No long slog in a remote area, no border birding in search of overshoots from Panama or Nicaragua, just a regular, enriching and easy going boat ride on the Tarcoles.

Before boarding the boat with Jose’s Crocodile Tours, I did realize we could see something weird or out of range or odd. Such birding fortune is always possible at that particular spot but, rarities are never the norm. It’s worth being aware of possibilities but you can’t have any expectations. Better to just open the mind to birding, watch, listen, and go with the birding flow.

Yesterday, that strategy seems to have worked. It’s also a reminder to check every bird and, if you don’t recognize it right away, take a closer look.

It was a quiet morning on the river, high brown water typical of a wet season river that drains the stormy and densely populated Central Valley. Being the low season, we were also the only boats on the river, the others moored and waiting for crocodile viewing sometime December.

Our boat driver Isaac motored upstream and Barbara Seith and I enjoyed the easy-going and productive birding. Great Egrets waded and waited for hand outs that we failed to provide. The occasional Bare-throated Tiger-heron stalked the river edge along with other wading regulars.

Yellow-crowned Night-Herons perched on driftwood, Mangrove Swallows fluttered alongside the boat, and we scanned for more birds; Tropical Kingbirds and Great Kiskadees perched on tall riverside grass, a quick and distant flyby of an Amazon Kingfisher, and a Peregrine flapping into view, lazily checking out its killing domain.

Upriver we continued, seeing thick-knees, spoonbills, and other regulars but not much else. It was still good, ultimately better to be boating a tropical river and looking for birds as opposed to say driving or walking on nearly birdless busy streets.

On that upriver journey, I noticed a tall grayish bird and as I did with most birds, automatically raised my binos to my eyes. After nearly half a century of focusing on birds, that movement has become a reflex, a gesture as quick and normal as smiling when the rain stops and the sun makes its welcome appearance.

As I moved the focus wheel and the bird came into view, my expected “just another Great Blue Heron” morphed into a not Great Blue Heron. Time seemed to slow as I realized I was looking at a more uniformly colored bird and one with a reddish or rusty front. But no, it couldn’t be…um…that just didn’t make sense and yet, there I was, undoubtedly looking at a Sandhill Crane.

Costa Rica’s first Sandhill Crane. And it was standing there right in front of us like that was completely normal. Except that’s not! At least not in Costa Rica!

I asked Barbara to please take photos of this country first, told the boat driver likewise and then we worked on getting the word out. Thankfully, we had a good signal and, in real time, sent messages to forums and friends that we were looking at a Sandhill Crane, that this was no joke, and tried to relay the exact location.

Although the bird was a clear Sandhill Crane, it was still sort of unbelievable. I mean, I had other species on my radar as birds that could and should show up but Sandhill Crane really wasn’t one of them. In retrospect, I guess it should have been, after all, the bird is a long distance migrant and has a large population but, they don’t usually fly further than central Mexico.

I figured some pelagic species or maybe a Bar-tailed Godwit or Tibetan or Siberian Sand-Plover or Altamira Oriole and other possible species I included on the Costa Rica Birds Field Guide app but Sandhill Crane? Well, I guess I need to add that one too!

A country first is nothing to scoff at but, with other life birds to look for, we got back on our birding mission and boated on the rest of the river. Nope, no other new birds for Costa Rica but it was still good.

As for my fellow local birders, they got the word and several made their way to Tarcoles as quick as they could. Jose set up boat trips for a big discount and they went looking for the crane. Unfortunately, it was not in the same spot and, for much of the day, I feared it had left and would turn into a major dip (chasing and missing a bird). Although some did miss it, those who arrived later or stuck around until 4 p.m. did manage to refind and see the star bird.

Today, the day after, more birders went looking for the crane and some did see it in flight. No close looks but at least they saw it and, so far, it seems to still be hanging around. Hopefully, it will stick around a lot longer; staying for a few more months would be nice!

Thanks to Barbara Seith for taking the picture shown above and more documentation of this country first. See more at our ebird checklist from that eventful boat ride and more of her photos and artwork at her site.

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Costa Rica Birding Expectations for the Final Quarter

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Fall is happening, the year’s final fourth. In Costa Rica, look around and you’ll find a scattering of pumpkin spice and occasional Halloween decor but no changing of leaves, cool nights, or cold weather precursors.

We do have hints of winter but they don’t come knocking with frosty fingers, chilled air, and tail-flashing juncos. Instead, we get the boreal summer birds; Baltimore Orioles, Yellow Warblers and waterthrushes dipping tails over puddles and mangrove roots. Go birding in Costa Rica these final quarter days and you’ll see our winter arrivals. You’ll also see the northern nesters sharing space with resident species like Blue-gray Tanagers, motmots, and other neotropical beauties.

A common beauty.

It’s not the high season but the birds are still here, more than enough to watch. Here’s some of what to expect in these latter months of 2025.

Urban birding

Try as you will to get into the real nitty gritty of Costa Rica birding, you’ll probably still find yourself doing some urban birding. I’m talking hotel gardens and patches of habitat in the people zone. It’s alright, there’s always more around than you think, always more to see and always good (especially at hotels like Villa San Ignacio, Robledal, the Bougainvillea, and others that host and cherish green space).

Don’t spend too much time away from the birdier forests but don’t not bird around your hotel either. As encouragement, here’s some of what I’ve been recently seeing and hearing in the tiny bits of habitat (especially a small neighboring farm) near home, in the middle of a city:

-Short-tailed and Gray Hawks are daily, yesterday morning, a kiskadee was dive bombing a perched, dark morph Short-tailed Hawk.

-White-fronted Parrots, and Orange-chinned and Crimson-fronted Parakeets do daily morning and evening flyovers, sometimes, critically endangered Yellow-naped Parrots too.

-Tropical Mockingbirds sipping from orange flowers, Rufous-tailed and Cinnamon Hummingbirds at flowering bushes, occasional Green-breasted Mango on a high perch.

-Brown Jays creeping and getting scolded by Rufous-backed Wren and various other small birds.

Rufous-backed Wren

-Speaking of small birds, there are common flycatchers like Tropical Kingbird, Great Kiskadee, Boat-billed Flycatcher, Social Flycatcher, and Common Tody-Flycatcher. Lately, I’ve also been seeing migrant pewees, Baltimore Orioles, and wintering Yellow Warblers among small numbers of migrating Red-eyed Vireos, Blackburnian, Black and white, and Chestnut-sided Warblers.

-Migrating swallows a la Barn, Bank, and Cliff. I also got lucky with a lone male Purple Martin. I keep looking up, hoping for a random shorebird or lost nighthawk, maybe win a birding lottery Cave or Violet-green Swallow.

-Tropical Screech-Owl calling from the farm next door. I don’t hear it every night and I wonder, is it just moving through or, does it live there all year long? With luck, it will roost from a viewable spot.

-Handsome Hoffmann’s Woodpeckers, our local version of the Red-bellied or Gila or other common woodpecker. Today, I also heard a Lineated laughing from the riparian zone.

-There’s more, always more to make hotel garden birding worthwhile.

No hurricanes but more than enough rain

In Costa Rica, we don’t usually get smashed by hurricanes but, we still get that rain. Lately, a heck of a lot of it. A hurricane happens somewhere in the Caribbean and droves of rain happen here. A tropical storm system takes place and we can get hammered with road smashing precipitation.

These days, it’s been a bit too much; buckets and waves of falling water that overflow creeks, race down roads, and precipitate landslides. Unfortunately, the main road from San Ramon to Puntarenas got washed out. I’m not sure when it will be fixed but surely before the high season. In the meantime, we’ll probably see even more traffic on the main road to the Pacific Coast, Route 27.

This link sums up roads affected and closed by heavy rains. There will surely be more, if driving from now until December, check Waze to see what’s open, think twice before driving in heavy rain on mountain roads, and don’t drive through flooded areas.

Altitudinal migrants

Heavy rains happen but the birds are still here. Several species also react to the weather. When birding lower elevations, keep an eye out for altitudinal migrants like White-ruffed Manakin, Olive-streaked Flycatcher, Black-faced Solitaire, and others.

Male White-ruffed Manakin.

Umbrellabirds have also arrived to lower elevations (rare and mostly in mature rainforest in the foothills and adjacent lowlands), rare Lovely Cotingas and bellbirds can show up at lower elevations along with some hummingbirds and other interesting birds.

Year List

On a personal note, despite getting sidetracked by necessary (and thankfully successful) surgery, my year list is coming along alright. I’m at 648 species in Costa Rica for 2025, some of which I’ve added from nocturnal flight calls in the backyard (the usual way I record Veery and Gray-cheeked Thrush). There’s still time to see more, hopefully, I’ll get to the right places soon.

I hope you get out birding soon too, especially in Costa Rica. A lot to see down here and, birds are more active before and after the rains.

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News and Tips from Recent Birding in Costa Rica

A few days ago, I returned from a week of birding in Costa Rica. This wasn’t any old week of excellent birding at commonly visited hotspots like Arenal, Sarapiqui, and Cano Negro. No, this was a target road trip, a custom birding voyage structured around “the missing”. Those hallowed species would be any birds not seen on previous trips to Costa Rica.

As such, they could only be encountered at scattered locations, typically, places too far flung to visit on previous trips. But, we had already birded the close spots, had already seen most of what could be seen relatively nearby (and even then, not all!). Reaching the far off places had become necessary, at least if we wanted to see funny sounding birds like Stub-tailed Spadebill, Elegant Trogon, and Ivory-billed Woodcreeper.

In a birding nutshell, we went from the Sarapiqui lowlands to cloud forest in the central highlands, on to Liberia in northwestern Costa Rica, and then way south to the gateway to the Osa and Ciudad Neily (and then back, as well as a day trip to Centro Manu). The following reflects some of the highlights and tips from this custom birding journey, more or less following the timeframe of the trip.

Cerulean Warblers and some other migrants

I was hoping to catch up with the annual fall passage of mini sky-blue beauties. The height of their movements coincided with our birding days, I figured we’d probably see a few but, since this is birding, you just never know!

Fortunately, it all worked out, birding probability paid off in three places. There were the brief glimpses of pleasant greenish backed females and a neatly breast banded male in Centro Manu (where they consort with Lesser Greenlets- scandalous), the bold female that uncharacteristically showed in eye level vegetation at Tirimbina, and the fantastic, very welcome male that gave perfect views at Cinchona.

Although not quite so glamorous, other migrants were around too; a handful of Red-eyed Vireos, Blackburnians, Black and white Warblers, pewees, and a few others. In southern Costa Rica, there was also a bunch of Sulphur-bellied Flycatchers. It was pretty cool and birder dreamy to see a dozen doing their hefty flycatcher thing in one special tree!

Tirimbina- still great for Great Tinamou and antbirds

We spent a morning at Tirimbina to look for various fairly challenging lowland birds. Luckily, some made an appearance. One of the best was one of the birds that this private refuge is often good for- yee friendly whistling Great Tinamou. After a juvenile had flushed, we were pleased to see an adult doing us a favor by sticking around for great views.

Other nice target birds included antwrens, antvireos, and seriously lucking out with Ocellated Antbird. In roughly the same spot where I had encountered an antswarm nearly a year before, lo and behold, I see a couple streams of Army Ants trying to sneak by!

After careful investigation and whistling like an Ocellated, thankfully, two of the wonderfully spotted, blue-faced birds appeared for some fine looks.

Fair birding on the San Rafael de Varablanca road

The cloud forest next to Braulio Carrillo National Park weren’t quite as birdy as I would have liked but, then again, I probably expect too much. No quetzal but we did have excellent views of Black-breasted Wood-Quail, had a nice mixed flock, and heard White-fronted Tyrannulet.

This site always turns up some good stuff, I cover it and lots of other places in my Costa Rica bird finding ebook, “How to See, Find, and Identify Birds in Costa Rica”.

Visiting Santa Rosa National Park

Santa Rosa National Park is an excellent, big area of tropical dry forest in northern Costa Rica. It’s around 35 minutes north of Liberia and worth the visit!

We went there hoping for several dry forest species and indeed, lucked out with Thicket Tinamou on the main road, Ivory-billed Woodcreeper, and Stub-tailed Spadebill among other birds. Although it was overall fairly birdy everywhere, some of the best spots were the old growth dry forest on the drive in, and the loop trail near the Casona.

You can stop on the main road but be very careful of speeding vehicles. Also, although the entrance road doesn’t have a gate, you still need to make reservations in advance and pay the fee at the park entrance (only with cards and only from 8 to 330). Reservations were easy enough and the park rangers were also very friendly and helpful.

Las Trancas- not as accessible, not as good

Las Trancas is the name for a farming area on the road from Liberia and the airport to the Playa Hermosa area. In the past, rice fields there have been excellent for Jabiru, rails, and more. Unfortunately, as I saw from this recent sojourn, most of the rice has been converted to unbirdy sugar cane and the side roads are gated.

Needless to say, we didn’t have much there. However, the other part of the farm that still has rice fields and birds can still be visited albeit with a local guide. We paid a brief visit and managed distant Jabiru and a few other birds. To check this great area out and maybe see Spotted Rail, contact local guide Javier Perez Chaves.

BONUS SNOWY PLOVER AT CALDERA!

As befits the find, this subtitle gets the big letters. During low tide, a sand bar forms in the lagoon at Mata de Limon (aka Caldera). Sometimes it has several birds, other times no but it’s always worth checking. On September 9th, that checking paid off with a very rare for Costa Rica Snowy Plover.

The bird was distant and the sun was hot but carefully scoping that bunch of Semi Plovs was worth the sweat and staring. Ghost pale, think dark beak and gray legs…year bird success!

I doubt it will stick around that spot but you never know. I hope it turns up again, might be in Tarcoles.

Cotingas at Rincon de Osa

In Costa Rica birding circles, Rincon de Osa is known as the place to be for Yellow-billed Cotinga. Thanks to two fruiting figs, it most definitely was on our visit. Belying their scarce and possibly critically endangered status, the surreal white birds swooped back and forth, sometimes near eye level. Most were males, I only saw one, maybe two females at most.

Turquoise Cotinga was also present but, amazingly, we missed it by an inch! As we watched the white birds, another birder was taking pictures of the blue one on the other side of the tree. He assumed we had seen it and, sadly, the birds snuck off and never came back, not even on the following morning.

Quiet birding at Rincon de Osa

On another note, overall, the forest birding at Rincon was pretty quiet. Yes, we still saw Crane Hawk, Gray-lined Hawk, and some other good birds but it was pretty quiet. I only hope that’s related to season and not fewer birds but, I worry. On past visits, I have easily recorded 100 plus species in a few hours.

An absence of owls and other night birds

In general, we had every few nocturnal birds. If we would have looked more, we probably would have found some but, checking a couple nights turned up nothing, not even a Pauraque.

Ciudad Neily rocks and birding rolls

This small city in southern Costa Rica was birdy as ever. The “hospital road” had Savannah Hawk and other regulars but no dice with Paint-billed Crake (maybe too wet to concentrate them?). Unfortunately, the Coto area was too flooded and muddy to access but the birding just outside of town was good.

Parrots and other birds flew over town at dawn and dusk and roadside birding in forest just outside of town was productive for a good number of rainforest species. As a bonus, we also had great looks at Central American Squirrel Monkeys!

After Ciudad Neily birding, we made the long drive back to San Jose, thankfully, with nary an incident. Speaking of incidents, lately heavy rains have caused local flooding near Fortuna and other places, and landslides on the Route 32 San Jose-Guapiles highway. Be careful and make sure you get your birding in during the sunny morning! By 1 or 2, the weather takes a drastic turn and pours down buckets.

Happy birding, I hope to see you here! Here’s a trip report to whet the appetite.