Costa
Rica Journey
March 22 to April 4, 2007
Photos: Mark Garland
(To download the species list for this trip in PDF
format, click here.)
Thursday, March 22: Arrival
day at the Hotel Bougainvillea, in a pleasant suburban area a
short distance from the International airport. Many group
members chose to come one day early arriving on March 21, and
most from this group met in the Bougainvillea’s gardens on
Thursday morning for some early birding. Two specialties of the
garden, Prevost’s Ground-Sparrow
and White-eared Ground-Sparrow,
were seen by some but not all members of the group. More
cooperative birds included Squirrel
Cuckoo, Rufous-tailed Hummingbird, and Costa Rica’s
national bird, the Clay-colored Robin.
After some discussion of options for the day, all group members
who had arrived early chose to visit
InbioParque, a combination park, museum complex, and
biodiversity research center very close to the Bougainvillea.
At day’s end our Costa Rica guide, Carlos “Charlie” Gómez,
joined us for an orientation session and welcome dinner.
Friday, March 23: We traveled
from the Central Valley to the Caribbean lowlands this day,
spending considerable time at the La
Paz Waterfall Garden. We enjoyed the pristine
mountain rain forest and spectacular waterfalls along the
trails, and found a good variety of birds in the forest and at
feeders. Highlights included
Black-bellied Hummingbird, Brown Violet-Ear, Slaty-backed
Nightingale-Thrush, Crimson-collared Tanager, Tawny-capped
Euphonia, and countless Tennessee
Warblers. A quick, enjoyable stop at the San Fernando
Waterfall followed, and then we descended from the mountains and
found our home for the next three nights, the lovely Sueño Azul
Lodge.
 Saturday, March 24: We
visited the legendary La Selva
Biological Station today, site of many pioneering
studies of tropical biology. It’s also an amazing place for
birds. We hit the jackpot with woodpeckers, sighting several
uncommon species: Chestnut-colored, Rufous-winged,
Smoky-Brown, Lineated, Pale-billed, and Black-cheeked
Woodpeckers were all tallied this day. Plus three
species of toucans, three kingfishers, two trogons, two motmots,
nesting Olive-backed Euphonias,
incredibly cooperative Fasciated
Antshrikes, and many other birds. Four
Scarlet Macaws at close range were
a real treat, as these spectacular birds are very rare in
eastern Costa Rica. Birds weren’t the only highlights, as we
also saw iguanas, poison-arrow frogs, a
tiger rat snake, a
two-toed sloth, agoutis, and peccaries. Tallying this day’s
checklist was a time-consuming task!
Sunday, March 25: We headed
off to Braulio Carrillo National Park
this morning in the midst of a steady rain. Rather than tackle
the soggy and muddy park trails, Charlie took us to El Tapir, a roadside garden and
nursery surrounded by the pristine forests of the park. A few
abandoned buildings here had overhanging roofs – when the rain
came down hard we could still watch birds from under cover! The
gardens of El Tapir were swarming with hummingbirds in spite of
(or perhaps because of) the rain. The species list:
White-necked Jacobin, Violet-headed
Hummingbird, Black-crested Coquette, Green Thorntail,
Violet-crowned Woodnymph, Rufous-tailed Hummingbird, Snowcap,
Bronze-tailed Plumeleteer, and Purple-crowned Fairy!
Several mixed flocks of songbirds came through the area, and
Marco “Niño” Morales, Costa Rica’s best birdwatching bus driver,
found a Black-and-yellow Tanager
nest. We returned to Sueño Azul for lunch and enjoyed an
afternoon walk around the lodge’s extensive grounds. Afternoon
highlights included Great Green Macaw,
Peregrine Falcon, Olive-crowned Yellowthroat, Fasciated
Tiger-Heron, and Sunbittern.
Monday, March 26: We packed
up and headed north this morning, arriving at the Natural Lodge
Caño Negro in time for lunch. This remote lodge, just a few
miles away from Nicaragua, lies adjacent to one of Costa Rica’s
most extensive freshwater wetlands. As we took a midday break
an estimated 10,000 migratory Turkey
Vultures streamed overhead, accompanied by a few
northbound Broad-winged Hawks and Swainson’s Hawks. We took to the
water by boat this afternoon, guided by local boatman Ernesto.
We headed upriver along the Rio Frio
to an area of extensive shallow flats. Birds were everywhere!
There were all sorts of herons and egrets, including
Boat-billed Herons and
Bare-throated Tiger-Herons, plus
Roseate Spoonbill, Black-necked Stilt,
four kinds of kingfisher, and a surprising variety of land
birds, including the squeaky-voiced
Nicaraguan Grackle. Dozens of Spectacled Caimans glided
through the water, and we found one much larger reptile, an
American Crocodile. We arrived back at the dock just after
sunset, ready for a cold beverage and dinner back at the lodge.
Tuesday, March 27: We were up
before dawn to slurp some coffee and nibble on snacks before
heading back onto the waters of Caño Negro in the early morning
light. We headed downriver this time, into areas where primary
forests surrounded the wetland. We saw all the herons, egrets,
and kingfishers again, got another chance to study the
Nicaraguan Grackle, and delighted at close-range sightings of
the secretive, woodland-dwelling Green
Ibis. For most, however, the highlight came when we
landed and walked a short distance through the Terra Firma
forest. Ernesto took us to the nest of a
Great Potoo, and there, in plain view on a heavy
horizontal branch, sat an adult Potoo with its downy white chick
tucked into its chest. A spectacular sight! We returned to the
lodge for breakfast, and Ernesto had another trick up his
sleeve. He joined us on the bus and we drove for about 10
minutes to a spot in an open field where we could view the nest
of a Jabiru, the largest species of
stork found in the Americas. A huge, fuzzy chick stood by
itself on an upper branch of a massive ceiba tree. We took a
siesta break after lunch, and then walked into the town of Caño
Negro, where a visit to the local elementary school had been
arranged. A Peace Corps volunteer from Michigan explained that
the children were motivated to learn English because of their
interactions with tourists a few times each year. We enjoyed a
few traditional dances performed by the children, then each of
us was taken on a tour of the school and its grounds by one or
more of the kids, as they practiced their English with us. We
ended the day with a bit more birding and dinner back at the
lodge.
 Wednesday, March 28: This was
the day we left the hot lowlands behind, climbing into the cool
mountains again. Along our drive we passed close to the active Arenal Volcano, and the
clouds parted enough to give us a great look at this brooding,
conical mountain. After lunch at the Tilajari Resort, where we
enjoyed tanagers and honeycreepers visiting fruit feeders, we
climbed the valley of the Rio Toro Amarillo to our home for the
next two nights, Bosque de Paz,
elevation 5,000 feet. We were immediately dazzled by birds
visiting the feeders: Black Guan,
Chestnut-capped Brush-Finch, Common Bush-Tanager, Yellow-thighed
Finch, and six species of hummingbird. A short afternoon
stroll along the entrance road presented us with views of
Blue-crowned Chlorophonia, Yellow-faced
Grassquit, and Tufted Flycatchers
at the nest. We drifted to sleep this night with the streams of
Bosque de Paz providing the lullaby.
Thursday, March 29: We
strolled trails through the untouched forests of Bosque de Paz
this day, searching without luck for the big, mixed-species
flocks that roam through these deep, dark woods. The day’s
highlight for many came right after lunch. Venicio, the local
guide at Bosque de Paz, had told us about a pair of
Resplendent Quetzals that he had
been seeing regularly along one of the trails. We walked
quietly up the trail to the clearing he had described. It was
there, a beautiful red-and-green Quetzal, sacred bird to the
Mayans and other native groups, a birds sometimes described as
the world’s most beautiful. This was a young male, his tail
streamers just a few inches in length, nothing like the great,
long streamers he will grow when fully mature. This fellow was
having success nonetheless, as we soon noticed a female Quetzal
in the same clearing. Suddenly the male flew over to a broad,
rotting snag and landed at a hole. He quickly vanished inside –
we had found a nest! We waited breathlessly to see what would
happen next, training scopes and binoculars onto the hole.
Suddenly a big pile of wood chips was forcefully tossed out of
the hole. They’re still building! We watched for a while and
finally pulled ourselves away for a walk along another trail.
Dennis, however, chose to spend the afternoon here with his
camera, and he was rewarded with some great photos.
Friday, March 30: With one
more morning at Bosque de Paz we offered the group a choice,
either head out on the trails for more birding with Charlie and
Mark or tour the orchid garden with local guide Venicio. Two
chose the latter option while the rest headed back to the
forest. As luck would have it, the birds mostly eluded us, so
Charlie entertained us all with botany, entomology, rainforest
ecology, and conservation. For many the highlight of this walk
was the sighting of a dung beetle dutifully rolling its unsavory
sphere along the forest floor. We said goodbye to the friendly
staff of this small (12-room) lodge after lunch and headed back
to the Central Valley, stopping for an hour at Sarchi, described by Charlie as
the “Detroit of Costa Rica for oxcarts” and now a popular place
to shop for crafts. We were able to find a new species for our
birdlist here, as a pair of Rufous-naped
Wrens was courting loudly in the gardens next to the
parking lot. We returned to the Bougainvillea Hotel, where some
relaxed while others used the day’s last hour of light to search
for birds in the garden.
 Saturday, March 31: After
another bout of Ground-Sparrow chasing at the Bougainvillea,
we’re headed south to the Talamanca
Mountains. After a brief stop to savor a
Hook-billed Kite and another for
diesel fuel, bathrooms, and assorted snacks, we enter the valley
of the Savegre River. We arrive at our home for the next three
nights, the Savegre Mountain Lodge, in time for lunch. Savegre
is sometimes called the “Valley of the Quetzals,” and after
lunch we’re not disappointed as we stroll down a country lane to
a spot where a pair of these regal birds has a nest and is
incubating the eggs. This fellow isn’t a youngster, as his tail
streamers are impossibly long, hanging out of the nest hole as
he takes his turn on the eggs. We delight at the sighting and
also enjoy some of the other birds of the higher mountains –
this lodge is perched at an elevation of 7200 feet. There are
birds heading north on migration here, including
Wilson’s Warbler, Black-throated Green
Warbler, and Rose-breasted Grosbeak, along with residents
of the tropical highlands. Right around the lodge we enjoyed
the antics of Flame-colored Tanager,
Long-tailed Silky Flycatcher, Black-thighed Grosbeak, Slaty
Flowerpiercer, Ruddy-capped Nightingale-Thrush, and six
species of hummingbird.
Sunday, April 1: This morning
we offered another choice, with some taking a longer walk on the
ridge above the lodge, led by Charlie, while others enjoyed a
more gentle stroll in the valley under Mark’s leadership. The
highlanders enjoyed sightings of Ruddy
Treerunner, Collared Redstart, Black-faced Solitaire, and
for one lucky couple (Tom & Diane), a cooperative
Costa Rican Pygmy-Owl. The
lowlanders went back to the Quetzal nest, delighted in
Torrent Tyrannulets along the
creek, doted on a close-up Yellow-winged
Vireo, and unlike their mountaineering colleagues, got
back to the lodge before a midday downpour began. We reunited
(in dry clothes) for lunch, took a midday break, and boarded the
bus in the late afternoon for a visit to a private farm up the
valley at almost 9,000 feet of elevation. We stayed here
through the twilight, rewarded with sightings that included
Black-billed Nightingale-Thrush,
Large-footed Finch, and the brown-bellied Central
American race of Hairy Woodpecker.
As dusk fell we managed a few glimpses of the
Dusky Nightjar before we drove back
down the valley for dinner and another early bedtime.
 Monday, April 2: We began
with an early breakfast and then drove way uphill, almost to the
very summit of Cerro Bellavista
on the Cerro de la Muerte,
elevation roughly 11,000 feet! Here was had great views of the
Volcano Junco, of the broad massif
of Chirripo, Costa Rica’s highest mountain, and even a few
glimpses of the Pacific Ocean coast, more than 2 miles below
us. Next came a stop at La Georgina
(known for the highest elevation public toilets in Costa Rica!),
where Fiery-throated Hummingbirds
swarmed the feeders and gardens,
Large-footed Finches were unusually obliging, and
Swallow-tailed Kites glided
effortlessly on the ridgetop updrafts. Next it was Villa Mills for more birding,
capped by a rising kettle of about 1000 Swainson’s Hawks that
circled over our heads just as we were getting ready to leave.
Sharp-eyed spotters picked out a few Broad-winged Hawks in the
flock, too. We returned to the lodge for lunch and a bit of
free time (as another midday shower arrived), and we spent the
late afternoon enjoying Quetzals and the other birds found near
the lodge. After dinner about half the group joined an optional
jaunt back up the mountain, where Bare-shanked
Screech-Owls called obligingly but stayed out of view.
The rare and elusive Unspotted Saw-whet Owl lived up to its
reputation, but Dusky Nightjar proved incredibly obliging, with
one bird sitting right in the road and refusing to flush.
Tuesday, April 3: We chose to
take one more mountain walk this day, heading up to the quiet,
unpaved road that dead ends at the tiny hamlet of Providencia.
Many birds proved elusive here, though most people at least
glimpsed the Black-and-yellow
Silky-Flycatcher, Mountain Robin, and
Timberline Wren.
Flame-throated Warbler and
Sooty-capped Bush-Tanager were more
cooperative, but the rare Ochraceous Pewee
stole the show, perched on an open snag right over the road,
flycatching several times and always returning to an open,
conspicuous perch. Great views were enjoyed by all. It was
then back to the lodge for lunch, pack up, and drive back to the
city and the Hotel Bougainvillea. We gathered before dinner for
a chance to say thanks to our Costa Rican friends and to
surprise Bruce and Gloria with a champagne toast. This
delightful couple had recently celebrated their 50th
wedding anniversary, and our Costa Rica trip was the anniversary
present they were giving to themselves. There were toasts to
Bruce and Gloria, to guide Charlie Gómez, and to driver Niño
Morales. It was then time for dinner and a round of goodbyes,
for on Wednesday, April 4, we would head to the airport at
different times for our flights back to the US.
-MARK GARLAND
For tour itineraries, to register, or for more
information contact:
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9 Hardscrabble Road
Bernardsville, NJ 07924
or email
travel@njaudubon.org.
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