Birdingcraft's 2012 Costa Rican list (1 Viewer)

[Birdingcraft]

I planned on starting this in January but with the guiding high season have been to busy to update the year list. Anyways, I got off to a good start with species I had nearly missed last year such as Snowy Cotinga and Crested Owl, and birds totally missed in 2011 such as Keel-billed Motmot (a lifer!), a few duck species, and Spot-fronted Swift.

With 404 species so far, I have a fair chance at hitting 600 by the end of the year. I expect to pick up some nice birds this weekend while guiding in the high elevations of Irazu Volcano and the rich foothill forests of Quebrada Gonzalez.

 

[Birdingcraft]

Last weekend upped the list to 420. I should reach 500 during March if I can catch some migration along the Caribbean coast and get into the field at least once a week.
Additions from weekend guiding at Irazu Volcano and foothill rainforests on the Caribbean slope included:

405. Mourning Dove- local in CR, Irazu is good area for it.
406. Snowcap- A few at El Tapir as usual.
407. Bronze-tailed Plumeleteer.
408. Yellow-eared Toucanet- missed it last year so I was pleased to catch a glimpse of a pair at El Tapir.
409. Streak-crowned Antvireo.
410. Checker-throated Antwren.
411. White-flanked Antwren.
412. Bicolored Antbird.
413. Ocellated Antbird!
414. Ruddy-tailed Fycatcher.
415. Orange-billed Nightingale Thrush
416. Pale-vented Thrush.
417. Tawny-faced Gnatwren.
418. Brown-capped Vireo.
419. White-throated Shrike-Tanager
420. Volcano Junco

 

[Birdingcraft]

Guiding in the moist forests and wetlands in and Carara National Park on Monday moved the year list up to 430.

Four of the memorable species included:

Southern Lapwing- Usually get this smart looking bird on boat tours along the Tarcoles River.

Amazon Kingfisher: This one was already overdue!

Yellow-green Vireo: Common in Costa Rica but migrate to South America until January or February.

Collared Plover: Two seen from the boat tour. Not the easiest of shorebirds to see in Costa Rica.

 

[Birdingcraft]

I reached 435 after a bit of birding near Carara and in high elevation habitats at Irazu Volcano.
431. Scrub Greenlet: This is an uncommon species around Carara so I was pleased to get one near the entrance to the Bijagual road.
432. Bare-shanked Screech-Owl: Perfect looks at this regional highland endemic at Poas Lodge.
433. Timberline Wren: A pair seen well near the crater of Irazu Volcano.
434. Buffy-crowned Wood Partridge: One heard on the slopes of Irazu- good area for this tough species.
435. American Redstart: A male turned up near Carara.

 

[Birdingcraft]

Birding in the high elevation forests of Varablanca and Poas turned up a bunch of excellent additions for the year.

These include:

436. Bicolored Hawk: Nice to get this rarity for the year!
437. Barred Forest-Falcon: A couple heard calling from the cloud forest.
438. Gray-headed Kite: Perfect looks as it displayed over the cloud forest.
439. Golden-bellied Flycatcher: Good looks at a pair of this uncommon near endemic.
440. Torrent Tyrannulet: Streams near Varablanca are reliable for this small flycatcher.
441. Ruddy Pigeon: One calling bird.
442. Green-fronted Lancebill: Excellent looks at one on the way up to Poas Volcano.
443. Three-striped Warbler: Common cloud forest species.
444. Collared Trogon: One calling from the cloud forest.
445. Streak-breasted Treehunter: Several of this near endemic were calling and showing off in the cloud forest.
446. Lineated Foliage-gleaner: 1 or 2 of this cloud forest bird.
447. Peg-billed Finch: Seeding bamboo on Poas turned up many of this uncommon species.
448. Slaty Finch: Possibly the best bird of the year! A very rare species throughout its range, one was heard singing from seeding bamboo.

 

[Birdingcraft]

I forgot to add one other bird from the Varablanca cloud forests- Dark Pewee for 449 birds so far. I kind of doubt that I will break 500 by the end of March but just might do it if I do more foothill birding and look for shorebirds.

 

[Birdingcraft]

I picked up 5 new species today during a morning of guiding that went from the edge and brushy habitats of the Central Valley to the rainforests of the Caribbean lowlands. Of the more than 100 species that were identified (including highlights of Snowy Cotinga and Green Thorntail) I picked up:
450. White-naped Brush Finch: A pair that showed well after spishing.
451. White-collared Seedeater: A few turned up in grassy areas near the lowlands.
452. Crimson-collared Tanager: One at the Sarapiqui Eco Observatory, a new birding site with lots of potential.
453. Scarlet-thighed Dacnis: Nice looks at this beautiful turquoise and black bird at Cinchona, a reliable site for the species.
454. Rufous Motmot- One heard at the Sarapiqui Eco Observatory.

 

[Birdingcraft]

Picked up two more birds on a Sunday morning trip to Poas Volcano. It was a great morning with 4 Resplendent Quetzals sighted, glimpses of Barred Parakeets that rocketed overhead, lots of Peg-billed Finches in the seeding bamboo, Black Guans, and other goodies. I have already has those for the year but the 2 new species were:
455. Buff-fronted Quail Dove- a couple calling from the forest.
456. Highland Tinamou- at least 3 heard calling from the forest.

Too bad there weren't any trails to access the areas where they were calling as it would have been great see them. I wonder what the next year bird will be?

 

[Birdingcraft]

A fantastic day of guiding yesterday in the middle elevation forests of Virgen del Socorro and the highland forests of Poas Volcano yielded several new species for the year. Out of 151 species identified for the day, the following were new for the year:

457. Least Grebe- Long overdue for the year!
458. Brown-billed Scythebill- One vocalizing bird in Virgen del Socorro that refused to show itself.
459. Spotted Barbtail- A couple of these fun little Furnarids.
460. Swainson's Hawk- Fairly big flocks migrating north.
461. Slaty-capped Flycatcher.
462. Azure-hooded Jay- Was happy to hear one vocalizing bird and get that toughy for the year.
463. Slaty-backed Nightingale-Thrush- Great cloud forest song.

 

[Birdingcraft]

Over the course of a Big Day this past Sunday, I added 16 species to my year list. Of the 260 species of birds that were recorded, the following were new:

464. Mottled Owl- One bird gave one short call but that's all that was needed to identify it.
465. Black Hawk-Eagle- A calling bird flying high above Tirimbina was a good one for the day.
466. Ornate Hawk-Eagle- Another great bird to get for the day and year was this one calling as it soared above Tirimbina.
467. Short-tailed Nighthawk- Calling just after we arrived at El Gavilan lodge in the Caribbean lowlands.
468. Lesser Swallow-tailed Swift: This one was simply long overdue. We saw at least four over the course of the day.
469. Chimney Swift: One of the only migrants we found.
470. White-necked Puffbird: We heard a few birds at different spots. Seem to be vocalizing quite a bit at this time of the year.
471. Cinnamon Woodpecker: Another one that was overdue.
472. Olivaceous Woodcreeper: One vocalized at Virgen del Socorro.
473. Great Antshrike: One of the first birds heard at dawn.
474. Western Slaty Antshrike: Excellent looks at a pair at Tirimbina.
475. Sulphur-bellied Flycatcher: They are back from wintering in South America and are pretty common.
476. Cliff Swallow: A few seen in the Caribbean lowlands.
477. Blue and gold Tanager: Great looks at this beautiful species at Virgen del Socorro.
478. Nicaraguan Seed Finch: Good bird to get any day of the year. We saw one at the El Tigre fields.
479. Shiny Cowbird: Had a brief flyby of 2, maybe 3 at El Tigre.

 

[Birdingcraft]

I have done pretty good on year birds since my last post. Trips to the Caribbean lowlands and dry forests in Guanacaste have boosted the year list to 501 species. Maybe I will hit 600 again by the end of the year after all?

A bit of guiding on Poas yielded number 480 in the form of Stripe-tailed Hummingbird.\ and I forgot to mark down Plain-capped Sarthroat seen during the Big Day for number 481.

During a morning of birding in Sarapiqui, I got:

482. Bronzy Hermit
483. Cerulean Warbler- happy to get this for the year!
484. Eastern Kingbird
485. Scarlet Tanager
486. Pied Puffbird- Great looks at this one!

On a family trip to Playa Hermosa, dry forests and flooded rice fields yielded:

487. Jabiru: Excellent to get for the year and a new country bird!
487. Pectoral Sandpiper: Another new country bird!
488. Greater Yellowlegs
489. Lesser Yellowlegs
490. Thicket Tinamou: Several vocalizing birds were ticked.
491. Elegant Trogon: Saw a few of these.
492. Plain Chachalaca: Good bird to get in Costa Rica.
493. Limpkin
494. Plain-breasted Ground-Dove: Another good bird to pick up.
495. Lesser Ground Cuckoo
496. Canivet's Emerald: Uncommon but usually get it in dry forest.
497. Northern Beardless Tyrannulet
498. Scissor-tailed Flycatcher- hard to believe I still needed this for the year!
499. Bank Swallow
500. Olive Sparrow
501. Streak-backed Oriole.

 

[Birdingcraft]

A great morning of birding around the highland forests of Varablanca and VIrgen del Socorro added new birds for the year. These were:
502. Canada Warbler- several seen, migrating through at this time.
503. Black-headed Nightingale-Thrush- Hadn't picked this one up on account of not birding in forests at their preferred elevation.
504. Red-eyed Vireo- Just one of this migrant.
505. Acadian Flycatcher- Excellent looks at this migrant.
506. Olive-sided Flycatcher- A few of these migrants were around.
507. Eastern Wood-Pewee- Most pewees migrating through are silent but this one called to give it a definitive name.
508. White-throated Spadebill- I was hoping to get this one.
509. Plain Antvireo- Nice to pick up this middle elevation bird.
510. Scaly-throated Foliage-gleaner- Got this rare species for Costa Rica in the same spot as last year.

 

[Birdingcraft]

A weekend of guiding in the Caribbean lowlands around Sarapiqui, Costa Rica turned up 9 new species for the year. These were:

511. Great Green Macaw: A pair nested near La Selva this year and we got good looks at them.
512. Blue-chested Hummingbird: Brief looks at a female.
513. Spectacled Owl: I was surprised to see that I still needed this one. Great looks at a pair at El Gavilan and then another one at Quebrada Gonzalez.
514. Mississippi Kite: An impressive flock of 150 as they migrated overhead was a bonus!
515. Chestnut-colored Woodpecker: One showed nicely after whistling an imitation of its call.
516. Plain-brown Woodcreeper: Turned out to be fairly common at El Gavilan.
517. Olive-sided Flycatcher
518. Dusky-faced Tanager: A given at El Gavilan when they come to the feeders!
519. Tawny-crested Tanager: An expected one at Quebrada Gonzalez.

 

[Birdingcraft]

A day of birding the excellent high elevation, underbirded habitats along the Providencia road turned up the following additions to my Costa Rican 2012 list:

520. Sulfur-winged Parakeet: I was hoping to get that one.
521. White-throated Mountain-Gem: Another expected species but only one seen.
522. Ochraceous Pewee: Two of this rare species were heard but not seen!
523: Western Wood Pewee: A few of the pewees we saw were definitely this species.
524. Barred Becard: Great looks at this handsome high elevation species.
525. Silver-throated Jay: A very good bird to get! An uncommon jay that requires high quality, high elevation oak forest.
526. Elegant Euphonia: Nice to pick up this beautiful little bird.
527. Yellow-bellied Siskin: Fairly common up that way.

 

[Birdingcraft]

A weekend of guiding at Punta Leona combined with the mangrove birding tour turned up a few more year birds. I was surprised to discover that I still needed some of these:

528. Back-bellied Plover: I could hardly believe that I still needed this common migrant.
529. Black and White Owl: I thought I had this one but the last one I recorded was at the end of December.
530. Willow Flycatcher: Several Empids were around and I suspected they were Willows but I didn't want to count one until hearing it's distinctive "fitz-bew" volcalization.
531. Panama Flycatcher: Good to see a few of these in the mangroves.

 

[Birdingcraft]

I forgot to mention one other species that was new for the year:
532. Cherrie's Tanager- this species is very uncommon around Carara, much more abundant a bit further south. One male was seen during the mangrove birding tour on the Rio Tarcoles.

 

[Birdingcraft]

533. Heard from the house today, a calling Crested Bobwhite!

 

[Birdingcraft]

Two new species for the year on a morning visit to cloud forest near San Ramon:
534. Orange-bellied Trogon: A common species in the Tilaran mountains, I had perfect, eye level looks at a beautiful male.
535. Three-wattled Bellbird: An emblematic species that is much more common in the Tilaran Mountains than the central mountain range. Several males and females were seen in cloud forest above San Ramon.

 

[Birdingcraft]

536. Dull-mantled Antbird at Quebrada Gonzalez on Saturday was one that I should have picked up by now.

 

[Birdingcraft]

Number 537 is one of my best birds of the year. While guiding yesterday in the Poas/Cinchona area, I saw a gorgeous, male Lovely Cotinga. This is one of the rarest resident species in Costa Rica so I was pretty pleased with seeing it.

Here is a blog post I wrote that details that memorable day (we also had 2 quetzals, Black Guan, Peg-billed Finch, and many other good birds).