Jamaica 2nd - 12th February 2019 (1 Viewer)

[Trystan]

I entered 2019 with no definite holiday plans and limited windows of opportunity at work. After looking into a few options I finally settled on Jamaica.

I really wanted something warm and fairly relaxed while offering a decent number of species.

Jamaica has 28 extant endemic species which are all realistically gettable in one trip, plus a number of other Caribbean endemics. Having read through a few reports by birders who have done this by booking a number of different hotels and rented a car, I decided that for a little more cost, it could be done more hassle free and opted to stay at Green Castle Estate which has extensive grounds with a good number of endemic species readily available plus offers guided excursions to other key birding spots.

Due to the last minute decision to book, flights were a little awkward. I ended up flying from Manchester to Montego Bay via Atlanta (I still had a valid ESTA from last year). The reverse flight was Montego Bay to Gatwick. I found a cheap train ticket home dependant on the flight arriving in on time and decided to risk it. Worst case scenario would be an expensive commute home from London.

Green Castle arranged my transfers to and from the airport, which are quite expensive for a solo traveller, better to go in a group if you can. The same goes for the day excursions, my plan was to hook up with other people staying at the hotel to cut costs.

No issues with the flights and connections, apart from European starling and Feral Pigeon, Atlanta was devoid of life. I arrived in Montego bay around 9pm local time and quickly cleared customs. I had booked a hotel for the night very close by through booking.com. The tropical court hotel which I decided I could easily walk to from the airport.

This turned out to be the case although quite heavy going with 20kg luggage.

Despite the low cost of the hotel I found it very good, small room but clean with air con, wifi and even a little fridge. Even better, as I found out the next day, the view from my room overlooked some distant pools at the back of the airport.

So the birding begins on day 2, the 3rd February. My pick up was scheduled for 11am which gave me plenty of time for some reconnaissance around the area. I had noticed that there were pools behind and to the west of the airport on my map.

I use Maps.me to download offline maps whenever I travel.

The rear pools looked a long way round to walk so I headed west first. Outside the airport a large landscaped roundabout with fruiting and flowering trees offered my first opportunity to collect some species.

First up were the regular Loggerhead kingbird, and Northern mockingbirds, easily identifiable in the first light.

White crowned pigeon was also prevalent throughout but not often perched as they were here in the fruiting tree. My first endemic for the trip was a single White chinned thrush in the same tree which did not stick around.
As the light grew, the birds became more vocal. Despite being on a big roundabout outside an airport, there wasn't much traffic passing but there was some distant drilling which was a bit annoying. A flock of Greater Antillean grackles moved around the trees and the first of many Jamaican woodpeckers put in an appearance.

New world warblers were represented by the very common American redstart and slightly less so, Northern parula and I was able to watch several male Red billed streamertails at very close range in the flowering bushes.

Antillean palm swifts were present above the airport building and I found another endemic, this time Jamaican euphonia in another tree on the roundabout.

There didn't seem to be much else in the area but more of the same species, although flyover White winged dove, Cattle egret and then Glossy ibis. The latter reminded me I should think of moving on to try and find the pool I'd seen on the map.

Walking on the road round the airport should drop me to the seafront, then round the rear of the pool but unfortunately it was all part of the airport grounds, fully fenced off with no viewing possible. Still along the way I had Prairie warbler, Zenaida dove, American kestrel and Mourning dove in the habitat along the roads edge. This actually turned out to be the only place I saw Mourning dove, it didn't appear to have a presence near my main hotel or in the mountains.

Along the seafront itself, several Royal terns, Magnificent frigatebird, my only Laughing gulls of the trip and a small party of Ruddy turnstones. There were more people around now and it seemed about one in three of them wanted to sell me weed and about one in ten coke! They weren't pushy when I didn't show any interest, non-the-less I'm glad I wasn't staying in Montego bay for the whole trip or this could have gotten tedious.

I figured out I couldn't get access to the pool so I retraced my steps. Nothing much new at the roundabout but Bananaquits were active and there were a couple of Common ground doves. A few European starlings also flew over.

I decided to head back to the hotel and check around the gardens there and it was now with the light available that I realised I could see across to the rear pools from my window. Although distant, setting the scope up I could identify most birds. It looks possible to get closer to the pools by travelling East and circumnavigating the airport. Although closer, I have no idea if there would be enough elevation to see in.

Anyway, there were a decent number of herons and waders around amongst other things. Great white egret, Snowy egret, Little blue heron, Great blue heron, Smooth billed ani, Grey plover and Greater yellowlegs. This was also the only place I came across Tricoloured heron, Willet and Saffron finch. I saw some smaller peeps which I suspect were Least sandpipers but I let them go unidentified.

After this I waited around the small hotel garden for my transfer. A few more Red billed streamertails were present and an American kestrel sat on a telegraph post nearby but the only new bird for the trip was a pair of Yellow faced grassquits.

The driver turned up slightly late, then proceeded to try making up for lost time. From Montego bay it take about 2.5 hours to Green Castle depending on traffic and how psycho your driver is. Feral pigeon and Brown Pelican blurred past while Turkey vultures became ever present. Nothing else of note during the drive.

 

[Trystan]

3rd February part 2

One of the best things about a holiday for me is the exploration of the area I'm staying in. This was one of the best to do. About 2.5 miles back down to the coast with an old tower along the way. Some farmland and orchards, a reservoir, numerous trails, loops, dead-ends, viewpoints, on the days around the hotel I was averaging 7 miles a day.

This first day, after noting the Jamaican mango coming to the feeders, I meandered down various tracks until I found the reservoir. Along the way, a mixture of endemic birds and wintering warblers. Singles of Black and white warbler, Rufous tailed flycatcher, Jamaican vireo, Jamaican spindalis and Black throated blue warbler were all new for the trip.

I had left my scope back in the room thinking that it would not be useful on the forest trails but regretted once I reached the reservoir which was larger than I anticipated.

On and around the water were American coot, Least grebe, Green heron, Spotted sandpiper, Common gallinule, Ruddy duck, Ring necked duck, Blue winged teal and for this day only, a single American wigeon. Bananaquit and American redstart continued to be the most common birds in the foliage and the repertoire of squeaks, tacks and buzzes they made were disconcerting to someone with an untrained ear listening for new species. By the end of the trip, I had a good grasp of most of the regular bird calls including the Jamaican oriole and Sad flycatcher, both of which I saw while retracing my steps to the hotel.

One more species added before dinner was the tiny Vervain hummingbird, several had singing spots around the garden, another distinctive song of several very high pitched squeaks of variable tone. One regularly sang outside my room.

I had prearranged a night walk with the hotel guide Dwayne who turned out to be excellent in terms of his knowledge, perseverance and attitude for all the trips I took with him. This first night, he provided some information about the best trails to try for different species around the grounds as we set off to locate the Jamaican owl and Northern potoo. The latter is very easy at Green Castle Estate with a hunting post very close to my room, I saw it on all but two of the nights when the wind was quite gusty.

On playing the call of the owl, there were a couple of distant responses. Deciding these were too far away, we moved further along the trail and tried again in a couple of other places. While we waited we noted several Cane toads coming out to the puddles on the path and a spectacular firefly display. We were about to head back up the track to where an owl called in the middle distance when a second bird called from a nearby tree. A search quickly located the bird which sat on one of the lower branches. Very pleased to have Jamaican owl on the list so early in the trip, after watching the bird for a while, we left it to find the Northern potoo which was on its regular post. After a little while it left pursuing a moth and landed even lower down allowing us to approach. I even had a go at getting a photo on my phone although the effort is hopeless. I will never be a photographer.

 

[Trystan]

4th February

A couple of quieter days around the grounds to follow before another birding group arrived with the potential to team up for tours. I had booked 10 days to allow for the possibility of dips and having to go back for a second go if necessary so was fairly relaxed at this point.

A pre-breakfast walk produced several Orangequits, an awkward Jamaican tody followed by a very obliging one and two Jamaican lizard cuckoos calling, one of which I managed to see very well. Many of the birds from yesterday were repeated as well but another addition came by way of male and female Cape May warblers at the edge of the garden.

After breakfast I set off on a wider circuit, skipping lunch and staying out through the day. Birding was slow as the day warmed up and it was becoming apparent which birds were the more regular with Black and white warbler, Black throated blue warbler, Northern parula, Sad flycatcher, Jamaican euphonia and Jamaican vireo turning up regularly. New additions came by way of Olive throated parakeets, several noisy groups around, and White collared swifts closer to the coast seemed to come and go depending on the weather.

These first few days were very hot, sunny and dry although later in the trip, this was often broken up with rain and gusty winds.

Caribbean doves were heard regularly and I eventually managed a decent view of one on a low branch which didn't realise I had spotted it. They were more often seen zipping away, as were the white winged doves and white crowned pigeons. Zenaida doves seemed a little less shy but Ruddy quail dove was only ever seen in flight, a uniformly marked cinnamon coloured dove always flying low through the forest.

I was somewhat confused to find two female Indigo buntings seemingly out of habitat in trees at the edge of path. No male to sure up the ID and I initially left this off my list until Dwayne confirmed the following day that he had seen one also and they were know to be present in the grounds.

Nothing else new until I returned to the reservoir in the evening. The American wigeon was gone, but with the scope I was able to confirm Pied billed grebe at the back and of the reservoir and after much scrutinising, was happy that a few of the coots were indeed of the Caribbean type. This has now been lumped with American coot due to hybridisation but I don't feel this is consistent treatment as hybridisation often occurs when there is overlap and one or both species are scarce as is clearly the case with Caribbean coot.

A Killdeer was at the back edge of the water and later, a Red tailed hawk circled several times but otherwise, the birds were as yesterday.

5th February

I met the other group of birders who were happy to team up for the Blue mountain (Hardwar gap) and John Crow mountain (Ecclesdown road) excursions, also a trip to the coast for White tailed tropicbird.

Today though, more trails, eking out a few more species from the forest. Greater Antillean bullfinch was the first of these, as with so many birds, after the first sighting, this seemed to become easier to find. Ovenbird on the other hand, seen this morning and only once more during the stay. My main target today was Yellow shouldered grassquit and despite searching some promising habitat, I could only manage a couple of Black faced grassquits. Further afield, I came across Mangrove cuckoo twice, one flying across a road, the other hopping branch to branch in dense cover were the only two I had for the trip.

No other additions until the evening at the reservoir area where the Yellow shouldered grassquit I had spent the day looking for suddenly decided to be down on the track right in front of me. Half the endemics done now and my first of several Common yellowthroats seen in the same area before retiring for the evening.

The potoo was on its post.

 

[Trystan]

6th February

Blue Mountains - Hardwar gap area

Setting off with a rather large group into the Blue mountains with Dwayne guiding I wasn't sure what to expect and whether the group size would be detrimental either through noise or just getting everyone onto the birds.

Fortunately, all the birding was done along the roadside so plenty of space to view and the birds are used to the noise of traffic coming by regularly. There was a little light rain in the morning and up in the mountains it remained overcast as we arrived around 7 at Dwayne's first stop. Getting the hard one out of the way we were targeting Crested quail dove. A quick employment of the tape was met with immediate success and a bird posed well on a low branch for all to see. A second bird was calling and located on the other side of the road looking up the hill while a pair of Ring tailed pigeons sat silhouetted in the top of a bear tree. Scope views did little to improve these but we crossed paths with several more as the light improved.

Chestnut bellied cuckoo was calling but staying well hidden in the canopy. Poor perched views and foggy flight views only. The trend for endemics was to continue through the day, next, a small flock with 3 Arrowhead warblers showed very well while a fruiting tree attracted White eyed thrush and Rufous throated solitaire. While we admired these and scanned the trees for some of the more usual suspects (Jamaican euphonia, Orangequit, Jamaican spindalis), Dwayne heard Blue mountain vireo calling and employed the tape again, bringing the bird over the road and into the same area as the other feeding birds.

Embarking the bus again, we went a little higher. We had to dismount and walk a little as the bus needed clearance to get over an awkward section of road. This was the only place I saw the Jamaican pewee during the trip, happily flycatching from the wires. Prairie warbler and Black throated blue warbler were also present here and a little further up the road, Jamaican elaenia was singing and we managed to find the bird in the canopy.

The weather at this point was not looking good. We had crossed to the point where we should have been able to see Kingston but there was only fog and the threat of rain was imminent.

We had a quick breakfast packed by the hotel, accidentally eating our lunch at the same time, not realising that they had all been packed together.

Dwayne had hoped we would have the Jamaican blackbird by now but no sign so far. We ventured a little further and after a high flying Merlin, Dwayne identified the call of the Jamaican blackbird and we were able to get on the bird well as it fed by lifting loose bark from the trees and scouring the underneath for insects.

After a few false starts, the rain picked up in earnest now and we waited it out in the hope of some improvement. Dwayne moved us to a site where he had previously seen Greater Antillean elaenia and we ventured out when there was a break in the rain. It was not a very long gap unfortunately but did give us chance to see a male Jamaican becard and a becard nest plus better views of the Ring tailed pigeons.

With the rain getting worse we decided that having picked up all the available endemics, we would head back down to the coast and see if the weather was better for some general birding. Along the way we stopped to sample the Blue mountain coffee. I don't particularly like coffee unless I dilute it right down with milk and sugar, and this coffee proved to be no exception but for those who are into coffee they were charging $25 USD for a kilo.

Back down the mountain and back to the birds, a Belted kingfisher was on wires over a stream in the foothills and I saw a high flying corvid which I banked for later should I not get better views of Jamaican crow.

Back on the coast the weather was back to normal, sunny, hot and dry. A few egrets around, new for the trip were several Sanderlings amongst the Turnstones and a single Cabot's (Sandwich) tern with the Royal terns.

 

[Trystan]

7th February

Rained on and off all day. Got very wet twice. There was a Yellow crowned night heron at the mangrove down by the main road and a Louisiana water thrush at the reservoir. This latter bird was a bit of a surprise with Northern water thrush being the default species here. I was initially persuaded that my ID might be wrong viewing across the water in poor weather but fortunately the bird remained for the rest of the trip allowing others to go check it out as well. Apparently only the 2nd time Dwayne has seen this species on the estate.

 

[Trystan]

8th February

A trip planned for the John Crow mountains today along the Ecclesdown road. Hoping to complete the island endemics, this area was to be guided by someone else we were to meet along the way, however, the guide lived in the mountain areas and due to yesterday's rain was not able to get to us.

We were delayed while Dwayne was contacted to find out if he was able to join us and with an approximate 30 minute delay, he managed to get to us and the trip went ahead.

The consequences however were to arrive at the road after the time that the 2 species of Amazon parrot are easy to find feeding. We parked up at the start of the road near a fruiting tree with a good number of common species and another pair of Cape May warblers. We had a hasty breakfast, avoided eating lunch, and began to walk along the road which, compared to the road through the Blue mountains was very quiet, I don't actually remember seeing another vehicle. Weather was clear and sunny here with a slight breeze.

First up three Jamaican crows flew over, nice and low and I was able to scrub the previous awful views.
Parrots could occasionally be heard but none seen flying, even the Black billed streamertail which should have been easy seemed elusive.

A nice but brief view of Worm eating warbler kept spirits up and then finally a female Black billed streamertail.

On the way up, we came to several open stretches with views across the valley and with a bit of patience, a small flock of parrots came down the valley but distant. I managed to get a scope onto them and was happy that they were Yellow billed amazons but they did not land. As we continued further, there were no parrot calls at all. Counting Caribbean coot as a species, I was now 1 short of 100 birds for the trip, and 1 short of all the endemics. There felt like a lot of burden on the Black billed amazon.

After a good half hour with no further sight nor sound of a parrot but some much better views of both male and female streamertails, we headed back to the starting point. Some olive throated parakeets gave a false alarm but once again, Amazons were definitely calling nearby. Following a small track off the main road where a JCB was doing some digging, we tracked the call to a copse of trees. The parrot was inside somewhere and after some time Dwayne managed to spot it. Black billed amazon! It was not easy to see but I did manage to get it in the scope for a while but had to keep clearing the road as the JCB kept coming back and forth. Eventually the parrot moved deeper in and was lost to view but the job was done and I could relax for the rest of the trip.

I should mention that I had seen a few swallows distantly on more than one occasion and assumed they were probably Cave swallows. This was confirmed today as a few were present round the buildings back on the coast road.

Last stop before returning to the hotel was at a bridge over the Spanish river, where various egrets, Belted kingfisher, Merlin and Glossy ibis were present as well as a new trip tick, Black necked stilt.

 

[Trystan]

9th February

Last day of searching the trails today as I finally came across Stolid flycatcher which was my last realistic lifer in the area. A pair showed nicely at the edge of the last trail leading to the reservoir.

10th February

Due to go to the tropicbird area this morning, I arranged to meet the group at the main gate as I wanted to get to the old tower while it was still dark. I had been told the barn owl roosts there sometimes but in three visits, there was no sign other than the droppings where it likes to sit.

So I thought that it may be worth having a look while it was dark and sure enough, the American barn owl was sat out on the edge of the tower when I arrived there. It gave me what I will take as a friendly hiss as I was leaving to head to the gate.

Apparently, while I was out, there was a change of plan and a delayed start so after the van was some 20 mins late I decided I would head back to the hotel to find out what was happening. I was nearly back when the van came along, the delay because it was overcast the visibility would not have been good so we were now setting off an hour later than expected, and I'd walked 2 miles further then expected too.

No matter, the White tailed tropicbirds performed well, although distant there were six birds together at one point. This was only about 30 minutes up the coast road from the Estate although this track is very bumpy.

A Peregrine also came through very quickly here as we got back to the vehicle to run back down to Annotto bay and try for some more coastal birds.

There are some small lily ponds by the roadside which are a little more extensive than they first appear. As we walked round the back of them, two Northern Jacanas flew in and further back American purple gallinule. We continued to the river and a long spit which divides it from the sea creating a brackish pool.

There were more of the usual waders and egrets plus one Semipalmated plover on the spit.

The final bird of the trip was a Mangrove warbler back by the mangroves on the edge of the estate. I am trying to follow IOC taxonomy so as far as I can tell this sedentary population is sometimes called Golden warbler, looking, to all intents and purposes, like an American yellow warbler with a uniform yellow head (Setophaga aestiva) rather than the usually rufous capped or rufous headed Mangrove warblers (Setophaga petechia) I have seen elsewhere.

Using this taxonomy, the Caribbean coot is not a species but lumped with the American coot, while the American barn owl is currently a species. This gave a final count for the trip of 110 species. Although I had a couple of days to spare which I had planned for in case I needed to track down any endemics I may have missed, I did not add anything further after this. I will shortly give a quick list of the species seen with an overview of the frequency and locations.

 

[JWN Andrewes]

Nice write up Rob, sounds like a great trip.

 

[Larry Sweetland]

Nice write up Rob, that Green Castle place sounds great.

If I read it right, looks like you just ended up with the same big dip as I did: Greater Antillean Elaenia, which I gather should be a split endemic. I also gather that Carib Grackle is now colonising Montego Bay area (ship assisted birds?).Unfortunately I was unaware of it during our visit so didn't look for them. Know if they're still about?

 

[Trystan]

Thanks both

Nice write up Rob, that Green Castle place sounds great.

If I read it right, looks like you just ended up with the same big dip as I did: Greater Antillean Elaenia, which I gather should be a split endemic. I also gather that Carib Grackle is now colonising Montego Bay area (ship assisted birds?).Unfortunately I was unaware of it during our visit so didn't look for them. Know if they're still about?

Wasn't aware of the Caribs but I had actually heard the same about Great tailed grackle around MB but all the birds I saw in the area were fine for Greater Antillean.

I didn't get to spend much time on the Elaenia, the weather shortened our time in the Mountains. The other bird we tried quite hard for was the Whistling duck which is known to use the reservoir and coastal pools, particularly when it's been raining but no joy on that.

 

[Britseye]

Just wanted to add my thanks for the write-up. Jamaica is a place I've often thought of going to combine a bit of Tropical birding with some Test cricket and yours is the most easily digested report I've seen so far. Cheers.

Had never heard of Arrowhead Warbler before but having looked it up on Google, it's now become one of My Most Wanted.

 

[MKinHK]

An enjoyable read - agree that Green Castle sounds excellent

Cheers
Mike

 

[Trystan]

Thanks both. The Arrowhead was fairly easy at the Hardwar gap, best to look in trees with dead vines hanging down as they work this for food.

Green Castle was really good. I stayed in the cottage which was fairly basic, some of the rooms have more facilities if that's your thing. Some self catering is possible in these, otherwise you are quite dependent on the meals provided by the hotel, being a little isolated from anywhere with restaurants. The food was really nice though and with advanced notice they cater for specific dietary requirements.

The advantages of doing it this way were that you are not living out of a suitcase moving round all the time, and a guide is available as a resource to help find the birds if you are struggling and more than half the endemics are readily available on your doorstep.

The disadvantage is the additional cost and that you have a 2 hour drive to get to the main locations for birding when off the estate.

 

[Trystan]

Here's the full species breakdown as promised.

1. Blue winged teal - Up to 10 daily on the reservoir at Green Castle estate plus a few at the coastal pools in Annotto bay
2. American wigeon - 1 on the reservoir on the first day was the only bird of the trip
3. Ring necked duck - Up to 6 daily on the reservoir
4. Ruddy duck - Numerous on the reservoir daily
5. Least grebe - Up to 8 daily on the reservoir, several noted at mangroves and coastal pools at Annotto bay and Spanish river
6. Pied billed grebe - 2 on the reservoir, singles in coastal pools at Annotto bay, Spanish river
7. White tailed tropicbird - 6 offshore near Don Christopher point
8. Glossy ibis - 4 in flight near Montego bay airport and 3 at Spanish river
9. Yellow crowned night heron - Usually in trees at the reservoir and mangrove. 3 at Spanish river
10. Green heron - Several daily at the reservoir and also at coastal pools
11. Western cattle egret - Common away from forest
12. Great blue heron - Singles at coastal pools including Montego bay airport
13. Great white egret - Several at Montego bay airport, singles and pairs noted while driving along coastal route.
14. Tricoloured heron - 1 at Montego bay airport pools
15. Little blue heron - Regular at coastal pools, Spanish river
16. Snowy egret - As above
17. Brown pelican - One in flight while leaving Montego bay. One perched on rocks at Rio Grande
18. Magnificent frigate bird - Along coastal route, usually near towns and villages
19. Turkey vulture - Common everywhere
20. Red tailed hawk - Seen almost daily around Green castle, BLue mountains and John crow mountains
21. American purple gallinule - At least 2 at lily ponds at Annotto bay
22. Common gallinule - Common on most water
23. American coot - Common on most water
--. Caribbean coot - At least 2 on reservoir, good views required as knobs and colour on American coot very variable.
24. Black necked stilt - 3 at Spanish river
25. Grey plover - Montego bay and Annotto bay
26. Semipalmated plover - 1 at Annotto bay by river mouth
27. Killdeer - Present for 2 days at the reservoir
28. Northern Jacana - 2 at Lily ponds in Annotto bay.
29. Turnstone - Several at Montego bay and double figures in Annotto bay
30. Sanderling - Double figures at Annotto bay
31. Spotted sandpiper - Up to 3 at the reservoir and also noted at coastal pools
32. Willet - 1 At Montego bay airport
33. Greater yellowlegs - 1 MB airport, 1 Spanish river
34. Laughing gull - Several at Montego bay
35. Royal tern - Common along coast
36. Cabot's (sandwich) Tern - 1 perched with royal terns at Annotto bay
37. Rock dove (feral pigeon) - A few dodgy specimens in some towns and villages
38. White crowned pigeon - Common, particularly early morning flying over the estate
39. Ring tailed pigeon - 6 seen in pairs in Blue mountains at Hardwar gap and 1 more at Ecclesdown road
40. Common ground dove - MB airport and seen almost daily around the estate
41. Crested quail dove - 3 birds at Hardwar gap, playback used
42. Ruddy quail dove - Daily at green castle estate but only flight views
43. Caribbean dove - Heard frequently but seen well only twice around the estate
44. Mourning dove - Several at MB airport only
45. Zenaida dove - MB airport and daily at the estate
46. White winged dove - Common but sometimes elusive
47. Smooth billed ani - Several seen daily, usually in groups in most areas
48. Mangrove cuckoos - 2 seen badly on one day at the estate along the main entrance track
49. Chestnut bellied cuckoo - Singles at Hardwar gap and Ecclesdown road
50. Jamaican lizard cuckoo - Up to 4 around the estate plus others heard and 1 bird at Hardwar gap
51. American barn owl - Can roost at the old tower on the estate but only seen there once in the early morning before sunrise.
52. Jamaican owl - One with playback on a guided night walk at the estate and a second roosting in bamboo also found by the estate guide later in the week.
53. Northern potoo - Every evening at the estate hunting from its favourite perch except in windy weather
54. White collared swift - Lots on the coast on the second and third full days, best viewed from the old tower but then seemed to move on from the area leter in the trip.
55. Antillean palm swift - A few at MB airport and Spanish river
56. Jamaican mango - Regular at and around feeders on the estate, not noted elsewhere
57. Red billed streamertail - Common at MB airport, around the estate and at Hardwar gap
58. Black billed streamertail - Several along the Ecclesdown road
59. Vervain hummingbird - Singles in most places with several around the gardens often perched and singing
60. Belted kingfisher - 1 on stream in the Blue mountains and 1 at Spanish river
61. Jamaican tody - Regular around the estate, a couple noted at Hardwar gap
62. Jamaican woodpecker - Common and noisy
63. American kestrel - Common - mostly the pale form but several rufous
64. Merlin - Singles at Hardwar gap and Spanish river
65. Peregrine - One flew through near Don Christopher point
66. Black billed amazon - Last endemic seen, one single bird feeding and hard to locate at Ecclesdown road
67. Yellow billed amazon - Several in flight at Ecclesdown road
68. Olive throated parakeet - Seen daily around the estate, Blue & John crow mountains
69. Jamaican elaenia - One at Hardwar gap and one at the estate coming to a fruiting tree
70. Jamaican pewee - A couple at one point of the Hardwar gap road singing from wires
71. Loggerhead kingbird - Common in small numbers daily
72. Sad flycathcer - The most regular and showy Myiarchus flycatcher, several seen daily
73. Rufous tailed flycatcher - Singles and pairs seen most days at the estate.
74. Stolid flycatcher - Hard work, finally found a pair on the estate using playback and a single bird at the reservoir the following day.
75. Jamaican becard - Occasional singles at Hardwar gap, Ecclesdown road and at the estate.
76. Jamaican vireo - Common around the estate, several Hardwar gap
77. Blue mountain vireo - One bird near a fruiting tree at Hardwar gap - playback used
78. Jamaican crow - One very high bird at Blue mountains and 3 more at the start of the Ecclesdown road
79. Cave swallow - A couple while having lunch at Boston bay and a large flock at the Estate on one day. Other swallows not seen well during the trip were also presumably this species.
80. Northern mockingbird - common away from dense forest
81. Common starling - 3 flew over at MB airport
82. Rufous throated solitaire - 2 seperate individuals at Hardwar gap, 1 heard at Ecclesdown road
83. White eyed thrush - One at fruiting tree at Hardwar gap
84. White chinned thrush - Fairly common, usually single birds seen every day
85. Jamaican euphonia - Fairly common in wooded areas and gardens throughout, several seen most days
86. Jamaican spindalis - Singles and pairs most days, usually coming to fruiting trees
87. Jamaican oriole - Common in wooded areas, several seen daily
88. Jamaican blackbird - Only one, seen well at Hardwar gap
89. Shiny cowbird - One noted in flight at Robin's bay, possibly overlooked elsewhere
90. Greater antillean grackle - Seen MB and around the estate in varying numbers throughout
91. Ovenbird - 2 noted at the estate
92. Worm eating warbler - 1 at the estate, 1 at Ecclesdown road
93. Louisiana water thrush - 1 at the reservoir for the second half of the trip. Northern is apparently more regular but none were found during the trip.
94. Black and white warbler - Common on the estate and several in at Hardwar gap
95. Common yellowthroat - fairly regular warbler around the estate
96. Arrowhead warbler - Up to 5 birds at Hardwar gap
97. American redstart - The most common warbler
98. Cape May warbler - 1 male and female in garden at the estate, another pair at Ecclesdown road
99. Northern parula - Fairly common, several daily
100. Mangrove warbler - Pair noted at the estate mangrove area twice
101. Black throated blue warbler - Fairly common, seen most days
102. Prairie warbler - More common at MB, singles at Hardwar gap and the estate also
103. Indigo bunting - 2 females at the estate seemed a little out of place on the forest trails
104. Saffron finch - introduced species, 4 at MB airport viewed distantly in front of pools
105. Bananaquit - Common everywhere
106. Yellow faced grassquit - Seen most days in varying numbers in grassy areas and garden
107. Black faced grassquit - Several seen on 3 of the days around the estate in grassy areas withing the forest
108. Yellow shouldered grassquit - Only seen well on a couple of occasions around the estate in similar habitat to black faced but not seen together.
109. Greater antillean bullfinch - Seen most days in forested areas on estate and at Hardwar gap
110. Orangequit - common around fruiting trees, several daily