Birdingcrafts 2014 Costa Rica list (1 Viewer)

Now that another year has begun, it's time to keep track of those birds! As usual, I hope to hit at least 600 and if I can get a good start on the year might try for 700 by next December.

So, not too much birding yet but did my first bit of guiding for the year in Caribbean slope foothill forests at Lands in Love. Bad rainy weather in the morning made for very little activity in the forest but what can you do. Including that day and birds around the house, here is what I have so far:

Lands in Love area:

1. Great Egret
2. Cattle Egret
3. Black Vulture
4. Turkey Vulture
5. Lesser Scaup
6. Osprey
7. Short-tailed Hawk
8. Gray-headed Chachalaca
9. Gray-necked Wood-Rail
10. Northern Jacana
11. Red-billed Pigeon
12. White-tipped Dove
13. Red-lored Parrot
14. Squirrel Cuckoo
15. Stripe-throated Hermit
16. Violet-headed Hummingbird
17. Rufous-tailed Hummingbird
18. Bronze-tailed Plumeleteer
19. Blue-crowned Motmot
20. Collared Aracari
21. Keel-billed Toucan
22. Black-mandibled Toucan
23. Golden-olive Woodpecker
24. Buff-throated Foliage-gleaner
25. Scaly-throated Leaftosser
26. Russet Antshrike
27. Common Tody-Flycatcher
28. Yellow-olive Flycatcher
29. Tropical Pewee
30. Dusky-capped Flycatcher
31. Great Kiskadee
32. Boat-billed Flycatcher
33. Social Flycatcher
34. Tropical Kingbird
35. White-winged Becard
36. Masked Tityra
37. White-collared Manakin
38. White-ruffed Manakin
39. Yellow-throated Vireo
40. Lesser Greenlet
41. Brown Jay
42. Stripe-breasted Wren
43. House Wren
44. White-breasted Wood-Wren
45. Wood Thrush
46. Clay-colored Robin
47. Golden-winged Warbler
48. Tennessee Warbler
49. Tropical Parula
50. Yellow Warbler
51. Chestnut-sided Warbler
52. Blackburnian Warbler
53. Black-and-white Warbler
54. Ovenbird
55. Northern Waterthrush
56. Kentucky Warbler
57. Mourning Warbler
58. Wilson's Warbler
59. Buff-rumped Warbler
60. Bananaquit
61. Black-and-yellow Tanager
62. White-throated Shrike-Tanager
63. Summer Tanager
64. Crimson-collared Tanager
65. Passerini´s Tanager
66. Blue-gray Tanager
67. Palm Tanager
68. Yellow-throated Euphonia
69. Olive-backed Euphonia
70. Tawny-capped Euphonia
71. Emerald Tanager
72. Bay-headed Tanager
73. Golden-hooded Tanager
74. Green Honeycreeper
75. Variable Seedeater
76. Thick-billed Seed-Finch
77. Black-striped Sparrow
78. Buff-throated Saltator
79. Melodious Blackbird
80. Black-cowled Oriole
81. Montezuma Oropendola
82. Brown-hooded Parrot
83. Rufous-tailed Jacamar
84. Plain Xenops
85. Wedge-billed Woodcreeper
86. Dusky Antbird
87. Spotted Antbird
88. Black-faced Antthrush
89. Slaty-capped Flycatcher
90. Paltry Tyrannulet
91. Scale-crested Pygmy-Tyrant
92. Northern Bentbill
93. Golden-crowned Spadebill
94. Ruddy-tailed Flycatcher
95. Yellow-bellied Flycatcher
96. Cinnamon Becard
97. Black-throated Wren
98. Tawny-faced Gnatwren
99. Long-billed Gnatwren
100. Black-headed Nightingale-Thrush
101. Louisiana Waterthrush
102. Carmiol's Tanager
103. Orange-billed Sparrow
104. White-throated Crake
105. Gartered Trogon
106. Streak-headed Woodcreeper
107. Plain Antvireo
108. Slaty Antwren
109. Chestnut-capped Brush-Finch


From around the house:

110. White-tailed Kite
111. Rock Dove
112. White-winged Dove
113. Inca Dove
114. Crimson-fronted Parakeet
115. White-fronted Parrot
116. White-collared Swift
117. Cinnamon Hummingbird
118. Hoffmann's Woodpecker
119. Blue-and-white Swallow
120. Plain Wren
121. Orange-billed Nightingale-Thrush
122. Flame-colored Tanager
123. Rufous-collared Sparrow
124, Great-tailed Grackle

These first posts are going to add lots of birds, especially after a trip to the Carara area. Here are a bunch more birds from Carara, Cerro Lodge, and the middle elevation habitats of the Bajos del Toro area (3 of which I missed the previous year!):

125. Brown Pelican
126. Magnificent Frigatebird
127. Bare-throated Tiger-Heron
128. Snowy Egret
129. Little Blue Heron
130. Boat-billed Heron
131. White Ibis
132. Wood Stork
133. King Vulture
134. Crane Hawk
135. Gray Hawk
136. Common Black-Hawk
137. Broad-winged Hawk
138. Red-tailed Hawk
139. Ornate Hawk-Eagle
140. Crested Caracara
141. Yellow-headed Caracara
142. Laughing Falcon
143. Crested Guan
144. Black Guan
145. Black-breasted Wood-Quail
146. Groove-billed Ani
147. Laughing Gull
148. Royal Tern
149. Short-billed Pigeon
150. Ruddy Ground-Dove
151. Orange-fronted Parakeet
152. Scarlet Macaw
153. Orange-chinned Parakeet
154. Yellow-naped Parrot
155. Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl
156. Costa Rican Swift
157. Green Hermit
158. Long-billed Hermit
159. Scaly-breasted Hummingbird
160. Violet Sabrewing
161. Green Violet-ear
162. Blue-throated Goldentail
163. Steely-vented Hummingbird
164. Purple-throated Mountain-gem
165. Green-crowned Brilliant
166. Ruby-throated Hummingbird
167. Collared Trogon
168. Turquoise-browed Motmot
169. Amazon Kingfisher
170. Green Kingfisher
171. White-necked Puffbird
172. Prong-billed Barbet
173. Red-faced Spinetail
174. Spotted Barbtail
175. Lineated Foliage-gleaner
176. Tawny-winged Woodcreeper
177. Olivaceous Woodcreeper
178. Northern-barred Woodcreeper
179. Cocoa Woodcreeper
180. Spot-crowned Woodcreeper
181. Barred Antshrike
182. Black-hooded Antshrike
183. Dot-winged Antwren
184. Chestnut-backed Antbird
185. Immaculate Antbird
186. Bicolored Antbird
187. Silvery-fronted Tapaculo
188. Southern Beardless-Tyrannulet
189. Yellow Tyrannulet
190. Greenish Elaenia
191. Yellow-bellied Elaenia
192. Mountain Elaenia
193. Northern Scrub-Flycatcher
194. Ochre-bellied Flycatcher
195. Slate-headed Tody-Flycatcher
196. Eye-ringed Flatbill
197. White-throated Spadebill
198. Royal Flycatcher
199. Tufted Flycatcher
200. Dark Pewee
201. Acadian Flycatcher
202. Yellowish Flycatcher
203. Black Phoebe
204. Rufous Mourner
205. Bright-rumped Attila
206. Nutting's Flycatcher
207. Great Crested Flycatcher
208. Golden-bellied Flycatcher
209. Streaked Flycatcher
210. Rufous Piha
211. Rose-throated Becard
212. Black-crowned Tityra
213. Orange-collared Manakin
214. Long-tailed Manakin
215. Red-capped Manakin
216. Mangrove Vireo
217. Yellow-winged Vireo
218. Brown-capped Vireo
219. Philadelphia Vireo
220. Tawny-crowned Greenlet
221. Green Shrike-Vireo
222. Rufous-browed Peppershrike
223. Mangrove Swallow
224. Barn Swallow
225. Rufous-naped Wren
226. Black-bellied Wren
227. Riverside Wren
228. Rufous-breasted Wren
229. Ochraceous Wren
230. Gray-breasted Wood-Wren
231. White-lored Gnatcatcher
232. Tropical Gnatcatcher
233. Black-faced Solitaire
234. Slaty-backed Nightingale-Thrush
235. Ruddy-capped Nightingale-Thrush
236. Black-and-yellow Silky-Flycatcher
237. Long-tailed Silky-Flycatcher
238. Flame-throated Warbler
239. Black-throated Green Warbler
240. American Redstart
241. Prothonotary Warbler
242. Gray-crowned Yellowthroat
243. Slate-throated Redstart
244. Collared Redstart
245. Golden-crowned Warbler
246. Rufous-capped Warbler
247. Black-cheeked Warbler
248. Three-striped Warbler
249. Wrenthrush
250. Common Bush-Tanager
251. Gray-headed Tanager
252. White-shouldered Tanager
253. Scrub Euphonia
254. Yellow-crowned Euphonia
255. Silver-throated Tanager
256. Red-legged Honeycreeper
257. Blue-black Grassquit
258. White-collared Seedeater
259. Yellow-faced Grassquit
260. Yellow-thighed Finch
261. Olive Sparrow
262. White-eared Ground-Sparrow
263. Grayish Saltator
264. Black-thighed Grosbeak
265. Bronzed Cowbird
266. Baltimore Oriole
267. Yellow-bellied Siskin
268. House Sparrow
269. Black-striped Woodcreeper

Some more additions for the year from guiding yesterday in the Carara area:

270. Brown Booby
271. Great Blue Heron
272. Tricolored Heron
273. Glossy Ibis- Seen flying by the crocodile bridge at dawn. Nice surprise as this is a vagrant to that area.
274. Collared Forest Falcon- heard only as is usual for this species.
275. Whimbrel
276. Least Sandpiper
277. Plain-breasted Ground Dove- heard on Guacimo Road, very reliable for this species.
278. Common ground Dove
279. Lesser Swallow-tailed Swift
280. Green-breasted Mango
281. Black-throated Trogon
282. White-whiskered Puffbird
283. Lineated Woodpecker
284. White-throated Magpie Jay
285. Gray-breasted Martin
286. Northern Rough-winged Swallow
287. Stripe-headed Sparrow
288. Blue-black Grosbeak

Guiding in the rich highland habitats around Poas in a couple of days should push me well over 300 for the year.

The latest additions from birding around Poas and Cinchona:

289. Bicolored Hawk- This uncommon raptor was a nice surprise! Still couldn't get a good picture of this species because of bad weather and poor lighting.
290. Vaux's Swift
291. Brown Violetear
292. Green Thorntail
293. Fiery-throated Hummingbird
294. Crowned Woodnymph
295. Coppery-headed Emerald
296. White-bellied Mountain-gem
297. Magnificent Hummingbird
298. Volcano Hummingbird
299. Scintillant Hummingbird
300. Emerald Toucanet
301. Acorn Woodpecker
302. Hairy Woodpecker
303. Slaty Spinetail
304. Ruddy Treerunner
305. Streak-breasted Treehunter
306. Spotted Woodcreeper
307. Brown-billed Scythebill
308. Olive-striped Flycatcher
309. Black-capped Flycatcher
310. Black-billed Nightingale Thrush
311. Sooty Thrush
312. Mountain Thrush
313. Townsend's Warbler
314. Worm-eating Warbler
315. Olive-crowned Yellowthroat
316. Sooty-capped Bush-Tanager
317. Spot-crowned Euphonia
318. Golden-browed Chlorophonia
319. Slaty Flowerpiercer
320. Sooty-faced Finch
321. Black-headed Saltator
322. Chestnut-headed Oropendola
323. White-crowned Parrot

Ok, so now for a bunch more birds after a few days birding around La Gamba. This site is turning into one of my top 5 favorites for the country. You can go there and see a huge number of species, many of which are rare in Costa Rica. This past trip, we did particularly well on hummingbirds with 13 species recorded (lots of plants were flowering). We had around 155 species and that without any birding on forest trails (!). Add that to the mix and you can get a huge number of birds over a few days. The other good news was staying at the Troppenstation- $66 per night, includes meals- much cheaper alternative than Esquinas and the birding just as good because one can still access the same trails as guests of Esquinas. But anyways, here are additions from there, near the house, and en route to and from La Gamba:

324 Great Tinamou
325 Little Tinamou
326 Green Heron
327 Roseate Spoonbill
328 Black-bellied Whistling-Duck
329 Gray-headed Kite
330 Swallow-tailed Kite
331 Roadside Hawk
332 Bat Falcon
333 Great Curassow
334 Purple Gallinule
335 Killdeer- heard flying over the house one night.
336 Pale-vented Pigeon
337 Blue Ground Dove
338 Gray-chested Dove
339 Blue-headed Parrot
340 Mealy Parrot
341 Striped Cuckoo
342 Smooth-billed Ani
343 Spectacled Owl
344 Black and white Owl
345 Common Pauraque
346 Band-tailed Barbthroat
347 White-necked Jacobin
348 White-crested Coquette- 2-3 birds! A very tough bird to get.
349 Veraguan Mango- lifer! Another tough one.
350 Charming Hummingbird
351 Purple-crowned Fairy
352 Long-billed Starthroat
353 Black-headed Trogon- during a stop near Cerro Lodge on way down.
354 Baird's Trogon
355 Slaty-tailed Trogon
356 Ringed Kingfisher
357 Olivaceous Piculet
358 Golden-naped Woodpecker -great looks and on feeder!
359 Red-crowned Woodpecker
360 Rufous-winged Woodpecker
361 Red-rumped Woodpecker- another tough one in CR!
362 Pale-breasted Spinetail
363 Yellow-crowned Tyrannulet
364 Gray-capped Flycatcher
365 Piratic Flycatcher
366 Fork-tailed Flycatcher
367 Yellow-billed Cotinga- forgot to add this one from earlier trips to Carara.
368 Scrub Greenlet
369 Banded Wren- at stop on Cerro Lodge road.
370 Black-cheeked Ant Tanager
371 Hepatic Tanager- another one I forgot to add from birding the Cinchona area.
372 Cherrie's Tanager
373 Blue Dacnis
374 Shining Honeycreeper
375 Slate-colored Seedeater
376 Yellow-bellied Seedeater
377 Ruddy-breasted Seedeater
378 Streaked Saltator
379 Red-breasted Blackbird
380 Giant Cowbird
381 Scarlet-rumped Cacique

A day of guiding at Cinchona and Poas gave the following new species for the year:

382 Barred Hawk
383 White Hawk
384 Band-tailed Pigeon
385 Stripe-tailed Hummingbird
386 Red-headed Barbet
387 Speckled Tanager
388 Large-footed Finch
389 Rose-breasted Grosbeak
390 Eastern Meadowlark

Two days of guiding in the foothill forests of Quebrada Gonzalez and El Tapir nabbed some fine year birds:
391 Double-toothed Kite
392 Semiplumbeous Hawk- killer looks at a bird I never see at those sites!
393 Black-eared Wood Quail- heard only but that counts.
394 Olive-throated Parakeet
395 Black-crested Coquette
396 Snowcap
397 Lattice-tailed Trogon
398 Broad-billed Motmot
399 Black-cheeked Woodpecker
400 Cinnamon Woodpecker
401 Striped Woodhaunter
402 Plain-brown Woodcreeper
403 Streak-crowned Antvireo
404 Checker-throated Antwren
405 Dull-mantled Antbird
406 Ocellated Antbird- good one!
407 Black-crowned Antpitta- best one! Fantastic looks at a female.
408 Black-headed Tody Flycatcher
409 White-crowned Manakin
410 Southern Rough-winged Swallow
411 Band-backed Wren
412 Bay Wren
413 Nightingale Wren
414 Pale-vented Thrush- lots.
415 Dusky-faced Tanager
416 Tawny-crested Tanager
417 Blue and gold Tanager
418 Slate-colored Grosbeak
419 Black-faced Grosbeak

A weekend of birding and guiding at Palo Verde National Park gave me several good birds for the year:

420 Thicket Tinamou- several heard and a few seen.
421 Least Grebe
422 Neotropic Cormorant
423 Anhinga
424 Black-crowned Night Heron
425 Jabiru- great looks on distant nest.
426 Muscovy
427 Blue-winged Teal
428 Cinnamon Teal- two males, a rare species in Costa Rica
429 Northern Shoveler
430 Snail Kite
431 Northern Harrier
432 Swainson's Hawk
433 Common Moorhen
434 Limpkin
435 Double-striped Thick-Knee
436 Black-necked Stilt
437 Spotted Sandpiper
438 Plain-capped Starthroat
439 Elegant Trogon
440 Belted Kingfisher
441 Northern Beardless-Tyrannulet
442 Brown-crested Flycatcher
443 Scissor-tailed Flycatcher
444 Cliff Swallow
445 Streak-backed Oriole

Guiding around Poas-Cinchona-Nature Pavilion was a bit slow because of sunny weather but still gave me one good species for the year:

446 Costa Rican Pygmy Owl

A few more species from a Big Day on February 22:

447 Green Ibis
448 Merlin
449 Southern Lapwing
450 Black-bellied Plover
451 Willet
452 Ruddy Turnstone
453 Western Sandpiper
454 Short-billed Dowitcher
455 Ruddy Quail Dove
456 Pacific Screech Owl
457 Mottled Owl
458 Fiery-billed Aracari
459 Pale-billed Woodpecker
460 Long-tailed Tyrant
461 Panama Flycatcher
462 Sulphur-bellied Flycatcher
463 Blue-crowned Manakin
464 Warbling Vireo- oddly enough, this was probably our best bird of the day because although it is very common in the north, this species is a rare vagrant in Costa Rica! A new country bird for me!
465 Rufous and white Wren
466 Scaly-breasted Wren
467 Western Tanager
468 Scarlet-thighed Dacnis
469 Painted Bunting

Thanks to our local bird alarm page on Facebook, I just made a quick visit to the Finca Rosa Blanca and got my country Cedar Waxwing. This an irruptive species in Costa Rica and therefore a tough one to get for the country.
470 Cedar Waxwing

New species from guiding at and near Bajos del Toro:

471 Buffy-crowned Wood-Partridge
472 Resplendent Quetzal- close looks at 2 males and a female, always spectacular!
473 Smoky-brown Woodpecker
474 Spangle-cheeked Tanager
475 Highland Tinamou

One more new species from guiding at Quebrada Gonzalez:

476 Streak-chested Antpitta

and two more from the Bougainvillea hotel"

477 Orchard Oriole
478 Canivet's Emerald

Two more birds from the Cinchona-Poas area and just 20 more to go for 500:

479 Magenta-throated Woodstar
480 Elegant Euphonia

Guiding at Lands in Love was good as always with Ocellated, Spotted, and Bicolored Antbirds, Great Curassow, Crested Guan, Gray-headed Kite, and so on but I already have those for the year. One new bird:
481 Yellow-green Vireo

482 was a soaring Hook-billed Kite during a kid's birthday party in the highlands above Heredia. As a father of a five year old, there are many times when a birthday party or other endeavor supersedes birding. Fortunately, when the party is outdoors, a new species for the year can show up!

A few more birds for the year. Two were from a short visit to remnant middle elevation oak forest:
483 Swainson's Thrush-migrating through in numbers now.
484 Red-crowned Ant Tanager

485 Red-throated Ant Tanager- forgot to mention this one. Have it at Lands in Love and Nature Pavilion but overlooked it for the list.

Some new year birds from guiding over the past week at Carara, Braulio Carrillo, and Lands in Love:

486 Pied-billed Grebe- not all that exciting but a year bird nonetheless!
487 Plumbeous Kite- got this one a few weeks ago and forgot to mention it.
488 Black Hawk Eagle
489 American Coot
490 Solitary Sandpiper
491 Buff-fronted Quail Dove
492 Lesser Ground Cuckoo
493 White-tipped Sicklebill- had one singing at Lands in Love but it zipped off before we could see it well!
494 Garden Emerald
495 Orange-bellied Trogon
496 Rufous Motmot
497 Black-crowned Antshrike
498 Thicket Antpitta
499 Sepia-capped Flycatcher- a rare bird in CR but Lands in Love is a good place for it.
500 Rufous-browed Tyrannulet
501 Sulphur-rumped Flycatcher
502 Olive-sided Flycatcher
503 Red-eyed Vireo
504 Blue-winged Warbler- a rare migrant in CR!
505 Prevost's (Cabanis's) Ground Sparrow
506 Blue Grosbeak
507 Indigo Bunting

Just one more bird for the year after guiding yesterday in the Poas area. Up near the park entrance, we had very nice, close looks at a group of around 60 Chestnut-collared Swifts. It's always a treat to see these swifts up close and seems to only happen for me when I am birding in the highlands.

This was species 508.

I just spent half a day birding in the Sarapiqui area and there was some nice activity- quite a few species singing but seems that the small migrants may have already passed through as we saw nary an Eastern Kingbird nor Red-eyed Vireo, birds one normally sees on this date. Picked up a few more for the year:

509 Chimney Swift- Was hoping to get this migrant.
510 Gray-rumped Swift
511 Keel-billed Motmot- What? Yes, very close looks just outside of La Selva! Very rare for the area and I figured that it had to be a very similar juvenile Broad-billed but after checking images, it looks exactly like photos I have taken of definite Keel-billeds.
512 Fasciated Antshrike
513 Great Antshrike
514 White-throated Flycatcher- nice looks at one in roadside vegetation while waiting in roadwork traffic near Cinchona.
515 White-ringed Flycatcher- heard at least three but couldn't manage of photo of this canopy species!
516 Northern Schiffornis- actually from another day near Lands in Love, didn't realize I had not marked it down.
517 Plain-colored Tanager