Costa Rica, December 2007 (1 Viewer)

Part One

This was my first proper birding visit to Central America and with a huge birdlist that varies dramatically from one area to the next, Costa Rica seemed the perfect destination. Making use of the many trip reports (most notably Mark Gurney’s excellent Surfbirds one) and the fantastic exchange rate, an itinerary was planned out following a basic route to take in the Central Highlands, the Pacific coast and the Caribbean lowlands. We had to book our stay at La Selva in advance, and we also pre-booked our first and last night’s stay at the excellent Hotel Bougainvillea (www.hb.co.cr) which cost US$95 for a double and our stay at the Mirador de Quetzales. The hire car was also provisionally booked through Adobecar (www.adobecar.com) but as they weren’t great at replying to emails we did wonder if it would turn up – it did!
Our flight was booked through Wildwings as they came back with a good deal. In retrospect, I would double-check the transit times between the flights, as we were only given 1hr20 and literally made the flight by the skin of our teeth – in fact they’d already sold Sue’s seat to a stand-by but luckily there were others available....
For reference I used the new Helm fieldguide, Birds of Costa Rica by Richard Garrigues and Robert Dean - pretty good overall, some of the plates are not great but I’ve seen worse! It also has potential and recent splits at the end of the book which was informative. I used the Costa Rican Birdsong Sampler by David L. Ross and Voices of Costa Rican Birds by Ross & Whitney which had some very useful calls on them. I also bought a Rough Guide road map as I’d heard they weren’t readily available out there. The Lonely Planet was used for finding places to stay and was quite accurate, although the prices quoted were all about a third more expensive in reality!
We chose not to stay at Rancho Naturalista as at £85 each per night (!) this was totally unacceptable – this is Costa Rica, not London!! Most accommodation was between US$6-12pppn, La Selva was US$492 for us both for 3nights which includes all meals, and Mirador de Quetzales was US$360 for us both for 4nights which also includes all meals.



15th December

After landing late the previous evening and making our way to the lovely Bougainvillea Hotel, and despite being awoken by the monotonous call of an invisible Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl, I still jumped out of bed at 5.00am and stood out on the balcony listening to the new sounds, awaiting some usable light. The first bird visible was, I’m sure, the first that many see – a Clay-coloured Robin hopping below. So, now birds were active I headed off into the gardens and a dawn chorus unlike any I’ve heard!
Dark dots in trees soon became identifiable, and lifers came thick and fast – ubiquitous Rufous-collared Sparrows, raucous Brown Jays, Inca and White-tipped Doves, Yellow and Chestnut-sided Warblers, Great Kiskadees, and the first of the hummers, Rufous-tailed. Commoner birds here included Baltimore Orioles, Tropical Kingbirds, Yellow and Tennessee Warblers, White-winged Doves and Great-tailed Grackles.
Further investigation round the rear of the gardens found the only Golden-Olive Woodpecker of the trip, Greyish Saltators, Montezuma Oropendolas and over-flying flocks of Crimson-fronted Parrots. Finally found the Birding Tower and the rotting fruit composts. Blue-crowned Motmots and Clay-coloured Robins fed from the fruit on the feeders, a fine Chestnut-capped Warbler flitted through the vines growing on the tower, and before long, a fab Prevost’s Ground-Sparrow put in an all-to-brief appearance in a tree, shortly followed by the surprisingly-large White-eared Ground-Sparrow. Excellent, my 2 want-birds before 7.00am! Makes a change! A Lineated Woodpecker in the trees near the hotel was great to watch too.
Went back to the room to awaken Sue and she reluctantly got out of bed and was thankfully impressed by the splendour of the gardens themselves and was even taken with the hummers! Another circuit gave views of Blue & Grey Tanagers, a male Rose-breasted Grosbeak, Plain Wrens, a Philadelphia and a Yellow-throated Vireo and as the day warmed, the vultures began to use the thermals and a loose flock of Blue & White Swallows fed overhead with Vaux’s Swifts. As we wandered back we found an unfortunate male Scintillant Hummer that had had a fatal collision with one of the windows.
Time for some breakfast and soon 10.00am came round and our hire-car turned up as arranged. We had booked a Daihatsu Terios by phone through Adobecar before we left the UK and were given a good deal at US$930. We filled in all the paperwork and as we reiterated the price stated the rep got out his calculator and I’m thinking “…here we go…” but amazingly he came back with a price of US$645 which included an extra day as we wanted to return the car later than the pick-up time!! So, not sure what happened there, but glad we didn’t have to pay up front!!
So after packing up our gear and getting some directions from the very helpful desk staff we headed off. 2hrs and a few irate words later, we’re still in San Jose….this place has a definite lack of road signs (a problem not only in the cities as we were to find out!) In desperation we found a taxi driver and, despite a lack of speaking each others’ languages properly, finally got him to lead the way to the freeway! He was very nice and took us right to it for a paltry fee of $3! So now we’re on the Pan-American heading southwards, and experiencing the highs and lows of Costa Rican driving! The road winds up and down through the mountains, which is fine unless you’re caught behind one of the many fume-spewing lorries…and the road varies from lovely and smooth to rutted and potholed, but not as bad as some reports make out.
About 2hrs later and in another downpour we arrived at the Hotel Mirador de Quetzales and checked into our basic but comfy cabin with wonderful views over the hills, a view that changed minute by minute as the clouds rolled in and out of the valleys and further emphasizing our altitude of 2650m! Be warned the ramp up to the parking area for the cabins is very steep and narrow – so Sue gave everyone a laugh as she didn’t quite have enough oomph to get up in one go..!! This place overlooks Quetzal’s Paradise which has its own trails and guides and a busier hummer feeder. The Mirador is a great family-run place, the people all very friendly with only the manager Carlos really speaking any English, the children play outside and the dogs are great too – especially those 4 puppies, none of which looked like the mother or supposed father…!
After wrapping up warm, a stroll up to the mirador lookout provided further stunning views and a great pair of Black & Yellow Silky-Flycatchers. Around the restaurant Mountain and Sooty Robins, Flame-coloured Tanagers, Black-capped Flycatchers, Sooty-capped Bush-Tanagers, Yellow-winged Vireo and a fine Slaty Flowerpiercer all vied for attention. The hummer tally rose by two with gorgeous Fiery-throated and the impressive Magnificent visiting the feeders lower down. A few birds remained hidden – Resplendent Quetzal called from the valley, Spotted Wood-Quail and Grey-breasted Wood-Wren from way behind the cabins. A lovely meal in the restaurant was shared by us and the few other guests all seated round the roaring (eventually!) log fire and we talked ‘til way too late! As we turned in, a Bare-shanked Screech-Owl and Dusky Nightjar called from far below, but I was far too tired by now….

16th December

An early start after a cosy night’s sleep – the cabins are thankfully fitted with electric heaters – it was time to investigate the new dawn chorus outside. The first lifer came in the shape of a party of active and super-cute Collared Whitestarts (redstart seems such a misnomer), followed by a Black-billed Nightingale-Thrush and Large-footed Finch. Movement in the trees turned out to be a Spot-crowned Woodcreeper and an excellent Buffy Tuftedcheek with a couple of Black-throated Green Warblers up there too and a small flock of Barred Parakeets screeched noisily overhead.
Then I happened to look at our car and found the front tyre to be as flat as possible…hmmm, lots of kids around here and I remember the sort of things I used to do (is this payback??!) oh well, a quick tyre change later and all was fixed.
We met fellow guests, ex-Brits John and Barbara in the restaurant, and headed out with Carlos for our quetzal walk, which is included with your stay. He led us down to the exit of the Robledal trail and we turned off left into some more open ground and there, glistening emerald and scarlet in the sunshine was a fantastic male Resplendent Quetzal!! Over the next hour we watched at least 2 males feeding and flying from tree to tree, oblivious to our presence, their unbelievable tails animated by the breeze.
Other diversions included manic Volcano Hummers zipping around us, a Black Guan flapping into one of the fruiting trees and as we returned to the hotel a pair of Golden-browed Chlorophonias by the path. Not a bad morning!
After a yummy traditional breakfast of gallo pinto, Sue and I walked the entire Robledal trail. It’s quite up & down and muddy in places but passes through some great forest. The weather was very changeable too which all added to the fun! Best birds were Yellow-thighed Finches, Flame-throated Warblers, Ruddy Treerunners, a Barred Becard and Yellow-bellied Siskins over the viewpoint. Sue did well and found another showy pair of Quetzals. Wilson’s Warblers were the most obvious birds, along with numbers of Black & Yellow Silky-Flys and Black-capped Flys. At the end of the trail an Ochraceous Wren, Hairy Woodpecker and Black-cheeked Warblers gave themselves up, but not so the ever-calling Zeledonias (nicer name than Wrenthrush don’t ya think?) Singing Green Violetears were very much in evidence in this area also.
Back to the cabin as the rain started to fall heavily, another lovely late lunch and dinner (all 3 meals are included and you can pretty much juggle the times about within reason), followed by some veranda birding which yielded a nice male Peg-billed Finch in the bushes in front of the cabin and Southern Rough-winged Swallows and White-collared Swifts overhead. A quick walk below provided a nice flock of gorgeous Spangle-cheeked Tanagers.

More to follow....











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Part Two

17th December

The constant rain tapping monotonously on the roof was not a welcome start to the day, as today was the day we planned to visit Cerro de la Muerte. A nice breakfast with tanagers and thrushes out on the feeders, a later-than-planned departure saw us on the fog-bound highway heading ever upwards. A couple of U-turns later and we found a promising looking turn-off back at km89.5. The road became seriously muddy as it inclined and another vehicle came sliding backwards round the corner!
As the clouds briefly lifted in the high winds the radio masts were visible so at least this was the right road! Luckily we had 4wd so off we set and had no problems at all. We parked up near the first buildings and were soon watching tame Volcano Juncos hopping around us, plentiful Volcano Hummers everywhere, a pair of Peg-billed Finches but a frustratingly elusive Timberline Wren never did show itself…grrrr
Back at the mirador, we agreed with Carlos to take us out into the Dota Valley tomorrow and to take me out for a walk to find Zeledonias. He’s a really nice guy and knows his local birds well. As we walked the trail, hearing a non-responsive Z, a super loud call next to the path revealed the presence of a Silvery-fronted Tapaculo which showed briefly before diving back into the undergrowth. A Black Guan leapt up from the path in front of us and a pair of Grey-breasted Wood-Wrens finally showed well. Nice little mixed flocks included gorgeous Flame-throated Warblers and Ruddy Treerunners. A nice couple of hours.
As evening fell, Sue and I grabbed the spotlight and headed out to track down the Dusky Nightjars. Sure enough we found one flying around below and then were treated to excellent views of at least 4 birds as I whistled them in, one coming so close its wings brushed my face as it hovered by me!

18th December

Another early start saw us meet up with Carlos and driving in our car to the Dota Valley which isn’t far up the highway. The road down toward San Gerardo is quite rough in places (especially when wet!), very twisty and climbs and falls rapidly. The weather was much nicer down here too and as we drove past a house with a huge flowering shrub in its front garden we pulled over as Carlos had heard one of the target birds for today, Long-tailed Silky-Flycatcher, and sure enough a fine specimen hopped around in a tree before flying out with another and alighting further away atop a pine tree giving good ‘scope views.
The aforementioned shrub contained busily-feeding Grey-tailed Mountain-gems, Green Violetears, Rufous-tailed and Volcano Hummers and a Mountain Elaenia. Heading downwards we encountered another couple with their guide whom Carlos knew looking at something near the river. We joined them and were soon enjoying great views of a gorgeous male Collared Trogon. The area also produced great views of another Golden-browed Chlorophonia, Tufted, Yellowish and Yellow-bellied Flycatchers, Hairy and Acorn Woodpeckers and various warblers including Black & White, Wilson’s, Tennessee and a Flame-throated.
Soon after we arrived at Savegre Mountain Lodge, parked up in the carpark and checked out the feeders where numerous Magnificent Hummers, with Green Violetears, more Grey-tailed and 2 male Purple-throated Mountain-gems, and quite a few Scintillant Hummers all vied for attention and posed for photos.
A walk down the main trail didn’t produce that much as time was getting on now, but we still turned up a gorgeous Black-thighed Grosbeak, Silver-throated Tanagers, a Louisiana Waterthrush, 2 Black-faced Solitaires, Common Bush-Tanagers and lots more Wilson’s Warblers! In the skies, a flock of noisy Sulphur-winged Parakeets flew down the valley whilst vultures and Chestnut-collared Swifts flew over it.
The walk itself was very nice and led to a couple of fab waterfalls. The journey back seemed a lot shorter than the one coming, even with a couple of near misses with the locals on the narrow road with that precipitous drop either side…!
After a welcome lunch back at the cabins, and seeing as the rain that likes to cling to these high mountains had relented, I set off in search of the Z, with Sue electing to laze about in the sun! I followed the same route that Carlos had taken me previously and heard Z’s calling in roughly the same places, and at one time so very, very close to the path. A nice Ochraceous Pewee was a bonus and more views were had of 4 Quetzals and 2 Black Guans. A Silvery-throated Tapaculo called loudly about 1m off the path but remained invisible...
I reached the end (well, officially the start) of the Robledal trail and as I pondered the inevitable dip, a Zeledonia gave its whistle from just down the main path where, helpfully, the tree roots and undergrowth are at head height. I whistled back at it as I cautiously backtracked...it answered…so did I…now it was really close and must be right on the edge of the path….it called again...I raised my bins to my eyes to scan the tangle of tree roots and vines and there it was!! Fantastic – looking like a cross between a giant goldcrest and a pitta! Out with the video and got about 10s of ok footage, with it calling too before it hopped in deeper – talk about leave it to the last minute!!
So, elated and not even caring it was raining again, I returned victorious to the cabin. As darkness fell, Sue and I took the spotlight and camera out and got some great shots of the Dusky Nightjars and as we ate dinner, Carlos came in with a male in his hand that he’d just caught! Amazing views and as always, seemingly so small when in the hand.

19th December

Our final morning, so I nipped out before breakfast down the main path and had views of a pair of Quetzals, heard Zeledonia and Tapaculos. We settled up our outstanding bill for the guiding and beers which came to US$50 for the both of us. We bade goodbye and set off back along the Pan-American toward San Jose, stopping for fuel and to get the tyre sorted. The guys at the garage filled it with air and couldn’t find a leak so came to the same conclusion that someone had let it down. One piece of advice we were given was if confronted with another flat tyre on the road, not to stop and to continue on it until reaching a garage as car crime can be quite rife in Costa Rica (although thankfully we had no experience of it). Just use common sense and don’t leave anything of value in the car at any time – wouldn’t do it at home would you??
Reaching San Jose was again another nightmare direction-wise as there’d be a sign for the place you’re heading to, and then nothing at all!! Odd that the Pan-American Highway – which runs from Alaska to the tip of bloody Argentina – wasn’t built around the city but stops and starts either side of it!! After faffing around for ages, we finally got on the right road by looking for the airport and eventually began to head west on Hwy3 towards the Pacific with weather becoming progressively more sunny and warm as we continued.
We had a quick stop in a picturesque roadside café for lunch and soon afterwards found ourselves turning off towards Orotina. Now the roadsigns came into their own again, with one sign announcing we were in Orotina. Excellent, find the town square with the bandstand opposite the church. No problem. Now find the owls…..hmmmm, lots of Montezuma’s Oropendolas in their truncated hanging nests but no-one seems to know anything about any owls which seemed a little odd. So, a bit pissed off, decided to head for the coast once again. A little further down the road was another sign saying Orotina 4kms..! We’d been in San Mateo so bugger, no wonder there weren’t any owls!!
So we turned off into towards the town and found our way to the very small and crowded town square which also has a bandstand and is opposite a church…! As soon as I was spied with binoculars I was directed to a low branch in the tree basically above my head and there was the famous pair of Black & White Owls, all dapper with bright yellow legs and bills. Fantastic! We only went one at a time to view as it was too busy to leave the car unattended with all our stuff in it.
So, with even Sue suitably impressed, we left and reached our goal of Tarcoles about an hour later. Crossed the famous bridge thronged with croc-watching tourists and after missing the turn finally found the town. We checked out a few options here and along the main road, but plumped for staying at the uninspiring Hotel Carara, which had the added bonus of the constant presence of Scarlet Macaws flying over and feeding in the beachline trees.
The room was ok with a fan, and we got a deal for staying 2 nights. We dumped our stuff and walked out to the beach which was rocky and covered in black sand, so not very picturesque! Offshore glided literally hundreds of Magnificent Frigatebirds and Brown Pelicans, the former often drifting low along the coast and over the hotel. Royal Terns patrolled the seashore with a few Laughing Gulls moving up and down too. 2 nice Yellow-naped Parrots flew into a tree and soon a raucous party of 6 macaws arrived and noisily fed in the treetops too. Excellent birds, the intimacy between the pairs very touching…amazing to watch them as they should be seen, a real priviledge.
We drove down towards the river mouth, and more by accident we found the right road and ended up by Tarcoles Lodge, which looked totally abandoned!! A short boardwalk used by the local fisherman juts out over the riverbank, so after asking them if it was ok to go out, I set my ‘scope up at the end. A good selection of birds were on view, including Yellow-headed Caracaras, Bare-throated Tiger- and Yellow-crowned Night-Herons, Green, Tricoloured, Little and Great Blue Herons, Snowy and Cattle Egrets, Neotropic Cormorants, Anhingas, Hudsonian Whimbrels, Least and Spotted Sands, Black-necked Stilts and Belted and Green Kingfishers. On the riverbanks a noisy Northern Waterthrush was nice, Pale-vented Pigeons flew into the mangroves, Mangrove Swallows fed over the water and a singing Boat-billed Flycatcher was near the Tarcoles Lodge feeder.
As we drove back we stopped at various places along the road getting Orange-chinned and Orange-fronted Parakeets, a fly-over Roseate Spoonbill, Rufous-naped Wrens, Summer Tanager, Blue Grosbeaks, Streaked Flycatcher and Ruddy Ground-Doves exploding up off the road at every turn.
We ate that night a couple of buildings down from the hotel. Lovely food at a reasonable price and a lovely owner, who couldn’t do enough for you and, when we ordered beer, would be seen getting onto his bike and cycling into the village for some!! A couple of toads hopped through giving the cats a fright! The hotel has no liquor licence due to its proximity to the church….! As we walked back, a Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl started calling way off.

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Part 3 on its way

Hi,
Nice start to the report. I've enjoyed it so far. Keep it coming! We go out to Coast Rica in July - 12 weeks. Can't wait!

Cheers
Martyn

Thanks Martyn, glad you're enjoying it. Wow, CR in July, be really interesting to see what birds you get then. Well, here's Part Three.....

20th December


Ah, what a night’s sleep – a party was going on next door from midnight until daybreak...and as for the yappy dog – arghhhh! Still, off to Parque Nacional Carara this morning so who cares!?! Not even a ten-minute drive from the hotel, we arrived at 0630 and headed off into the forest along the Quebrada trail. This trail is excellent as it starts parallel with the road and all the noise that goes with it and then, like magic, you turn away from it and the only noises now are the river and multitude of birdsong.
It was still pretty gloomy in the undergrowth but the Chestnut-backed Antbirds were very approachable and Orange-billed Sparrows hopped just off the path. A Bronzy Hermit fed from flowers before zipping off. Crested Guans were heard way off but never seen. An Agouti ran across the path ahead of us and vivid blue Morpho butterflies flashed intermittently as they flapped through the trees. As we neared the river the vegetation broke and we could stand on the rocky riverbed for a good view of the forest edges. A lot of feeding activity was in evidence and birds seen included Short-billed Pigeons, a gorgeous male Baird’s Trogon that fed from a bare tree, Riverside and Rufous-breasted Wrens, Costa Rican Swifts overhead, a Northern Waterthrush feeding the rocks in the river, Squirrel Cuckoo, a couple of Blue-throated Goldentails fed near the treetops briefly alighting on exposed sunlit twigs and best of all an excellent pair of Fiery-billed Aracaris flew in and fed in a palm above me.
The forest became more humid as the temperature increased and the bird activity decreased slightly. A few good birdwaves came through, with Lesser Greenlets, White-shouldered Tanagers, Yellow-crowned Euphonias, Slaty-headed Tody-Flys, Dusky Antbird, the dimorphic Dot-winged Antwrens, Long-billed Gnatwrens and various wood-warblers all noted. Other goodies seen from the meandering trail included Violaceous Trogon, Thrushlike Schiffornis, several pairs of Black-hooded Antshrikes with one pair food-passing a lizard, 2 Plain Xenops, a Streak-headed Woodcreeper, Buff-throated Saltator, a single great male Orange-collared Manakin and a Southern Beardless Tyrannulet. Buff-rumped Warbler was noted along the rivers too as was a brief King Vulture as it soared overhead. A Grey-breasted Chachalaca flew noisily off of the path as we turned a corner.
The whole trail is about 4.5km long, and ends at another building 800m down the main road from the visitor centre. You can always walk back on yourself as the trail loops around a couple of times after the bridges. Howler Monkeys could be heard deep in the forests. As we entered the carpark a superb Chestnut-mandibled Toucan flew across it – such a freaky-looking bird it took a couple of seconds to register! Some lovely butterflies visited the flowering shrubs here, leaf-cutter ants had a trail that stretched from the forest to the traffic island and a couple of big green iguanas sunned themselves on the concrete.
We watched the skies here for a couple of hours as lots of vultures were rising and had great views of 6ad1imm King Vultures in total, a loud flock of 12 Scarlet Macaws winging around together, Grey, Short-tailed and Zone-tailed Hawks and, best of all, a Bicoloured Hawk soared low over the trees before disappearing. We each paid our US$8 entrance fee as we left and headed just up the road to the Tarcoles Bridge. We did the obligatory and looked down at the impressive American Crocodiles and had an adult Yellow-headed Caracara here. We ate just the other side of the bridge but didn’t attempt the Laguna Meandrica trail by the river as it was apparently just thick mud and impassable.
Back at the hotel Sue elected to stay behind (too many mozzies!) as I went up to the river again. Much the same as yesterday, but on the way back I stopped next to a pond in a flooded field and had a good sprinkling of new species including Ringed Kingfisher, Northern Jacanas, Groove-billed Anis, 2 lovely White-throated Magpie-Jays, Hoffmann’s Woodpeckers, Cocoa Woodcreeper, Mangrove Black-Hawk, a Cinnamon Becard and a male of the resident race of Rose-throated Becard, Red-lored, Brown-hooded and White-fronted Parrots and a couple of Melodious Blackbirds. Not a bad end to the day at all!!
We ate at the same place as last night and met a couple of Aussie birdos and swapped info.

21st December

Another yappy dog night! Still, up early and wandered up the road to look for Grey-necked Wood-rails the Aussies told me about last night. Met one of them up by the junction with road that has the little mangrove boardwalk in it. Sure enough, by the house with the big pond in its garden there were 2 great rails, dwarfing the White Ibis they were feeding near!
Walking back to the junction an agitated Rufous-tailed Hummer was busy mobbing another hummer of similar size which helpfully perched up and allowed ‘scope views – a brilliant female Mangrove Hummer!! Didn’t expect to see that here!! Drove down to the boardwalk and through the mangroves which held a few Yellow Warblers, a single male Mangrove Warbler – couldn’t tell the females apart – and a lively little Common Tody-Flycatcher. A singing male Grey-crowned Yellowthroat was a bonus in the grasses the other side of the mangroves. On the beach 2 Grey Plovers and 4 Sanderling boosted the wader totals, but never did find large numbers of waders here.
Bidding g’day to the Aussies, I headed back to Carara for one last morning’s birding. Upon arrival I was greeted by the gruesome sight of a freshly dead Ocelot in the back of the ranger’s flatbed, killed on the road last night. What a sad end to a beautiful creature....
Back onto the trail and the morning produced much the same as yesterday but some new ones were added including a charming Golden-crowned Spadebill, Wedge-billed Woodcreeper, Grey-headed Dove, Dusky-capped, Great-crested and Sulphur-rumped Flycatchers, Tropical Parula, 2 female Cherrie’s Tanagers and a skulking Blue-black Grosbeak. Best of all were the other two hummers today – a Stripe-throated Hermit just over the first bridge and an excellent female White-crested Coquette buzzing high in the tree tops! Halfway round the trail a Streak-breasted Antpitta called but was not tempted out. As I neared the end of the trail a troop of Mantled Howler Monkeys began calling not far away. As no-one was around, I answered the male and sure enough piqued his interest as, with much noise and leaf-falling, the troop appeared in the trees next to the path – wow!! Upon arrival at the carpark there wasn’t much in the way of raptors today, so paid the fee and headed back to Tarcoles.
We decided to drive down to Jaco and stay there for the night so we could change some more money and use internet, etc.
We stayed in the Cabinas Antonio, a pleasant budget option which had a nice little pool to while the afternoon away. Never far from my bins, a couple of Red-billed Pigeons flew over, the trees opposite were full of Baltimore Orioles and a single Northern Rough-winged Swallow flew over later as the weather closed in. We ate in a nice bar-type restaurant in town and wow, did it rain hard this evening!! Talk about a deluge....something we were to become quite acquainted with over the next week....

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Great stuff, Ads, takes me back.
Next time I go I shall be heading for Mirador Quetzales - several ticks for me there.
Carrara sounds as good as I had it, but I had no mozzies - maybe the $10 entrance fee that it has gone up to includes a biter-free visit!
H

Sorry for the delay - been on a hectic long weekend birding in Scotland with some mates...12hrs sleep in 4 days, need I say more?? So, part 4...

22nd December

We left early this morning and headed north on Hwy34 until we turned on to the 23 and continued up towards Canas. A breakfast stop on the river near Rancho Grande was a welcome break and soon after passing through Canas we turned left at Bagaces and followed the dirt roads for another 25kms toward Parque Nacional Palo Verde. Now this is a place I wish I’d stayed for longer at – next time!
We each paid the US$6 entry fee, consulted the map in the office (no leaflets given out!) and made our way to the HQ along the bumpy but dry roads. We disturbed a Roadside Hawk off the road with its unrecognizable prey which then perched nicely in a tree. The wetlands weren’t particularly wet but still had plenty of Black-bellied Whistling-Ducks, a pair of Limpkins, lots of herons and egrets but most seemed to be dropping into the distance. Several Snail Kites quartered the marsh and a single Great Black-Hawk perched up nicely. American Purple Gallinules also perched up on some ridiculously thin reed stems which made for some comic slips. A White-nosed Coati dashed across the road and a large terrapin took a more leisurely stroll.
Almost as soon as we’d arrived it was time to leave and as we passed by a flooded field we were rewarded with a huge Jabiru feeding out with the egrets. As we drove further out a few Scissor-tailed Flys were seen perched up on the roadside wires, and the only Red-tailed Hawk and American Kestrel of the trip were here also, with a Swainson’s Hawk circling nearby.
We drove back down to Canas and then across to Tilaran and round Lake Arenal, which was fast becoming cloud-bound. Coming towards the dam at the eastern end the car was besieged by a group of coatis that were looking for a hand-out and soon lots of other vehicles were in the same predicament! The Arenal volcano remained shrouded in low cloud that was soon raining bucketloads....rubbish!
We tried on a whim to stay at the Arenal Observatory Hotel but it was fully booked, so on their advice we drove a little way back and checked into the Linda Vista Hotel which was pretty posh I can tell ya, especially the honeymoon suite we were given – a gorgeous detached bungalow which, allegedly, had great views across to the volcano..!! I’ll have to take their word for that! Still, it did have a massive bath... The rain was still falling, but quite a lot of new species were feeding near the check-in: a flock of Chestnut-headed Oropendolas, Palm Tanagers, a smart Black-cowled Oriole, Variable Seedeaters and a male Passerini’s Tanager, with Buff-throated Saltators, Melodious Blackbirds, Brown-headed Cowbirds and singing House Wrens and the seemingly ever-present Rufous-collared Sparrows present too. Ate in the expensive restaurant but chose from the bar menu (cheaper and more choice!) and basically chilled out for the night, ahhh...luxury!

23rd December

We were awoken in the early hours by an ominous rumbling from the (obviously very!) nearby volcano...still couldn’t see anything though. The rain didn’t let up all night and was only just starting to break as we left. Before that I had a quick scout around in between showers and had a great Keel-billed Toucan in the wooded valley below our bungalow. A Bananaquit fed in the flowering bushes outside with the angry Rufous-tailed Hummers. A Western Wood-Pewee fed from the carpark, with a female White-collared Seedeater on the grassy slope outside our window.
At breakfast, a Great Kiskadee decided to join us and a concerted effort we finally freed it. The views from here were great (better without the cloud I’m sure) but we were actually looking down on the vultures at times as they swooped past. As we left, I clocked a Yellow-margined Fly and a male White-vented Euphonia in a bush so a nice start. On the way down a Black Phoebe was sat on a rock by the river and soon after I found a perched Laughing Falcon out in a tall tree in a field which gave great ‘scope views.
We continued eastwards towards La Selva and by more luck than judgement found Hwy4 and continued up through La Virgen where we stopped for some supplies to see us over Xmas. I stayed in the car when a small bird popped up on the fence in front – a Thick-billed Seed-Finch! We then got lost again as the map showed La Selva’s entrance road on the wrong side of the reserve...so with good old “donde? esta” we managed to figure out we hadn’t gone far enough around. Once that was sorted we quickly found ourselves on the entrance road to what I hoped would be the best birding of the holiday – La Selva Biological Station! By staying here we had access to the forest whenever and, more importantly, without the need to hire a guide. A free guided walk is offered in the package for all that stay also.
We checked in and were given directions to the chalets we had chosen. I began birding around the buildings and soon had Olive-backed Euphonias, gorgeous Golden-hooded Tanagers and Black-faced Grosbeaks. The cabins are situated about a 1km from the restaurant along the ‘bicycle trail’, or a 2.5km drive by the perimeter road. There are two blocks of six rooms that look into the forest. Each has private facilities, fans, twin beds and private balconies. The parking and area in general is secure as there’s a 24hr guard by the gate.
As we pulled in the birds came thick and fast again – another perched Laughing Falcon, a superb male Snowy Cotinga, Collared Aracaris, Black-cheeked Woodpeckers and a fly-by pair of Red-headed Barbets. Lots of seedeaters and a few Blue-black Grassquits frequented the fields to the rear.
We decided to make the most of the dry weather, so we wandered down the cycle trail which produced good birds too – a fab Rufous Motmot, Masked Tityras and a single female Black-crowned, 2 Wood Thrushes, White-ringed and Social Flys and a Yellow-bellied Elaenia. We crossed the famous bridge and wandered round the research buildings until Sue suddenly said “What’s that??” and a huge Crested Guan sauntered out from behind a bush.
We birded the general area finding Spotted Woodcreeper, Bronze-tailed Plumeleteers, a Rufous Mourner, smart pairs of Blue Dacnis, a stunning male White-collared Manakin, a Long-tailed Tyrant, Mealy Parrots, quite a few of both toucans, and best of all, a stunning Purple-crowned Fairy feeding near the bridge. As it quietened down, Agoutis and the Collared Peccary families came out, the cute little piglets running to keep up with their parents.
Standing back on the bridge, watching the loafing green iguanas in the treetops, we chatted to another couple and enjoyed the settings. A superb Bat Falcon zipped down the river and flocks of Grey-rumped Swifts soared overhead and a Great Tinamou began calling deep from within the forest. We retired to the restaurant for the evening meal which is a buffet-style affair. The staff do well with limited resources and the food was good. Outside Common Pauraques began calling and were soon seen flying around and perched up on the signposts, where they’d bob up and down as they continued calling. So, torches in hand, we headed back to the chalets in the rain for a good night’s sleep.

24th December

The rain pattered down all night which never puts me in a good mood.....so I awoke early to a calling Little Tinamou out in the forest and positioned myself out on the balcony. As the birds became more active and noisy – especially those mad-looking Montezuma Oropendolas – a loud raucous crawing had me dashing out of the chalet to view the stunning pair of Great Green Macaws that were flying over!! Wow!! Definitely one of the want-birds for the trip! Back down below the balcony a surprise bird in the shape of a male Hooded Warbler was most appreciated.
Walked the trail to breakfast seeing the same birds as yesterday (had gallo pinto for a change!) and decided not to take the guided walk as it was looking a bit dudey, so headed over the bridge ourselves. Sheltering from the rain, Sue wondered what that “big dodo-bird in the tree was?” I look up and there was a stunning male Great Curassow! What a bird! A party of Band-backed Wrens moved through the trees, a Lineated Wood banged away on a dead tree (couldn’t make it a Pale-billed), the Purple-crowned Fairy appeared again, a couple of female White-collared Manakins, White-winged Becards and a Rufous Piha all were active. The rain relented so we set off down one of the trails, which didn’t produce that much...the raindrops kept the leaves moving continuously, and the showers put pay to finding any ground skulkers....
Still, we saw Slaty-tailed and Black-throated Trogons, a passive female Western Slaty-Antshrike, a White-throated Thrush, a perched Semiplumbeous Hawk that Sue found (one of those “Ooh what’s that?” ” Where?” ”On that tree” “Which one?” “The one in front – ooh you really gonna wanna look at this..” moments...), surprised a Purple-backed Quail-Dove off the path, Long-billed Hermits flaring their tails as they swooped across the trail (displaying?), Bright-rumped Attila and 2 Plain-brown Woodcreepers. The trails also produced 2 Central American Spider Monkeys and lots of calling howlers. It opened out onto the Sendero Tres Rios and as we wandered back through the researcher lodgings, the ever-present noise from the forest floor was traced to stunning ‘blue-jeans’ Strawberry Poison Arrow Frogs – so much smaller than I was expecting. This at least gave Sue something interesting to look at (she does love them bugs’n’things – freak)!
We headed back for lunch and spent time watching the birds around the restaurant, especially the Passerini’s Tanagers and the Bananaquits, and bought an umbrella as it seemed to be a better way of birding in the wet forest than just waterproofs.
We trudged back to the room and I birded from the shelter of the balcony, seeing two nice White-necked Jacobins and a pair of Broad-winged Hawks out back. We wandered back later for dinner and picked up Broad-billed Motmot, a female Smoky-brown Woodpecker and a group of lovely Scarlet-rumped Caciques and a group of Grey-brown Chachalacas. One bird threw me – an imm Orange-billed Sparrow that doesn’t actually have one – and is only mentioned in the text of the fieldguide. That’ll teach me to read more! Tried talking to some of the residents but they’re extremely hard work....perhaps this wasn’t gonna be the best place to spend Xmas...guess I’ll find out tomorrow!

Xmas Day

Well, it’s still raining! It’s not funny now! Birding from the balcony yielded a nice Chestnut-coloured Woodpecker, the regular morning fly-over by the Great Green Macaws and another calling Little Tinamou. We wandered to breakfast and flushed a Great Tinamou off the path. At the restaurant a surprising number of visitors were turning up – mostly Americans on guided tours who, to say the least, weren’t particularly communicative...found this to be the very opposite of what I consider birding to be about. If someone asks me if I’ve seen anything, I’m always more than happy to tell and if there’s a good bird, give directions to it. Not so these guys whose replies went along the lines of “Yeah, a few things about” “Like?” “Oh, some good bits”.....well, f**k you then, no wonder they’re here over the holidays.
So miserable Yanks and miserable weather aside, we set off across the bridge, where a Tropical Gnatcatcher and a Grey-capped Flycatcher fed in the tall trees and a lovely close male Slaty-tailed Trogon showed well, along with both Chestnut-mandibled and Keel-billed Toucans, Masked Tityras and various warblers and tanagers. We continued down the Sendero Tres Rios under the cover of our brollies which definitely made the birding easier as it kept your face dry and thus didn’t steam your optics up on the rare occasions a bird moved.
We kept going for at least 4km with the rain varying from light drizzle to heavy downpours which of course had an adverse affect on the birds present – not even rainforest birds like this much rain! Best were a Slaty Antwren, White-crowned Parrot, Northern Nightingale-Wren and an annoyingly furtive Black-faced Ant-thrush calling off the path. Another pair of macaws was a treat to watch perched up in the trees and a good close view of another Great Tinamou was appreciated.
As we returned along the trail we had to remove shoes as it was flooded about a foot. The rain was still falling. As we crossed the main bridge the river had risen at least 4m and wasn’t that far below it!! We had lunch and headed back to the cabins along the cycle track where a super-close Slaty-tailed Trogon performed as if he knew my camera was packed! It was ok until we reached the footbridge which was under 3ft of water....! Couldn’t believe how quickly it had risen! Back at the room the rain continued to fall as we listened to carols on the mp3 and still managed to see a female Fasciated Antshrike out the back.
This evening we drove round to the restaurant as didn’t fancy the swim along the path! As it was, we had to drive through a deep flood on the entrance road. We’d brought some beers with us as it was Xmas night....and wish we hadn’t bothered! The researchers here are I’m sure a different species and I’m sure they spend the holidays here so as their families aren’t burdened with them! In retrospect we should’ve stayed at a hostel in Arenal for Xmas...live and learn, live and learn! On the drive out a huge spider ran across the bonnet of the car – yuk! – and back at the cabin a Southern Opposum was spotlit in the trees.

Boxing Day

Our final morning and guess what, the rain is due to stop today! Grrrr...
I took a drive round to the main entrance again to find the water had all but disappeared. A couple of Black-striped Sparrows fed on the verge and a pair of Great Green Macaws showed very well playing together in the trees, swinging by their bills and hanging upside down. I wandered over the bridge where a lovely male Summer Tanager fed from the railings allowing close approach. The river has dropped remarkably overnight, the iguanas looking a little more relaxed in their treetop perches than yesterday!
2 pairs of White-collared Manakins flew around by the bridge and male Violaceous and Slaty-tailed Trogons sat motionless on exposed branches higher up, with a couple of noisy Stripe-breasted Wrens in the vegetation below. A Violet-crowned Woodnymph fed around the buildings as I set off down the Sendero Tres Rios once again. I wandered about 3km down it this time with nice birds including an Eye-ringed Flatbill, Ochre-bellied Flycatcher, another Bright-rumped Attila, Bay Wren and 2 showy Northern Barred- Woodcreepers.
I drove back round to the cabins to pack up our stuff and as I opened the rear door, last night’s spider was sitting there – double yuk! After shooing it away with a (very) long stick we loaded up and Sue drove back to reception to check-out whilst I walked the trail one last time and was pleased to find the water levels back to their original heights. Another perched male Violaceous Trogon was good, with a female Red-throated Ant-Tanager and 4 Black-headed Saltators were the final new additions at La Selva.
Soon we were heading off, basically back-tracking out journey here. We arrived at Lake Arenal about 3hrs later and this time had great views of the steaming volcano from the dam. Worth the drive back for that alone!
As we watched from the road, a movement below next to the slip road resulted in fantastic views of a Collared Anteater feeding obliviously on the verge. Each time a large lorry or bus drove by it would suddenly stand up with its forepaws stretched out to the side as if saying “Whoa, what the hell was that?!” and would turn around in total bewilderment – very entertaining!
A close pair of Grey Hawks circled over and confiding Great Kiskadees called noisily from the telegraph poles. We drove back round the lake getting some great visuals this time and ended up back in Tilaran and checked into the charming Hotel Mary, right on the town square. There’s a lively restaurant serving good food below and secure parking at the rear. The room was quaint but spacious and good value at US$20. The Lonely Planet comes through again!

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Final part soon!
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Excellent report so far Ads, really useful :t:

Joe

Very nice report and enjoyed the pictures accompanying it a lot. You may want to consider reporting that female white crested coquette at Carara to Richard Garrigues' rare bird report site, as I believe it would be a quite rare sighting there, and in fact is listed on Gateways bird list as in need of confirmation. Bicolored hawk is quite nice too.

Thanks for the compliment Joe
Mountain quail, thanks, i'll check out Richard's website.
Gonna split the last bit into a couple of parts so I can out a few more pics with it...

27th December

Up early and bizarrely the restaurant downstairs wasn’t open for breakfast – and neither was anywhere else! So, after having to wait for some guys to move their van that had boxed us in round back we decided to set off for Monteverde. After going in circles a couple of times, we finally got directions and then got lost again in another village where the road turned into a rough track...hmmmm...I know people say the road up is bad but not this bad. So after another tight 33 point turn we head back into the village and a kindly man on a bike sees us and asks “Monteverde?” How did he know?! Back up the road and take a right, which is bizarrely signed from this way...!
The road was a bit winding and climbed sharply at times but was fine, and soon we reached the pleasant mountain town of Santa Elena. Very busy and obviously touristy, nevertheless it had a nice feel to it. We checked into the Pension Colibri which was good value at US$11 each and we had a lovely room with private facilities. The lady owner agreed that we could leave our bags with her when we visited the reserve early the following morning as we’d be back after check-out time.
We had a quick lunch in one of the any eateries on the main street, and then headed off the 12km or so toward the reserve. As it was now early afternoon we opted to just visit the Hummingbird Gallery today and were not disappointed! What a great place – standing by the feeders and having hummers zipping round your head was magical...impressive, bossy Violet Sabrewings ruled the roost, with the Green-crowned Briliants a close second. A female Green Hermit paid a couple of dashing visits, scattering the smaller species. The gorgeous Purple-throated Mountain-gems and Green Violet-ears were the most numerous, with the understated Stripe-tailed Hummers with their gaudy bronze wing-patch and the beautifully coloured Magenta-throated Woodstars continuously buzzing round like oversized bumblebees. Also the endemic Coppery-headed Emeralds were a delight to watch, especially when the sun (yes, there was sun today!) lit their heads.
One of the brilliants had a gammy right eye and had taken up defending one of the feeders and if you approached from his blindside you could put your finger next to him and he would sit on it! A couple of Bananaquits made the most of the free food and a coati wandered around the bottom. Movement in the garden proved to be a White-breasted Wood-Wren skulking in the low bushes. What a fantastic hour!
On the drive back, we stopped at the shops opposite Meg’s Stables and saw a nice group of Yellow-throated Euphonias eating fruit on a feeder and the first Brown Jays for a long time. We visited the Insect place on the outskirts of town which was quite interesting and has some truly freaky-looking bugs. You can even hold some of the less-bitey ones if you like that kind of thing....!
Back at the hostal, a confiding Blue-crowned Motmot perched outside our door, a Steely-vented Hummer fed in the flowering trees and a Yellow-throated Warbler, Philadelphia Vireo and Baltimore Orioles were seen too. A few Grey-breasted Martins perched on TV aerials around the town as evening fell. We went for a drink in the Treetop Café – a cool open bar built round a huge tree – but found the service so bad we gave up waiting! Ended up eating in the Morpho restaurant which was decorated with a huge mural inside.

28th December

We got up early and made our way to the world-famous Monteverde Cloud Forest Preserve. Unfortunately the weather was not as good as yesterday, with typical low-cloud and precipitation. We parked up and birded the car park area waiting for the entrance time of 8.00am. A noisy party of Chestnut-capped Brush-Finches mover below and a male Orange-breasted Trogon showed well in the trees behind the ticket office with a Ruddy-capped Nightingale-Thrush hopping along the perimeter wall before dropping out of sight. After finally getting passes (where’d all those people come from?!) we headed down the Sendero Camino as the wind was quite gusty so figured there’d be more birds on the lower trails.
The forest was very picturesque, the trees dripping with mosses and ferns and the low misty clouds added to the atmosphere. Birds included neat Scale-crested Pygmy-Tyrants, Lineated Foliage-gleaners, Olivaceous Woodcreepers, Three-striped Warblers, lovely Slate-throated Whitestarts and a Red-faced Spinetail. In the distance, a Black-breasted Wood-Quail was heard. A group of Yellow-thighed Finches was good to see again as were Spangle-cheeked Tanagers. We went to the La Ventana viewpoint which was quite surreal as looking down all that was visible was a thick white mist below. We headed back along the Sendero Bosque-Nuboso and met some guided tourists that were being shown a fab Two-toed Sloth above the trail. Excellent! Further round a whole cluster of people were enjoying looks at a pair of Resplendent Quetzals which were a welcome sight again. As the rain was becoming more persistent we had a quick look at the brilliant Hummer Gallery and after talking to another couple we headed off to a site they’d been told about by their guide.
We arrived at Santuario Ecologico but we just had no time to go in and do it justice, so very painfully I had to relent and give it a miss. The place is a good site for Long-tailed Manakin (it’s their logo) amongst others, so if anyone heads up there it must be worth a visit. Had a Laughing Falcon fly out from the carpark here. It’s about 4kms down a steadily worsening side road opposite the Hotel Heliconia. We went back into town, refuelled (where a close Steely-vented Hummer was feeding) and headed off down the mountains and back towards San Jose. It would’ve nice to have stayed up here for a few days as there are lots of things to do and see...next time!
On the way down the bumpy road, a hummer flew across in front that just looked a different green. Closer inspection proved it to be a female Ruby-throated – bonus! The road was ok until the last 8kms really when it became quite rutted and potholed.
It took about 4hrs in total to get back up in Alajuela and we had another nightmare trying to find our chosen hotel. The whole city is basically built on a grid system with one the horizontal roads alternating between one-way and the other....Well, the hotel was a dump for lack of better words but as it was getting dark we really had no option. The Lonely Planet really let us down on this one, as it rated it. Horrible place, horrible room, more like one I’d expect to find in Thailand or India. At least it had secure parking. Sue wasn’t impressed needless to say! And we were gonna be here for 2 nights as it seemed quite a good area to base ourselves for the last two days. We ate out in town which was nothing to write home about (the food or the place..!)

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29th December

Up early (again!) and had to get some poor sod out of bed to move his car from behind ours. Well we did say we’d be leaving early! We somehow managed to find our way onto the 9 and headed up past Varablanca and Volcano Poas on the way up to Virgen del Socorro. The weather was again shit which did nothing for my mood either....We passed by the famous roadside restaurant at Cinchona and nearly missed the turning to Virgen – it’s a very sharp right turn on a left-hand bend.
It winds down through some nice forest and down to a bridge. We parked here and birded as the rain abated. A pair of lively Torrent Tyrannulets was watched on the river, but no sign of any dippers. The rain finally stopped and the glorious sun came out, as did the birds. This place was great for mixed flocks and bird numbers in general. I walked the road up the hill to where the forest began to peter out and added some good birds: Golden-winged and Black & White Warblers, Blue & Gold, Hepatic and Bay-headed Tanagers, Black-capped Pygmy-Tyrants, Slate-capped Flys, Smoky-brown Woodpecker, Keel-billed Toucan, Collared Trogon, Violet-crowned Woodnymph, Bay Wren and very approachable Tufted Flys. As we headed back up the road, a nervy Louisiana Waterthrush fed in the drainage gulley, and a stunning male Emerald Tanager, Squirrel Cuckoo, a Crimson-collared Tanager and a very nice male Purple-crowned Fairy were all seen well.
We stopped at the Cinchona restaurant where the ladies cooked us a lovely breakfast and the birds showed amazingly well on the multitude feeders. 2 gorgeous male Green Thorntails fed a few feet in front of me, vying with Coppery-headed Emeralds, Violet Sabrewings, Green-crowned Brilliants and Rufous-tailed Hummers for the sugary water. Out on the fruit feeders, superb Emerald (or Blue-throated if the split occurs) Toucanets, an exquisite pair of Red-headed Barbets, Montezuma Oropendolas, Silvery-throated, Passerini’s and Crimson-collared Tanagers all fed at close range. Out in the distance the impressive waterfall complete with flocking White-collared Swifts was soon lost to view as the clouds came in and the rain pounded down once again. Sue was very brave (or stupid??!!) and agreed to hold their pet Red-kneed Tarantula....I’ll stick to the birds thanks!
We headed back towards La Paz Waterfall Gardens...still in the rain. We paid the rather expensive entrance fee of US$29 and immediately outside had at least 4 awesome Prong-billed Barbets on the feeders, looking not a lot like the picture in the book! Also in attendance were Tennessee Warblers, gaudy Summer Tanagers, Baltimore Orioles, more Silvery-throated Tanagers and a male Tawny-crowned Euphonia. We looked through the butterfly, snake and frog enclosures, but not the bird one.
The large Hummingbird Gallery was very impressive, with good numbers of the ‘normal’ species, with lovely Black-bellied and Steely-vented Hummers, White-bellied Mountain-gems, at least 4 more male Green Thorntails, a single Magnificent and 3 Green Hermits all zipping about , trying to dodge rain, people and each other! A female Slaty Flowerpiercer fed in the flowering bushes, Baltimore Orioles jumped on the feeders and tried their best to drink and Bananaquits doing so but with more success. The rain continued unabated so we declined the walk out to the waterfalls themselves and decided to call it a day.
On the return journey we decided that as we’re on holiday and not travelling, we’re going to check into the Bougainvillea for an extra day! Good choice. We arrived back after check-out time but the girl was fine with us going and then we had the fun of traversing the city towards the hotel. It was actually easier this time and we found the route we should’ve left by originally!! We checked back into this lovely hotel and Sue headed for the pool and I headed for the gardens. We ate in the restaurant that night, impeccable service and the food not bad either!!

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The final part...

30th December

Our last full day...boo! We got up early for a change (!) and set off for Braulio Carrillo, which is about 45mins northwards on the 32 from the hotel. The weather took another change for the worse which didn’t make the drive any easier. This was compounded by Sue’s reluctance to overtake a huge lorry in front of us which reduced our visibility to zero. At my insistence and a barrage of curses from her we passed it and surprise, surprise, we could suddenly see again! We passed through a toll and a long tunnel then sped past the turn-off (no surprise there then), so headed back and finally arrived at the Quebrada Gonzalez sector of the park and set off around the Palm path.
The rain had stopped now thankfully, and this place was probably the birdiest place we’d been all holiday. Great place and I wish I’d had more time to spend here. New birds included a fab male Lattice-tailed Trogon, a surprise female Three-wattled Bellbird, White-throated Shrike-Tanager, Ashy-throated Bush-Tanager, White-lined, Tawny-crested, Olive and Black & Yellow Tanagers, Barred Hawk, Buff-fronted and Buff-throated Foliage-gleaners, a Spotted Barbtail, a great Brown-billed Scythebill, Striped Woodhaunter, Green and Shining Honeycreepers, Tawny-crowned Greenlet, Tawny-faced Gnatwren and a skulky Slaty-backed Nightingale-Thrush. Other goodies included White-bellied Mountain-gem, Bronze-tailed Plumeleteer, Stripe-throated Hermit, Rufous Piha, Yellow-billed Caciques, Plain Xenops, White-throated and Wood Thrushes and Bright-rumped Attila.
As we emerged from the end of this looping trail, we paid the entrance fee of US$6 each and left to check out El Tapir, which is about 1km further up the road on the same side. Easily found, it is now totally abandoned with the butterfly garden derelict. We walked in and stood up on the raised ‘porch’ and checked out the flowering verbanas which are still here and attract a variety of hummers. The most obvious were the aggressive Rufous-tails, but a dainty male Green Thorntail, a male Purple-crowned Fairy, Violet-crowned Woodnymph and Green Hermit came in to feed, but were soon seen off. A male Violet-headed Hummer avoided this treatment by diving into the middle of the bushes and feeding off the flowers in there.
In the surrounding trees, a flock of Pale-vented Thrushes fed vigorously, with Scarlet-rumped Cacique, Chestnut-mandibled Toucan, Collared Aracaris and Golden-hooded Tanagers all present and in the undergrowth a nice male Olive-crowned Yellowthroat was seen well. Just as I was beginning to give up hope, an irate Rufous-tail sped by chasing a small dark hummer, which as it turned and flew back across the path was seen to sport a brilliant white cap – male Snowcap, fantastic!! What a bird for my last lifer!! The only dip here was Black-crested Coquette which refused to show.
So, pretty elated, we headed back to the Bougainvillea. We couldn’t turn back off the highway where we wanted so ended up going through Tibas. Being a Sunday, none of the roadside eateries we passed had appeared open, so, hungry, we ended up having a BK....how very touristy. The guys there gave us directions back to the hotel which was probably the best signposted thing in Costa Rica. Upon arrival, Sue hit the pool and I hit the birding tower, getting great views of both the Prevost’s and White-eared Ground-Sparrows again feeding on the rotting fruit. They seemed to show better mid-afternoon than early morning, contrary to what I’d read. We ate in the restaurant again, packed up our gear and got a wake-up call for our ridiculously early departure tomorrow.

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31st December

I took a quick stroll round the gardens from 5.40-6.05am, but had to leave just as it was getting interesting! That’s the problem with the Delta flights we had – early departure from San Jose and a 6hr wait in Atlanta....We arrived and paid the departure tax of US$26 and took-off without any problems. We had great visuals of Cuba, the Florida Keys and the Everglades as we passed overhead and as we were on final approach into Atlanta I had the bizarre sight of a Red-tailed Hawk beneath us! No birds except Starlings (trip tick!) were seen around the airport and our flight took off slightly late. We had dinner in TFI’s and ordered a starter and main each. The starters arrived and the portions were so huge that we cancelled one of the mains and shared the remaining one and didn’t even finish that – so beware those American portions!!
Upon arrival into Gatwick, I was not impressed when my bag eventually came thru minus my tripod. The airline said they’d cover it, but as it turns out they don’t cover things strapped to checked baggage, no matter how securely, and surprise, surprise neither does my travel insurance....so bastards, both of them. Next time, I’ll be taking it on as hand luggage! I would never fly Delta again because of this, and it obviously happened in Atlanta (their hub airport) as I’d seen it go up intact on the ramp at San Jose. It won’t be much use to the scumbag that stole it as the head was in my hand luggage on my ‘scope......so a bitter end to the holiday and a crappy start to the New Year!

Conclusions

Apart from the above, this was an excellent holiday overall. The people were extremely friendly and helpful, and contrary to a lot of reports, we never felt threatened anywhere. We obviously never left the car unattended with valuables in it – I can never understand people that do and then whine when it’s broken into to...!
Weather-wise I was very disappointed with the amount of rain at La Selva (if one more beardie researcher said “what do expect, you’re in a rainforest?” I could’ve poked him in the eye! I’ve birded rainforest before and yes, it surely rains, but then it stops and starts again later!! Even the locals said that this much rain was very unusual for this time of year....and as I‘ve mentioned it definitely had a knock-on effect to the amount of birds seen in the forests.
This aside, we still saw 362 and had 8 heard-onlys, so a very respectable total. This included 31 species of hummer, 8 trogons, 22 raptors, 13 psittacids, 12 wrens, 19 tanagers and 10 woodcreepers. If I could change anything I would spend one less day in the central highlands, and spend a night up in Palo Verde. Also, we tried to change the dates for La Selva to the end of December but were unable to do so, which resulted in having to crisscross the country twice to take in Monteverde. Luckily petrol was cheap and the car was very economical. We covered 1641kms and only filled up 3 times.
I can’t recommend Costa Rica enough, from the exciting birds and animals to the great vistas and friendly culture, the country has everything you can ask for in a holiday destination.

Hope you've enjoyed this report and find it of some use if you're planning a trip of your own. Thanks for reading!!

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Hi Adam,

Very nice trip report - I'll be studying it carefully as part of preparation for our visit in July - three weeks there on honeymoon, and so have arranged to have a driver to do the difficult stuff like finding the reserves. I don't think getting lost and annoyed at the lack of signposting would be a good way to start married life!

Will be interesting to find out how different birding is in July, just hope we don't lose too much time to rain at that time of year. When I was last there in April 2001, we basically got washed out on the La Selva days, hoping to make up for it this time around and connect with GG Macaw, the Curassow and a Tinamou or two.

Have factored in a couple of 'rest' days at Hotel Bougainvillea to hunt for ground-sparrows and will be going to many of the sites you went to. However, have swapped Monteverde for a couple of days at Tortuguero & spending 5 days on Osa Peninsula instead of doing the Pacific NW - the dream is to connect with a Harpy Eagle... Or a Jaguar.

Have just ordered a couple of CDs to start my homework.

Might be down the Bill to miss a few flocks of Poms next weekend.

Cheers,

Ben

Hey mate - good to hear from ya!
Honeymoon eh?? Not you too - my life's over in September hahaha!!! Not sure where we're off to, Argentina or Chile hopefully.
A driver?! Ooh you lightweight, that was half the fun!! Well....it was in retrospect!
Osa peninsula sounds fab, we just didn't have the time.
Be good to see ya down the Bill - not alot happening at the mo. Maybe if I go away again for the weekend you come down there'll be another goodie fly in off the sea....!
Did ya get the lark?
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a great trip report, really enjoyed reading it. Off of CR this year, hope to see as much as you did!

Ads,
Great stuff, despite the bad weather you have several on me there - thanks for the grip-off photos of Provost's!
Strange that you too mention the turn on a sharp bend to La Virgen del Socorro: I'd heard that but the road I took was off a straight section of road - which must join up with the one you took.
Sounds like your day at Braullio was more birdy than everyone's - you did really well there.
Most impressed with the anteater - excellent. And I too v surprised at how tiny the frogs were - I assumed I was seeing youngsters!
Love the Barbet photos.
Pity about your tripod - that thing could happen anywhere with any airline I'm afraid - not right that the insurance didn't cover it though - they always seem to opt out of the things that matter, eh.
Cheers,
Look forward to the S.America report.
H

Thanks guys - sorry the sparrow pics weren't great but they were a tad too far for the 2x converter but not far enough away to rig it up to the scope!!
H, yeah, I thought Braullio was fab and wished I'd spent a couple more days there - that Bellbird was a real surprise! At least I had no fires to contend with...!!
Jimi - have a great trip, it's an awesome country!

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Wow! That is easily the best day I have ever read about any body having in Braullio Carillo. Amazing.

I must admit I was surprised too - pleasantly that is!

halftwo said:

Pity about your tripod - that thing could happen anywhere with any airline I'm afraid - not right that the insurance didn't cover it though - they always seem to opt out of the things that matter, eh.

Click to expand...

Yeah I know...the really annoying thing is that I was lucky enough to bird the world throughout 06, flying into some really obscure airports and into poor countries and it was fine! Fly into a 'civilised' airport and it gets nicked...!!! Grrrrrr....

Hi Ads,

Now i cant believe that bad weather would affect your mood when birding.:-O Just trying to think if i have ever seen you like that - hmmmmmmm. Now you mention it that sounds accurate:t:

Seriously good report mate, lets hope for a few Poms tomorrow, i know now i am dreaming. B