Saturday 10th January - Saturday 24th January 2009
Sunday 25th January - Sunday 8th February 2009

Relaxed easy pace tour to this birder's paradise!

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Our new easy pace tour to the wonderful bird rich country of Costa Rica, will suit birders of any age, particularly our older cliental who may prefer a little more time to savour the birds we see and enjoy the grounds of the wonderful lodges we stay. In contrast to our full-on 18 day tour this trip will be shorter and will feature extended stays at excellent lodges. A lot of birding tour companies see in the region of 350 species on their Costa Rica tours, but we envisage this easy tour to still see over 400 species, making it incredibly good value. From volcanoes and high misty mountain forests, to lowland jungle, open grassland, flower filled gardens and a couple of fantastic boat trips on two different rivers, this will be a trip that anyone can do, no matter how fit or how old. Imagine Resplendent Quetzal, one of the world’s most beautiful birds, plus Scarlet Macaw, hummingbirds, motmots, manakins, toucans, parrots, tanagers, antpittas, and much much more!

Our Tour Itinerary

Day 1
We take a morning flight from London bound for San Jose, arriving early evening where we will transfer the short distance to our hotel.

Day 2
A look around the grounds of our hotel will introduce us to a few of the commoner bird species such as Clay-coloured Thrush, Rufous-collared Sparrow, Hoffmann’s Woodpecker, Rufous-tailed Hummingbird, and Plain Wren. We can also look for special birds such as Blue-crowned Motmot, White-eared Ground Sparrow and if we are lucky the very localised Prevost’s Ground-Sparrow. After breakfast we will load the bus and head for Braulio Carrillo National Park and our first introduction to tropical rainforest birding. As we take a short walk on the narrow trails we will look out for Violaceous, Black-throated and Slaty-tailed Trogon as well as Broad-billed Motmot. We’ll also check for skulkers like the Dull-mantled Antbird and Orange-billed Sparrow, while our real goal is to encounter a mixed flock which could hold Blue-and-gold, Speckled, Black-and-yellow, Olive and Tawny-crested Tanagers, plus White-throated Shrike-Tanager, Brown-billed Scythebill, Striped Woodhaunter, Yellow-eared Toucanet and a host of other spectacular birds. From here we will go to an old butterfly garden where our target species will be the delightful little Snowcap as well as Violet-headed Hummingbird and occasionally Black-crested Coquette. After lunch, we will head towards our accommodation close to La Selva National Park. Along the way we will keep an eye out for Fasciated Tiger-Heron, Amazon Kingfisher and maybe a raptor or two. We should have time in the afternoon to visit the approach road to La Selva OTS (Organisation of Tropical Studies) one of the most accessible tracts of moist lowland rainforest in the east of Costa Rica. This road can play host to a huge range of species that we will also look for over the next two days.

Days 3 - 4
These days will be spent in and around the famous La Selva Reserve which has a well maintained and excellent network of trails and has recorded over 400 species of birds. Amongst the most interesting are Great and Little Tinamous, Blue Ground-Dove, Great Potoo, Broad-billed and Rufous Motmots, Rufous-tailed Jacamar, Purple-throated Fruitcrow and some years Bare-necked Umbrellabird! Along forest streams we will search for the rare and beautiful Agami Heron, while back in the forest we can expect to see Great and Fasciated Antshrikes, Buff-throated Foliage-Gleaner, Streak-crowned Antvireo, Checker-throated and White-flanked Antwren, Red-capped and White-collared Manakins, Snowy Cotinga, Rufous Mourner, Buff-rumped Warbler, Montezuma Oropendola and lots more flycatchers, hummingbirds, tanagers and warblers than you ever dared imagine. Depending what we have seen we may or may not return to our lodge for lunch. When we do we can either relax a little or explore the wonderful grounds which often hold nesting Red-throated Ant-Tanagers and Collared Aracaris and there is even an area where we can find both Green-and-black and Strawberry Poison Dart Frogs. Butterflies and huge moths abound, so there is always plenty to marvel at. Afternoons will see us return to La Selva either birding the approach road, or revisiting the reserve. The road is an excellent spot where we will look for Yellow-tailed Oriole, Purple-crowned Fairy and Red-footed Plumleteer, Cinnamon and Chestnut-coloured Woodpeckers, White-ringed Flycatcher, White-whiskered Puffbird, Great Antshrike, Lesser Swallow-tailed Swift and we even have the chance to spot Short-tailed Nighthawks as they fly out of the forest. A nearby marsh can hold extra species such as Green Ibis, Black-bellied Whistling-Duck and Pink-billed Seedfinch. On one day we will take an afternoon boat ride on the Sarapiqui River where we hope to encounter the skulking and shy Sungrebe, plus a variety of water loving birds, reptiles and mammals including with luck Neotropic Otter.

Day 5
This morning we stop for Giant Cowbird before moving on to a small pond to look for Slaty Spinetail, Olive-crowned Yellowthroat, White-throated Crake, Thick-billed Seedfinch and rare and local White-throated Flycatcher. From here we continue on to La Virgen del Socorro where we could find Swallow-tailed Kites, Immaculate Antbird, Sooty-faced Finch, Smoky-brown Woodpecker, Torrent Tyrannulet, American Dipper, Mourning, Wilson’s, Blackburnian and Chestnut-sided Warblers, Blue-and-Gold Tanager and possible rarities such as White-tailed Sicklebill or even Lanceolated Monklet. From here we will stop at a hummingbird café. Located on the edge of the Virgen del Socorro canyon, and overlooking a spectacular waterfall, this former restaurant now only serves birds! Within an hour one can usually see Green Hermit, Violet Sabrewing, Green-crowned Brilliant, White-bellied Mountain-Gem, Green Thorntail, Rufous-tailed Hummingbird, the endemic Coppery-headed Emerald and sometimes the superb Black-bellied Hummingbird or Brown Violet-Ear. Bananas are put out to attract Prong-billed and stunning Red-headed Barbets, Common Bush-Tanager and Buff-throated Saltator, while the surrounding trees and garden hold Emerald Toucanet, Golden-browed Chlorophonia and even Sooty-faced Finch. We will take lunch at the nearby La Paz Waterfall Gardens where we have our best chance to see Black-bellied Hummingbird. And possibly Ochre-breasted Antpitta. We will then depart towards our next lodge at the base of the famous and still active Arenal Volcano.

Days 6 - 7
No doubt we’ll be up early checking the feeders at our lodge and marvelling at the sounds of the volcano. We’ll spend the days birding the grounds around the lodge and some nearby tracts of forest. The entire area is a haven for birds and we will search out rarely seen species such as Keel-billed Motmot, Lanceolated Monklet, Ocellated Antbird and Thicket Antpitta. Easy viewing on the feeders and flowers should include Emerald, Crimson-collared, Hepatic, Blue-grey, Golden-hooded, Passerini’s and Bay-headed Tanagers, Black-crested Coquette, Violet-headed Hummingbird, Crowned Woodnymph, Purple-crowned Fairy, Stripe-throated Hermit, White-necked Jacobin and maybe Red-footed Plumeleteer. Many other birds will keep cameras and videos whirring, such as Montezuma’s Oropendola, Black-cheeked Woodpecker, Red-legged and Green Honeycreepers, Scarlet-thighed Dacnis, Orange-bellied Trogon, Spotted Antbird and Crested Guan. The shy yet vocal Whistling Wren will be sought, and we could get to grips with Black-bellied Wren, Bare-crowned Antbird, Long-billed Gnatwren, Black-headed Nightingale-Thrush and even Great Potoo. One day we will visit Arenal's hanging bridges, a delightful canopy tour which will allow us to get close to feeding flocks all at eye level. Tanagers, toucans, flycatchers, and quite possibly White-fronted Nunbird are all possibilities and for birders this has to be one of the most exciting walkways in the country. Unprecedented views of birds in the tops of trees where you would normally strain your neck could include Long-tailed Tyrant, Ornate Hawk-Eagle, Black-cowled Oriole, Yellow-billed Caciques, White-throated Shrike-Tanager, Bright-rumped Attila and Crested Guan as well countless warblers and tanagers, with possibilities of Bay-winged Tanager, Song Wren and Rufous-tailed Jacamar.

Day 8
After a final morning spent searching the grounds and gardens of our wonderful lodge and seeing all those gaudy tanagers on the feeders while we enjoy breakfast, we will move on to our next destination near to Palo Verde N.P and several areas of large swamp. Our afternoon journey to our lodge will be broken with many roadside stops for new or interesting birds. Today could be good for raptors so we will keep vigilant for White Hawk, Laughing Falcon, Hook-billed Kite and Bay-winged Hawk.

Day 9
This morning we leave early for our morning visit to Palo Verde National Park. Along the entrance road, we will keep a lookout for Double-striped Thick-Knee, Bay-winged Hawk, Spot-bellied Bobwhite, White-fronted and Yellow-naped Parrots, Orange-fronted and Orange-chinned Parakeets, Plain-breasted Ground-Dove and both Western and Nutting’s Flycatchers. Along trails leading through dry forest we will search for Thicket Tinamou, Black-headed Trogon, Lesser Ground Cuckoo, Mangrove Cuckoo and Pale-billed Woodpecker, Northern Beardless Tyrannulet, Spot-breasted and Streak-backed Orioles, Turquoise-browed Motmot, Canivet’s Emerald, Cinnamon Hummingbird, Banded Wren, Melodious Blackbird and Olive Sparrow, as well as the superb Great Curassow and Crane Hawk. A forested swamp nearby if not completely dry could possibly hold the enormous Jabiru, as well as Bare-throated Tiger-Heron, Wood Stork, Glossy Ibis, Muscovy, Fulvous and Black-bellied Whistling Ducks, Purple Gallinule, Northern Jacana, Limpkin, Snail Kite and Roseate Spoonbill. Mammals in the area include Mantled Howler, White-faced Capuchin Monkey and the rare Jaguarundi although we would be lucky to see the latter. This area is very good for the tiny Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl which we should be able to find. From here we move on to a salt factory which can be teeming with shorebirds as high tide recedes. Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs, Spotted, Least, Stilt, Semipalmated and Western Sandpipers, Wilson’s Plover, Black-necked Stilt, Whimbrel, Willet, Short-billed Dowitcher, Royal Terns and even Black Skimmer can sometimes be seen. Occasionally we get a surprise or two such as Marbled Godwit, Gull-billed, Sandwich and Caspian Tern and with luck Crane Hawk or thousands of Scissor-tailed Flycatchers. The grass and scrub here hold Spot-breasted and Streak-backed Orioles, Double-striped Thick-Knee, Plain-breasted Ground-Dove and White-collared Seedeater and we have our best chance for the skulky Lesser Ground-Cuckoo. Moving on again we will pass through a small town where the resident pair of Black-and-white Owls will be roosting somewhere in the small park. Eventually we will arrive at our lodge which is close to the coast and the wonderful Carara National Park.

Days 10 - 11
The next two days will give us several opportunities to visit the fantastic bird rich forests of the Carara Reserve. As we take an early breakfast we might see one of the resident Short-tailed Nighthawks hawking over the river, after which our early morning visits to the Carara Reserve will have us walk through this endangered Central American habitat, where many of this region’s special birds can be found, including the magnificent Scarlet Macaw. Other birds we will look for include Grey Hawk, Double-toothed Kite, King Vulture, Lesser Swallow-tailed and White-collared Swifts, Costa Rican Swift, Baird’s, Black-headed, Black-throated and Violaceous Trogons, White-whiskered Puffbird, Dotted-winged Antwren, Streak-chested Antpitta, Black-faced Antthrush, Bi-coloured and Chestnut-backed Antbird, Scaly-throated Leaftosser, Long-tailed, Blue-crowned, Orange-collared and Red-capped Manakins, Northern Bentbill, Golden-crowned Spadebill, Long-billed Hermit, Scaly-breasted Hummingbird, Blue-throated Goldentail, Squirrel Cuckoo, Blue-black Grosbeak, Grey-headed Tanager, Plain Xenops, Long-billed Gnatwren and Orange-billed Sparrow. Woodcreepers could include Tawny-winged, Wedge-billed, Northern Barred and maybe Long-tailed, and there is always the chance of a Yellow-billed Cotinga or the superb Northern Royal Flycatcher displaying its fabulous crest. On one afternoon, we will take a spectacular boat trip around into the mangroves and up the narrow waterways that lead off the river Tarcoles. Here we would need to be lucky to see the secretive Rufous-necked Wood-Rail, a bird very few people have ever seen in Costa Rica, as well as the endemic Mangrove Hummingbird, Prothonotary Warbler, American Pygmy Kingfisher, Mangrove Black-Hawk, Boat-billed Heron and maybe a Plumbeous Kite or two. Depending on the tide, we can expect to find a wealth of waders and water birds including Roseate Spoonbill, White Ibis, Black Skimmer, Royal Tern, Laughing Gull, Brown Pelican, Collared Plover, Magnificent Frigatebird, Zone-tailed Hawk, Osprey and Yellow-headed Caracara. In the woodlands there are Scarlet Macaw, Laughing Falcon and Ferruginous Pygmy–Owl, while nearby we can look for Grey-necked Wood-Rail, Mangrove Vireo, Rufous-browed Peppershrike, Mangrove Warbler, Panama and Northern Scrub Flycatchers, Painted Bunting, Green-breasted Mango, Mangrove Swallow, Great Kiskadee, Scrub Greenlet, Olivaceous Piculet, Blue-grey and Cherries Tanagers, Blue-black Grassquit and Black-striped Sparrow all possible from the boat. In and around the lodge grounds where butterflies, dragonflies and birds abound, we will be able to look for Bare-throated Tiger-Heron, Fiery-billed Aracari, Pale-billed Woodpecker, Violaceous Trogon, Red-legged Honeycreeper, Buff-rumped Warbler and even Tent-making Bats, Ctenosaurs and Basilisk Lizards.

Day 12
After a final morning in this wonderful bird rich area we will depart for the alpine heights of Cerro de Muerte. Stopping along the way we will encounter our first Sooty Robins, Black-billed Nightingale-Thrushes and possibly Long-tailed Silky-Flycatchers. On arrival at our idyllic lodge set beside a gorgeous river we can check the feeders for Volcano, Scintillant and Magnificent Hummingbirds and White-throated Mountain-Gem.

Day 13
We have all day to explore the surrounding forest, gardens and river trails all set in a pristine location in the heart of Quetzal country. The bird life here is spectacular and we will concentrate on finding the more localised species such as Black-and-Yellow Silky-Flycatcher, Black Guan, Sooty Robin, Flame-throated and Black-cheeked Warblers, Sooty-capped Bush-Tanager, Yellow-thighed Finch, Large-footed Finch, the mouse-like Silvery-fronted Tapaculo, Silvery-throated Jay, Spotted Wood-Quail, Buff-fronted Quail-Dove, Flame-coloured Tanager, Ruddy-capped Nightingale-Thrush, Buffy Tuftedcheek, as well as more widespread species such as Slaty Flowerpiercer, Golden-browed Chlorophonia, Black-capped, Tufted and Yellowish Flycatchers, Yellow-winged Vireo, Acorn Woodpecker and Rufous-browed Peppershrike. We will also look for Costa Rican Pygmy-Owl and at dusk the Dusky Nightjars can often put on a good show. The real prize bird of this area is the much sought-after and possibly most beautiful bird in the world, the Resplendent Quetzal, which to date we have never missed seeing. With Swallow-tailed Kites, White-throated Swifts, Sulphur-winged Parakeets, Mountain Elaenia, Ochraceous Wren, Yellow-bellied Siskin and Blue-hooded Euphonia this will certainly be a day to remember.

Day 14
After a final morning around the lodge we will make our way through this verdant valley and up to the highway and on to the high paramo where several specialities will be sought including Volcano Junco, Peg-billed Finch, Timberline Wren and Zeledonia. Leaving here a cafe will not only provide us with a hot drink we will get a chance to check their feeders and forest in the hope that we can see Fiery-throated Hummingbird and the localised Ochraceous Pewee. From here we will make our way back to San Jose for our return flight which gets back to London the next day – Day 15.

Leaders: Steve Bird and Gina Nichol

After-tour extension to Rancho Naturalista!
23rd – 27th January or 7th – 11th February
TThis after tour extension will include two private transfers to and from Rancho Naturalista, and 3 nights full board accommodation and guidance by Rancho’s resident guide. Home to the Snowcap and much more, if interested in this extension ask us for details.