In February of 2017 we will be offering a ten day trip to beautiful Costa Rica. The country may be small, about the size of West Virginia, but because of its location and geography it boasts a bird list of almost 900 species, greater than that of the entire US. In addition to birds, Costa Rica offers visitors an abundance of breathtaking scenery, lots of beautiful reptiles, amphibians, butterflies, insects and mammals.

On this trip we will be spending our time in three regions allowing us to sample a sizable portion of the nation’s biodiversity at a pace that allows for photography at a comfortable pace.

Upon arrival in Costa Rica you will be transferred to a comfortable hotel where we will spend our first night and get to know each other. The next morning we will bird around the grounds before heading out for the Pacific lowlands. Some of the birds that can be found here include Squirrel Cuckoo, Blue-crowned Motmot, Rufous-collared Sparrow, Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl, Red-billed Pigeon and more.

The first phase trip takes us to the Pacific coast where we will be spending two days in the transition zone between the tropical dry forests of the northwest wetter regions of the south.  During this time we will take two boat rides on the Tarcoles river in search of lapwings, kingfishers including the American Pygmy-Kingfisher, Mangrove Vireo, Mangrove Yellow Warbler, Mangrove Black Hawk, Mangrove Hummingbird, Mangrove Swallow, Magnificent Frigatebird and more. 

The rest of our time in this area will be spent birding the grounds of the excellent Cerro Lodge and beautiful Carara National Park.  At the lodge we will be able to photograph birds at various feeders as well as birding around the grounds.  We will be on the lookout for species like Rufous-naped Wren, Steely-vented Hummingbird, Turquoise-browed Motmot, Gartered Trogon, Black-and-white Owl and Scarlet Macaw.  At the national park we will bird well maintained trails in hopes of finding species like Black-hooded Antshrike, Dot-winged Antwren, Chestnut-backed Antbird, Long-billed Gnatwren, Pale-billed Woodpecker, Gray-capped Flycatcher, Rose-throated Becard and more.

The second phase of the trip takes us up into the mountains of central Costa Rica. Here we will explore the cloud forest in the valley of San Gearardo. Temperatures here will be a nice and cool compared to the lower areas we will visit later in the trip. The most obvious target bird here is the Resplendent Quetzal with its stunning colors and fantastic tail.

Some of the other birds of interest in this area include birds like Black-cheeked Warbler, Flame-colored Tanager, Long-tailed Silky-Flycatcher, Large-footed Finch, Volcano Hummingbird, Collared Redstart, Flame-throated Warbler, Ruddy-capped Nightingale-Thrush, Yellowish Flycatcher, Common Bush-Tanager, Fiery-throated Hummingbird, Spot-crowned Woodcreeper and maybe even the elusive Silvery-fronted Tapaculo, Timberline Wren and Wrenthrush. In this area we will have the opportunity to do some nocturnal birding in search of the Bare-shanked Screech-Owl and Dusky Nightjar.

To round out our trip we will spend time in the Caribbean Lowlands exploring La Selva Biological Station and surrounding areas. On the way to La Selva we will make a stop in an effort to observe and photograph the tiny Snowcap, a Central American endemic and quite a gorgeous bird to boot!

At La Selva we will have opportunities to photograph a dizzying array of bird species, some of which include birds like Great Green Macaw, Crimson-collared Tanager, White-collared Manakin, Golden-hooded Tanager, several species of woodpeckers and hummingbirds, Cinnamon Becard, Green Honeycreeper, Great Curassow, Black-cowled Oriole, various trogons and motmots, Rufous-tailed Jacamar, Keel-billed Toucan and much more.

Howler Monkeys, Green Iguanas and Collared Peccaries are also fairly common sights in the area. After dark we will have an opportunity to search for Central American Bull-Frog, Mottled Owl, Vermiculated Screech-Owl, Spectacled Owl, Black-and-white Owl and Great Potoo.

From La Selva we will make our way back to San Jose stopping at the La Paz waterfall for one last photo shoot of the waterfall and maybe some birds as well.

From here will return to San Jose for our flights home.