Costa Rica Birding Expeditions

11/05/2020

10/03/2018

Yellow-breasted Crake. While birding few days ago with Demetrio Peralta, Jürgen Klein and Eckkehard Seitz, we had the great opportunity to see this seldom seen Yellow-breasted Crake. It came out of the thick grass to the very open river bank.

09/12/2017

Look at the tail of this beautiful male Quetzal that I saw yesterday in Monteverde, Costa Rica.

09/12/2017

Yesterday was a great birding day in Monteverde, Costa Rica, with my client Gabriele Schultze, this was a great gift from Mother Nature.

Across time and cultures, the Resplendent Quetzal has been heralded for its great beauty. With an iridescent green sheen and uppertail covert feathers longer than its entire body, the bird has attracted much attention from pre-Columbian peoples, ornithologists, collectors, market hunters, and birders. Skutch (1944) described the male Resplendent Quetzal as "a supremely lovely bird; the most beautiful, all things considered, that I have ever seen. He owes his beauty to the intensity and arresting contrast of his coloration, the resplendent sheen and glitter of his plumage, the elegance of his ornamentation, the symmetry of his form, and the noble dignity of his carriage."
Text taken from: https://neotropical.birds.cornell.edu/Species-Account/nb/species/resque1/overview/

29/09/2017

Costa Rica Birding Expeditions is at the American Birding Expo in Philadelphia, USA.

21/09/2017

https://www.costaricabirdingexpeditions.com/blog/black-capped-pygmy-tyrant-nesting/

Sep212017BlogOne of the smallest Tyrant Flycatchers found in the tropical rain forest, it is so small that most of Costa Rican hummingbirds are bigger that this Pygmy-Tyrant. Black-capped Pygmy-Tyrant, Myiornis atricapillus, is a common bird but seldom one can see it. Categoría: BlogPor Birdingsep...

21/09/2017

Black-capped Pygmy-Tyrant

11/09/2017

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lKiYE0fC524

Bare-necked Umbrellabird in Pococi, Limon.

Check out my youtube channel Costa Rica Birding Expeditions

Bird-watching in Costa Rica

11/09/2017

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8IstoXGgxXo

A morning with Cope at La Union, Guapiles

07/09/2017

The Bare-necked Umbrellabird, aka "Pajaro Danta" or "Pajaro Sombrilla" in Costa Rica, this 14"-17" (36-43cm), large, chunky black bird inhabits upper understory to mid-canopy of primary rain forest of Costa Rica and western Panama, so is one of our many endemics that we share with Panama.

Umbrellabirds belong to the Cotingidae (Cotingas) family; this is an extraordinarily diverse family, strictly confined to wooded regions of the mainland Neotropics. Some Cotingas could be very colorful and noisy, as the Andean Cock-of-The-Rock and the Guianan Cock-of-The –Rock (Rupicola peruviana, Rupicola rupicola), other Cotingas are colorful and quiet, like all those Fruiteaters (Pipreola sp) from the Andes. Some males may be wholly white, these are the cases of the Yellow-billed Cotinga (Carpodectes antoniae) from the humid Pacific lowlands of Costa Rica and western Panama and the Snowy Cotinga (Carpodectes nitidus) on the Caribbean lowlands.

Cephalopterus glabricollis, our only Umbrellabirds in Costa Rica is entirely black, above strongly glossed with blue, producing a scaly effect on mantle. The males have an inflatable sac, which is the skin of the throat without feathers bright orange-red, when male is on full display this sac becomes large and scarlet. Males have an umbrella crest. Females are much less impressive, little bit smaller and duller black without the umbrella crest. Young birds resemble females, like in many other Cotingas.
There are two more Umbrellabirds in South America, the Amazonian Umbrellabird (Cephalopterus ornatus) with a huge range east of the Andes, foothills, and lowlands and the Long-wattled Umbrellabird (Cephalopterus penduliger) confine to two countries Ecuador and Colombia, west of the Andes.

The Bare-necked Umbrellabird feed on fruits of palms, Lauraceae and Annonaceae as well as caterpillars, small lizards, and frogs, beats prey vigorously against perch before swallowing.
This bird is not that easy to see it or hear it in an any given birding program, I have seen it at the Rain Forest Aerial Tram, (Caribbean slope), Braulio Carrillo National Park, La Selva Biological Station, Tenorio Volcano National Park and last week (25th of August 2017) in Suerre of Pococí at 650 meter a.s.l on and old second growth.
This time I was able to see both male and female together, I thought that they were nesting not far from where I saw them. Both of them flew in my range of vision while I saw calling another Contingidae, the Purple-throated Fruitcrow. They flew from a large tree full of epiphytes and climber vines, then they went back to the same tree and hide among all the vines.
Most of the time I have found this bird they are very quiet, and last week wasn't the exception.

Bibliography

Garrigues R and Dean R, 2014 The Birds of Costa Rica A Field Guide, second edition. A Zona Tropical Publication

Stiles G and Skutch A, 1989 A Guide to the Birds of Costa Rica Comstock Publishing Associates, Cornell University Press Ithaca NY.

28/08/2017

I love the old name of this bird (Red-footed Plumeleteer) in my old birding field guides. Years ago the name was changed for Bronze-tailed Plumeleteer. The old name made allusion to the red feet of this Caribbean lowlands and foothills hummingbird, found here in Costa Rica! By the way is the only hummingbird found in Costa Rica with red feet!
Now with the new technics of research many species of birds, plants, insect and reptiles had changed name, which it makes it challenging and fun to keep up with all the updates.
Pictures took at Cope's place, Costa Rica Birding Expeditions.

28/08/2017

Angry Bird!

18/08/2017

When I first saw this plump, big-eyed, long-legged and nearly tailless bird many years ago, in Carara National Park, it was called Spectacled Antpitta, then the Hylopezus perspicillatus was re-name as Streak-chested Antpitta. This bird lives in the lush tropical rain and humid forest from northeastern Honduras to western Ecuador, hops over ground, sometimes running for short distances like a thrush. Last week in one of my inspection field trips for Costa Rica Birding Expeditions, I was so fortunate to see it again at Braulio Carrillo National Park here in Costa Rica.
Antpittas sometimes are often hear in the forest but not seldom to see.

17/08/2017

At Costa Rica Birding Expeditions we have now a toll free number within USA and Canada

Give us a ring for info regarding our Birding Expeditions
1-833-CRBirds (1-833-272-4737)

06/08/2017

http://www.costaricabirdingexpeditions.com/tours-dates-prices/
Check out our next Birding Expedition Quest form the 13th to the 28th of December 2017!
We still have space available!

Costa Rica Birding Expeditions we offer scheduled small group for birding and/or wildlife tours with maximum capacity of 8 participants.

10/07/2017

Costa Rica Birding Expeditions will be at the American Birding Expo in Philadelphia from Sept 29th to Oct 1st 2017!
https://www.americanbirdingexpo.com

Costa Rica Birding Expeditions was created with one purpose in mind: to provide exclusive, personali

06/07/2017

Bronzy Hermit, nesting in Tortuguero Costa Rica.

17/05/2017

Sungrebe (Heliornis fulica) filmed in Tortuguero National Park, Costa Rica

13/05/2017

A large nocturnal bird of lowland forests and forest edges, occurs from south Central America to central South America.
Feeds mostly on insects.
At day time perch on branches upward projecting limbs or stubs.
Costa Rica is a place to find this amazing bird.
If this bird is on your birds to see list, at Costa Rica Birding Expeditions we can make that dream come true.

23/04/2017

Costa Rica is one of the best paces to see King Vultures. This magnificent, striking large vulture that inhabits the tropical humid lowlands of Costa Rica is one of the most seeking birds in tropical America.
In southern Costa Rica we had the opportunity to see on the 8th of April 2017 on a single day 10 individuals in two different places.
Back in 2012 while traveling with Rita Baumann, in the same area we saw 15 individuals in one single spot.
Even though the main diet of these vultures is carrion, I observed one juvenile eating a fruit of Pachira aquatica while the fruit still hanging from the tree.
In one of the pictures you can see 3 of them on the same tree!!!
These birds take between 3 and 4 years to have adults plumages, one can recognize from the pictures one subadults by his/her black mantle, one young and few adults.
If you are looking for them, come and join us on our Birding Expeditions in deep Costa Rica.
All Photos taken with an iPhone SE and a Swarovski Spotting Scope ATS 65.

04/04/2017

Formerly in the genus Ottus, the Pacific Screech-Owl can be fund within its range in dry woodlands, semi-open country, second-growth and lakeside fields. This pictures was taken in Guanacaste province, northwest Costa Rica, in my last visit to the dry woodlands of this amazing land. Costa Rica Birding Expeditions can offer short, medium or long birding tours in Costa Rica, come and join us!

31/03/2017

Resplendent Quetzal (male) in his nest. Last week in San Gerardo de Dota, we were lucky enough to find an active nest, where male and female alternate to take care of the eggs.
Costa Rica Birding Expeditions can take you to San Gerardo to live this experience.

12/03/2017