Birding Tour Costa Rica Escape, Part II

Costa Rica Escape Birding Tour, Part II
February 2026/2027

Our Costa Rica Escape, Part II birding tour is designed to provide you with a fantastic neotropical birding experience in a true birder’s paradise. This trip focusses on the Caribbean slope, offering participants a four-night stay at the famous El Arenal Observatory Lodge from which we will explore the area’s many exciting birding hotspots. We will also visit Heliconias Lodge which will give us the opportunity (for the first time on our Costa Rica fixed departure tours) to see the most-wanted and hard-to-find Tody Motmot. The trip will start in the third week of February, to coincide with the Three-wattled Bellbird lekking season, as we want to ensure that participants can enjoy this iconic and most-wanted species.

Yellow-eared Toucanet, one of the top birds we expect to find during our exciting tour (photo Vernon Campos).

This short nine-day Costa Rica birding tour is just the perfect excuse to escape the cold northern winter and explore the Caribbean foothills where we will target species such as Yellow-eared Toucanet, Keel-billed Toucan, Three-wattled Bellbird, Thicket Antpitta, Blue-and-gold Tanager, Sharpbill, Great Curassow, Emerald Tanager, Prong-billed Barbet, Keel-billed Motmot and with luck, Ornate Hawk-Eagle.

The tour includes two exciting boat trips to look for specials such as Nicaraguan Seed Finch and Nicaraguan Grackle and other top aquatic species. These boat trips will be a particular delight for any first-time neotropical birders as you will likely be entertained by Boat-billed Heron, Jabiru, Sunbittern, Sungrebe, Yellow-breasted Crake, Pinnated and Least Bitterns and if we are lucky, the elusive Agami Heron.

The tour will then end with two nights at Heliconias Lodge where we will look for Tody Motmot and other special birds of the area. This Costa Rica birding tour offers you a great selection of birds and top-notch logistics which will all make for a memorable experience. This tour can be done as a standalone tour or can be combined with Costa Rica Escape, Part I.

Itinerary (9 days/8 nights)

Day 1. Arrival in San José and transfer to the hotel

You will arrive at the San José International Airport to be met by your Birding Ecotours leader, and then transfer to our hotel in San José. If time permits, we may do some birding around the beautiful hotel grounds looking for Rufous-backed Wren, Hoffmann’s Woodpecker, Finsch’s Parakeet, Baltimore Oriole, Squirrel Cuckoo, Cinnamon-bellied Saltator, American Yellow Warbler, Lesson’s Motmot, White-winged Dove, Rufous-tailed Hummingbird, Clay-colored Thrush, Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Melodious Blackbird, Great-tailed Grackle, and with some luck, White-eared Ground Sparrow and Mottled Owl which has a daytime roost in the hotel garden.

Overnight: Hotel Bougainvillea, San José

Day 2. Exploring San Ramon and the Bogarín Reserve and transfer to Arenal Lodge

We will explore the hotel grounds before breakfast, looking for some of the birds described above, and after breakfast, we will head to the nearby forests of San Ramon where we will look for one of the top targets of the trip, Three-wattled Bellbird. This iconic species leks in the area at this time of the year and we hope to get some good encounters with this amazing-looking bird. Other birds we expect to find here include Orange-billed Nightingale-Thrush, White-crowned Parrot, Brown Jay, Blue-throated Toucanet, Ochraceous Wren, Prong-billed Barbet, Spotted Barbtail, Chestnut-capped Brushfinch, Chestnut-capped Warbler, Tawny-capped Euphonia, and if we are lucky, Azure-hooded Jay.

Three-wattled Bellbird is one of our top targets of the trip (photo Ramon Fernandez).

Later we will continue our drive towards La Fortuna and visit the Bogarín Reserve a popular private reserve in the area famous for its Brown-throated Sloths which we will have the opportunity to enjoy as well. In addition we have good chances of seeing White-collared Manakin, Streak-headed Woodcreeper, Smoky-brown Woodpecker, the elusive duo of White-throated and Uniform Crakes and with luck, Black-and-white Owl at a daytime roost. Later in the day, we will arrive at El Arenal Observatory Lodge and Trails which we will use as our base for the next three nights.

Overnight: El Arenal Lodge

The elusive Ornate Hawk-Eagle in the Arenal area (photo Brandon Welch).

Day 3. Birding El Arenal and the Costa Rica Sky Adventure Park

We will have a predawn start to enjoy some of the feeders at El Arenal Lodge where the first birds to arrive are usually Crested Guan, Grey-headed Chachalaca and Great Curassow as well as tanager species such as the handsome Emerald Tanager along with Blue-grey, Palm, Golden-hooded, Bay-headed and Scarlet-rumped Tanagers.

We will then leave the lodge and head to the Costa Rica Sky Adventure Park which offers the chance for visitors to go zip-lining over the forest. This is an interesting site to look for birds and allows us to use hanging bridges to access primary montane forest, ensuring unique views of the canopy. Here we will look for Russet Antshrike, Sharpbill, Yellow-eared Toucanet and with some luck, Blue-and-gold Tanager. The park can be good for raptors too with species such as White and Great Black Hawks and Swallow-tailed Kite all possible. On previous trips here we have been lucky to get stunning views of the majestic Ornate Hawk-Eagle. The understory is good for tough-to-see species such as Thicket Antpitta, Tawny-faced Gnatwren, Ochre-bellied Flycatcher, and Carmiol’s Tanager.

In the afternoon we will enjoy the surroundings of El Arenal looking for Keel-billed Motmot, White-fronted Nunbird, Gartered Trogon, and Keel-billed Toucan.

Overnight: El Arenal Lodge

The stunning Keel-billed Toucan is always a pleasure to see (photo Vernon Campos).

Day 4. El Arenal Lodge

Today we will have the full day to explore El Arenal Lodge’s trails and have time for some relaxed birding around the gardens. We will put in special efforts to look for army ant swarms that may provide flocks of army ant followers such as Ocellated Antbird and the mythical Rufous-vented Ground Cuckoo. Other forest birds that we will be on the lookout for include Spotted and Dusky Antbirds, White-flanked Antwren, Stripe-breasted Wren and the elusive Song Wren.

In the afternoon we will further enjoy the gardens looking for Black-crested Coquette, Golden-olive Woodpecker, Long-tailed Tyrant, Scarlet-thighed Dacnis, Red-legged Honeycreeper and Scale-crested Pygmy Tyrant.

Overnight: El Arenal Lodge

Day 5. El Arenal, Medio Queso and transfer to Caño Negro

After spending the last morning birding around the lodge we will leave and head towards Medio Queso Lake near the Nicaraguan border. Here we will enjoy a boat trip that offers a lot of special birds including Nicaraguan Seed Finch and Nicaraguan Grackle. We will have the opportunity to see Least and Pinnated Bitterns — this must rank as one of the best areas to see both species alongside each other. We will likely see plenty of aquatic bird species too, such as Blue-winged Teal, Pied-billed Grebe, Northern Jacana, Bare-throated Tiger Heron, Anhinga, Black-necked Stilt, Black-collared Hawk, Green Ibis, Roseate Spoonbill and some secretive species such as Yellow-breasted and White-throated Crakes and Sora. Further exciting species include Slaty Spinetail, Canebrake Wren, Grey-crowned Yellowthroat, and Olive-throated Parakeet, amongst many others.

Later that afternoon we will head towards Refugio Caño Negro where we will arrive in the early evening.

Overnight: Natural Lodge Caño Negro

The most-wanted Sungrebe is one of the targets at Caño Negro (photo Paul Newman).

Day 6. Caño Negro and transfer to Heliconias Lodge

Today we will explore the Refugio Caño Negro having a morning boat ride to look for as many birds as possible and focus on some targets such as the most-wanted Sungrebe, Muscovy Duck, Grey-headed Chachalaca, Limpkin, Jabiru, Wood Stork, Boat-billed Heron, American Pygmy Kingfisher, Spot-breasted Wren, Great and Barred Antshrikes and if we are lucky, we may find the elusive Bare-crowned Antbird and the sought-after Agami Heron. After we have finished our morning boat ride, we will transfer to Heliconias Lodge for our two-night stay.

Overnight: Heliconias Lodge

Day 7. Heliconias Lodge

We will spend a full day birding and exploring this lodge and the adjacent Tapir Valley looking for Ocellated Antbird, Northern Barred and Ruddy Woodcreepers, Long-tailed Manakin, Canivet’s Emerald, Rufous-winged Tanager, Brown-hooded Parrot, Black-eared Wood Quail, Streak-crowned Antvireo, Rufous Mourner, Yellow-green Vireo, Tawny-throated Leaftosser, Black-faced Antthrush, Stub-tailed Spadebill and Tody Motmot. If we are lucky, we could find the most-wanted Snowcap and the elusive Purplish-backed Quail-Dove. There is also a second chance for Yellow-eared Toucanet and at night it is possible to hear and find Crested Owl.

Overnight: Heliconias Lodge

The secretive and exquisite Tody Motmot will be our primary target at Heliconias Lodge (photo Alvaro Bullerez).

Day 8. Heliconias and transfer back to San José                                                                          

After a last morning’s birding at Heliconias Lodge we will be transferred to San José to Hotel Robledal where we can relax in the afternoon or enjoy the garden looking for some of the last birds of the trip. Noteworthy species here include Ferruginous Pygmy Owl and Plain-capped Starthroat. We will then enjoy our final dinner together as a group before our flights home tomorrow.

Overnight: Hotel Robledal

Day 9. Transfer to the airport

Today you will be transferred to the San José International Airport to connect with your international flights home.

 Please note that the itinerary cannot be guaranteed as it is only a rough guide and can be changed (usually slightly) due to factors such as availability of accommodation, updated information on the state of accommodation, roads, or birding sites, the discretion of the guides and other factors. In addition, we sometimes have to use a different international guide from the one advertised due to tour scheduling.

Costa Rica Escape Part II, February 2025

21 FEBRUARY – 01 MARCH 2025

By Jacob Roalef

Close views of the difficult Blue-and-gold Tanager were a real highlight of this tour!

Overview

This nine-day tour of Costa Rica serves as part two of our introduction to Neotropic birding series and was a great way to escape the northern winter. The trip visited several habitat zones from the northern Pacific lowlands to Caribbean foothills and slopes, to middle elevation rainforests, to boat rides along rivers. This included visits to many incredible birding locations such as Arenal Lodge and Observatory, Heliconias Lodge, Celeste Mountain Lodge, Tapir Valley Nature Reserve, Caño Negro Wildlife Refuge, Medio Queso wetlands, Bogarin Reserve, San Luis Canopy, and more! Much of the birding took place along roadside or nicely maintained trails providing some easier walks, with a few bird feeder stations mixed in. A perfect opportunity for an introduction to birding the Neotropics.

The great diversity of habitats visited produced an impressive variety of bird species and a fantastic list for our short tour in the amazing birding country of Costa Rica. Highlights included Three-wattled Bellbird, Sungrebe, Pinnated Bittern, Tody Motmot, Nicaraguan Seed-Finch, Great Curassow, Blue-and-Gold Tanager, Green Shrike-Vireo, Long-tailed Tyrant, Black-and-White Owl, Ornate Hawk-Eagle, Jabiru, White-throated Crake, Green-fronted Lancebill, and so much more!

A total of 300 bird species were seen, with an additional ten species added as heard only. Of course, Costa Rica also offers many amazing opportunities for other wildlife sightings, and this trip enjoyed several mammal highlights like Proboscis Bat, White-faced Capuchin, Mantled Howler, and Brown-throated Three-toed Sloth. Full bird and mammal checklists can be found at the end of the report and be sure to check out our Costa Rica Escape Part I trip for more exciting birding in this fantastic country!

It is hard to beat the cuteness of Black-crested Coquette.

Detailed Report

Day 1, 21^st February 2025. Hotel Bougainvillea and welcome dinner

Some of us had arrived at Hotel Bougainvillea the previous night, so we all decided to meet up in the morning after breakfast for our first taste of birding in Costa Rica, around the hotel grounds. We began to learn some of the more common species of the country like Clay-colored Thrush, Rufous-tailed Hummingbird, Great Kiskadee, and Tropical Kingbird. The highlights of the morning walk had to be a pair of roosting Mottled Owls and a stunning Lesson’s Motmot. The remainder of the day was at everyone’s leisure as we awaited the arrival of the rest of the group. Just before dinner, with the whole group present, we made another loop through the impressive gardens of the hotel. We caught everyone up on what we had seen that morning, plus we added a few other species like Hoffman’s Woodpecker, Brown Jay, Rufous-backed Wren, Melodious Blackbird, and Cinnamon-bellied Saltator. It was time for our first dinner and better introductions, before the real adventure that was to begin tomorrow.

Spotting this Mottled Owl was a great way to begin the trip.

Day 2, 22^nd February 2025. Guacimo Road and Punta Morales

Before breakfast, we took one final lap around the grounds of Hotel Bougainvillea to see if we could turn up any new species. This early morning birding paid off well and we added the tough White-eared Ground Sparrow, Mistletoe Tyrannulet, Boat-billed Flycatcher, and Cabinis’s Wren. Just before we went back inside, a Bicolored Hawk buzzed through the grounds here, a real rarity for the area! After we fueled up, we loaded up the bus and hit the road to begin our exploration of Costa Rica. The remainder of the morning was spent birding the hot and dry Pacific lowlands along Guacimo Road. We birded several spots along the road, varying between dry scrubby areas and more riparian forested areas. It was a fantastic morning, full of great species like White-lored Gnatcatcher, Turquoise-browed Motmot, Nutting’s Flycatcher, Barred Antshrike, Black-headed Trogon, Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl, Zone-tailed Hawk, Squirrel Cuckoo, and Double-stripped Thick-knee. By now, the sun was fully out, and it was getting toasty outside, so we began our drive towards lunch and refreshments. Along the coastal route, we spotted a few more species like Magnificent Frigatebird and Brown Pelican.

After lunch, we headed off for the cocorocas salinas in Punta Morales. These fields looked a bit dry today compared to their normally flooded state, but we still managed some nice birds here like Stripe-headed Sparrow, Royal Tern, Cinnamon Hummingbird, Brown-crested Flycatcher, Morelet’s Seedeater, and Red-legged Honeycreeper. Nearly as soon as we loaded back up to head off, we filed back out as we spotted a little family of White-throated Magpie-Jays moving through the brush. With a little luck we managed to catch up to them and enjoy some nice views of these odd-looking birds. Back on the bus and then back out again, this time for a Spot-breasted Oriole. A little patience was needed but we managed to refind this bird and get everyone a nice look at it. Finally, we made it into the bus and covered some distance to our final birding stop of the day along some side farm roads. Here we managed to hear a Lesser Ground Cuckoo several times but, as expected, the bird did not want to make itself visible for us. No matter, we still managed to spot many other nice species like Streak-backed Oriole, Scissor-tailed Flycatcher, and Black-headed Trogon. From here, we made the drive to our hotel and arrived just in time to drop off our luggage and enjoy a tasty dinner.

The peculiar White-throated Magpie-Jay was enjoyed by everyone.

Day 3, 13^th January 2025. Celeste Mountain Lodge and Heliconias Lodge

This morning began with some leisurely birding from the Celeste Mountain Lodge balcony feeder area while we awaited our breakfast. It is always amazing to be sipping coffee and enjoying the morning birds feasting on fresh fruit. We spotted species like Black-cheeked Woodpecker, Yellow-throated Euphonia, Montezuma Oropendola, Scarlet-rumped and Crimson-collared Tanagers, and Buff-throated Saltator. After a tasty breakfast and a little more feeder watching, we headed off to spend the rest of the morning along the trails of Heliconias Lodge nearby. Along the road we got our first taste of toucans for the trip in the form of Yellow-throated and Keel-billed Toucans, plus a White-crowned Parrot and Red-lored Amazon. It was a bit windy this morning, but that didn’t stop us from seeing loads of species at Heliconias. As soon as we walked onto the trail, a Keel-billed Motmot was there to greet us. We all walked under its branch, waving “Hi” as we went by. Not far from there we heard a key target and luckily managed to spot one deep in the forest, perched way down low. It took some effort, but we all managed to see the small Tody Motmot before it disappeared. This was a great sign of birds to come and, after spending several hours here, we tallied over 40 species including some nice ones like Green Shrike-Vireo, Scaly-crested Pygmy-Tyrant, Olive-backed Euphonia, White-ruffed Manakin, Rufous Mourner, Wedge-billed Woodcreeper, and Spotted Antbird. We were officially tired. Time for lunch and a short break back at Celeste Mountain Lodge.

We reconvened for a little bit of pre-dinner birding in the early evening hours. Near the lodge we managed to spot a few new species for the trip like Bay Wren, Grey-capped Flycatcher, and Rufous-winged Tanager. The rest of the time we spent birding the roadside near Tapir Valley. These couple of hours proved to be quite fruitful, with several great species like King Vulture, Broad-billed Motmot, Bicolored Antbird, Giant Cowbird, Green Honeycreeper, Long-tailed Tyrant, Crested Guan, and Purple-crowned Fairy. A great cap to a great day of birding!

This Keel-billed Motmot perched over the trail and allowed us to walk under it.

Day 4, 14^th January 2025. Tapir Valley and transfer to Caño Negro

Today was an early start as we headed to Tapir Valley across the street, for a little optional pre-breakfast birding. It was a calm morning as we investigated a few flowering areas and found some nice species like Slate-headed Tody-Flycatcher, Green Hermit, Violet-headed Hummingbird, and Golden-winged Warbler. We headed back to the lodge for breakfast, more coffee, and to meet up with those who had stayed back this morning. After filling up, we spent the rest of the morning really exploring the grounds of Tapir Valley. It was an incredible morning of birding, with well over 50 species spotted. We began near some flowers, with a few great hummingbird species like Blue-throated Goldentail and Black-crested Coquette, plus a Mealy Amazon off in the distance. We then hiked the nice trails to the feeder station established here. We spent some time here and were treated to close-up views of many great species like Great Curassow, Collared Aracari, Chestnut-headed Oropendola, Yellow-throated and Keel-billed Toucans, and Yellow-throated Euphonia. A whole band of White-nosed Coati were also checking out the feeders and causing a ruckus from time to time. After we got our fill of the feeders, we hit the trails. Along our walk we noted many new species for the trip list like Rufous-tailed Jacamar, Bat Falcon, Cinnamon Woodpecker, Gartered Trogon, White Hawk, and Golden-hooded Tanager. It was a great morning spent at Tapir Valley but, sadly, it was time to have lunch, load our luggage, and move on to our next location.

The camouflage of the Great Potoo makes it difficult to spot at times.

It was a longer drive from here to Caño Negro, so we made several stops along the way anytime there was good birding to be had. Some of the top highlights along the way included Pied Puffbird, Olive-throated Parakeet, Black-headed Trogon, and Groove-billed Ani. As we got close to the river, we had some time for birding along the water’s edge and picked up several new species like Little Blue Heron, White Ibis, Bare-throated Tiger-Heron, Mangrove Swallow, and Spot-breasted Wood-Wren. Then a local birder took us down an ally to show us a roosting Great Potoo that he had found earlier in the day. It was fantastic to watch this incredible bird camouflage and sun itself in the tree. After this, we made it to Caño Negro lodge and got checked in. Some of us opted in for a little pre-dinner birding along the Rio Frio while others chose to hang back, relax, and enjoy the lodge. This short evening walk yielded several great species with the best being a sighting of a Green-and-Rufous Kingfisher, a tough species to find. Other species included Greenish Elaenia, American Pygmy Kingfisher, Northern Jacana, Green Heron, and Dusky-capped Flycatcher. We enjoyed a tasty dinner together back at the lodge and then again there was an optional night birding session for those who wanted to explore more. Our owl-prowl netted us a stunning Black-and-White Owl on a telephone pole as well as a Pacific Screech-Owl feasting on a giant water bug. It was a great feeling to nail a few birds in the dark before bed.

Day 5, 15^th January 2025. Boat rides at Caño Negro and Medio Queso

Boat day! The exciting plans for the day included two boat rides, one in Caño Negro and the other at Medio Queso, but first was birding via land around the lodge and surrounding area. The feeding station at the lodge hosted a few nice species like Grey-headed Chachalaca, Scarlet-rumped Tanager, and Red-legged Honeycreeper. Our walk around the town netted us some good birds like Yellow-bellied Elaenia, Slaty-tailed Trogon, and Roadside Hawk. It was time to board the boat for our trip along the river and what a spectacular time it was. Even the docks produced a great sighting of Proboscis Bat, what an odd mammal. Our three-hour river cruise was full of so many waterbirds, raptors, and even some forest species. We tallied over 60 species this morning, with kingfishers and herons everywhere we looked. Too many highlights to name them all, but a few were Sungrebe, Boat-billed Heron, Wood Stork, Jabiru, Tricolored Heron, Bare-throated Tiger-Heron, Crane and Black-collared Hawks, Ringed, Amazon, American Pygmy, and Green Kingfishers, Olivaceous Piculet, and Nicaraguan Grackle. What a morning!

We headed back to the lodge for lunch and to finish packing our luggage. We loaded up the bus and headed off towards boat ride number two for the day, at Medio Queso wetlands. Along the way, we stopped and birded the roadside along some impressive fields and wetland habitat. These efforts were quite fruitful and netted us several new species for the trip, including some seriously good ones like Nicaraguan Seed-Finch, Red-breasted Meadowlark, and Yellow Tyrannulet. By mid-afternoon we arrived at the docks for our next boating adventure. We loaded up and set sail around the wetlands of Medio Queso. It wasn’t long before we had our first highlight of this trip, a Pinnated Bittern, hiding in the reeds near the boat. This tough to see species is always a treat to get. We continued along, ticking more and more species as we went, including Purple Gallinule, Least Grebe, Green-breasted Mango, Northern Jacana, Snowy Egret, and Canebrake Wren. Once we had the vast majority of water species nailed down, we shifted our attention to the scrubby habitat for songbirds. We picked up several good species like Grey-crowned Yellowthroat, Fork-tailed Flycatcher, Orchard Oriole, Yellow Warbler, and Slaty Spinetail. Of course, we always had one eye to the sky in this area and eventually one of the many Turkey Vultures turned into a Lesser Yellow-headed Vulture for us. It was finally time to head back after a long and productive day on the waters. Boat day was a huge success! We made the long drive to our next lodge, supper, and some much-deserved sleep.

Our boat trip managed to score many highlights like this Pinnated Bittern.

Day 6, 16^th January 2025. El Arenal Observatory Lodge and trails

We began today at the feeders of El Arenal Lodge before breakfast. It’s always nice to let the birds come to you as you stand there and enjoy them. These feeders and observation platform hosted loads of birds this morning, like Bay-headed, Emerald, Silver-throated, and Black-and-Yellow Tanagers, White-throated Thrush, Grey-capped Flycatcher, Scarlet-thighed Dacnis, and Baltimore Oriole. After breakfast, we began our adventure around the massive property that is El Arenal. The plan was to spend the entire day birding the various areas and trails on offer here. The flower and garden area was full of different hummers like Bronze-tailed Plumeleteer, Crowned Woodnymph, Green Thorntail, and Brown Violetear. This more open area also netted us Swallow-tailed Kite, Masked Tityra, and Piratic Flycatcher. We continued along into the deeper more forested habitat, where the birding was a bit more difficult as the birds tended to stay more hidden. With some effort and patience, we managed to spot several great species like Cinnamon Becard, Dull-mantled Antbird, Russet Antshrike, Tawny-faced Gnatwren, and Smoky-brown Woodpecker. On our way out, we heard the loudest Thicket Antpitta calling, but despite our best efforts, it remained a heard only species for us. In total, we had an amazingly productive morning of birding and tallied 77 species before it was time to have a lunch break.

The afternoon had us back on the trails of El Arenal, but a different area this time. Things were a bit slow at this time of day compared to the morning, but that didn’t stop us from adding new species to our trip list like Black-headed Saltator and Broad-winged Hawk. Our final stop was along a river crossing where we scanned the water’s edge and rocks and turned up several great species like Black Phoebe, Fasciated Tiger-Heron, and Green-fronted Lancebill. It was time to call it quits after a long day of hiking and birding, so we headed for dinner and then to the hotel to catch some sleep.

It is hard to beat the stunning Emerald Tanager.

Day 7, 17^th January 2025. Bogarin Reserve and Arenal Dam Road

After breakfast at a local restaurant in town, we headed over to Bogarin Reserve to spend the morning birding. Just outside the entrance we spotted a White-throated Crake in the small puddle along the edge of the parking lot. This tiny bird, which is typically secretive, allowed us all some excellent views and was a good sign for how this day was going to go. Inside the reserve, we spent some time at the feeders. These were loaded with birds like Orange-chinned Parakeet, Melodious Blackbird, Golden-hooded Tanager, Cinnamon-bellied Saltator, and even a White-winged Becard stopped by for a visit. After some relaxing time here, we ventured out along the many trails here. Not far from the feeders were a pair of Brown-throated Three-toed Sloths, our first ones for the trip, these are always exciting! Our hike yielded plenty of good birds such as Broad-billed Motmot, Cocoa Woodcreeper, Ochre-bellied Flycatcher, Bright-rumped Attila, Wood Thrush, and Orange-billed Sparrow. A roosting Black-and-White Owl was great for those who hadn’t gone out on the owl-prowl on a previous evening. We circled back round to the feeder station and rested a bit there, soaking up more of the relaxed birding, before venturing off onto some trails on the other side of the park. More trails meant more new species for the day and even a few for the trip. Highlights on this side of the park included Kentucky Warbler, Thick-billed Seed-Finch, Chestnut-backed Antbird, Fasciated Antshrike, Streak-headed Woodcreeper, and Rufous-tailed Jacamar. By now, the morning was gone, and we had racked up a nice list of species, so we headed off to the restaurant next door to enjoy some lunch and refreshments.

After lunch, we took a little break in the afternoon to enjoy the hotel and get some rest before heading off for more birding, this time along the Arenal Dam road. It was a lovely afternoon for roadside birding and we started off strong with Keel-billed and Broad-billed Motmots, White-fronted Nunbird, and Pale-billed Woodpecker right at the start of our walk. Some sections of the road were very slow with little to no activity, but occasionally things picked up and we got into nice mixed flocks with species like Chestnut-sided Warbler, Gartered Trogon, Great Antshrike, Bay Wren and Rufous-winged Woodpecker. Towards the end of our walk there was a great viewpoint with a lot of open sky, this allowed us to spot a distant Orante Hawk-Eagle soaring over the trees, as well as a pair of Black-cowled Orioles foraging in a distant flower tree. The final highlight of the day came in the form of a Grey-headed Kite which cruised across the road. We hurried up and managed to spot it as it ate a lizard and gave us some prolonged views. What a stunning bird to finish a fantastic day full of birds and wildlife!

Brown-throated Three-toed Sloth was a top mammal highlight.

Day 8, 18^th January 2025. San Ramon, San Luis Canopy, and back to San Jose

Our final full day had a lot of ground to cover and birds to see, so we hit the road very early to arrive in the San Ramon area just after sunrise. Here we birded a local guide’s feeders for a bit and noted White-crowned Parrot, Common Chlorospingus, and Rufous-collared Sparrow,before heading off for breakfast. After we ate and got properly caffeinated, we set off for our main target for the day. Thankfully our local guide and friend had a good track of these birds and their preferred lekking areas and times, so we didn’t have to wait long until we heard the unique call of a Three-wattled Bellbird. We continued to hike down towards its lekking tree and there it was in all its strange glory. We watched and enjoyed it for a while until the birds moved on to their next lek area. On our way out, we stumbled into an amazing mixed flock of birds with so many species that it was difficult to keep up with everything. There was Coppery-headed Emerald, Golden-olive Woodpecker, Red-faced Spinetail, Philadelphia Vireo, Ochraceous Wren, Tawny-capped Euphonia, Mountain Thrush, Tropical Parula, Slate-throated Whitestart, Blackburnian Warbler, and more! What a flock, and just like that, they were gone, and so we moved on as well. We spent the rest of the morning hiking out to another lek location and enjoyed another Three-wattled Bellbird as well as a Sulphur-bellied Flycatcher. This was a longer and more strenuous hike so by the time we returned to the bus, it was time to head off to San Luis Canopy to relax and bird at their feeders and enjoy some lunch.

The feeders here were absolutely loaded with amazing birds and photographic opportunities. Some of the most colorful and beautiful species of the trip were so close and eye level, species such as Emerald, Bay-headed, Crimson-collared, and Silver-throated Tanagers, Chestnut-capped Brushfinch, and Black-cheeked Woodpecker all put on a show. The main attraction of these feeders was Blue-and-Gold Tanager, a difficult species that does not visit feeder stations often. What a highlight! After we ate lunch, we ventured down the trail to a different area of the park, where we spotted more great species like Green Hermit, Green-crowned Brilliant, and Black-headed Nightingale-Thrush. This was the perfect last stop of the day and just what we needed after some tough hiking in the morning. We began the long, traffic-filled journey back to San Jose, but of course we had to stop for one last bird when we spotted a Laughing Falcon perched along the road. It didn’t stay long, we loaded back up and made it back to the city and near to the airport. We enjoyed our final dinner together at the hotel and shared our favorite bird sightings of the trip.

It was incredible to watch this Three-wattled Bellbird call and display!

Day 9, 19^th January 2025. Departure from San Jose

Our trip concluded this morning with transfers from the hotel to the San Jose airport. Those who had later flights had a little time to bird the hotel grounds and enjoyed species like Cinnamon Hummingbird, Lineated Woodpecker, and Spot-breasted Oriole. This final bit of birding wrapped up a great tour of Costa Rica, full of fantastic birds, mammals, and memories!

Bird List – Following IOC (14.2)

Birds ‘heard only’ are marked with (H) after the common name, all other species were seen. Species seen only on the pre-trip day of this trip are marked with (+) after the common name.

The following notation after species names is used to show conservation status following BirdLife International: CE = Critically Endangered, EN = Endangered, VU = Vulnerable, NT = Near Threatened.

Mammal List

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