Wildlife Tours to Costa Rica COSTA RICA
Purple-throated Mountain-gem © Papyrus Tours
| Tour Ref. | Days | Dates | Party Size |
Cost |
Leader |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CR1/12 | 16 | Sunday 26th February to Monday 12th March 2012 | 10 plus leader | Est. £3595 (£455)* | TBA |
*Single room supplement
Tour Destinations :
- Hacienda Baru Private Reserve
- Manuel Antonia National Park
- Carrara Biological Reserve
- Guanacaste National Park
- Palo Verde National Park
- Santa Elena Reserve
- Poas Volcano National Park
- Braulio Carrillow National Park
- Finca Chacon
Tour Summary
Costa Rica
In six hours, it is possible to drive from the Carribean coast of Costa Rica, over the Central Highlands to the Pacific coast. In so doing, we would pass through all the major ecosystems in Central America.
By comparison, this Papyrus tour will seek to absorb the amazing natural wealth of this small country at its usual sensible pace where attention to detail, savouring the landscape and treading lightly, are as important as lists of records.
Not that one can fail to encounter a large number of bird species in this amazing country where over 800 species have been recorded in its 52,000 km2 (20,000 sq. miles) – two fifths the size of England. With a small population of about three million, the pressure on natural areas is less than in many parts of the world. The varied topography has endowed the country with a wonderful mosaic of habitats rangingfrom the sub-alpine Paramo above the tree line, through cloud forest, lowland tropical forest, dry savannah and freshwater marshes, to coastal mangroves.
Unlike many of its neighbours, Costa Rica’s democratic Government has preserved peace and stability since its independence in 1821. Particularly significant for the wildlife visitor is Costa Rica’s excellent record in protecting its environment, with 20% of its land area allocated as biological or forest reserves.
Whilst this tour will inevitably concentrate on birds, other aspects of natural history interest together with topography, agriculture and the customs and practices of the country will not be neglected.
Itinerary
Day 1 : Depart for London for San Jose, arriving for dinner and an overnight stay in the city.
Day 2 : Skutch Farm
After breakfast we will depart for the Cerro de la Muerte (Mountain of Death), with its slopes clothed in Alpine plants and offering a vantage point at 11000ft from which it is possible to see both coasts on a clear day. We will hope to see Quetzel here as we make our way to Skutch Farm, a private field study centre which will give us a wonderful introduction to the first of the many interesting birds we hope to see over the next two weeks. Among the species we should find here are Palm, Blue-grey, Golden-hooded, Speckled and Cherrie’s Tanagers, Turquoise Cotinga, Fiery-billed Aracari and Long-billed Starthroat. After spending the afternoon exploring the extensive grounds in search of these and many other species we will stay overnight at San Isidro.
Day 3 : Hacienda Baru
A short morning drive will take us today to Hacienda Baru , a private reserve where we can walk along the tracks giving access to areas of grassland, woodland, ponds and the beach. The reserve offers specialities including Common Potoo, Olivaceous Piculet, Mangrove Cuckoo, Grey-crowned Yellowthroat, Scaly-breasted Hummingbird and Green Breasted Mango. Mammals present include White-throated Capuchin Monkey, Brown throated Three-toed Sloth and Northern Tamandau. We return to San Isidro for overnight.
Day 4 : Manual Antonio National Park
A drive along the Pacific coast takes us to the Manuel Antonio National Park, a superb location with woodland backing the coastline. White-faced Monkeys jump from tree to tree along the beach and Shier Squirrel Monkeys are also to be found here along with sloths and large iguanas on the forest floor. The habitat ensures a good bird list with marine Brown Pelicans, Magnificent Frigatebirds and Brown Boobies complimenting the parrots, Baird’s Trogon, Green Kingfisher, Grey-headed Chachalaca and Golden-masked Tanager on land. Tonight is the first of our two night stay at the Villas Lapas.
Day 5 : Carara Biological Reserve, Rio Tarcoles Estuary
The gardens of Villas Lapas, in a valley by a river, are excellent for birds. Grey Hawk and Laughing Falcon frequent the area and the river attracts egrets, White Ibis, Green and Ringed Kingfishers and Buff-rumped Warbler. Trees play host to Hoffmann’s Woodpecker, Rufous-naped Wren, Rose–throated Becard, Slaty-tailed Trogon, Northern Waterthrush and Blue-grey and Palm Tanagers.
Our day will concentrate on a visit to the Carara Biological Reserve and the Rio Tarcoles estuary. Carara’s forest trail offers excellent bird watching opportunities and among the species we will be seeking are Black-headed and Baird’s Trogon, Crested Guan, Scarlet Macaw, Mealy Parrot, Pale-billed Woodpecker, Ruddy-Quail Dove, Dusky Antbirds, four species of treecreepers, Royal and Dusky-capped Flycatchers, Lesser Elaenia, Orange –billed Sparrow and a lek of Orange-collared Manakins. On the estuary we will hope to see numerous Brown Pelicans, Magnificent Frigatebirds, Neotropic Cormorants, Wilson’s and Semi-palmated Plover, Willet, Hudsonian Godwit, Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs, Western and Least Sandpipers, Laughing Gulls and Turkey and Black Vultures. We return to Villas Lapas for overnight.
Day 6 : Guanacaste National Park
After some early morning birding at Villa Lapas, we will depart for our next reserve, the Guanacaste National Park, an area encompassing both dry tropical forest and rain forest and stretching from the lowlands to the Guanacaste Range. The reserve is home to a wonderful variety of wildlife and the 300 plus species of birds include toucans, bell-birds, peccaries and Sun Bittern. The reserve also has White-tailed Deer, Puma, Jaguar and Tapir although the mammals are notoriously elusive. Our overnight stay is at La Pacifica.
Day 7 : Palo Verde Reserve
We transfer to the Monteverde area today, calling en route at Palo Verde Reserve. The reserve is a large area of dry bush country holding several species of particular note with lots of birds of prey including Osprey, Peregrine Falcon, Short-tailed Hawk, Zone-tailed Hawk, Roadside Hawk, Hook-billed Kite and Crested Caracara . One of the main features of the reserve is a series of lagoons where thousands of waterfowl congregate including Fulvous and Black-bellied Whistling Ducks, Blue-winged Teal, Glossy Ibis, Wood Stork, Great, Snowy and Cattle Egrets, Great Blue and Little Blue Herons, Roseate Spoonbill, Anhinga, Limpkin and Northern Jacana. In the scrub areas we will be looking for Streak-backed Oriole, Inca and Mourning Dove, Common and Ruddy Ground- Doves, Yellow-naped Parrot, Orange-fronted Parakeets, Yellow-fronted Vireos and Cinnamon Hummingbird. Nor should we overlook the mammals present and we will hope to see White-tailed Deer, Northern Tamandua (Anteater) and White-throated Capuchin along with Brown Iguana. We will be staying in the area for three nights at our lodge.
Days 8 and 9 : Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve
We have two days to explore this superb reserve characterised by excellent cloud forest with large tree ferns, many of which are host to epiphytes including mosses, ferns and orchids flourishing in the canopy. Our bird list here should impress as we search for species including Black Guan, Orange-bellied Trogon, Brown-hooded Parrot, Spotted Barbtail, Ruddy Treerunner, Black-striped Sparrow, Plain Antvireo, Chestnut-capped Brush-Finch and the wonderful Resplendent Quetzal. Our walk may also encounter Mantled Howler Monkey and Hoffmann’s Two-toed sloth.
Feeders at the park headquarter’s Hummingbird Gallery will hopefully have Coppery-headed Emerald and Striped Hummingbird along with Violet Saberwing, Green Violet-ear, Green-crowned Brilliant, Purple-throated Mountain Gem and Magenta-throated Woodstar.
On one of the afternoons there will be the opportunity to visit a Butterfly Farm which is set on the side of a wooded valley. Migrant raptors cross over the continental divide here and we will be on the lookout for Swallow-tailed Kite, Turkey and Black Vultures, Red-tailed Hawk and possibly the resident White-tailed Hawk.
Day 10 : Santa Elena Forest Reserve
We depart from Monteverde after breakfast heading back to San Jose and calling in the morning at the Santa Elena Forest Reserve. This reserve is slightly higher than Monteverde and is an area of regenerated forest with a healthy bird population. We will be searching for Black Hawk-eagle, Three-wattled Bellbird, Green Hermit, Ruddy-capped Nightingale-Thrush, Yellow-thighed Finch, Three-striped Warbler, several species of tanager and Spectacled Foliage-gleaner. In the afternoon we continue on the San Jose for our overnight stop.
Day 11 : Poas Volcano
Our morning journey from San Jose takes us to Poas Volcano where, on arrival at the visitor centre, we will walk up to the crater rim which sits at an altitude of 8000ft. At this altitude the birds include Band-tailed Pigeon, Black-and-yellow Silky-flycatcher, Sooty Robin, Sooty-capped Bush Tanager, Large –footed Finch, Mountain Elaenia and both Fiery-throated and Volcano Hummingbirds. The small Poas Squirrel should also be in evidence.
In the afternoon we will continue to La Paz waterfall and the Virgen del Socorro valley. Yet more new bird species should be found here including Smoky-brown Woodpecker, White-collared Swift, White-necked Jacobin, Crowned Woodnymph, Purple-crowned Fairy, Red-headed Barbet, Slate-headed Toady_Flycatcher, Slate-throated Redstart, Green Honeycreeper along with Fasciated Tiger-Heron, American Dipper and Torrent Tyranulet from the river bridge.
Our day concludes with a journey down the Caribbean slope to our base for the next two nights at La Quinta de Sarapiqui.
Day 12 : La Selva Biological Station.
A full day has been allowed for a visit to this location which is operated by the Organisation for Tropical Study. A walk from the car park takes us along a 1km track from which we will immediately begin to see some of the 850 bird species recorded in the 1500ha of grounds here.
Morning and afternoon walks will take us to different parts of the Biological Station and our bird list will hopefully increase as we search for species including Montezuma and Chestnut-headed Oropendolas, Pale-billed Woodpecker, Collared Aracari, Yellow-billed Cacique, Bronzed Cowbird, Yellow-tailed Oriole, Bright-rumped Attila, Black-crowned Tityra, Tropical Gnatcatcher, Cinnamon Becard, Great Tinamou, Bat Falcon, Purple-throated Fruitcrow, Scarlet-rumped Cacique and many, many more.
Nor should we forget that five of the six species of cats, peccaries, agoutis, coatis sloths and Howler and Spider Monkeys are also present. We return to our lodge at La Quinta for overnight.
Day 13 : Braulio Carrillo Forest National Park
Braulio Carrillo is contiguous with La Selva and we will head there after breakfast, concentrating our efforts on the middle and lower forest areas which should produce a good number of species although they may be somewhat elusive in the thick canopy. Golden-hooded and Olive Tanagers, White-throated Shroke-Tanager, honeycreepers, woodcreepers and migrant warblers will all be sought here and the White Hawk is also a possibility.
We will continue on after our visit arriving at Finca Chacon in time for a walk in the grounds before dinner and our overnight stay.
Day 14 : Finca Chacon
Most of our final full day in Costa Rica will be spent exploring this superb location with its riverside tracks and wooded hillsides. In the vicinity of the lodge we will expect to find species including American Dipper, Flame-coloured Tanager, Acorn Woodpecker, Sulphur-winged Parakeet, Dark Pewee, Yellowish and Tufted Flycatchers, Ochraceous Wren, Black Phoebe and Yellow-bellied Siskin. Feeders at the headquarters should attract Magnificent, Flame-throated, Scintillant and Volcano Hummingbirds, Green Violet-ear and White-throated Mountain Gem and Slaty Flowerpiercer should be seen at the heliconias in the garden.
A drive up the hillside after breakfast will take us to the high forest from which we slowly descend for lunch at the lodge. Resplendent Quetzals, Golden-browed Chlorophonia, Buffy Tuftedcheek, Ruddy Treerunner and Rufous-browed Peppershrike could all make it to our list before we head back to San Jose in the afternoon for our last overnight stop.
Day 15 : We transfer from our hotel to the airport to connect with our flight back to the UK.
Day 16 : We arrive back in London.