Talamanca Highlands in Savegre, Costa Rica

After a few days sweating it out in the jungle, it was time to ascend to the Cordillera Talamanca to new habitat, new birds, and hopefully lower temperatures. The cloud forest would have few, if any birds that I saw at La Selva. I stayed at the Savegre Hotel towards the bottom of the Savegre Valley in a town called San Gerardo de Dota, which is a tiny mountain town. The main draw is the Resplendent Quetzal, a revered bird in both current and past Latin American cultures. It is associated with the snake god, Quetzalcoatl, in Mesoamerican mythology and it is very easy to see why with its iridescent green back and up to 20 foot long tail feathers. But there are other draws to the area, both avian and non-avian. There are hikes to waterfalls, a flowing river, and world class trout fishing. Cramming everything into 2.5 days would be tough.

Female Resplendent Quetzal

I got a tip to stop at Miriam's feeders higher up in the valley. This restaurant had both amazing food and a great feeder setup. Sitting outside I quickly got Rufous-collared Sparrow, Flame-colored Tanager, and Acorn Woodpeckers. Talamanca Hummingbirds buzzed everywhere, and in my red shirt I even had a few get inches from my face. A flash of green revealed another sought after species: Northern Emerald Toucanet, causing my jaw to nearly hit the floor. But it somehow was not the star of the show. There was only one bird that could top that, and it made the whole trip worth it. Quetzal. That's right, I had a quetzal fly by just long enough for me to get a view of it. It was gone in an exhilarating flash, but I could not get over it. I was very lucky, of course I wanted to see more and get longer looks, but now I didn't have to worry about missing it and I could focus on seeing the other species in the area. Here's something crazy: Flame-colored Tanager is one of my most sought after ABA birds and I had been dying to see one. It's insane to think that I saw one and it was nothing more than a mention.

Flame-colored Tanager

Flame-coloreds were all over Savegre, which didn't make them any less stunning. Upon arriving at the hotel I walked past a hummingbird feeder full of a smattering of species. Talamanacas dominated, but there were also White-throated Mountain-gems, Lesser Violetears, and Stripe-tailed Hummingbirds. It was the perfect setup for the next few days.

Lesser Violetear (L) and Talamanca Hummingbird (R)

I had a guide for the next two days, Raul Fernandez, who worked for the Savegre Hotel. I can't recommend him enough. He knew the area really well and taught me a ton, but he made me identify everything and only pointed things out that I was going to miss. Fortunately I pretty much self found everything that we saw together so I don't feel like I cheated. There are fewer bird species in this area of the country, but I think I have to give it the edge over Savegre.

Collared Redstart

We were out at sunrise as a flock of Sulphur-winged Parakeets flew over, being our good omen for the day. The hotel maintains a garden that is very good for hummingbirds, and as Slaty Flowerpiercers worked the flowers we got on of my goal birds for the stay: Fiery-throated Hummingbird. 

Silver-throated Tanager

The steepness of the terrain means there is a variety of species as you reach different elevations, and the trails at the hotel ascended enough for us to get a taste of everything. We found another mixed flock of what seemed like just Sooty-capped Chlorospringus, but it turned into much more. First it was Large-footed Finch. Then it was a Flame-throated Warbler, and it just kept getting better. Collared Redstarts reinforced my love of Redstarts as a group. Then we had a Spangle-cheeked Tanager! This was my #2 behind the quetzal. The tanagers in the tropics destroy even the Scarlet-tanagers of the ABA, and this is a prime example. 

Spangle-cheeked Tanager

As we climbed we got Black-cheeked Warbler and Spotted Woodcreeper, and on the trail to the mirador we hunted for Spotted Wood-quail and Silvery-fronted Tapaculo. Both would be tough to get. We got a flock of the former, which was very cooperative, but only heard the latter. At this point it started raining, as it does in the cloud forest during the rainy season so we had to head in.

Spotted Wood-quail

I had the rest of the day to explore the town, so I did the 2 mile hike through PN Los Quetzales to the waterfalls that Raul advised against. I stupidly didn't listen. The trail is in rough shape past the first waterfall and I should not have hiked it, but I did. There were beautiful scenes and I'm glad I did, but there was a rickety bridge and steep stairs that were partially washed out. On the bright side, I did get Torrent Tyrannulet. There were some serene moments along the stunning river, but you don't care about those, you care about the birds.

Savegre River

After a delicious trout burger and an early bed time I got up even earlier to go higher up the mountains with Raul. Our quarry was Wrenthrush and more looks at quetzals. Wrenthrush is super hard to see, they dart around dense foliage, but we were able to get amazing looks at a few of them. Then we dropped down a little bit to distant looks at female quetzals, eventually getting one within 30 feet of us! Quetzals aren't an uncommon bird in Savegre, so we expected to see more, but that doesn't make it any less special to get to experience one. 

Immature male Resplendent Quetzal

Another male. They are starting to grow their tails that can get to 21 feet long!

We reached a clearing that ended up giving even better looks at quetzals darting between the trees, and these were males with longer tails! We spent an extra hour looking at them they were so stunning. But that's every bird in Savegre. I tend to blow by certain birds at home like cardinals and mockingbirds because they're so common, but even the common, or less visually appealing birds like Tufted Flycatcher, and birds that are so awesome you have to stop for them. 

Tufted Flycatcher

We stopped a curve in the road at a higher altitude and were able to get Black Guan, another sought after bird, as well as Mountain Elaenia, Sooty Thrush, Barred Becard, and Collared Trogon. On our way back down we stopped for Yellow-bellied Siskin, a subspecies of American Dipper, and Blue-and-white Swallow. The rest of the day and final morning was spent walking the trails at Savegre by myself. I was able to self find more quetzals and Green-crowned Brilliant, as well soaking up the cloud forest in the morning sunlight. 

Collared Trogon

Black Guan

Leaving Savegre was really hard. This was a packed week of birding, but it was a blast. Costa Rica is a gorgeous country and super easy to get around in. I heard coming into it that the food was lackluster, which is one of the biggest lies I've ever been told. Usually at the end of trips I am ready to get home, but I could really go for a trout burger or a Tico breakfast right now. My life list got a lot longer as well, I had 140 species while I was down there, 121 of which were lifers. I only scratched the surface of the country, and I will be going back as soon as I can.

The cloud forest

Costa Rican Rainforests at La Selva

 Earlier this month I took a week off of work and spent it exploring Costa Rica. This was my first time out of the country by myself, and after a nightmare in Tulum over 4th of July (a blogpost I am very late on) I was extremely nervous. On top of that, I booked this trip the delta variant got bad, so being that added to nerves. Fortunately, I had nothing to stress about. Costa Rica's biodiversity is off the charts, and early on their government decided to prioritize protecting the country's natural resources and promoting ecotourism. There were no issues at all, even when you account for arranging a Covid test on short notice!

Blue-Gray Tanager

One issue I have when birding is a desire to see everything. I tend to not spend enough time in one place, and as a result I am prone to getting tired and losing focus. It's vacation after all, and I wanted to slow down the pace and enjoy the experience. Instead of driving from one end of the country to another, I opted to pick two places that I knew would have minimal overlap in bird species and habitat and take it slow.

Sloth

The first place I went was the La Selva Biological Station in the Caribbean rainforest in Sarapiqui. This is primarily a research facility full of primary forest, and not many tourists come here. Toucans, tanagers, and all sorts of incredible lowland birds are found here. Labor Day is also the perfect time to go, as there is a slight break in the wet season around this time.

Black-cheeked Woodpecker

The sun starts coming up at 5:30 in the morning, and I was sunscreened up and ready to rock. I wore more clothing at La Selva than I did in Alaska. I'm not trying to get sunburned or eaten alive by mosquitos (the latter of which was nowhere near as bad as I feared). After arriving close to midnight I didn't see anything when I got there, but the sunrise illuminated a stunning rainforest around me. It was time to see some birds!

Scarlet-rumped Tanager

Walking through the garden on my way to the bridge I was floored by the array of gorgeous birds casually hanging out in the busiest part of the station. Violet-headed Hummingbird and Green Honeycreeper were right here in front of me! Amazed, I looked up and saw the bird that drew me to Central America: Golden-hooded Tanager. I had no plans of coming to Costa Rica until I bought Vallely and Dyer's "Birds of Central America" in January. I primarily got it to learn how to identify vagrants to the US, but instead a whole new world opened up, with the star of the show being Golden-hooded Tanager. I desperately wanted to see one, and I had one within 10 minutes of starting out. This was a good omen. 

Golden-hooded Tanager

A large bridge connects the two section of the station over the Puerto Viejo River, and my mind exploded as I soaked in the view. The quiet water rushed by 50 feet below me and I realized how advantageous this was. I was high up, and tops of the trees around me were closer to eye level. Good thing I was up there when I was because a Rufous-tailed Jacamar made a brief appearance.

Pale-billed Woodpecker

As I got my bearings before breakfast I would quickly realize why the rainforest gets so much hype. Birds were everywhere. A Variable Seedeater here, a Blue-gray Tanager there, and...YELLOW-THROATED TOUCAN! Way up in the trees, in perfect light, was a bird that even non-birders go crazy for. Not to be a hippie, but as I admired the toucan I noticed I stopped sweating, I forgot about how far from home I was, and I felt this rush of a high that I have only felt when exploring and experiencing nature at its finest, like at Eeilson in Denali, or at Boot Canyon in Big Bend. All while this is going on, Great Green Macaws (which I only heard, but did not see) were squaking and this absurdly loud, unknown grunt echoed through the trees

Yellow-throated Toucan

.I tend to be very anti-guide. I like to find my own birds, and I think some people overly rely on them. But I did have a guide at La Selva who took me around and taught me all sorts of things about the rainforest. He showed me things I never would have seen, like small group of Honduran White Bats that make their roosts by making banana leaves into a tent. After my experience, I now think everyone should hire a guide on the first day in a new place just to learn more about the environment they're in and to learn the subtle differences between what they're looking at, birds and other animals included. Over the next day and a half I was able to self find pretty much every bird we saw in different locations on the trails.

Orange-chinned Parakeet

What is truly mindblowing was the beauty of the most common birds. Scarlet-rumped Tanagers were everywhere, but looking away felt like a crime. You also couldn't really look away, because they were good indicators that a flock was nearby. I'd heard of mixed flocks before, but to experience one is different beast. I took a seat by a building on my second afternoon near a small clearing, and common birds turned into uncommon sights at every level. Eye-ringed Flatbills perched in the trees with Cinnamon Becards. A Pale-billed Woodpecker silently scooted up the trunk. A Squirrel Cuckoo, which I only had a fleeting glimpse of the day before hung out at the top of a small tree. There were at least 30 species of birds all around me, and I got to follow them as they moved to the trees over the river. That bridge gave me a massive advantage. Here I was, eye level with a Slaty-tailed Trogon and Black-faced Grosbeak. A bird pooped on my head, I didn't even miss a beat. Blue, green, and red birds darted everywhere around me. I almost passed out from excitement. 

Slaty-tailed Trogon

But mixed flocks aren't the only places to see birds. Buff-rumped Warblers guided me down a path near a fast flowing creek that covered up the noise of my footfalls perfectly. Crested Guans in the treetops kept my presence a secret from a pair of Great Curassows on the ground, another tropical bird that shouldn't exist but somehow does. As I entered a botanical study area I got an excellent view of Collared Aracaris, a member of the toucan family that I think may be cooler than toucans themselves. Black-throated and Gartered Trogons were also present, can't believe I'm mentioning those birds as afterthought.

Black-headed Trogon

There is a small marsh that can be quite productive as well, with minimal mosquitos. Green Ibises were lounging in the trees, but it was the Russet-naped Wood-rail that stole the show. Secretive and hard to see, any chance I get at seeing a rail is an opportunity worth seizing. 

Collared Aracari

The birds did not want me to leave and did everything they could to get me to stay. I spent my last morning seeking out any bird I could get, and I got to spend it doing something I always wanted to do: observing parrots. A flock of White-crowned Parrots foraged in a tree above me with a clear view, forcing me to choose between admiring them and a swimming otter below me. Montezuma Oropendolas called out to me as I crossed the bridge one last time, and unfortunately I had to get in the van to go to Savegre.

White-crowned Parrot

I know this is a long post, but this is the pared version. I'm leaving off incredible sightings of Black Hawk-eagle, Snowy Cotinga, Bay Wren, Orange-chinned Parakeet, Blue Dacnis, Cocoa Woodcreeper and so many other species that deserve more than a brief mention. And that's just the birds. Howler Monkeys were everywhere, hanging by their tails. Wild monkeys, you couldn't take your eyes off of them, or miss their echoing howls. An Emerald Basilisk brought me screeching to a halt, and Bullet Ants, supposedly the animal with the most painful bite on earth, kept me eyeing any rail I touched. Caimans patrolled the river underneath the bridge.  And of course, a sloth made me weak in the knees.

Howler Monkey hanging by its tail

Both nights after the afternoon rain I'd walk on the bridge and watch the sunset. The rising fog, cool air, and pink sky of the rainforest was one of the most beautiful sights I'll ever see. I observed 83 species of birds, countless other animals, and was probably seen by at least a few poisonous snakes in the span of 2 days. La Selva was the best way to dive headfirst into a birding trip in Central America, but there was still more to come!

Sunset on the Puerto Viejo River