Panama: The Highlands

Panama is a not so up and coming birding destination. Costa Rica, Belize, and the Yucatan get all of the buzz for neotropical birding, but Panama has always been that “hot take: visit this place instead” country when it comes to birding. There isn’t a real mainstream tourist draw that sets it apart.

But that creates opportunities! While Panama may not attract a ton of tourists relative to its neighbors, it offers incredible birding at a discount. The Darien region offers the best Central American chance at Harpy Eagle, as well as representing the far northern limit for many South American birds that cannot be found farther north. It shares the Talamanca Highlands with Costa Rica, as well as offering its own interesting habitats.

Resplendent Quetzal

This trip was extra special because it was my dad’s first birding trip outside of Texas. Being the great dad he is, he started paying attention to nature at least partially as a way to connect with his son. He went from rolling his eyes at my early birding adventures to now co-leading walks with me at the Trinity River Audubon Center. It was time to get this man to the neotropics, and after some expressed early apprehension he decided to go to Panama!

We arrived late in Panama City and got into a taxi, which once again reminded me how much I hate Latin American airports (shoutout to the Cancun airport for scarring me). They really overwhelm me, but after that it was smooth sailing! We had a quick morning in Panama City before we were set to fly out to David and visit the highlands, where I really wanted to get my dad a quetzal.

Our final destination was Mt. Totumas Cloud Forest Reserve, a 2 hour drive from David in northern Panama. The elevation is slightly lower than when I was in Savegre in Costa Rica, so there was a chance to get some new birds. After a great birding morning we were off. The flight was easy, but the drive was BRUTAL. The last 45 minutes is spent driving about 5 mph up the bumpiest road I have ever been on. The car sickness was unreal, but we did get a Common Paraque as consolation at night.

View from the deck at Mount Totumas

But wow was it worth it. The reserve has a bougie lodge that does not have bougie prices, with mouth watering food. With 40 kms worth of trails we were sure to be kept busy, and it was really hard to sleep due to excitement.

Every morning at about 7 AM the owner gets up and puts out food at a blind. The result is something out of a dream. Birds were everywhere. The first one we saw was the dazzling Silver-throated Tanager, but there was only a moment to enjoy it as there were tons of birds flying. Yellow-thighed Finch jumped out, but above there was a Summer Tanager! AH! Birding overload! Every few minutes another bird came in, from wintering Tennessee Warblers to Violet Sabrewings. You could tell there was an elevation change, as in Savegre I was seeing Sooty-capped Chlorospringus but at Mt. Totumas the dominant species was Common.

Silver-throated Tanager

As we waited for breakfast to be served we walked down to a set of hummingbirds that made the chaos we just witnessed at the main feeders feel calm. I thought I was going to have seizure watching all of the colors dance around me. Violet Sabrewing and Talamanca Hummingbird dominated, but we also had Magenta-throated Woodstar and Snowy-bellied Hummingbird among others.

Bad pics of quality birds, Panama Edition: Violet Sabrewing

It felt criminal to walk away from such a show, but right before breakfast I had a chance for my most wanted highland lifer at lodge’s feeders a short walk up the road. While loads of hummingbirds were up there as well, we weren’t really focused on them. This was our best shot at Red-headed Barbet. In a concert-like fashion, it did not show up early, letting the opening acts start the show. But fortunately the opening acts kept us plenty entertained. Flame-colored Tanagers got us starting off strong. I couldn’t help but reflect on how the Panamanian birds were so great that a Flame-colored Tanager was only considered an opening act. White-naped Brushfinch lurked below us, and nobody except for me really paid attention to it, another reminder of incredible the birding is down there.

Flame-colored Tanager

Just as we were sitting down to eat the Red-headed Barbets came in and started feeding. Even the female, the less colorful of the 2, was nothing short of incredible. We were really lucky to get fantastic views and shots of this bird.

Red-headed Barbet

The plan for the first day in the highlands was to take the main loop, the Big Tree Loop, and see what all we could see. The next day we were scheduled to go with a guide to look for quetzals and get to a higher elevation, where Spangle-cheeked Tanager and Prong-billed Barbet were more likely.

Female Red-headed Barbet

It was hard to see birds within the dense forest, but we stopped at clearings as much as we could in order to scan. The birds were still there, we just had to look for them! But honestly, I didn’t care too much about the birding activity this morning as I was really enjoying just being outside with my dad. Besides, the feeders produced so many new birds already that no matter what it was going to be a successful day.

Magenta-throated Woodstar

The first clearing produced a hot discussion point for the rest of the trip: cats. Jaguars are occasionally seen on site on game cameras, as are ocelots, jaguarundi, margay, and oncilla. Tapirs are out there as well. Our chances of seeing one were low, but it was still exciting to think about. Discussion quickly stopped as Spot-crowned Woodcreeper flew in, followed by Black-throated Green Warbler and Mountain Thrush.

Bat Falcon

My dad has an obsession with monkeys, and Mount Totumas offered a great opportunity to get 3 species. We were still on the trail as noon approached and birding really ground to a halt, which is to be expected. But a loud rustling in the tree above us gave us our first look at Central American Spider Monkey! Mark finally got to see a wild monkey, and watching him soak it in was as much fun as watching the monkey itself.

Central American Spider Monkey

That was not the only monkey we got to see that day. At the end of our walk we heard the roaring of Howler Monkeys and got brief glimpses of a few. Hearing one is one of nature’s best sounds. The booming call can be heard from far away and it makes the hair on the back of your neck stand up. We would end up seeing plenty during our time in Panama and it never got old to hear them.

Meeting his kin

At this point the day had been a raging success, but it was not over. On our way back to the lodge I got Northern Emerald Toucanet! Frustratingly I once again failed to get a picture of one, but that is a small price to pay for getting to see one. The loop was about 4 miles and at the elevation we were at it was quite tiring. We needed to rest up for tomorrow!

Howler Monkey

It was hard to sleep that night as I was both nervous and excited. Quetzals are one of the coolest birds on Earth, and the primary reason we came to Mount Totumas. This bird is so gorgeous that the famous Mesoamerican god Quetzalcoatl is associated with them, and for good reason. Having seen them in Costa Rica, I can attest to the magical feeling that one gets when being in their presence. To some people, a bird that is not a lifer is not as magical. That is not the case here.

Summer Tanager

Quetzals are altitudinal migrants, and therefore at this time of the year we had a very low chance at seeing one. But people that had gone out with the guide at the lodge had found a few. They would be much more common in mid-January, but mid-December was the only time we could go. It was a gamble.

Collared Trogon, a member of the same family as Quetzals

We woke up to an overcast, windy day. It was somewhat chilly. The birds at the feeder were still out and we added new trip birds like Louisiana Waterthrush and Spotted Wood-Quail. We scarfed down breakfast in order to meet with our guide, Reinaldo Rodriguez, as early as possible. We were expecting to climb the trail into La Amistad National Park, but as we approaching on the trail we ended up taking a trail that went downhill. I was really nervous, but this is why I am not the guide. As it turns out there was just enough food for a few to stick around, and Reinaldo starting listening. He familiarized us with the call and we patiently waited while he played the call.

Louisiana Waterthrush

15 minutes went by and nothing but silence. I’m not going to lie I was on edge. It seemed like our best chance at finding one was to get as high up as possible. Remember, I am an idiot. Out of nowhere a quetzal squawked! It was on. After that call there was a few minutes of silence, but the canopy was thin enough to allow us to see a bird of that size move. He was here somewhere. Then another loud call! It was on top of us, but they blend in so well with the trees. It wasn’t there, but then, almost magically, it was there! RESPLENDENT QUETZAL!

Not only was it a male, but it was right out in the open and we got perfect looks. The crest, the emerald back, the red chest, and every other little detail was on full display. There are not words to describe such a sight. I have to confess that I planned for this to happen for my dad. A quetzal is a hell of a spark bird for someone. Colima Warbler, while still great, is unlikely to have the same impact as a quetzal will.

Brown Violetear

Resplendent Quetzal was my only real target bird for the trip. You can throw Red-headed Barbet in I guess. Of course, I hoped to get many other birds, but I was not targeting anything else. For example, I hoped to get some antbirds and manakins on Pipeline Road, but there wasn’t a single species that I just had to see. Getting the quetzal and barbet left me with a really relaxed feeling that I felt in Argentina to a much lesser extent, as there were still some pretty big target birds when we went down there. It is really fun to just enjoy birding and not focus on targets, which after reflecting a lot on it I will try to do on future trips.

Spot-crowned Wood-Quail

And to think that we still had 2 more hours to walk around. We got great looks at Black-faced Solitaire, Flame-throated Warbler, and Golden-bellied Flycatcher among many others. Having a guide who can bird by ear in the neotropics is an absolute game changer, and you know how I feel about personally hiring guides. Reinaldo was an incredible guide who was picking up calls we would have missed without him.

The afternoon was just as great. While my dad rested his achilles each afternoon I opted to sit out by the hummingbird feeders to soak up the birds. The common Talamanca Hummingbirds and Lesser Violetears were everywhere, but there were new surprises every day. The first afternoon I got a brief look at a male Long-billed Starthroat with the baby blue face and pink throat. The next day we had a bat falcon perched in a tree!

Talamanca Hummingbird

I initially hoped that Mount Totumas would yield Collared Redstart, but the lodge itself was too low. Instead, it produced fantastic encounters with Slate-throated Redstart. Before I became a more international birder this was one of the best sightings of my life when I climbed Boot Canyon with TJ and Gordon in Big Bend. 13 miles worth of effort and now I’m easily seeing them.

Slate-throated Redstart

We had one final day at Mount Totumas, and it was going to be an exciting one. After not going up the trail to La Amistad NP with Reinaldo, we opted to climb this steep trail in order to get Prong-billed Barbet, Spangle-cheeked Tanager, Collared Redstart, and many other higher elevation birds were all possible.

Lesser Violetear

Unfortunately, it was raining. We thought it would blow over and began our ascent. It never did. We saw few, if any birds. Sounds like a bad day, right? Wrong, it was actually a highlight. We squished along, hiking steep hills that never seemed to end. Our feet got wetter crossing a stream that turned into another hill. We kept looking for the elusive marker of a homesteader’s abandoned car. After finding it we were rewarded with more steep hills. But we did notice the trees changing and we could tell we had climbed a ton of elevation. We were nearing where we wanted to be.

Mark on the trail

Time was running out, though. It was nearing the point where we had to turn around in order to head back to Panama City. We gave it 20 more minutes. Each turn revealed more uphill hiking. Dad said we probably should stop. Honestly, I agreed, but we still had 10 minutes before time ran out. I told him I’d hike to the corner and take a look. There was a clearing ahead and a barbed wire fence. We made it!

Yellow-thighed Finch

The clearing opened to what would be mountain peak that was shrouded by thick clouds. Rain was pouring and wind was blowing clouds by us. It was a powerful, emotional sight to see and soak. I felt really small in this moment, overcome by the cloud forest and my surroundings. Mark decided to hit me right in the feels and gave me an emotional “I’m having a really great time in Panama.” I just about started crying. Moments like these are why we go to far flung birding places. The other people at the lodge just hung around, saying it wasn’t worth it to go out. They were wrong.

Mentally I am here

Our trip to the highlands went really smoothly, that is until we got to the David airport and found out that the radar in Panama City was down and our flight was canceled until the next day. It was the lowest point of the trip, considering we were losing a morning at Pipeline Road. My main worry was this delay lasting more than just 1 day, but fortunately after a major hassle getting updates from Copa Airlines we were off!