Just back from Florida

We really enjoy the Algarve at this time of year.  It’s much less crowded with people than it is during the summer months but it’s still full of birds.  Also, the weather is generally rather better than we can expect in the UK with temperatures forecast to be as high as 18°C in the next few days.

Having said that, we do also very much like birding in other parts of the world that have a warm climate and we never turn down an opportunity for some winter birding in the USA.  In November, December and January of the last few years we have led tours for Avian Adventures in California, Arizona, Texas, New Mexico and Florida, often over Christmas and the New Year.  Just like the Algarve these southern states attract countless wintering birds from the north and there’s always a chance of finding something unusual.

This year’s tour in Florida from which we have just returned was most successful and full of interest.  Not only did we record a good selection of birds but there were also butterflies, mammals, reptiles and amphibians to keep us occupied.

 Green Heron

 Osprey

 Reddish Egret

 Loggerhead Shrike

Limpkin

Compared to Arizona, California and New Mexico, Florida isn’t particularly attractive scenically, it’s rather flat and much of it is only a few feet above sea level.  It is the eighth most densely populated of the US states and much of it has been built on.  For all that there is surprising habitat diversity and it still has plenty of wildlife.  The birds include a splendid variety of wetland species, several subtropical specialities some of which occur nowhere else in the USA and many exotics that have either escaped from captivity or been deliberately introduced.  There is just one endemic species, the Florida Scrub-Jay, first officially recognised as a separate species only about 20 years ago and now for many birders one of the main reasons for visiting Florida.

Florida Scrub-Jay (John Cutting)

  White-crowned Pigeon

Apart from the Florida Scrub-Jay, the most notable birds seen during our tour were Snail Kite, White-crowned Pigeon and Limpkin, none of which can be found elsewhere in the USA, Burrowing Owl of the subspecies floridana, which is much darker in appearance than the birds we see in Arizona, the white morph of Great Blue Heron (“Great White Heron“), Vermilion Flycatcher, Worm-eating Warbler and Summer Tanager that are all somewhat scarce in Florida during the winter and Henslow’s Sparrow, a species that neither of us had seen previously.  We also saw two House Finches in the Everglades National Park, a common enough species in the northern part of the state but almost unheard of so far south and the cause of some excitement among the locals.

  Great Blue Heron - white morph

Burrowing Owl

Amongst the mammals the main attraction is West Indian Manatee, which we saw in several different locations.  Nine-banded Armadillo was also popular although most frequently seen as road-kill.  Snakes included the attractive but venomous Pygmy Rattlesnake.  With our emphasis very much on the birds, we paid attention mainly to the larger butterflies such as the potentially confusing Gulf Fritillary, Monarch, Viceroy, Queen and Soldier.  Needless to say, we saw countless Alligators.

 Nine-banded Armadillo

Gulf Fritillary

We were also fortunate to be able to watch the launch from Kennedy Space Centre of the Orion EFT-1.  We joined a small crowd of people at Kennedy Point Park at first light on a rather dull morning to see the rocket lift off and very soon disappear into the clouds.

Lift-off from Kennedy Space Centre

We can thoroughly recommend Florida for a winter birding break.  If it appeals to you, let us know - we are planning another tour there for Avian Adventures in January 2016!

Costa Rica - Part 1

I've just returned from leading an Avian Adventures tour in Costa Rica, my 14th visit to this wonderful Central American country that always seems just full of colourful birds. My locally-based guide and co-leader on this occasion was Jason Horn who I last worked with here back in 2006.

After a first night in the country spent at the Orquideas Inn, just a short drive from the airport, next morning we headed for the Pacific Coast. As usual, we stopped on the way in the town of Orotina where for several years now Black-and-white Owls have been a feature in the small town-centre park. Owls are always popular and not for the first time we were able to get the tour off to a good start.

Black-and-white Owl

Next stop was at the bridge over the Rio Tarcoles where huge American Crocodiles are a regular tourist attraction. Unlike most of the other people who were there, we also found quite a lot of birds, mostly wetland species but also a lovely little Pearl Kite, a bird that is becoming increasingly widespread in Costa Rica.

Central American Crocodile

Our base for three nights was Hotel Vila Lapas and after lunch there we spent the afternoon getting much closer to the egrets, kingfishers, herons and shorebirds by taking a boat trip on the river. This also gave us great views of some of the specialist birds of the mangroves, including Mangrove Vireo and Mangrove Black-Hawk.

Snowy Egret

Yellow-crowned Night Heron

Green Heron

Hudsonian Whimbrel

Collared Plover

The hotel is conveniently located close to Carara Biological Reserve, a 4,700-hectare reserve that occupies a unique position at the transition zone between the dry forests of the northwest and the tropical wet forests of the Pacific lowlands. We spent a full day in Carara where, particularly along the Sendero Natural Laguna Meandrica, the birding was excellent although trogons, woodcreepers, flycatchers, antbirds, manakins and hummingbirds proved to be something of a challenge to those of our group who were in the Neotropics for the first time! Brightly-coloured, wing-snapping Orange-collared Manakins at a lek were most people's favourites. I was just as taken with the rather dull and difficult to see Scaly-throated Leaftosser!

Orange-collared Manakin

Black-headed Trogon

A morning was spent along the road to Guacalillo where at the lagoon an Elegant Tern, a Gull-billed Tern, two Common Terns and several Black Skimmers were found amongst the many Royal and Sandwich Terns and Laughing Gulls. Searching through flocks of gulls, terns and shorebirds isn't everyone's cup of tea but I really enjoy it. Off-shore fishing boats attracted Magnificent Frigatebirds and Brown Pelicans and one or two Brown Boobies.

Spot the Brown Booby!

There was the usual evening excursion to Jacó to find a Striped Owl and, of course, it wasn't hard to find Ferruginous Pygmy Owls during the daytime.

Ferruginous Pygmy Owl

Raptors were also a feature with Turkey, Black and King Vultures, Double-toothed and Plumbeous Kites, White Hawk and Short-tailed Hawk all seen particularly well.

Plumbeous Kite

Short-tailed Hawk

Next - we head north to Hacienda Solimar...