Two Mega Reasons for a Last Minute Target Trip to Costa Rica!
Any time of the year is good for birding in Costa Rica! It's true, while most birders visit during the high season, there's fantastic birding in Costa Rica, all year long.
Once in a while, the birding can also take a sudden turn for the better. There might be a fruiting tree that attracts cotingas, reliable Bare-necked Umbrellabirds, or maybe even good chances at seeing Black-crowned Antpitta. Other megas can also appear, two of which would make an excellent excuse for a last minute target birding trip to Costa Rica.
This past week, we have had reliable sightings of two such birds!:
Rufous-vented Ground-Cuckoo
At the Pocosol Research Station, once again Rufous-vented Ground-Cuckoos have been showing. As usual, they have been seen with Army Ants but even better, there have been two adult birds with a juvenile!
Check out this video showing an adult feeding a youngster!
Although nothing's ever guaranteed in the world of birding, if this situation is anything like the mega Rufous-vented Ground-Cuckoo twitch we had there last time, these birds could hang around. On a recent visit, they were even seen right next to the main building!
Since this shy species has a big territory, we don't know if they'll by right in that same spot but it's certainly possible. Much more likely is locating Army Ants and then seeing the ground-cuckoos using the ant swarm. In the past, similar situations have resulted in many walk away views and fantastic photos of this mega.
Not to mention, Pocosol can also good for Yellow-eared Tocuanet, Black-headed Antthrush (near certain future split), Bare-necked Umbrellabird, and many other choice birds.
Gray-bellied Hawk
This rare raptor is the second mega reason for doing a last minute birding trip to Costa Rica. Recently, an adult has been showing in northern Costa Rica and has been on more than one occasion. It's even been seen eating a recently caught tinamou!
Note that this picture is so recent, we didn't even have time to download it!
This and the other photo of Gray-bellied Hawk were taken by Didier at Laguna del Lagarto.
This bird is a rare visitor to Costa Rica but could stay at this spot for longer. We sure hope so but even if it doesn't, there will still be fantastic birding and photo opportunities for toucans, parrots, macaws, tanagers, and lots more! Not to mention, there will also be chances at the Tawny-faced Quail along with other rare species.
Oh, and yes, we also have a reliable spot for the umbrellabird. A combination ground-cuckoo, umbrellabird, and Gray-bellied Hawk sounds like a good excuse for birding in Costa Rica right now (along with Paint-billed Crake and a few hundred other birds).
If you can get away for a week, now would be the best time to see these rare birds in Costa Rica. For more details, contact us at sharpbill@lifertours.com
Until then, we'll see what other birds we can find, happy birding!