Our first full day in Caño Negro was all about boat trips. In the morning we went with Andrea from our hotel (Hotel de Campo) around the wetlands.
Prothonotary Warblers were pleasantly abundant.
Snacks
The day before we had met Russet-naped Wood-Rails around the hotel grounds, sometimes drinking from the fountain. The ones along the river seemed a bit more natural.
Crimson-fronted Parakeet
Wood Storks
Steve mentioned we had not yet seen Common Potoo so Andrea took us to a spot off the boat to see one roosting.
So weird.
We made another stop at some wetlands and picked up some trip shovelers and a Peregrine, then back on the boat for more.
Boat-billed Herons
Tropical Gnatcatcher
American Pygmy Kingfisher gettin weird
American Pygmy Kingfisher gettin normal
It's hard to tell how tiny this kingfisher is in photos, but I will assure you that at least twice we saw one and my first thought was warbler. Check out this photo on Flickr from a bird bander to see one in hand.
Bare-throated Tiger-Heron
Amazon Kingfishers working on a nest burrow
Capuchin with no tail
Black-headed Trogon
Gray-headed Kite (with Black Vulture)
Scarlet-rumped Cacique flying out of its nest
Baby iguana
Black Vulture
We had great looks at this three-toed sloth!
Green Ibis
Meso-American slider (Trachemys grayi ssp. emolli per iNat)
We finished the boat tour without seeing one of our target birds, the Agami Heron. At least we saw tons of other stuff! Complete checklist here. Back at the hotel we had lunch and birded around the grounds until it was time for the next boat trip.
Squirrel Cuckoo
Gray-headed Dove
Mistletoe Tyrannulet (right?)
Gray-headed Chachalaca
The only Belted Kingfisher of the trip? Maybe?
Blue Morpho
Variable cracker (Hamadryas feronia)
Finally it was time for our next boat trip at Medio Queso wetland with Chambita, the same guide who had shown us owls and potoos the night before.
Nicaragua in the distance
Bye dog
Purple Gallinule
Amazon Kingfisher with fishy
Nicaraguan Grackle, one of our target birds for this area
Yellow-headed Caracara
Crakes are one of this area's specialties and Chambita was able to get us on a few Yellow-breasted.
If Marsh Wrens and Soras had babies...
Another target for this spot was Pinnated Bittern which I thought would be difficult and we would get typical bittern views. No. They were easy and rather visible.
Fork-tailed Flycatcher
Snail Kites!
Lesser Yellow-headed Vulture!
Pale-vented Pigeon
Canebrake Wren
Another Nicaraguan Grackle
Laughing Falcon
The most common birds on this boat trip were Green Heron and Least Bittern, both flushed constantly from the edges of the river.
Our complete checklist from Medio Queso here.
This was one of my favorite birding days from our trip- so many excellent birds seen well! Good times!!
Prothonotary Warblers were pleasantly abundant.
Snacks
The day before we had met Russet-naped Wood-Rails around the hotel grounds, sometimes drinking from the fountain. The ones along the river seemed a bit more natural.
Crimson-fronted Parakeet
Wood Storks
Steve mentioned we had not yet seen Common Potoo so Andrea took us to a spot off the boat to see one roosting.
So weird.
We made another stop at some wetlands and picked up some trip shovelers and a Peregrine, then back on the boat for more.
Boat-billed Herons
Tropical Gnatcatcher
American Pygmy Kingfisher gettin weird
American Pygmy Kingfisher gettin normal
It's hard to tell how tiny this kingfisher is in photos, but I will assure you that at least twice we saw one and my first thought was warbler. Check out this photo on Flickr from a bird bander to see one in hand.
Bare-throated Tiger-Heron
Amazon Kingfishers working on a nest burrow
Capuchin with no tail
Black-headed Trogon
Gray-headed Kite (with Black Vulture)
Scarlet-rumped Cacique flying out of its nest
Baby iguana
Black Vulture
We had great looks at this three-toed sloth!
Green Ibis
Meso-American slider (Trachemys grayi ssp. emolli per iNat)
We finished the boat tour without seeing one of our target birds, the Agami Heron. At least we saw tons of other stuff! Complete checklist here. Back at the hotel we had lunch and birded around the grounds until it was time for the next boat trip.
Squirrel Cuckoo
Gray-headed Dove
Mistletoe Tyrannulet (right?)
Gray-headed Chachalaca
The only Belted Kingfisher of the trip? Maybe?
Blue Morpho
Variable cracker (Hamadryas feronia)
Finally it was time for our next boat trip at Medio Queso wetland with Chambita, the same guide who had shown us owls and potoos the night before.
Nicaragua in the distance
Bye dog
Purple Gallinule
Amazon Kingfisher with fishy
Nicaraguan Grackle, one of our target birds for this area
Yellow-headed Caracara
Crakes are one of this area's specialties and Chambita was able to get us on a few Yellow-breasted.
If Marsh Wrens and Soras had babies...
Another target for this spot was Pinnated Bittern which I thought would be difficult and we would get typical bittern views. No. They were easy and rather visible.
Fork-tailed Flycatcher
Snail Kites!
Lesser Yellow-headed Vulture!
Pale-vented Pigeon
Canebrake Wren
Another Nicaraguan Grackle
Laughing Falcon
The most common birds on this boat trip were Green Heron and Least Bittern, both flushed constantly from the edges of the river.
Our complete checklist from Medio Queso here.
This was one of my favorite birding days from our trip- so many excellent birds seen well! Good times!!
Very cool! The view of the bottom of the Boat-billed Heron's bill is so bizzare. Definitely aptly named!
ReplyDeleteYes! A bird name that makes sense for once!
DeleteOH my so many wonderful birds, send some of those beauties up here...I just checked my Prothonotary of last yr appeared on May 25 in my radius...so I have a long wait yet!
ReplyDeleteBefore this trip I had never seen a Prothonotary so I am envious you will have them in your 5MR in a couple months!
Delete