One of the most wonderful activities in Costa Rica is birdwatching. You can enjoy birdwatching throughout Costa Rica.
Understand
[edit]Due to the great diversity of climates, temperatures and forest types in Costa Rica, there is a wonderful variety of birds, with over 800 species. Southern Costa Rica is generally considered the best option for birdwatching.
Prepare
[edit]Reading
[edit]Some helpful books available on bird-watching are Birds of Costa Rica by F. Gary Stiles and Alexander Skutch (Cornell University Press) or An Illustrated Field Guide to Birds of Costa Rica, illustrated by Victor Esquivel Soto. These books can be found at certain bookstores in San José or before coming to Costa Rica. They are both heavy books; many people tear out the plates of the Stiles & Skutch book to carry into the field and leave the rest of the book in their car or room. Plastic cards with the most common birds are available for many areas and are sold at gift shops.
Most hotels and tourist information centers will provide birdwatching guides, maps and other essentials for bird watching. Unless you are an experienced neotropical birder, it can be a lot more productive to go out with an experienced birding guide.
What to bring
[edit]Do not forget to bring a hat, rain gear, boots, binoculars and camera. In hot areas, an umbrella can be more useful than a poncho or jacket.
Common birds
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- 16 species of parrots including the fabulous scarlet macaw.
- 50 species of hummingbirds.
- 10 species of trogons with the resplendent quetzal as the jewel.
- 6 species of toucans, including the keel-billed and chestnut-mandibled.
- Half the bird species in Costa Rica are passerines including warblers, sparrows and finches.
- 16 species of ducks, including the fulvous whistling, white-faced ruddy and American wigeon.
- 13 species of falcons, including the peregrine falcon, merlin and American kestrel.
- 36 species of prey, including the gray hawk, swallow-tailed kite, solitary eagle and northern harrier.
- 6 species of cracidae which look like turkeys.
- 8 species of new world quails.
- 15 species of rallideas including the rufous-necked wood-rail, American coot and ruddy crake.
- 19 species of owls including the black-and-white, Costa Rican pygmy, Central American pygmy and striped.
- 3 species of potoos including the great, northern and common.
- 16 species of woodpeckers, including cinnamon, chestnut-colored and pale-billed.
Coastal birds
[edit]- 19 species of herons & wading birds such as the great blue heron, great egret, boat-billed heron, reddish egret and yellow-crowned night-heron.
- 2 species of recurvirostraide which are waders and include the black-necked stilt and American avocet.
- 2 species of jacans including the northern and wattled.
- 34 species of scolopacidae including the short-billed dowitcher, spotted sandpiper, wandering tattler, surfbird, and red phalarope.
- 9 species of gulls including the gray, Heermann's and ring-billed.
- 14 species of sternidae (terns) including the gull-billed tern, Forster's tern, least tern and white tern.
- 4 species of vultures including the king vulture.
- 24 species of doves and pigeons.
- 11 species of swifts including the black, spot-fronted and Costa Rican.
- 6 species of kingfishers including the green, Amazon and American pygmy.
- 5 species of threskiornithidaes including the roseate spoonbill and white-faced ibis.
- 2 species of ciconiidae including the wood stork and jabiru.
Destinations
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- 1 Ballena Marine National Park. Has frigate birds, boobies, ibises and pelicans.
- 2 Cahuita National Park. Has toucans, parrots, rufous kingfishers. The park is on the beach.
- 3 Carara National Park. 400 species of birds.
- 4 Corcovado National Park. 400 species of birds and 1,200 scarlet macaws.
- 5 Térraba-Sierpe National Wetland. A myriad of birds along the coast and swamps.
- 6 La Amistad International Park. 500 species of birds including resplendent quetzals.
- 7 La Selva Biological Station. In the Northern Lowlands. Has 420 species of birds.
- 8 Los Quetzales National Park. Around 200 species of birds, and particularly the eponymous resplendent Quetzal.
- 9 Manuel Antonio National Park. 350 species of birds and three lovely beaches.
- 10 Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve. More than 400 species of birds, including resplendent quetzals.
- 11 Palo Verde National Park. Attracts many migratory birds.
- 12 Santa Rosa National Park. Has more than 250 species of birds.
- 13 Tárcoles River. The river's basin is home to 400 species of birds and great river tours highlighting crocodiles.
- 14 Tortuguero National Park. 300 species of birds.
