Field trip reports: Costa Rica May 19 – 30, 2026
By Patty Cheek
Photo by Patty Cheek
Long-tailed Silky Flycatcher that was posing with the hummingbirds …and Linda Griesbach.
Our bird trip started the evening of May 19. Most of us had arrived earlier by several days. Roger Melendez Peria had dinner with us and then gave a talk about the trip showing us the regions of Costa Rica, weather we could expect, and then had each of us talk a little about ourselves. We bonded like a bevy of quail and felt like family members from then on.
Photo by Vincent Ho
Long-tailed Silky Flycatcher
Roger was eager to get going early, like 6 am, and being chicks eager to learn, we’d grab our coffee, binocs and head on out. There were six of us who had been on one of Roger’s tours before and four new ones in the group. We had lots of energy before the heat and length of the trip took its toll.
In all, we saw 256 species of birds! That’s incredible and it was because of Roger’s expertise in locating birds, seeking them out, and being sure each of us saw them. He also had a professional naturalist’s knowledge not only of birds but also of other animals and plant life. He spoke on other topics including the culture and politics.
The first day, we saw 70 species in all – Blue-vented Hummingbird, Costa Rican Swift, Scaly-breasted Hummingbird, Piratic Flycatcher, Yellow-green Vireo, Yellow-crowned Euphonia, Blue-black Grassquit, Striped-cuckoo, and others. We went on a boat tour of the Tárcoles River and were able to see Wood-Stork, Great Egret, White Ibis, Tiger Heron, Gray-cowled Wood-rail, Northern-Jacana, Magnificent Frigatebird, American Pygmy Kingfisher, Ringed Kingfisher, and Northern Black-throated Trogon. We saw a baby croc, too. Yipes!
Later we arrived at the Macaw Lodge, a lodge in architectural round form. Wow! the Gray-cowled Wood-rails were the noisiest. Purple Gallinule, Bare-throated Tiger Heron, Green Heron, Green Ibis, and Muscovy Duck also chattered away. They were noisy when foraging and woke us up in the mornings somewhere between 4 and 5 a.m. Macaw was an open-air lodge and we got lots of Coati coming in. They would play in the trees and then wander in and come up nearly to our legs. Amazing creatures!
This was only the early part of the trip and I can only mention a few birds we saw. The place that gave us a great deal of pleasure was Los Quetzales where we able to be among what seemed like zillions of hummingbirds – Lesser, Talamanca, Fiery-throated, and VolcanoHummingbirds. It was such fun because Roger took down a hummingbird feeder and placed it on his head. Lots were flying around his head. Then, he allowed each of us to hold the feeder with one hand and put our other hand to have them land on us. We all had pictures taken of us. At one point, there was a Fiery-throated H. that landed on my iPhone while I was trying to photograph him. It was joyful and ecstatic. We were also treated to a Long-tailed Silky Flycatcher that was posing with the hummingbirds.
We searched for the Resplendent Quetzal, but it didn’t happen.
Photo by Vincent Ho
Respendent Quetzal.
The next morning those of us who were willing to get up and go out, groan, at 4:30, were going to see the Quetzal. Roger was determined and, indeed, we saw it. It was magnificent! It was an emotional time because this was a once-in-a-lifetime moment.
We were able to see Toucans, Trogons, and a special little bird – a Red-breasted Meadowlark.
All in all, I can say that the tour was fantastic and all 10 of us had a joyful trip. It was hard at times because it was so hot and humid but we want to go back. Just not in May. If you’d like to organize a trip or find one to join, please contact Roger Melendez Pereira.
