South of the Border Birding

By Jim Meyer

Eileen and I flew into Puerto Vallarta, Mexico on January 7 and arrived at the Grand Mayan timeshare late in the evening so no birding was had. Upon rising the next morning, I went out to our veranda on the 4th floor to check out the view and immediately had my 1st lifer-a beautiful Yellow-winged Cacique (Ca-seek-eh) in the top of a Royal Poinciana tree. Scanning the adjacent pond, I spotted my 2nd-a Neotropic Cormorant. Not bad, two lifers in 5 minutes!

After a quick breakfast, we headed to the grounds behind the Mayan and soon picked up our 1st Streak-backed Oriole in another Poinciana tree. The grounds consists of about 8 blocks of lagoons, canals, trees, and swimming pools on the Pacific Ocean with a bonus to the south-the wide Rio Ameca. We also picked up Yellow Warbler, Great Kiskadee, Tropical Kingbird, White-faced Ibis, Willet, Yellow-crowned Nite Heron, Orchard Oriole, Black-necked Stilts, Spotted Sandpiper, Great-tailed Grackle, Green Heron, Brown & White Pelicans, and Collared Plovers on the beach. Whoops, I almost forgot the soaring BV’s & TV’s mixed in with Magnificent Frigatebirds above the adjacent timeshare.

After a great seafood lunch beachside, we decided to join the pool scene since it was about 85 degrees. Eileen went over to check out a jacuzzi within the pool and counted 16 Frigatebirds soaring in front of the Mayan. The record for the week was 20! While enjoying the tubing run and water slide and relaxing poolside, we planned DAY 2 stradegy-be at the Ameca river at daybreak.

As planned, we were on the back 9 holes of the golf course next to the river just after sunrise. We soon got our 1st lifer-a Jacana. What a showoff, when it lands it holds its international yellow wings straight up for about 5 seconds! The river was full of birds-Black & Yellow-crowned Nite Heron, Blue-winged & Cinammon Teals, Coots, Whimbrel, Avocets,Yellowlegs, Long-billed Curlew, Long/Short Billed Dowitchers, many peeps, Royal & Caspian Terns, Black Skimmers and Vermilion Flycatchers. After about a half mile upriver we got stopped by a creek so we decided to walk along it. We immediately picked up a green Kingfisher and two lifers in a bush on the other side-White-collared and Ruddy-breasted Seedeaters. Since the golfers had reached the back nine, we headed back to the beach and picked up our first Groove-billed Ani (actually a pair grooming each other) and Inca Doves in a grassy area.

Having set an alltime record for staying at a Timeshare for two straight days, we decided to head to San Blas, about 150 Km North, for DAY 3. It was a scenic drive with a lot of hills and beachfront areas and we were able to see many raptors along the way-Gray Hawk, Kestrels, Peregrine Falcon, White-tailed Hawk, and a Great Black Hawk. Also, on one beachfront location we picked up the beautiful white-headed, red-billed Heermann’s Gull.

Stopping at a wetland just before San Blas, we saw our first Ringed Kingfisher. The water was teaming with ducks, many egrets and herons, Avocets, and about a hundred Black-necked Stilts while overhead we picked up our familiar site of Frigatebirds soaring. Looking across the street, I noticed many swallows with a white rump and belly. Could this be the Mangrove Swallow that caused such a stir at Viera several years ago? Yes was the answer!

After crossing the San Cristobal river and enteriing San Blas, we decided to check out the “birding pond” before checking into the highly recommended Garza Canela (Cinnamon Heron) Hotel. With no street signs and streets that looked like alleys, it was somewhat challenging but we finally found it. Our first bird was a curious Female Vermilion Flycatcher sallying from a snag. Scanning the pond, we picked up Ruddy Ducks, White-faced Ibis, and Least Grebes. We also had one of the best looks at a Common Black Hawk soon followed by a low flying Sharp-shinned Hawk. But the pond bonus was a Fulvous Whistling Duck sitting in the middle of about 10 Black-bellied Whistlers! Later at the Hotel, an elderly British gentleman told us that he had seen it also-a first for him in his 30 years of birding San Blas!

After a gracious check-in by Josefina, the owner, we went to the Hotels Delfin Restaurant we had heard so much about. Without a doubt, this was to be one of the best lunches I’ve ever enjoyed-shrimp/bacon stuffed Dorado (Mahi Mahi). Josefina had us scheduled for a 3:30 p.m. boat trip departure for Tovaro Springs with Chencho, one of the top bird guides in San Blas.

Upon arriving at the Estero San Cristobal, I noticed a Mexican man standing by his boat waving us down. After a quick introduction, we were heading down the river. Eileen immediately spotted another common Common Black Hawk sitting in a snag just above the river bank along with the everpresent soaring Frigatebirds. However, this time two Frigatebirds were flying about 50 feet above the water and 50 yards to our side. This was the most impressive aerial display I’ve every seen! It was a full-up combat demonstration of how they use the big forked tail and the large bat-like wings. We also later saw a Frigatebird make a great steal on a Cormorant’s fish. It was apparent that Chencho knew how to approach the birds, getting us within 20 feet of a Green Kingfisher and a Marbled Godwit.

After about an hour on the river, we headed into the mangroves heading for Tovara Springs about 7 Kilometers away. Soon Chencho began a steady phishing after hearing something. After about 5 minutes, we got the first glimpse of the hard to see Mangrove Warbler which looks like a Yellow Warbler with a chestnut head. Now we were ready for two target birds we came for. After a short time, Chencho got noticeably excited and started backing the boat up. Pointing to a large bird in the mangroves, we got our 1st and only look at the Cinnamon Heron known as the Boat-billed Heron. It was quite co-operative but was sitting about 10 feet inside a thick mangrove trunk cluster. I snapped many pictures with my video and digital camera and to my amazement some came out showing the big boat bill and cinnamon breast. Not soon after, we heard a ruckus and had a flyover of about 10 Orange-fronted Parakeets. After several more turns through the mangrove maze, which reminded me of 1000 Islands but everything was bigger including the gorgeous bromeliad clusters (some 8 feet in diameter), we saw our second target bird-the Bare-throated Tiger Heron. What a magnificent Heron with his yellow throat and bill, white frontal neck stripe and finely tiger striped body with a russet belly. Later, upstream we got another and better look at it.

Having gotten our two prime target birds, we were now relaxed and really enjoying the wonderful boat ride when another minor ruckus occured which turned out to be a Mexican Chachalaca trying a relocation maneuver in the thick mangrove trunks. We also got the very appropriate San Blas Jay with his black crest and dark blue back. It was getting dark and we had been cruising for 3 hours when I noticed a Least Bittern sticking his torpedo shaped body out of the reeds. We soon passed several thatched huts standing in an opening in the swamp and Cencho pointed to them and said “Moby Dick movie”.

Arriving at Tovara Springs in the dark of the nite, our guide played his tape and tried to show us a Mottled Owl but it wasn’t home. This is a nice swimming area but with the re-introduction of Crocodiles close by, one has to really want to swim in a spring! We had seen two, one 8 footer, early on our tour. On the return trip, Chencho constantly shined his big spot-light, alternating between the mangroves and the water in front of us. And what a treat he served up when we got within 20 feet of a Pauraque sitting on a mangrove branch. Now, Chencho was searching for our last target bird when in the distance we could see these orange strobing eyes. As we got closer and under it, we saw this camouflaged bird with huge “holly bolly” eyes at the top of a snag-the Common Potoo. The boat trip was definitely an E-ride and the big highlight of our trip. What a day-39 new species and 11 lifers!

On Day 4 after a fantastic breakfast at the Garza Canelo, we decided to stay another day and try Hotel Hacienda Flamingos. We decided to start our day at the Fort San Basilio which overlooks the town and surrounding rivers. Our first lifer there was a Tropical Mockingbird, along with Happy Wren, Tropical Flycatcher, Black & white Warbler, hundreds of Ground Doves, Blue Grosbeak and Hooded Oriole. Our other lifers were the Rufous-backed Robin, Tropical Parula, Masked Tityra and Gray-breasted Martins. Another great spot for Hummingbirds was the adjacent cemetery with a large Poinciana tree loaded with them and Streak-backed Orioles and Yellow-winged Cacique.

The next stop was the small city of Singayta just 5 Km out of town. Upon getting out of the car, I scanned the nearby treetops and saw a Black-throated Magpie Jay, a magnificent 28 inch bluish Jay with an extremely long tail and a large black crest. This area was a letdown for birds but we got some good butterflys, including the Malachite, Julia and Erato Longwings (piano). We managed to pick up several Warblers and many Stripe-headed Sparrows. The town is promoting the area for birders and has a Nature Center which was closed. An interesting occurrence was when we were about 3 miles up the road, a young man on a bicycle rode up and asked us for 20 pesos for entrance fee which we obliged.

A stop at the Shrimp ponds on the way back to town yielded us a Bar-vented Wren, Painted Buntings, Gray and Common Black Hawks and just about all the wading birds we’d seen so far including another Long-billed Curlew. Eileen just could not get over the length of its bill!

The next morning we left San Blas and headed for a city of La Bajada in the surrounding foothills. We found ourselves driving uphill on the main street in town which had parallel strips of concrete for a street with houses on both sides. Suddenly, we saw a 20 member band, dressed in sharp gold uniforms, marching towards us! I didn’t quite know what to do, so I stopped just when they all parted and waved to us. We found out later that it was a big Holiday and we heard the band play all the time we were birding. This friendly and courteous behavior was typical of our entire trip!

I parked the car at the start of a banana and coffee Plantation and we took off uphill. After about a block uphill, we got our first view of a Citreoline Trogon with its beautiful yellow breast and a Masked Tityra in the top of a large snag. Further uptrail, we picked up more lifers-the gorgeous Tufted Flycatcher and Pale-billed Woodpecker. Several times, we had a flock of Blue-rumped Parrotlets flying over with full sound effects to compete with the village band. This was a wonderful butterfly area also and saw many tropical species. Before getting back to the car, we added an Elegant Trogon and Yellow Grosbeak to our list. As we drove back through La Bajada, we could see the celebration was just breaking up.

Back at the Grand Mayan for our final timeshare day, we once again headed to the Ameca River at daybreak. We really got surprised when a Burrowing Owl flew up in front of us right at the river bank! He landed on a nearby rock and posed for us. Once again we headed to the Seedeater bush and once again saw them plus a Yellow-breasted Chat and the Social Flycatcher which looks like a small Great Kiskadee. On the Beach, we saw the Collared Plovers and a bonus group of Snowy Plovers and a large group of Dunlin. Our week at the Mayan and San Blas was a great introduction to Mexican birding and we managed to gather 137 species and 36 lifers, so now we figured we were ready for Rancho Prima Vera!

Once again, heading out at daybreak but this time South 60 Km to El Tuito via Puerto Vallarta. We had heard so much about Pat Morrow’s and daughter Bonnie’s Ranch that we wanted to get there as early as possible but the “Night of the Iguana” mystique slowed us down. Stopping at the Rio Mismaloya bridge, we enjoyed some nostalgia and picked up a Purplish-backed Jay, Muscovy Ducks and a Cinnamon Hummingbird. Soon, we arrived at El Tuito and after working our way down the main street and out of town, we saw the entrance to Rancho Prima Vera. Pat was shopping for the soon to arrive Victor Emanuel Nature Tour (VENT) so Bonnie escourted us to our Hacienda and instructed us on Ranch Wildlife. We listened very closely since we had a Whip Scorpion on the dining room wall, a collared lizard in the bathroom, and a Black Iguana on the snag on the side of the hacienda. Bonnie told us that the six legged Whip Scorpion was a good guy but watch out for the eight legger!

We started our birding on the back porch which overlooks a pond while eating lunch and soon saw Black Phoebe, Least Grebe, Sora, Jacana and Green Kingfisher. We spent the afternoon on the Ranch and had Inca Doves, Golden-cheeked Woodpeckers, Kestrels, Yellow Warblers, Groove-billed Ani, Gray Hawk, Crested Caracara, Stripe-headed Sparrows, Yellow-crowned Nite Heron, Lesser Goldfinch, and our 1st lifer-the Squirrel Cuckoo which is a 19 inch cinnamon top with gray belly beauty. Working our way to the entrance, we wanted to check a small stream where we got the Orange-billed Nightingale Thrush along with a Happy Wren, Wilson Warbler, Streak-backed Oriole, Redstart, and 2nd lifer-Grayish Saltator. Walking the entrance rode, we had a good but short look at one of our favorites-the Ivory-billed Woodcreeper. We also had Vermilion Flycatcher, Common Black Hawk, Masked Tityra, Black & White and Nashville Warblers. Once we got to the stream by the entrance, a Louisiana Waterthrush flew out to a sandbar in the stream ( I know this is getting repetitive but we only have one more day).

With such good birding on site, it’s hard to leave the Ranch and I now see why the Birds’ (Ralph and Susan) keep returning! On our final Day 8, we decided to head to Biota Road and while driving away from our Hacienda, not 10 feet from the road, I spotted a Russet-crowned Motmot sitting eye level. What a gorgeous bird but it didn’t want its picture taken! We had trouble finding the Road since the sign had been removed but we managed to pick up another Motmot, Squirrel Cuckoo, and Citreoline Trogon. Biota Road has a stream running along it and was very productive with Rose-throated Becard, Plumbeous Vireo, Gray Hawk, Ivory-billed Woodcreeper, and Wilson and Black-throated Gray Warblers. Our lifers were Boat-billed Flycatcher, Red-breasted Chat, White-tipped Dove and Roadside Hawk. We also got very lucky when a family of five Military McCaws flew over with their raucous cries alerting us.

Back at the Ranch, after a late lunch and Raicilla (green agave) sampling at the Altimira Restaurant where we got Black-bellied Whistling Ducks and Nuttings Flycatcher, we checked out. Pat and Bonnie served us a refreshing glass of lemonade and showed us the Hummers, Acorn and Ladder-backed Woodpeckers and a Least Flycatcher. They were waiting for the arrival of the VENT group but Bonnie took us to the “Secret trail” and told us about a very special bird that had been seen there. I dropped Eileen off to look for it while I went to the stream to wash the dust off the trunk so I could open it for the luggage. When I got back, I saw Eileen waving frantically, so I know she had something! Thank goodness for her Owl-like ears since she heard a bird scratching leaves in a thicket in a gully below the trail. Somehow, I managed to get some video of this magnificent black bird with a pink eyebrow, throat, chest, and belly-the Rosy Thrush-Tanager.

It was nearly dark so we returned to our Hacienda to celebrate and pack! We got one more when a Lesser Nitehawk made a low pass. We had gotten 11 lifers each of the last two days for a total of 57 and 180 species. It was a wonderful 8 days, sampling three different areas around Puerto Vallarta. We found the Mexican people to be courteous, friendly and helpful and look forward to returning for more of the same plus some!