JJP
Well-known member
Just an FYI for people visiting CR with a car.
I just got back from the Osa Peninsula where Johan Chaves and I birded around Esquinas Lodge for a couple of days.
We took a day trip to a place near the Panama border generally known as Coto 47 (just southwest of the town of Neily). Coto 47 is more like a large territorial area similar to the size of a small US county. The entire area is generally flat and defined by savannah/rice fields/marshy habitat.
This area has some nice specialty birds. It's generally reliable for Yellow-headed Vulture, Gray-lined Hawk, Savanna Hawk, and Sapphire-throated Hummingbird. Veraguan Mango is possible although we didn't see it. We did, however, have a Masked Duck at the Las Pangas Marsh (mind-boggling numbers of BB Whistling-Duck and Northern Jacana). Other nice birds included Southern Lapwing, Crested Oropendola, and Slate-colored Seedeater. It was a productive side trip.
One can actually see Coto 47 marked on a physical map if the scale is large enough (my map was from "Costa Rica Guide"). My personal highlight was the Gray-lined Hawk in an area called finca 41 - an area with broken palm trees. Since I come from Texas, a state that has nesting Gray Hawks, it was nice to finally see the differences.
I probably couldn't have managed the route without Johan guiding, but the area is worth a visit if you enjoy building on your CR list. If you bundle it with Esquinas Lodge, you make a nice package of birds that can include Rusty-margined Flycatcher, Black-cheeked Ant-Tanager, Yellow-bellied Seedeater, Ruddy-breasted Seedeater, Blue-headed Parrot, and Crested Oropendola. My real targets at Esquinas though were Striped Woodhaunter and Scaly-breasted Wren, which had escaped me for years. I had good looks at both finally. And I'm glad I stayed at the lodge. Nice place.
I just got back from the Osa Peninsula where Johan Chaves and I birded around Esquinas Lodge for a couple of days.
We took a day trip to a place near the Panama border generally known as Coto 47 (just southwest of the town of Neily). Coto 47 is more like a large territorial area similar to the size of a small US county. The entire area is generally flat and defined by savannah/rice fields/marshy habitat.
This area has some nice specialty birds. It's generally reliable for Yellow-headed Vulture, Gray-lined Hawk, Savanna Hawk, and Sapphire-throated Hummingbird. Veraguan Mango is possible although we didn't see it. We did, however, have a Masked Duck at the Las Pangas Marsh (mind-boggling numbers of BB Whistling-Duck and Northern Jacana). Other nice birds included Southern Lapwing, Crested Oropendola, and Slate-colored Seedeater. It was a productive side trip.
One can actually see Coto 47 marked on a physical map if the scale is large enough (my map was from "Costa Rica Guide"). My personal highlight was the Gray-lined Hawk in an area called finca 41 - an area with broken palm trees. Since I come from Texas, a state that has nesting Gray Hawks, it was nice to finally see the differences.
I probably couldn't have managed the route without Johan guiding, but the area is worth a visit if you enjoy building on your CR list. If you bundle it with Esquinas Lodge, you make a nice package of birds that can include Rusty-margined Flycatcher, Black-cheeked Ant-Tanager, Yellow-bellied Seedeater, Ruddy-breasted Seedeater, Blue-headed Parrot, and Crested Oropendola. My real targets at Esquinas though were Striped Woodhaunter and Scaly-breasted Wren, which had escaped me for years. I had good looks at both finally. And I'm glad I stayed at the lodge. Nice place.