Entering the Lowland Forests of El Cielo

After arriving in the reserve, we begin birding in the lower tropical forest where colorful resident species can be found among dense vegetation and forest edges.

This afternoon we will be birdwatching in the lower part of the jungle where we will look for Canivet’s Emerald, White-throated Thrush, Blue-gray and Yellow-winged Tanagers, Wedge-tailed Sabrewing, White-crowned Parrot, Black-headed Saltator and many more. At night, we will go out to look for nocturnal birds such as Northern Potoo, Mottled Owl and Common Pauraque. We will also look for the Tawny-collared Nightjar, although it is hard to see in this area. In addition, we will search for the rare Stygian Owl.

Exploring the Highlands of El Cielo

On the second day we will go up to the reserve, where we will be birdwatching at different altitudes, including the montane cloud forest. During this day we will be able to search for a wide variety of species such as Singing Quail, Blue-capped Motmot, Crested Guan, Great Curassow, Blue-throated and Amethyst-throated Mountaingems, Buff-bellied and Azure-crowned Hummingbirds, Coppery-tailed and Mountain Trogons, Spot-breasted Wren, Ornate Hawk Eagle, Brown-backed Solitaire, Black-headed Nightingale-Thrush, Golden-browed and Fan-tailed Warblers, as well as the endemic Tamaulipas Pygmy-Owl. And many more!

Exploring the Lower Reserve

Today we will visit several sites in the lower part of the reserve, including grasslands, forest edges, and riparian areas. During this day we will be able to search Bat Falcon, Tamaulipas Crow, Double-striped Thick-knee, Laughing Hawk, Northern Bobwhite, Groove-billed Ani, Roadside and White-tailed Hawks, Lineated Woodpecker, Collared Forest-Falcon, among others. We’ll also visit the sugarcane field to search for the endemic and threatened Altamira Yellowthroat.

Birding Along Waterways and Tropical Forest

On the last day we will visit the La Bocatoma area where we will go birdwatching next to a canal combined with grasslands and semideciduous tropical forest, Here we can look for Rose-throated Becard, Altamira Oriole, White-crowned Parrot, Blue-capped Motmot, Crane Hawk, Pale-billed, Lineated and Golden-olive Woodpeckers, Red-crowned Amazon, Montezuma Oropendola, Social Flycatcher and Boat-billed Flycatchers, and many others. Afterwards we’ll take a boat trip to look for one of the local specialties: Subgrebe. Also we can search for Green and Amazon Kingfishers, Muscovy Duck (wild type) and with a lot of luck, we might see the Green Macaws. Around noon, we returned to Monterrey.