Finally! Spring Break has arrived! I have not birded outside of the United States since my world trip, (even though Puerto Rico is still a U.S territory) so It was a great opportunity for me to be introduced to new birds and pick up many more lifers. I left with 783 species on my life list, and wanted to reach 800. I guess your going to just have to keep reading to find out if I made it or not! Also, we spent the whole vacation with our friends, the Darers, making the trip overall a lot more fun. Anyway, this post will be broken up into two parts because I went to two different locations in Puerto Rico. Please enjoy!
Part One: San Juan, Puerto Rico
I arrived in San Juan on Monday at 1:00 PM on March 27, much later than planned. Originally, I was supposed to leave Chicago at 4:00 PM the day prior and fly to Newark, then fly from Newark to San Juan and arrive at 12:30 AM. However, my flight to Newark was significantly delayed, which meant missing the connecting flight to San Juan. Thank God, because that sounded like a horrible mess. Instead I was put on a direct flight the next day! As soon as we arrived, the sightseeing began and we headed straight to old San Juan to explore the neighborhoods and sights. The first bird I saw and the 1st lifer of the trip was this GREATER ANTILLEAN GRACKLE!
I also saw a few MONK PARAKEETS. Believe it or not, Monk Parakeets can actually be found on Chicago's south side. Decades ago, some of these birds escaped, and somehow adapted to the climate (don't understand how they survived a Chicago winter). The population grew to over 200 birds over the years, and of all places, the birds chose to nest under the Chicago Skyway! And yes, they have been in the area for 10 years, making them countable. So for the first time ever, I saw the parakeets where the parakeets were supposed to be. Aside from those, there were not many birds to see, but plenty of lizards. This iguana here was one of the largest lizards I saw on the whole trip:
We were lucky to be vacationing with friends, because walking around for 4 hours with no birds would have been dreadful. We topped the night off with a nice meal and a swim back at the hotel.
The following morning, we went to El Yunque National Forest, the only rainforest in located in U.S territory. This was the day that I hoped to see my target bird, the Puerto Rican Tody, which is only endemic to Puerto Rico. Overall I found birding in the rainforest very difficult. 90% of the bird there you only hear, and since I don't know my Puerto Rican bird calls, I ended up with a low species count for the day, just 16 species. Another thing that drives me crazy, was how dark it was under the canopy, leading my camera to let me down on several photo ops. So I apologize, some photos may appear dark. Although I did not see much, I still found my target bird for the day, the tiny PUERTO RICAN TODY.
The following morning, we went to El Yunque National Forest, the only rainforest in located in U.S territory. This was the day that I hoped to see my target bird, the Puerto Rican Tody, which is only endemic to Puerto Rico. Overall I found birding in the rainforest very difficult. 90% of the bird there you only hear, and since I don't know my Puerto Rican bird calls, I ended up with a low species count for the day, just 16 species. Another thing that drives me crazy, was how dark it was under the canopy, leading my camera to let me down on several photo ops. So I apologize, some photos may appear dark. Although I did not see much, I still found my target bird for the day, the tiny PUERTO RICAN TODY.
Another new bird for me was this PEARLY EYED THRASHER:
These RED LEGGED THRUSHES proved to be the most common bird during our hike.
Aside form a few species, it was a quiet hike. After meeting back up with our friends, we decided to go to a different part of the park, the Cocha Waterfall. Again, not many birds, but definetly worth the stop. Not only was the waterfall awesome, but the appearence of this NORTHERN WATERTHRUSH also made me very happy. This bird is a species of warbler, and warblers are my favorite family of bird species, only passing through the Chicago area during migration. Also, he put on quite the show!
Seeing the waterthrush feed on the side of the waterfall was definitely one of the highlights of the day. We were just about to leave when another great bird showed up, this PUERTO RICAN TANAGER! As you probably already guessed from the name, this bird is only endemic to Puerto Rico. The bird was constantly moving, so I could not quite get that nice shot, but this is at least what the bird looks like:
Overall, not many birds, but definitely some cool ones as well as some lifers.
The entire 3rd day of San Juan was walking around the old town once again, and looking at more of San Juan's historic sites. Since there is not a lot to write about and few birds, I will close the San Juan section with a collage of photos we took while walking around. Enjoy!
The entire 3rd day of San Juan was walking around the old town once again, and looking at more of San Juan's historic sites. Since there is not a lot to write about and few birds, I will close the San Juan section with a collage of photos we took while walking around. Enjoy!
I lied! I did have one really nice and unexpected bird sighting. Im sorry I could not get a photo of the bird itself, but just of this beach is where I watched my lifer BROWN BOOBY (odd name for a bird right?) clumsily diving for fish.
I enjoyed my time on the main island very much, even though there were few birds. The highlights for me were birding around El Yunque National Forest, playing at the beach, and hanging out with my friend Sam. It would be nice to revisit this city in the future.
End Of Part 1 Life List:792
Part 2: Vieques, Puerto Rico
Vieques is a small island located just east of mainland Puerto Rico. More than half of the island is made up of Vieques National Wildlife Refuge, which means great birding is here! The population of Vieques is just 9,400 people, and the island is just a short 1 hour drive to get from one end to the other. Its warm weather, good food, and beautiful beaches attract tourists looking for a relaxing getaway. Relaxing is just what we did for most of the time. Vieques is a short 25 minute flight from San Juan. Also, did I mention that the plane was about the size of a large canoe?
Including us, there were only 6 people on the flight.
Since we did not do much in Vieques but relax, visit some beaches, hang out with our friends, catch pokemon around the hotel and eat good food (I am now addicted to sweet plantains), I figure lets just jump into the birding.
For my birding trip, my dad and I drove to the nature reserve on the northwest tip of the island, hoping to get the 7 life birds I needed to reach 800. The road there was actually so full of birds that it was as productive as the destination itself. Slowly meandering our way down PR994 we came upon several bird such as many COMMON GROUND DOVE:
Since we did not do much in Vieques but relax, visit some beaches, hang out with our friends, catch pokemon around the hotel and eat good food (I am now addicted to sweet plantains), I figure lets just jump into the birding.
For my birding trip, my dad and I drove to the nature reserve on the northwest tip of the island, hoping to get the 7 life birds I needed to reach 800. The road there was actually so full of birds that it was as productive as the destination itself. Slowly meandering our way down PR994 we came upon several bird such as many COMMON GROUND DOVE:
CATTLE EGRET, who also apparently likes horses:
Female YELLOW WARBLER:
Then came one of the highlights of the day, a pair of endemic PUERTO RICAN WOODPECKERS!
Just as we were approaching Punta Arenas Road, we were treated with two awesome species of kingbirds just a few yards away. Here is a nice LOGGERHEAD KINGBIRD, the rarer one of the two species:
GREY KINGBIRD, the more common of the two species:
And finally, we arrived after a very bird drive there.
The road took us through a variety of habitats, including low trees/scrub, wetland, tall trees and beaches. It definitely proved to be a great birding spot. Just as we got onto the road, I spotted a pair of these awesome MANGROVE CUCKOO:
The wetlands further down the road provided several shorebirds. As soon as I stepped out of the car I flushed two BLACK BELLIED PLOVERS, followed by a SPOTTED SANDPIPER, its rapid fluttering wingbeats gave it away. Spotted Sandpipers should show up in the Chicago area in a couple weeks time, and are one of the most common shorebirds there from May all the way through September. This beautiful BLACK NECKED STILT was standing just by the bridge, giving us perfect views. Its long pink legs, give it the name "stilt".
Another shorebird in the lagoon I saw named after it's legs, was this LESSER YELLOWLEGS:
This colorful billed COMMON GALLINULE (or Common Moorhen) was bathing in the wetlands.
This BROWN PELICAN was perched on a dead palm, and was definitely doing some crazy acrobatics!
The incredibly beautiful and endemic ADELAIDE'S WARBLER was present many times throughout the day,
Here is a picture of the road itself:
We topped the day off with some awesome displaying BLACK FACED GRASSQUITS followed by this GREEN THROATED CARIB!
The birding turned out to be much greater that expected! But, the real question is, did I make it to 800?
Nope.
I never made it. That Green Throated Carib was lifer 799, the final life bird I saw on the entire trip. Even though I did not make it to 800, I was not disappointed at all. I had a great day of birding, and I really enjoyed seeing species I have never seen before, or have not seen them for a a while. I really enjoyed exploring the island with my friend the whole time. I would love to come back.
Nope.
I never made it. That Green Throated Carib was lifer 799, the final life bird I saw on the entire trip. Even though I did not make it to 800, I was not disappointed at all. I had a great day of birding, and I really enjoyed seeing species I have never seen before, or have not seen them for a a while. I really enjoyed exploring the island with my friend the whole time. I would love to come back.
End Of Part 2 Life List 799
Overall, it was a great trip! I got a total of 16 life birds, and enjoyed every day of the trip and its sad to be back. But, I plan to go back someday! Stay tuned for more birding adventures and spring migration, because the most exciting time of the year is approaching!
Life List:799 (16 new life birds) To see more of my photography, look me up
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