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For this tour, we head all the way south to Chiapas. With its colossal mangroves, coastal savannas, tropical dry forests, and orchid-filled cloud forests, Chiapas is home to a dazzling array of birds. Biogeographically, Chiapas is set apart from the rest of Mexico thanks to the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, the low, narrow strip of land that acts as a barrier to montane species. This isolation has set the stage for the evolution of a unique suite of birds found only in Chiapas and neighboring Guatemala--birds such as Pink-headed Warbler, Bearded Screech-Owl, and Blue-throated Motmot. We’ll seek these specialties in the highlands, and we’ll bird the lowlands for Rose-bellied Bunting, Belted Flycatcher, Bar-winged Oriole, Giant Wren, and White-bellied Chachalaca.

Our journey begins in Tuxtla Gutierrez, the bustling capital of Chiapas with 600,000 inhabitants, and from there we’ll escape to the tranquility of Reserva el Ocote. Located just 40 minutes from Tuxtla Gutierrez, Reserva el Ocote is the most biodiverse reserve in all of Mexico, with more than 500 birds recorded within its boundaries. Here lives the endemic Nava's Wren, an elusive songster of limestone outcroppings. Hearing its loud, rich song is easy… getting to see it as it mouses its way through the cracks in the rock is a bit trickier, but we'll try our best! Slate-colored Solitaires, Band-back Wrens, Black-headed Saltators, Buff-throated Foliage-gleaners, and Tawny-winged Woodcreepers add to the dawn chorus here at El Ocote. It's also a good place to see Wedge-tailed Sabrewing (formerly Long-tailed Sabrewing). After a morning birding at El Ocote, we head to the colonial city of San Cristobal de las Casas. When we're not sipping hot chocolate or walking the narrow cobblestone streets downtown, we'll seek Pink-headed Warbler, Blue-throated Motmot, Blue-and-white Mockingbird, Wine-throated Hummingbird, and the "White-breasted" form of Sharp-shinned Hawk in the conifer forests above the city. In the evening, we'll try for both Bearded Screech-Owl and Unspotted Saw-whet Owl, two rarities that favor lush, bromeliad-laden pine forest slopes.

Then it's down to Cañon del Sumidero, a truly mind-boggling kilometer-deep gorge carved by the Rio Grijalva. We'll take in the views from various viewpoints and search for Belted Flycatcher, Red-breasted Chat, and Fan-tailed Warbler in the dense bamboo thickets along the road. Continuing down in elevation, we'll reach the Pacific lowlands above the town of Arriaga to look for Rose-bellied Bunting, Cinnamon-tailed Sparrow, Great Swallow-tailed Swift, White-lored Gnatcatcher, Long-tailed Manakin, and Green-fronted Hummingbird, and after that we'll drive to Mapastepec to canoe through the mangrove forests of Centro Ecoturistico Costa Verde in search of Giant Wren, White-bellied Chachalaca, Northern Potoo, Agami Heron, and Yellow-naped Parrot. In the foothills above Mapastepec, we'll seek Tody Motmot, White-faced and Gray-crowned ground-sparrows, Rufous-and-white Wren, and King Vulture.

Our tour ends in the cloud forests of Volcan Tacana. At 13,320 feet, Tacana is the second highest peak in Central America. Here we'll be based out of a lodge in the picturesque village of Union Juarez at about 4,200 feet (it's like a piece of Switzerland in the cloud forest!), and we'll bird the hummingbird-filled slopes of the volcano. Some of the species we'll look for here include Green-throated Mountain-gem, Sparkling-tailed Hummingbird, Slender Sheartail, Blue-crowned Chlorophonia, Azure-rumped Tanager, Highland Guan, and Hooded Grosbeak. If you've been with us to Oaxaca or the Yucatan and are craving another dose of Mexican birds (and food and culture!), then put on your hiking boots and let's head for the forest! We're looking for an enthusiastic group of birders for this truly immersive adventure—vamonos, let’s make it happen!

Select the KEY INFO tab or click here for our itinerary plus space requests, status, fees, limits, and guides for any departure.

Client comment
"An excellent tour experience. We saw great birds, liked that we were usually in hotels for two nights, enjoyed walking around San Cristobal and Union Juarez. We had great guides in Micah Riegner and Jorge Montejo-Diaz as well. The best features of the trip were the birds, the guides, the boat trip in the mangroves (and the lunch afterwards), the different and variety of regions and habitats we visited, the other people on the trip, and the accommodations. We'd absolutely travel with Micah and Jorge again! Really appreciated their efforts in finding and getting us all on the birds." E.G., MEXICO: ENCHANTED CHIAPAS tour participant

Combo Tours
If you would like a longer birding holiday, some departures of this tour may be combined with:
MEXICO'S EL TRIUNFO: Horned Guans and Quetzals<