February 16-27, 2025 with Jesse Fagan & Chris Benesh
The 2025 Field Guides Central Mexico & Baja: Birds, Butterflies & Whales tour got off to a good start in Mexico City. We headed south to Parque Las Maravillas, a highland bunch grassland home to some really special birds. One of the most accessible sites for Sierra Madre Sparrow, we had excellent scope views of several. The much larger Striped Sparrows were also evident here. Other gems included Strickland’s Woodpecker, Buff-breasted Flycatcher, Elegant Euphonias, quick looks at Grass Wren (a split from Sedge), great Green-striped and Rufous-capped brushfinches, Hooded Yellowthroat, Mexican Chickadee, Russet Nightingale-Thrush, and “black-eared” Bushtits. Next, we headed to La Cima and picked up a few more things, including White-eared Hummingbird, Tufted Flycatcher, Olive Warbler, and Slate-throated Redstart. After dropping off bags at our hotel, we headed to Amilsingo to spend the afternoon and evening at a private finca there with local guide Joaquin. The birding was terrific, with Plain-capped Starthroat, Russet-crowned Motmot, Greater Pewee, Black-chested Sparrow, Rusty-crowned Ground-Sparrow, Streak-backed Oriole, Virginia’s Warbler among the highlights. After dinner we headed out for Balsas Screech-Owls which eventually showed for us.
The following morning included a visit to the Camino Real a Tepozlan, a fabulous birding road nestled in pine-oak woodland with a local host Jazmin. The birding was great, with Rivoli’s, White-eared, and Berylline hummingbirds, White-striped Woodcreeper, several flycatchers, a stunning Chestnut-sided Shrike-Vireo, Transvolcanic Jay, Gray-barred Wrens, Blue Mockingbird, Brown-backed Solitaire, Orange-billed and Russet nightingale-thrushes, point blank Crescent-chested Warblers, Golden-browed Warbler, Red Warbler, redstarts, and three species of Piranga tanagers. The afternoon found us headed to an abandoned sugar cane mill near Oacalco, Morelos, where we saw the fabulous spectacle of an estimated 130,000 Vaux’s Swifts coming to roost in a chimney. We also saw a pair of seldom seen Great Swallow-tailed Swifts, Gray Hawks, Golden-cheeked Woodpeckers, and an American Barn Owl.
Our third morning took us back to Amilsingo with time to track down some remaining specialties. We had an amazing morning with some 75 species of birds recorded. Highlights included Squirrel Cuckoo, Lucifer Hummingbird, Golden-crowned Emerald, Violet-crowned Hummingbird, Elegant Trogon, Golden-cheeked Woodpecker, Rose-throated Becard, Greenish Elaenia, Pileated Flycatcher, Thick-billed Kingbird, Golden Vireo, a rare White-eyed Vireo, scope views of Happy Wren, Blue Mockingbird, Black-chested Sparrow, Rusty-crowned Ground-Sparrow, Black-vented Oriole, Streak-backed Oriole, and Varied Bunting. From here, we headed to the Zona Arqueologica Xochicalco, known as an Epiclassic fortified city founded in the 7th century CE and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. There were a sprinkling of interesting birds around the ruins, though our focus was on the site itself. From here we headed to the main attraction of the afternoon, a visit to El Salto de San Anton, to take in the spectacle of White-naped Swifts coming to roost under a waterfall. White-naped Swift is the largest swift in the New World. They waited until it was dark to come in but we had good looks at them with some brief illumination. Then back to Tepoztlan for the night.
The next day began with some travel west to the Laguna de Chignahuapan (Almoloya), home to a population of Black-polled Yellowthroats. We had great looks at the yellowthroats, and a few other highlights including the local Mexicana form of Song Sparrow, a big flock of White-faced Ibis, local Marsh Wrens, and calls of both Sora and Virginia Rail. Then it was time to continue west through the city of Toluca and then the beautiful drive through the mountains on our way to Rancho Viejo. Our afternoon visit there was really good, with a cooperative White-striped Woodcreeper, Transvolcanic Jays, several warblers, and Cinnamon-bellied Flowerpiercer.
We switched gears a bit on Day 5 to focus on one of the more amazing natural history phenomena out there, one of the huge winter roosts of the Monarch butterfly in the highlands of Mexico. We visited the Sanctuary of Piedra Herrada. As it turned out, the monarchs were roosting quite high up the mountains, necessitating renting horses to get us most of the way up before hiking the remainder of the way. We were so thankful that we did, as we later witnessed many eager tourists attempting to hike up the entire way. The morning bird chorus was wonderful. Red Warbler song filled the air. But it was the Monarchs that stole the show here. When we first arrived, the cool, overcast morning had all of the Monarchs dormant. But once the sun peaked out, they came to life and began fluttering around in numbers. What a sight! That afternoon we birded the grounds of the Rancho Viejo a second time and had a nice mix of birds including Hermit and Townsend’s warblers.
Day 6 was a travel day for us, with a morning drive to Mexico City to catch our flight to Laz Paz, Baja California Sur.
Day 7, our first morning in Baja found us driving the road from La Paz to San Carlos, passing miles of Mexican Giant Cactus, a species restricted to Baja and the coastal zone of the Gulf of California. We stopped at KM98, Lupitas, for a pit stop and a few birds. A cooperative pair of endemic Gray Thrashers were a treat, as was California Scrub-Jay, Ash-throated Flycatcher, and Pyrrhuloxia. After lunch in San Carlos, we boarded our two boats and headed out into Magdalena Bay, working the western edge of the bay while enjoying a variety of seabirds and of course, the fabulous Gray Whales. The light play on the water made for a spectacular sunset from our remote Camp Chirinola near Puerto Magdalena.
Dawn the following morning saw more spectacular light play over the waters of Magdalena Bay. Sunrise was awesome. After coffee and breakfast, we took a walk along the beach and picked up a few new birds for us. There was a handsome male Costa’s Hummingbird, Verdin, Blue-gray and California gnatcatchers, Black-throated Sparrow keeping us entertained. Then it was time to load up and head back to San Carlos. Along the way we made a few stops. Beach and mudflats hosted a large mix of shorebirds. There were rafts of Eared Grebes in breeding plumage, and as we approached Bird Island, a massive number of Brandt’s and Double-crested cormorants in a seemingly endless stream. A visit to mangroves provided a few goodies including White Ibis, Yellow-crowned Night Heron, Tricolored Heron, Reddish Egret, Snowy Egret, and Great Blue Heron. We also had a few Large-billed Savannah Sparrows nearby. The remainder of the afternoon was spent driving back to La Paz.
Day 9 began with Plan B. Too few Whale Sharks in the bay resulted in our boat trip being cancelled, so we made lemonade by hitting a few productive birding sites around La Paz. The birding turned out to be really good! Our visit to the mudflats near the Grand Plaza had a huge number of shorebirds and a splendid flock of Black Skimmers. We picked out a Gull-billed Tern among the many other terns. Big numbers of Semipalmated Plovers and American Avocets in the mix. We then headed over to the Planta de Tratamiento de Aguas Residuales de La Paz, a wetlands area where we had a great view of Belding’s Yellowthroat and thanks to a tip from a local expert Alvaro San Jose, a Ruff out feeding in a paddock. There was a really cooperative Gilded Flicker here too, Least Bell’s Vireo, and Cactus Wren to keep us alert. Then we drove south and southeast into the Sierra de la Laguna, stopping for lunch at El Meson de Carlota near the town of El Triunfo. We had our first Xantus’s Hummingbird there, Dusky Flycatcher, and a really cooperative Zone-tailed Hawk. Then we continued on into the mountains, making a detour to San Antonio de la Sierra in the Reserva de la Biosfera Sierra de la Laguna. The road was memorably bad, but the birding was good despite the mid-day heat. Among the highlights here was the local, pallid San Lucas form of American Robin, and the local form of Cassin’s Vireo. Other treats were Varied Bunting, Scott’s Oriole, and Crested Caracara. Then it was on to the Spa Buena Vista Ramada Sol Y Mar for the night.
The next morning began with a Great Horned Owl right in the parking lot of the hotel. Then we headed off for our adventure in the Biosphere. Meeting up with Edgardo for coffee and mango smoothies, then off for some birding. We had a covey of California Quail, several Xantus’s Hummingbirds, the Cape form of Northern Pygmy-Owl, Gray Thrasher, Phainopepla, Hooded Oriole, and others. We had a yummy breakfast at Jose and Elvira’s farm. Then after a lunch at Edgardo’s we headed back to Buena Vista for a siesta and some beach birding in the late afternoon. While the birds were sparse, we were kept entertained by dozens of leaping Munk’s Pygmy Devil Rays just offshore.
You can see my complete trip report on eBird at this link: https://ebird.org/tripreport/342157
You can download a combined PDF of this page and the eBird report at this link: https://fieldguides.com/triplists/bbw25TRIPLIST.pdf
-- Chris Benesh