March 11-20, 2025 with Jesse Fagan
This is a short trip to two very comfortable lodges in Western Panama. This year we had a small group, which made our travel easy and pleasant. I mean, who doesn't like small groups? The tour starts in Panama City, but quickly moves to the western highlands for several nights before descending to the Caribbean coast and the small islands of Bocas del Toro. It's quite a mix of birds, sampling a wide range of elevations and habitats, and this year we tallied well over 300 species including several non-avian critters.
As mentioned, we had a night in Panama City before taking the earliest flight to David in the Chiriqui Provence. We transferred up to the cloud forest lodge of Mount Totumas, the last 45 minutes on a bumpy 4x4 track where we crossed a couple of small mountain streams. The lodge is set impressively in the western highlands surrounded by lush oak forest and coffee plantations adjacent to the much larger protected area of La Amistad National Park. The main lodging and dining area is built on a prominent overlook with nearly a 360-degree view of the surrounding mountains. The hummingbird feeders on the patio buzz with the coming and goings of Magenta-throated Woodstar, Violet Sabrewing, and the occasional, Talamanca Hummingbird. We would spend a few hours here over the next four nights.
Over the next few days, we spent full days in the forest birding a couple of different trails like "Big Tree Loop" and "Roble." These were productive outings as we searched for Chiriqui Highland Endemics (those "C" birds!) and were rewarded with observations of Yellow-winged Vireo, Flame-throated and Black-cheeked warblers, and Golden-browed Chlorophonia. The Scintillant Hummingbirds seemed to be nesting under every earthen embankment! One of the emblematic birds of Mount Totumas is Three-wattled Bellbird which use the highlands of Western Panama as one large lek. Mount Totumas is the place to see them displaying between January and March, and, indeed, we were rewarded with awesome views, photos, and videos of males on their 'bonging' perches. The other species that deserves attention here is the Resplendent Quetzal. This species is found in the Central American Highlands from Southern Mexico to Western Panama. At Mount Totumas, we are at the southern-most terminus of its range. This year, to our luck, there was a pair using an artificial nesting box right outside our cabins. Literally, a backyard bird for some participants! So, bonging bellbirds, nesting quetzals, and all those Chiriqui endemics, what more could you ask for? Oh, yeah, I didn't mention the delicious homecooked meals. We really appreciated the hospitality of Jeffrey and his daughter, Karin, who made our stay memorable, and we appreciated Jeffrey taking the time to give us a talk on his game cameras. The property is home to a healthy population of pumas, jaguars, and tapirs.
After leaving Mount Totumas, we crossed the Continental Divide and descended into the Ngabe-Bugle and Bocas del Toro provinces. This is the "wet side" since it borders the Caribbean Sea. Our destination for the final four nights of the tour was Tranquilo Bay Lodge located on Bastimiento Island. We arrived in style after a 50-minute boat ride from Puerto Robalo and were met by the lodge director and owner, Renee, who showed us to our plush cabins. The White-faced Capuchins were none too happy about having to share the roof with us! Our first full morning we explored the nearby Isla Popa on the newly minted two-story pontoon boat. This was a fun way to bird the island and mangrove edge. We quickly ticked off Black-striped Sparrow, Black-crowned Antshrike, Keel-billed Toucan, and the real star of this trip, Snowy Cotinga. We made a quick exploration of the island on foot and found several Strawberry Poison Dart Frogs in their various color morphs (each island in the archipelago has a different variety). In the evening, we all met up on the famous Tranquilo Bay tower. Nearly 30 meters tall, the surrounding views are a great way to take in the sunset and watch Red-lored and Blue-headed parrots flying by at eye-level on their way to evening roost sites.
We spent a full day back on the mainland birding the Fortuna Road. On our way up in the morning, we saved a three-toed sloth that was (slowly) attempting to cross the road! We made elevational stops on our way up, the first at Willy Mazoo, reaching the Continental Divide (a.k.a. Tower Road) for a picnic lunch before retracing our steps back down. It was a productive day, and our hard work paid off with several mixed species flocks that included Tawny-crested and Dusky-faced tanagers, Rufous-winged Tanager, Broad-billed Motmot, and a pair of Spot-crowned Antvireos, which was totally unexpected. Near our gas station stop at Chiriqui Grande we watched a large movement of Turkey Vultures, along with Broad-winged and Swainson's hawks, as they migrated west by the thousands, already on their way to northern breeding grounds. Migration is always a treat to watch.
Finally, our last day was really cool. Well, it got warm, but "cool," as in a lot of fun! The Changuinola Canal is an old, man-made United Fruit Company canal that was used to move bananas and other tropical fruits to port in Bocas del Toro. It has long since been abandoned, but now offers a unique way to explore the back jungles of the Panamanian coast. Again, the two-story pontoon boat was the best way to make this trip. We were eye-level with many species in the forest canopy as Jeff deftly maneuvred the boat into position for us. We cruised along ticking off Nicaraguan Seed-Finch, Pied and White-necked puffbirds, several kingfishers, and a day-roosting Great Potoo. At the Changuinola River we added to our day list with several species of waterfowl like Black-bellied Whistling Duck, waders including Least Sandpiper, Anhinga, Royal Tern, among others. In the end, we tallied more than 100 species before noon, putting everyone in the highly prestigious Century Club. It was a great day, and a nice way to cap off a most excellent trip.
Check out this CRITTER LIST:
Thanks to our hosts at Mount Totumas and Tranquilo Bay, and our local guides, Renaldo and Roger. Also, thank you for choosing Field Guides and we look forward to servicing you again on your next birding trip. I hope to see you soon. All the best birding in 2025 and beyond.
You can see my complete trip report on eBird at this link: https://ebird.org/tripreport/354732
You can download a combined PDF of this page and the eBird report at this link: https://fieldguides.com/triplists/phf25TRIPLIST.pdf
- - Jesse Fagan (aka Motmot) from Lima, Peru