December 1-10, 2025 with Micah Riegner & Lester Nanan
This was our second visit to Trinidad and Tobago since Asa Wright reopened and wow, what an amazing renovation they did! It must be one of the most comfortable places to bird in the Neotropics! This was our base for several days as we enjoyed the various forests, marshes and mangroves of Trinidad before we flew to the turquoise waters of Tobago. Our adventure began in Port of Spain where Lester our local guide picked us up and took us to ponds near the airport. There we saw Stilt Sandpipers, both Lesser and Greater Yellowlegs, Southern Lapwings, several Carib Grackles, and Yellow-hooded Blackbirds. We then had a delicious Roti lunch in town and drove the windy road up the Northern Range to Asa Wright. We made a couple stops along the road, finding Rufous-breasted Wrens and some high-flying Zone-tailed Hawks. We checked into the rooms then assembled at the veranda, where we sipped rum punch and were dazzled by the bonanza of White-necked Jacobins, Rufous-breasted Hermits, Brown Violetears, Black-throated Mangos, Long-billed Starthroats, Copper-rumped Hummingbirds, White-chested Emeralds, Bananaquits, Purple Honeycreeper and White-lined Tanagers coming to the feeders. Between the rum punch and all the frenzy of birds, we were in sensory overload, a feeling that came in various waves throughout the trip. After a wonderful buffet dinner, Mukesh, the local guide, took us out on a night walk where we encountered a pair of Brazilian Porcupines up in the trees.
We met at the parking lot at dawn the next morning, where a male Tufted Coquette was feeding at some verbena flowers. It paused momentarily on a branch, allowing us to appreciate its fancy head plumes. After breakfast we walked the Discovery Trail with both Lester and Sabira, the other Asa Wright local guide. We reached the White-bearded Manakin lek and, just then, it began to rain, so we ducked under one of the awnings, and waited for it to pass. After the rain cleared, we spotted a Bearded Bellbird clanging away, its stringy wattles dangling like spaghetti under its throat. On the way back to the lodge, we paused to see a White-bellied Antbird hopping on the ground right off the trail. We had lunch, then Mukesh presented an informative history talk, and we walked the entrance road where we saw our first Guianan Trogons. On the way back I spotted the nest of a Lesser Swallow-tailed Swift—a long fluffy sock clinging to a trunk. It had been a while since I had seen one of those.
The next day brought lots of rain. Lester and his colleague Charran picked us up and we drove up the Blanchisseuse Road. The rain persisted through the morning but, despite that, we saw a Collared Trogon, Long-billed Gnatwrens and a close Stripe-breasted Spinetail. We reached the community of Brasso Seco where they gave us a cacao production demonstration and a tasty local lunch. After lunch we took advantage of a break in the rains to bird the outskirts of Brasso Seco where Sooty Grassquits, Blue-headed Parrots and Crimson-crested Woodpeckers showed nicely. Not only that, we saw both Guianan and Green-backed Trogons right out in the open. On our way back up the mountains, we encountered a super-close White Hawk posing majestically on a snag, by far the best view I’ve ever had. Further up the mountain, we made a final stop. By then, the rain had finally cleared, and we saw Red-rumped and Golden-olive Woodpeckers, and Summer, Speckled and Bay-headed Tanagers, a few good birds to end the day on a good note.
Lester and the driver, Paul, picked us up the next morning and we drove down in elevation to the Aripo Savanna. It was still drizzling on and off, but we saw a lot of birds, including Rufous-tailed Jacamars, a male Black-crested Antshrike, some Green-rumped Parrotlets on a telephone pole, Yellow-bellied Elaenias, Brown-crested Flycatcher and Yellow Orioles. As we were driving out through town, Lester spotted a Pearl Kite getting mobbed by some Kiskadees along the side of the road. Amazingly, they were about the same size! We had lunch in Sangre Grande, then went to Nariva Swamp where we birded the mangroves and the open marshes. In the mangroves we saw a female Silvered Antbird singing from the prop roots, plus some Northern Scrub Flycatchers, and a close American Pygmy Kingfisher. Further down, we saw a pair of Rufous Crab Hawks on a tall snag, some Gray Kingbirds, Yellow-crowned Amazons, some flyby Blue-and-Yellow Macaws and a Striped Cuckoo spotted by Tim, a good bird to end the day with.
The following day we drove from Asa Wright down to Waterloo along the coast, where we made multiple stops for shorebirds and other coastal specialties. At our first stop, Temple by the Sea, we saw a distant Cocoi Heron, several Ruddy Turnstones on a boat and Northern Beardless Tyrannulet in the trees. We then drove around to another viewpoint and saw dozens of American Flamingos, foraging Scarlet Ibis, Laughing Gulls, Semipalmated Sandpipers out on the mudflats and Bicolored Conebills in the mangroves. We had some chicken wraps that Lester had ordered for us, then we visited some wetlands where we saw Yellow-chinned Spinetails, Tricolored Munias and a close Green-throated Mango. Then came the moment we were all waiting for: Caroni Swamp. We loaded into the boat and Lester motored us through the winding mangrove channels where we saw Straight-billed Woodcreepers, Yellow-crowned Night Herons, a couple Tree Boas and a Northern Silky Anteater--a tiny ball of golden fur tucked away in the leaves. The adventure wasn’t over yet. We pulled out into the open lagoon and saw the dozens of dozens of Scarlet Ibis sailing over to roost. While we watched them, we enjoyed a buffet dinner spread out on the red tablecloth—another sensory overload moment! We spotlighted our way back to the dock, finding some Common Pauraques and a Common Potoo perched on a small bush.
Prompted by the washout we had on the Blanchisseuse Road a few days before, we decided to head back up to see some of the birds that we missed. It was well worth it because we caught up with several species for the trip, including Slaty-capped and Euler’s Flycatchers, Chestnut Woodpeckers, Black-faced Antthrush, and Plain Antvireo. We walked the side road at the overlook and encountered an ant swarm with lots of Plain-brown and Cocoa Woodcreepers. We watched them for several minutes then headed back down for lunch. After lunch, Sabira took us down to the Oilbird cave. Luckily the birds were around this year, since apparently they had taken a leave of absence the year before. We clambered down the steps and through the gushing water of the cave to see one clinging to its rock face. Awesome bird.
Sadly, our time at Asa Wright came to an end, but there was more in store for us. We checked in at the airport and flew a short 20 minutes to the island of Tobago where we were greeted by Albert, the new driver. We stopped at Pigeon Point and scoped both Sandwich and Royal Terns and some immature Lesser Black-backed Gulls. In the parking area across the road we saw our first Scrub Greenlets, too. We then birded the Bon Accord Sewage Ponds where White-cheeked Pintails were lined up along the shore. We watched some Least Grebes with adorable stripy chicks and a family of Red-crowned Woodpeckers in the nearby trees, final woodpecker of the tour. Before leaving for lunch, we picked up Black-faced Grassquits and a handsome male Northern White-fringed Antwren. After oxtail stew lunch, we continued to Blue Waters Inn, getting there just in time to see the Rufous-vented Chachalacas lined up on the fence.
Before breakfast overlooking the turquoise waters of the Caribbean, we walked the hotel grounds and found our first Trinidad Motmot, lurking near the parking lot. We then left for Main Ridge Forest Reserve, stopping for a young Great Black Hawk along the way. We made a couple stops along the way up to the Main Ridge trails and saw Rufous-tailed Jacamar, Venezuelan Flycatcher, Red-rumped Woodpecker, more Trinidad Motmots and a female Collared Trogon. Along the trails we saw some stunning Blue-backed Manakins, Olivaceous Woodcreeper, Rufous-breasted Wren, and a White-tailed Sabrewing dipping in the stream. We then went for lunch at Shurland’s Nature Park and watched the White-tailed Sabrewings coming to drink from our hands in little handheld feeders. What a fun experience!
Our final day of the tour we crossed in a glass bottom boat to Little Tobago Island and climbed up to an overlook where we watched dozens of Red-billed Tropicbirds swooping by in the breeze, backdropped by the crashing waves and Red-footed Boobies nesting on pinnacles. What a dramatic scene! We had lunch back at the hotel and took off for the airport for our flight back to Trinidad, but before reaching the airport we made one last ditch effort to find Mangrove Cuckoo at the Bon Accord Sewage Ponds. I played the recording and one flew right in… a great way to end our time in Trinidad and Tobago!
I’d like to thank Sharon in our office for tying this trip together, Lester for all the ground logistics and comradery, and all the drivers and hotel staff and local guides who took such good care of us. I’d like to thank you all for joining me for a fun week of birding… until next time!
Mammals
Pallas's Long-tongued Bat (Glossophaga soricina) These were the bats coming to the feeders at Asa Wright.
Northern Silky Anteater (Cyclopes dorsalis) Certainly the mammal highlight of the trip and a long-awaited mammal lifer for me! Seen tucked away in a ball at Caroni Swamp.
Red-tailed Squirrel (Sciurus granatensis) We ran into these a number of times on Trinidad.
Small Indian Mongoose (Urva auropunctata) One ran across the road near the Trinidad airport.
Herps
Eyespot Gecko (Gonatodes occelatus) These spectacular geckos were on the tree trunks at Little Tobago.
Grenada Tree Anole (Anolis richardii) Seen on Tobago.
Caribbean Treerunner (Plica caribeana) The lizards that were hanging out at the Asa Wright feeders.
Dormilona Tree Boa (Corallus ruschenbergerii) We saw these in the mangroves at Caroni Swamp.
You can see my complete trip report on eBird at this link: https://ebird.org/tripreport/454116
You can download a combined PDF of this page and the eBird report at this link: https://fieldguides.com/triplists/tri25aTRIPLIST.pdf
-- Micah