Introduction
In December 2010, Alex Harper (Miami, Florida), Patrick James (Pensacola, Florida), Ryan Steiner (Smithville, Ohio), and Charlie Wright (Bonney Lake, Washington) collided in Cancun for a birding trip around the Yucatan Peninsula. It was to be a budget trip traveling only on buses and taxis, which is always a bit restrictive but is generally very simple to do in Mexico. We stayed in cheap hotels (who needs hot water?) and camped one night. The sites we visited were mostly selected from the Howell Birdfinding Guide, with the spectacular addition of Calakmul. Logistics were greatly aided by The Lonely Planet guide to the Yucatan Peninsula. Birds of 263 species were detected on our trip. All of our records were entered into eBird.
Daily accounts
Day I - 13 December 2010
Cancun Airport to Isla Cozumel
Upon our mid-day arrivals at Cancun International, the three of us (Ryan would arrive on the 15th) took the cheap ADO bus to Playa del Carmen thence to Isla Cozumel. We arrived after dark (seeing Yucatan and Brown jays on the bus ride) and took a room at the succinctly named Hostelito Affordable & Clean near the center of San Felipe. In talking to a few of the locals we determined that it would be possible to walk from our room north out of town to Antonio Gonzalez Fernandez Boulevard and east to some decent low forest-edge habitat.
Day II - 14 December 2010
Isla Cozumel
In the morning we started walking along the lanes of San Felipe towards the undeveloped area we heard about. We found the two ‘quits – Yellow-faced Grassquits and Bananaquits, both of which have endemic subspecies – to be among the most common birds. An overgrown orchard was territory for a male Cozumel Emerald, an extremely flashy endemic. We had views of these birds several spots along our walk, but this one spot in town was the most reliable. As we walked out of town, the road turned to dirt and we finally got to a spot where we could bird without a big fence in the way. Black Catbirds acted furtive at first, but were so numerous we were destined to find a cooperative one. A bit of pishing brought in a very inquisitive Cozumel Vireo to eye-level. It’s not every day you see such a big, cinnamon vireo!
We headed back to the hostel and took our siesta before heading back out for the evening shift. First off we got our first good looks at Yucatan Woodpecker, often displaying the feature that gave them their former common name, Red-vented Woodpecker. Neotropical migrants were extremely abundant and responsive to pishing on Cozumel, especially in town. Among 14 warbler species was a nice celata Orange-crowned Warbler, apparently a vagrant on the Yucatan Peninsula. Back in the undeveloped edge habitat, we found a briefly cooperative Yucatan Flycatcher. We waited in a wash until dusk, finding the distinctive local subspecies of Rufous-browed Peppershrike and a Mangrove Cuckoo that came in to investigate Alex’s imitation. After sundown, a couple Pauraques started calling and were seen in the flashlight. A loud Christmas party was going on in San Felipe, and we were treated to Spanish versions of all our least favorite songs in the world.
Day III - 15 December 2010
Isla Cozumel, bus to Felipe Carrillo Puerto
Basically a traveling day, we slept in a bit this morning (waking up to the sound of Yucatan Parrots flying over the hostel), then took the 10:00 ferry to Playa (Sandwich and Royal terns, and plenty of Ruddy Turnstones) and picked up Ryan at the airport. From there we got on a 2nd class bus to Felipe Carrillo Puerto (many stops; not arriving until after dark) where we had the best tacos de res of the trip and stayed in a cheap hotel. Highlight of the bus trip was a Laughing Falcon not terribly far out of Cancun.
Day IV - 16 December 2010
Vigia Chica Road
In the morning we stocked up on bread and hailed a taxi to drive us up the Vigia Chica Road. It didn’t take too long to get into good-looking habitat where we had the taxi drop us off (~2.5km up the road). We walked down one of the first tracks on the south side of the road and found a place to stash our stuff as we birded the road for the morning. As is typical in Mexico, Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl could rarely be imitated without the incessant little buggers making an appearance themselves. We heard 15 or more during the morning. We explored the road and several short tracks up to the diagonal track mentioned in Howell. The birding was great, with observations of Black-headed and Gartered trogons, Squirrel Cuckoo, Wedge-tailed Sabrewings, Canivet’s Emeralds, Plain Xenops (Alex only), Slate-headed Tody-Flycatcher, and Green-backed Sparrow. We found one particularly nice antswarm that was attracting Long-billed Gnatwren, Gray-throated Chat, Rose-throated Tanager (female), Boat-billed Flycatcher, and Red-throated Ant-Tanager. The Gray-throated Chats put on great shows each time we saw them, often “freezing” motionless while softly calling.
During the hot middle of the day we set up our tents and took a siesta at a milpa along one of the tracks. Blue Ground-Doves and Yucatan Jays were thick here and Yellow-billed Caciques made occasional visits.
In the afternoon we headed up the road again as bird activity resumed. Our first new finds were an adult King Vulture soaring with a bunch of “lowborn” vultures and a Short-tailed Hawk. As we walked, I spotted a brilliant male Red-capped Manakin flying along. Unfortunately, no one else got on it, though we heard a few wing-snaps. We also were treated to a Turquoise-browed Motmot and a couple of White-bellied Emeralds that were much duller than illustrated in Howell & Webb. Nearing dusk we were treated to an awesome spectacle: a wide “river” made up of thousands of bats began swarming at eye-level across the road, each emerging from the dense forest on one side, often barely missing one of us, and quickly disappearing to the other side.
We made a good attempt at night birds, walking the road and quite a bit of our track, but nightjars were not calling and unfortunately I had neglected them when adding things to my iPod. The highlight of the night was an honorary bird: an enormous (>10cm) male elephant beetle (Megasoma elephas).
Day V - 17 December 2010
Vigia Chica Road, bus to Xpujil
Upon waking up, we had fine observations of Orange Oriole and a pair of Pale-billed Woodpeckers in “our milpa.” For this morning we decided to continue walking all the way down the track where we camped. This turned out to be a GOOD idea, as we ran into several sought-after species. The most exciting encounter (as should always be the case with Celeus woodpeckers) was with a Chestnut-colored Woodpecker that showed up like an apparition and disappeared just as quickly. Northern Bentbills (growling) and Stub-tailed Spadebills (giggling) were some of the most frequently heard birds in this forest, with well over 25 of the latter. We successfully whistled in some Thicket Tinamous, just glimpsing one moving through plenty of growth. We also observed an apparent Streak-headed Woodcreeper, though I realize this is considerably outside of their known range. The combination of medium-small size, extremely well-streaked head and breast, and the rapid chur call note that matched perfectly with recordings all make me comfortable that it was a Streak-headed. Other additions today were Smoky-brown Woodpecker, “White-browed” Carolina Wrens, and Yellow-throated Vireo.
We were figuring on a long, hot slog back into town but instead were lucky enough to hitch a ride on a logging truck within seconds of getting to the road. Back in Felipe Carrillo Puerto we got refreshments and found our way to the bus station. We took the bus to Chetumal (first Keel-billed Toucans en route!) and then to Xpujil. We had a long delay at one military checkpoint, but all of our stuff was apparently left alone. We arrived late in the evening in Xpujil, where we got a room at the Hotel Victoria (which is in the same building as the bus terminal and very close to the disco – yes, a bit noisy) and arranged for a taxi to pick us up in the morning.
Day VI - 18 December 2010
Calakmul
While we were hoping to find a way to camp near the biosphere entrance, which would surely be an outstanding experience, we weren’t sure how easy it would be to get a ride from where we would camp into the ruins (or back to town). We ended up hiring a taxi from the hotel in Xpujil, leaving at 04:00. There is a flat rate of $80 a day for the taxi to drive the 150 kilometers to the ruins entrance and wait with the car for the whole time that you are there. Our first taxi driver was – to put it mildly – insane. We had a hard time getting through to him that our safety and that of wildlife was more important to us than any time saved by going 3x the speed limit around hairpin turns. We can only hope the many birds this guy put in danger were more agile than they appeared to be. Speaking of agility (or the lack thereof), we ran into four Great Curassows along the road, a couple of which were so startled at our speed that they winged their way up into the canopy.
We did get to the end of the road and the ruins entrance in one piece and, needless to say, in good time. As soon as we opened the car door, a couple of truly bizarre Ocellated Turkeys ran over to us and posed for pictures. Our goal then (which we did eventually achieve, inside the ruins and along the road) was to see these birds in a more natural situation. A pair of Bat Falcons was raucously calling and interacting in the trees right above the parking lot. While waiting for the 08:00 opening, we walked the road and some trails off into the rainforest. Both Barred and Collared Forest-Falcons were prevalent here.
Finally we started exploring the ruins. It was hard to decide whether it was the Estructuras themselves or the 360° views of protected rainforests that primarily made this place so incredible. We found that sightings of even the most common birds (like Least Flycatchers) were made special when they were seen from the top of a pyramid. Birds were active, although we had some trouble finding the army ant swarms today. Along the trails were multitudes of Ovenbirds, Kentucky Warblers, Wood Thrushes, and a few each of Swainson’s and Worm-eating Warblers. The pyramids proved to be great for raptor-watching. We had decent views of a Gray-headed Kite, and prolonged views of a Black Hawk-Eagle as it performed a figure-eight soaring display while calling. Also a juvenile King Vulture that recalled nothing so much as a Griffon Vulture. A male Gray-collared Becard preening in the canopy was one of the highlights. We had excellent studies of Yellow-bellied Flycatchers at point-blank range, and also had clear views of one Acadian Flycatcher (north of the regular winter range?).
Stayed the night again at the Hotel Victoria, for lack of better options. Restaurants in Xpujil aren’t what they could be, and we found that they frequently tried to gouge us on the bill.
Day VII - 19 December 2010
Calakmul, bus to Merida
We hired another driver to pick us up in Xpujil at 04:00, this time a considerably saner person who even showed some interest in us getting looks at curassow and pavo. On the highway, the driver and I noted several Gray Foxes and a Jaguarundi escaping the edge of the high beams, and as we began climbing up the road to Calakmul I saw a Yucatan Poorwill.
Near the parking lot we found our first male Blue Bunting of the trip, which allowed us to approach within 5 feet for great photos, and a couple Blue-winged Warblers. Sadly, a Collared Aracari was sitting on the ground with a broken bill in the parking lot. We tried placing the bird up on a limb, but it soon expired. We entered the ruins at opening and started walking towards Estructura I, the only one we didn’t climb the day before. Along the way, a very nice line of army ants was crossing the trail, so we decided to plant ourselves, eat our lunch, and see what would come in. Gray-headed Tanagers were the first things to show up, followed by a Ruddy Woodcreeper that lit on a trunk for some minutes before continuing along its way. As the grand finale, a Black-throated Antthrush was first heard, then flew in and strutted around for us just off the trail, picking at the line of army ants. Nearby, a small group of Spotted Wood-Quail burst into song but remained well out of sight.
We headed back to Xpujil around 11:00, seeing a Gray-necked Wood-Rail and Thicket Tinamou along the road on the way out.
For the rest of the day we took the long bus ride to Campeche then Merida. On the way to Campeche we went through some extremely birdy towns, especially the area around Xbonil where we saw many dozens of Social Flycatchers and a roosting flock of orioles than numbered in the hundreds! Orchard Oriole seemed to be more numerous than Baltimore, with a bare minimum of 200 seen between two pulsating bushes. We also saw five Great Curassows in a wash right along the highway. We arrived at Merida very late at night.
Day VIII - 20 December 2010
Bus to Rio Lagartos
We left our hotel in Merida and hopped on the bus to Rio Lagartos. The bus took us through small towns where the only Yellow-backed Orioles and Ladder-backed Woodpeckers were seen. We arrived in Rio Lagartos in the late afternoon and spoke with Ismael Navarro of Restaurante Isla Contoy about doing a mangrove boat tour. He suggested an evening trip to look for pygmy kingfishers and a morning trip for everything else. Our boat driver took us out to a secluded mangrove channel where the kingfishers are sometimes found. We had no luck on those, but found ample consolation in a trio of Rufous-necked Wood-Rails working their way along the mangrove roots in plain sight, apparently uncommon in the Rio Lagartos area. We also heard Clapper Rail and Crane Hawk.
We stayed at a small, very affordable cabana at Hotel Isla Contoy, right by the docks.
Day IX - 21 December 2010
Rio Lagartos mangrove boat tour
When we woke up our boat driver mentioned that hummingbirds visit some of the flowers along the road in town. We checked it out and had nice views of Mexican Sheartails, though always females. We got into the boat and started exploring the extremely rich estuary at 06:30. Huge numbers of birds, including plenty of American Flamingos. Boat-billed Herons of various ages were found roosting, and Lesser Yellow-headed Vultures were often overhead. Among the less common birds, we found one adult Lesser Black-backed Gull and two Red-breasted Mergansers. A single Zenaida Dove also flew by us on the boat.
In the afternoon we walked along the highway back out of town to the cemetery area. On the way, we were amazed at our fortune when one of us spotted an American Pygmy Kingfisher just off the road at one of the bridges. The bird froze completely, refusing to move until we finally had to just walk away. The area surrounding the cemetery is quite good thorn forest. Mexican Sheartail females were numerous (though we had no luck on males). We found our first Mangrove Vireos here, and a Black-tailed Indigo Snake (Drymarchon melanurus) eating something in a ditch. Another addition to our Parulid list was a Prairie Warbler. A Ruddy Crake came in and called in response to tape.
Day X - 22 December 2010
Rio Lagartos/San Salvador Ranch
Since we were without our own vehicle, getting to Los Carbonados and San Salvador Ranch would have been a bit tricky. Luckily, we spoke with Diego Nunez who arranged for his brother-in-law Elmer to drive us out there. Black-throated Bobwhites were one of the first birds we heard in the morning, but the Yucatan Wrens presented themselves far more audaciously. Orange and Black-cowled Orioles were also conspicuous. We did finally see the bobwhites running between thickets and flying in as we imitated their calls. As we walked down the road, the fog that was clinging to the ground suddenly burned off and we spotted an adult Jabiru standing on its distant nest. In the area of our car we kept hearing a Broad-winged Hawk whistling, a sound very familiar to all of us. This is apparently a rare bird here, especially in winter. We drove around for some time with Lesser Roadrunner in mind, and finally were lucky enough to see one fly up and sit on a rock wall before vanishing.
As it warmed up, many raptors became active, including two Great Black-Hawks and a Zone-tailed Hawk. We also scanned a swallow flock and found a Cave Swallow and a couple “Ridgeway’s” Rough-winged Swallows. Before we headed back to Cancun, we had a couple Red Knots on the mudflats near the lighthouse.
Day XI - 23 December 2010
Jardin Botanico Alfredo Barrera M.
In the morning Alex, Ryan, and Patrick caught their flights back to the states. My flight wasn’t until the 24th so I decided to make a last-ditch effort for the Yucatan Vireo that we somehow missed out on Cozumel. I hopped on a bus to Puerto Morelos and asked around for an affordable place to stay. Found the Hostal Secreto much to my liking, run by a very easy-going couple with a perro simpatico. I threw my stuff in the room and set out on foot in the afternoon (the first rain shower of the entire trip delayed my start just slightly). I walked along the road and out the highway to the Jardin Botanico. The road from the highway into town goes through some nice mangroves with a few viewing platforms and even some ecological interpretive signs. I watched as a Morelet’s Caimen stealthily hunted coots – the coots bunching up in one incredibly dense clump, exactly as they do when hunted by eagles in Washington. I also startled a Bare-throated Tiger-Heron struggling to swallow a large eel.
I entered the botanical garden, paid my $100 pesos to a very friendly staff member, and started wandering the trails. Activity was subdued to start with, but I had my best views ever of a very quiet, very tame Bright-rumped Attila hopping on the trail. A little pygmy-owl tooting brought in a mob (and soon, a mob-ee) of birds that included a Green-breasted Mango and a Louisiana Waterthrush, the latter seen extremely well and heard calling. I stumbled across a large troop of Yucatan Spider Monkeys with noisy White-nosed Coatimundis apparently following along below them. As I continued along the trail going towards the hanging bridge, I searched a loose mixed flock and pulled out a Yucatan Vireo. Another one came in with an (unseasonable?) Blue-headed Vireo while I was up in the canopy platform and approached to within arm’s reach.
As I walked back to Puerto Morelos I had good views of Chaetura swifts flying overhead. At least 12 Chimney and a few Vaux’s were identified by sight and sound, the second time I’ve been able to see these species flying together (the first was in Guerrero).
I spent my last bit of time playing tourist and getting Christmas gifts in Puerto Morelos, which has plenty of opportunities for such.
Thicket Tinamou
Black-bellied Whistling-Duck
Blue-winged Teal
Red-breasted Merganser
Plain Chachalaca
Great Curassow
Black-throated Bobwhite
Spotted Wood-Quail
Ocellated Turkey
Pied-billed Grebe
American Flamingo
American White Pelican
Brown Pelican
Neotropic Cormorant
Double-crested Cormorant
Anhinga
Magnificent Frigatebird
Bar-throated Tiger-Heron
Great Blue Heron (plus “Great White” Heron)
Great Egret
Snowy Egret
Little Blue Heron
Tricolored Heron
Reddish Egret
Cattle Egret
Green Heron
Yellow-crowned Night-Heron
Boat-billed Heron
White Ibis
Roseate Spoonbill
Jabiru
Wood Stork
Black Vulture
Turkey Vulture
Lesser Yellow-headed Vulture
King Vulture
Osprey
Gray-headed Kite
Northern Harrier
Common Black-Hawk
Great Black-Hawk
Roadside Hawk
Broad-winged Hawk
Gray Hawk
White-tailed Hawk
Short-tailed Hawk
Zone-tailed Hawk
Red-tailed Hawk
Black Hawk-Eagle
Barred Forest-Falcon
Collared Forest-Falcon
Crested Caracara
Laughing Falcon
American Kestrel
Merlin
Bat Falcon
Peregrine Falcon
Ruddy Crake
Clapper Rail
Rufous-necked Wood-Rail
Gray-necked Wood-Rail
American Coot
Black-bellied Plover
Snowy Plover
Wilson’s Plover
Semipalmated Plover
Piping Plover
Killdeer
American Oystercatcher
Black-necked Stilt
Spotted Sandpiper
Greater Yellowlegs
Willet (Western)
Lesser Yellowlegs
Whimbrel
Marbled Godwit
Ruddy Turnstone
Red Knot
Sanderling
Semipalmated Sandpiper
Western Sandpiper
Least Sandpiper
Short-billed Dowitcher
Laughing Gull
Ring-billed Gull
Herring Gull
Lesser Black-backed Gull
Least Tern
Caspian Tern
Forster’s Tern
Sandwich Tern
Royal Tern
Black Skimmer
Rock Pigeon
Red-billed Pigeon
Eurasian Collared-Dove
White-winged Dove
Zenaida Dove
Mourning Dove
Common Ground-Dove
Ruddy Ground-Dove
Blue Ground-Dove
White-tipped Dove
Caribbean Dove
Ruddy Quail-Dove
Olive-throated Parakeet
White-fronted Parrot
Yellow-lored Parrot
Squirrel Cuckoo
Mangrove Cuckoo
Lesser Roadrunner
Groove-billed Ani
Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl
Mottled Owl
Pauraque
Yucatan Poorwill
Chimney Swift
Vaux’s Swift
Wedge-tailed Sabrewing
Green-breasted Mango
Cozumel Emerald
Canivet’s Emerald
White-bellied Emerald
Cinnamon Hummingbird
Mexican Sheartail
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Black-headed Trogon
Gartered Trogon
Turquoise-browed Motmot
Ringed Kingfisher
Belted Kingfisher
American Pygmy Kingfisher
Collared Aracari
Keel-billed Toucan
Yucatan Woodpecker
Golden-fronted Woodpecker
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
Ladder-backed Woodpecker
Smoky-brown Woodpecker
Chestnut-colored Woodpecker
Lineated Woodpecker
Pale-billed Woodpecker
Plain Xenops
Ruddy Woodcreeper
Olivaceous Woodcreeper
Streak-headed Woodcreeper
Black-faced Antthrush
Northern Beardless-Tyrannulet
Greenish Elaenia
Northern Bentbill
Slate-headed Tody-Flycatcher
Eye-ringed Flatbill
Stub-tailed Spadebill
Royal Flycatcher
Tropical Pewee
Yellow-bellied Flycatcher
Acadian Flycatcher
Least Flycatcher
Vermilion Flycatcher
Bright-rumped Attila
Yucatan Flycatcher
Dusky-capped Flycatcher
Great Crested Flycatcher
Brown-crested Flycatcher
Great Kiskadee
Boat-billed Flycatcher
Social Flycatcher
Tropical Kingbird
Couch’s Kingbird
Red-capped Manakin
Black-crowned Tityra
Masked Tityra
Gray-collared Becard
Rose-throated Becard
White-eyed Vireo
Mangrove Vireo
Cozumel Vireo
Yellow-throated Vireo
Blue-headed Vireo
Yucatan Vireo
Lesser Greenlet
Rufous-browed Peppershrike
Green Jay
Brown Jay
Yucatan Jay
Northern Rough-winged Swallow (Ridgeway’s)
Gray-breasted Martin
Tree Swallow
Mangrove Swallow
Barn Swallow
Cave Swallow
Yucatan Wren
Spot-breasted Wren
Carolina Wren (White-browed)
White-bellied Wren
White-breasted Wood-Wren
Long-billed Gnatwren
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
Tropical Gnatcatcher
Swainson’s Thrush
Wood Thrush
Clay-colored Thrush
Gray Catbird
Black Catbird
Tropical Mockingbird
Blue-winged Warbler
Tennessee Warbler
Orange-crowned Warbler
Northern Parula
Yellow Warbler (plus Golden and Mangrove)
Magnolia Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler
Black-throated Green Warbler
Yellow-throated Warbler
Prairie Warbler
Palm Warbler
Black-and-white Warbler
American Redstart
Worm-eating Warbler
Swainson’s Warbler
Ovenbird
Northern Waterthrush
Louisiana Waterthrush
Kentucky Warbler
Common Yellowthroat
Gray-crowned Yellowthroat
Hooded Warbler
Yellow-breasted Chat
Bananaquit (Cozumel)
Gray-headed Tanager
Blue-gray Tanager
Black-headed Saltator
Blue-black Grassquit
White-collared Seedeater
Yellow-faced Grassquit
Olive Sparrow
Green-backed Sparrow
Savannah Sparrow
Rose-throated Tanager
Summer Tanager
Red-crowned Ant-Tanager
Red-throated Ant-Tanager
Northern Cardinal
Rose-breasted Grosbeak
Gray-throated Chat
Blue Bunting
Indigo Bunting
Painted Bunting
Red-winged Blackbird
Eastern Meadowlark
Melodious Blackbird
Great-tailed Grackle
Bronzed Cowbird
Black-cowled Oriole
Orchard Oriole
Hooded Oriole
Yellow-backed Oriole
Orange Oriole
Altamira Oriole
Baltimore Oriole
Yellow-billed Cacique
Scrub Euphonia
Yellow-throated Euphonia