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The Spectacular Bird Diversity of Honduras 12 Night/13 Day Itinerary

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The Spectacular Bird Diversity of Honduras 12 Night/13 Day Itinerary Our Bird Diversity tour combines interior rain and cloud forests, the breezy Caribbean north coast, and along the way; La Muralla National Park, one of Honduras’ best kept, and most bird diverse, secrets. Nearly 90% of Honduras’ 760+ bird species have been recorded along this route and with luck, we hope to see at least half of these. We begin in the rain forests of Lake Yojoa, and Cerro Azul, ascending to the cloud forests of Santa Barbara National Park (including an area known for the country’s endemic Honduran Emerald). From there, we travel to 2,000 meter pine-oak and cloud forests of Opatoro- Guajiquiro Reserve and La Tigra National Park, before heading northwest for the pristine and rarely habitats of La Muralla National Park and finally Pico Bonito National Park, and the breezy Caribbean north coast. Dates We offer this tour to individuals and groups throughout the year, with November to June being the best period for weather and bird activity. Tour Overview Bay-headed Tanager Day 1: Arrival San Pedro Sula Airport (SAP, transfer to Panacam Lodge Day 2: Panacam Lodge, Lake Yojoa The Spectacular Bird Day 3: El Cajon Reservoir, Honduran Emerald Day 4: Opatoro Biological Reserve Diversity of Honduras Day 5, 6: La Tigra National Park Day 7: Transfer La Tigra to La Muralla National Park 12 Nights/13 Days | Multiple Departure Dates Day 8, 9: La Muralla National Park Day 10: La Muralla National Park to Indura Lodge Day 11: Lancetilla Botanical Gardens Day 12: Laguna de Los Micos Day 13: Departure San Pedro Airport Page 1 • The Spectacular Bird Diversity of Honduras 12 Night/13 Day Itinerary Day 1, Transfer to Panacam near the lodge for the handsome plantations, and the numbers of Lodge: Prevost’s Ground-Sparrow and birds here are simply amazing. muted Green-backed Sparrow, Some of the highlights include, Pick up at San Pedro Sula airport the first of many endemics of Green Jay, Northern Potoo, Green and transfer to Panacam Lodge. northern Central America possible Jay, Tody Motmot, Slate-headed on this itinerary. The edges of Tody Flycatcher, Great Horned Owl Depending on our arrival time, we’ll this broadleaf rain forest lead to and many more. do some late-afternoon birding in Embalse de Yure, one of the best the gardens of Panacam Lodge. wetland spots in the area to try for After 3:00 pm we will head back to This afternoon we have our first Sungrebe and other water-loving the lodge and relax by birding the chance for the regionally endemic species. We will make a stop at very active hummingbird feeders at Keel-billed Motmot, as well as Little Santa Elena, where Black-headed Panacam. Tinamou, Collared and Gartered Siskins and Grace’s Warblers Trogons, and Mayan Antrush. are present in these tropical pine Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner Violet Sabrewing and White- forest habitats. Along the way we Lodging at Panacam Lodge bellied Emerald hummingbirds are also have a good chance for Spot- common delights at the feeders bellied Bobwhite and many other Day 3, Birding El Cajon Reservoir: here. grassland species. After a full morning on Panacam Road we’ll After an early breakfast, we will Meals: Dinner stop for lunch and afterwards make head for El Cajon Reservoir, just Lodging at Panacam Lodge a visit to Finca Luna del Puente and an hour away. The target of our the shore of Lake Yojoa. search, the beautiful but critically Day 2, Birding Panacam Road and endangered Honduran Emerald Lake Yojoa: Finca Luna del Puente is a survives only in remaining secondary growth forest area pockets of tropical dry forest, as We begin the day with birding with cacao, coffee and citrus well as transitional pine forest in Red-capped Manakin Honduras. The recent discovery of a population of these birds will have us birding transitional pine forest for the Emerald, as well as other targets such as White necked Puffbird, Berylline Hummingbird, Spot-bellied Bobwhite, Elegant Trogon, Lesser-ground Cuckoo and Lesser Roadrunner among others. After lunch, we’ll pack up and drive southward through a landscape of pine clad mountains to arrive at our next destination. We’ll make a stop along the way for lunch at a then head up to the mountains of Marcala La Paz. Depending on the activity we may be lucky enough to spot Stellers Jay, a subspecies of the North American species which don’t show the long crest as do their North American counterparts. Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner Lodging at Hotel La Casona Page 2 • The Spectacular Bird Diversity of Honduras White Hawk Day 4, Birding Opatoro-Guajiquiro Swallow-tailed Swift, Northern Rufous-browed Wren and dapper Biological Reserve: Flicker, Black Thrush and White- Blue-and-white Mockingbird. faced Quail-Dove. Flowering bushes attract a variety Today will be a full day of birding of highland hummingbirds such the Opatoro area. We depart at Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner as the near-endemic Green- 5:30 AM for the Opatoro-Guajiquiro Lodging at Hotel La Casona breasted Mountain-gem and highlands, which feature the more widespread White-eared highest elevation forest accessible Day 5, Transfer from Opatoro- Hummingbird. by road in Honduras, providing Guajiquiro to La Tigra National opportunities to observe several Park: Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner northern Central America endemics Lodging at Los Gloriales Inn that are difficult to see anywhere After another morning in the else within their range. High on Opatoro-Guajiquiro highlands to Day 6, La Tigra National Park: the list of priorities will be the target any remaining species, we stunning Blue-throated Motmot, make our way around mid-morning Established in 1980 as the first a species which occurs only in a to La Tigra National Park high national park in Honduras, La Tigra narrow strip of mountains that above the city of Tegucigalpa, the National Park protects a large tract stretch from southern Mexico to capital of Honduras. We’ll arrive of cloud forest in the mountain Honduras. Regional endemics that our hotel in the early afternoon, range above the bustling capital we will seek here include Fulvous and will soon begin focusing our city of Tegucigalpa. After breakfast Owl, Green-throated Mountain-gem, attention on the road leading to we’ll ascend to this verdant forest Black-throated Jay, Highland Guan, La Tigra National Park, a mosaic cloaked in moss and blowing mist, Black-capped Swallow, and Brown- of pine forest, pastures, gardens, and pursue a varied assortment of backed Solitaire. and cloud forest. Large and noisy Mesoamerican specialties occur family parties of Bushy-crested such as Singing Quail, Mountain Other species here include; Jay commonly frequent this area. Trogon, and Black Thrush. Forest Highland guan, Buffy-crowned Yellow-backed Oriole and Flame- clearings and brushy areas often Wood Partridge, Resplendent colored Tanager, two strikingly feature an abundance of flowers Quetzal, Black-vented Oriole, Gray- colored birds, often accompany which may attract some of the breasted Woodwren, Sparkling- them, while brushy roadside edges most distinctive and beautiful tailed Hummingbird, Great provide habitat for the perky hummingbirds in Central America: Page 3 • The Spectacular Bird Diversity of Honduras Garnet-throated Hummingbird, Amethyst-throated Hummingbird, and the incredible Wine-throated Hummingbird. Finally, the spectacular Resplendent Quetzal, a bird venerated by the ancient Aztecs and Mayas due to its great beauty, also dwells in this forest. The subspecies found here is slightly larger with longer and broader ‘tail streamers’ than the one found in Costa Rica. Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner Lodging at Los Gloriales Inn Day 7, La Tigra National Park to Olancho: After some early morning birding near our lodge for any outstanding species, we continue our journey north to the department of Olancho where we will be in position to see one of the most poorly known and most sought after birds in northern Central America, the Ocellated Lovely Cotinga Quail. seeing birds that have rarely if ever Day 9, La Muralla National Park: seen people. We’ll arrive our hotel in La Union in Today we’ll make an early departure late afternoon, and will bird along Thanks to the discovery of a large and if needed, detour first for more the way, looking out for species population of these birds in 2008 looks at Ocellated Quail. Otherwise, such as; White-tailed Hawk, White- near La Union, the rare and highly we’ll head straight for La Muralla breasted Hawk, Double-striped sought after Ocellated Quail is now National Park’s transitional pine Thick-knee, Canivet’s Emerald, perhaps easier to see in Honduras and cloud forest habitats. Orange-billed Nightingale Thrush, than anywhere else within its Lesser Roadrunner and more. limited range. We will focus our La Muralla has a trail system that time here on obtaining views of leads through pristine forests and Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner this shy inhabitant of pine-oak providing some of the best chances Lodging at La Muralla Hotel woodland, searching proven sites for Mesoamerican targets such as; where this species is most often Unicolored Jay, Black throated Jay, Day 8, Birding Olancho and La recorded. With a bit of luck and skill, Bicolored Hawk, and King Vulture. Muralla: we stand a good chance of seeing Mixed flocks of birds move among this holy-grail bird. If we manage the lower sub-canopy and often La Muralla National Park is a to see the quail well, we will move include; Red-capped Manakin, Slaty remote, virtual island of transitional on to explore the nearby cloud Antwren, Plain brown Woodcreeper, tropical forests, combining pine- forests of La Muralla National park Mayan Anthrush, Stub-tailed oak, broadleaf, and pine forests in for species such as Lovely Cotinga, Spadebill, Plain Antvireo, Northern one, providing home for a rich mix Ornate Hawk-Eagle, Unicolored Jay, Nightingale Wren and many more.
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