Dominican Republic Endemics of Hispaniola II 7Th to 15Th February 2019 (9 Days) Trip Report
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Dominican Republic Endemics of Hispaniola II 7th to 15th February 2019 (9 days) Trip Report Ridgway’s Hawk by Gary Brewer Trip report compiled by Tour Leader: Adam Walleyn Rockjumper Birding Tours View more tours to the Dominican Republic Trip Report – RBL Dominican Republic - Endemics of Hispaniola II 2019 2 Tour Summary Our group met up in the colonial zone of Santo Domingo for an introductory dinner and then set off in the morning to the nearby Botanical Gardens. Birdlife abounded in this tranquil setting within the hustle and bustle of the big city. The sweet songs of Black-whiskered Vireos filled the air, and we soon set eyes on several. On the other islands of the Greater Antilles this a migratory species, but here in Hispaniola, there is a resident population. It did not take long to find our first of many Palmchats, noisily working through flowering trees and attending or building their large stick nests. This has long been considered a monotypic family and, until recently, the island’s sole endemic family; although with recent taxonomic changes there are now three endemic families on this island! Near-endemic Antillean Mangos and Vervain Hummingbirds showed to perfection, the latter the world’s second smallest bird! Multiple Mangrove Cuckoos perched out beautifully for us, along with several Grey Kingbirds, a single Stolid Flycatcher and our first of many attractive Hispaniolan Woodpeckers. It took a bit more Black-crowned Tanager by Gary Brewer searching to find Hispaniolan Parakeet, now an endangered species due to trapping and persecution over most of its range, but once we did views were excellent. We also found our first Black-crowned Tanager, a very attractive species and now part of another family endemic to the island. As the day warmed up a bit, we also heard several Hispaniolan Lizard Cuckoos, and eventually found one for a good view. This fantastic and leisurely introduction to Hispaniola’s birds was augmented by sightings of a number of wintering species, such as Solitary Sandpiper, Merlin, Cape May Warbler, American Redstart and Northern Parula. After lunch, we set off on the drive to the northern part of the island and arrived at Cano Hondo, on the edge of Los Haitises National Park. With a bit of time for a late afternoon wander around the grounds, we were thrilled to obtain good views of Antillean Piculet, a very unique looking woodpecker and a monotypic genus that is endemic to the island. In the same patch of trees, a pair of Broad-billed Tody performed well for us. And for some, there was even a sighting of Pearly-eyed Thrasher, which is rare in Hispaniola, but possibly increasing in numbers. After dinner, we waited around in an area of palm trees and were soon hearing the loud screeches of Ashy-faced Owl; soon afterwards, the bird flew in and posed on a palm for all to admire – fantastic! The next morning, we set off in search of the critically endangered Ridgway’s Hawk. We were expecting to have to make our way through some deep mud, but just a minute Antillean Piculet by Alasdair Hunter or so into our walk, our local guide casually Rockjumper Birding Tours View more tours to the Dominican Republic Trip Report – RBL Dominican Republic - Endemics of Hispaniola II 2019 3 pointed out one of the world’s last Ridgway’s Hawks sitting on an exposed Cecropia branch. Amazing! We spent ample time watching it and its mate both perched and in flight over the next while, before happily moving on and leaving them in peace. The remainder of the morning featured more productive birding, including great views of a pair of Hispaniolan Orioles, a rowdy pair of White- necked Crows, Plain Pigeon, Stolid Flycatcher and Hispaniolan Pewee. An unexpected flock of Caribbean Martins rounded off an excellent morning. Much of the afternoon was spent driving back to Santo Domingo, although a couple of stops around Sabana del Mar added several species to our list, including Semipalmated Plover, Western Sandpiper and Purple Gallinule. Our next day was largely a travel day, as we headed off towards the endemic-rich Ashy-faced Owl by Alasdair Hunter Baoruco Mountains in the far south-west of the country. We spent some time in the morning at the Salinas del Bani, where the salt flats hosted good numbers of Stilt Sandpiper amongst various species of shorebirds, as well as good looks at Royal, Cabot’s and Gull-billed Terns. A patch of mangroves had a very cooperative pair of Mangrove Warblers. In the afternoon, we headed out to Cabo Rojo on the south coast. In the dry scrub, an endangered and massive Rhinoceros Iguana ran off from the side of the road. We tried some sea watching from the coastal cliffs in very windy conditions, and did see several Brown Boobies, but not much else of note. So, we continued to the small town of Pedernales for the night, and had a tasty seafood dinner before turning in. An early start the next morning saw us heading up the Alcoa Road for our first crack at some of the mountain endemics. In the darkness, we spent a good deal of time in an excellent area for Hispaniolan Nightjar, but despite seemingly perfect conditions not even one was heard. So, we carried on into the extensive Caribbean Pine forests higher up. As we drove up, we could see the pine trees were swaying almost horizontally due to the high winds, which seemed fairly ominous for our morning birding prospects! Despite this, as we exited the vehicle at our picnic breakfast spot, a large flock of Hispaniolan Palm Crows came swooping in and were very rowdy as they cavorted around the pine trees – an excellent start! The crows hung around for a long time, entertaining us with their antics, and a few pairs of endangered and rapidly declining Hispaniolan Amazons also flew Hispaniolan Lizard Cuckoo by Alasdair Hunter overhead. Little else was likely to show in the intense wind, so we found a slightly more sheltered spot where we enjoyed great looks at the locally breeding race of Pine Warbler, and then an unexpectedly huge flock of wintering Myrtle Warblers. Mixing in with Rockjumper Birding Tours View more tours to the Dominican Republic Trip Report – RBL Dominican Republic - Endemics of Hispaniola II 2019 4 this flock were Greater Antillean Elaenia, Black-crowned Tanager and the unique Green-tailed Warbler. Spotting a Golden Swallow was at the top of our wish list, and we spent most of the morning standing around and scanning for this highly endangered swallow at a couple of their favoured locations. We were not optimistic about our chances of finding one in the gale force winds, and our pessimism sadly proved justified as they were simply not flying around today. On the plus side, we did spot a single American Black Swift and had a huge bonus when we found a party of Hispaniolan Crossbills quietly coming in to drink at a small water point and then showing superbly in the low branches of pine trees. In the end, it had been an excellent morning and even if we were disappointed about missing the Golden Swallow, we knew we had another chance coming up. After a seaside lunch, we moved on to our well-situated hotel near Barahona and relaxed for the remainder of the afternoon, with Antillean Mangoes all over the garden and Yellow-crowned Night Herons on the beach and even at the pool! The next morning was a very early start, as we headed up the bumpy track to Cachote. The weather had not improved, indeed the high winds were still there, and now accompanied by a thick fog. But there was nothing for it except to plug away at the birding. Remarkably, almost the very first bird we found was the key species for this Hispaniolan Parakeet by Gary Brewer site, the Eastern Chat-Tanager. This normally super elusive species had actually hopped onto the track for all to see! Eventually, it scurried off, and the only other views we got of this species for the morning were brief glimpses in the understorey. This is now the third family endemic to Hispaniola, and its two shy members that live in difficult to access montane forests must make it one of the harder families to catch up with! With lots of other potential new species in these broadleaf forests, we continued to search in the fog and were rewarded with good sightings of Narrow-billed Tody, Rufous-throated Solitaire and Jamaican Spindalis. After lunch, we headed around to the north side of the Baoruco Mountains and arrived at the famous Villa Barrancoli, where we were welcomed by Hispaniolan Emeralds and Antillean Mangoes squabbling over access to the flowers. We dropped off our bags and set off on the Rabo de Gato trail. We eventually found a couple of fairly elusive White- fronted Quail-Doves and, after some persistence, got scope views of one. Amongst numerous other birds, we recorded both Narrow-billed and Broad-billed Todies, a surprise Mangrove Cuckoo and Hispaniolan Oriole before having an early dinner and heading off to sleep. The most important day of the tour had arrived, and it was a very early start to head up the bumpy track to Zapoten. Hispaniolan Spindalis by Alasdair Hunter We arrived at the site in the Baoruco highlands and, to our Rockjumper Birding Tours View more tours to the Dominican Republic Trip Report – RBL Dominican Republic - Endemics of Hispaniola II 2019 5 considerable relief, the incessant wind was gone; although it was very chilly! In the darkness, we finally heard a Hispaniolan Nightjar calling, but it was quite distant and never came any closer.