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Friday 15 October to Saturday 30 October 2010 Friday 21 October to Saturday 5 November 2011 with Gavin Bieber and a local guide as leaders Cost: £3820 plus about £920 for flights (2010) Single room supplement: £220 Please click here for details and an explanation of the price breakdown Maximum group size 8 with one leader, 14 with two leaders. |
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Guyana is a neglected jewel of Neotropical birding. Long overshadowed by its better-known neighbours to the west and the south, this English-speaking country on the northeast coast of South America preserves vast expanses of unbroken forest among its startling range of habitats. The sun rises relatively late here, just north of the equator, making it possible to take advantage of dawn birding without keeping extreme “birder’s hours,” and the country’s impressive system of rivers makes for easy travel by boat to many of the best birding areas. This tour to South America’s best-kept secret is an ideal introduction to the continent’s birds and a unique opportunity to enjoy the region’s many endemics, some of them recently split. The Guyanan government is working closely with indigenous peoples to create a sustainable ecotourism economy in the country’s interior, and our use on this tour of indigenous guides and lodges in local communities contributes directly to that effort, an experiment in conservation on the grandest possible scale. Day 1: The tour begins with an overnight flight from London to Georgetown. Day 2: After arriving in Georgetown we'll transfer to our hotel and have the remainder of the day to rest before the group gathers in the evening. Night in Georgetown. Day 3: Dawn will find us in Georgetown’s beautiful Botanic Garden, where we’ll search for Blood-colored Woodpecker, an astonishingly colourful Veniliornis endemic to the coastal plain of the Guianas. The gardens also host Pearl Kite, Carib Grackle, Yellow-chinned Spinetail, Black-crested Antshrike, Silver-beaked Tanager, and Golden-spangled Piculet. We’ll then take a boat on the Mahica River to see Guyana’s national bird, the Hoatzin, before continuing to the Abary River, an excellent place for Rufous Crab-Hawk and Guianan Piculet. We’ll stop for birds as opportunities arise for species such as Black-capped Donacobius, Point-tailed Palmcreeper, and Moriche Oriole. Night in Georgetown. Day 4: We’ll head for the Demerara River at dawn; if the tide is out the mudflats may host Scarlet Ibis, Little Blue and Tricolored Herons, and several species of waders, while Magnificent Frigatebirds wheel overhead. Red-breasted Blackbirds sing at the Ogle airport, from which we’ll fly over hundreds of miles of unbroken tropical rainforest to Lethem. After lunch at our inn, we’ll go birding along the banks of the Takatu River. Night near Lethem. Day 5: We’ll make an early start at around 4:30 am to search for two range-restricted species, Hoary-throated Spinetail and Rio Branco Antbird. Both are found only in the gallery forest lining the Rio Branco and its main tributaries. As a result of recent agricultural development, the spinetail is now endangered and the Antbird near-threatened. We’ll take about a two-hour boat trip down the Ireng River to reach suitable habitat; along the way we’re likely to encounter species such as Capped Heron, Muscovy Duck, Pale-legged Hornero, and various swallows. Night near Lethem. Day 6: After a pre-dawn breakfast we’ll head out through the savanna and along the foothills of the Pakaraima Mountains, looking out for Jabirus which are often seen along the road. The Rupununi Savanna through which we’ll be travelling is an extensive area of grassland with termite mounds and scattered riparian woodland. Fork-tailed Flycatchers and Savannah and Black-collared Hawks patrol the grassland and at dusk we’ll look for Nacunda Nighthawk and White-tailed Nightjar. Night at Rock View. Day 7: With its tropical gardens and flowering trees, our lodge is an oasis in the savanna. Amethyst Woodstar, White-chinned Sapphire, Long-billed Starthroat, and various hermits patrol the grounds, while forest patches are home to Amazonian Scrub Flycatcher, Rufous-browed Peppershrike, and antbirds including White-bellied. We may also see Cayenne Jay and Green Aracari, while the Panorama Trail can produce Cinereous Mourner, Finsch’s Euphonia, Reddish Hermit, Rufous-bellied Antwren, and Green-tailed and Yellow-billed Jacamars. We’ll then travel to Surama, a village inhabited mainly by members of the Macushi tribe. Along the way to the village we may see White-throated Toucan, Pearl Kite, Great Potoo, and White-tailed and Savannah Hawks. If a nearby nest remains active, we’ll also visit a site for Harpy Eagle just a couple of miles from the village. Surama is one off the best localities anywhere for Rufous-winged Ground-Cuckoo; we’ll be assisted by expert local guides in our search for this extremely elusive species. The local eco-lodge offers thatched sleeping shelters and meals featuring excellent local produce. Night in Surama. Day 8: We’ll spend the entire day at Surama, exploring the full range of habitats at this delightful locality. We’ll start before dawn with a three-mile walk to the Burro Burro River where, with luck, we’ll see Black Curassow and Gray-winged Trumpeter. We’ll then ride in canoes with our local guides to look for Giant River Otter, Brazilian Tapir, Black Spider Monkey, and a wealth of birds. After returning to the village, we have the option to rest and relax or to take an escorted tour of the village or to bird the surrounding forest. Night in Surama. Day 9: We’ll bird near the lodge, then leave after breakfast for an easy 20-minute walk on the Cock-of-the-rock Trail, where we’ll hope for our first views of Guianan Cock-of-the-rock. We’ll do some roadside birding on our drive to the Iwokrama Canopy Walkway where, from our vantage point 100 feet up in the canopy, we may have eye-level views of Caica Parrot, Painted Parakeet, Guianan Toucanet, Pompadour Cotinga, Plumbeous Pigeon, Red-and-green Macaw, Screaming Piha, and a host of canopy specialists. Night at Atta. Day 10: We’ll welcome the dawn chorus from the Canopy Walkway, which is only about half a mile from our lodge. Short-tailed Nighthawks settle in for the day as swifts take to the sky; the yodeling of White-throated and Channel-billed Toucans are matched by the chant of Barred Forest-Falcons. We can spend the day birding from the walkway as flocks travel past, with chances at Paradise Jacamar, White-necked Puffbird, Yellow-throated Woodpecker, Todd’s Antwren, Black-tailed and Black-crowned Tityras, and Dusky Purpletuft; on the ground, the jungle trails may turn up White-plumed, Spot-winged, and Ferruginous-backed Antbirds, Ash-winged and Long-billed Antwrens, McConnell’s and Gray-crowned Flycatchers, Plain Xenops, and Wedge-billed Woodcreeper. Night at Atta. Day 11: Once again we’ll have the opportunity to bird the walkway and jungle trails in hopes of parrots, Flame-crested Tanager, Slate-colored and Yellow-green Grosbeaks, Slender-footed Tyrannulet, Purple-breasted Cotinga, Black-throated Antshrike, Rufous-throated Sapphire, the recently split Guianan Puffbird, or even the rare Crimson Fruitcrow. After breakfast we’ll drive through the heart of the Iwokrama Forest, where there is always a good chance to see the elusive Jaguar. The low sandy forest of Mori Scrub along the way supports Rufous-crowned Elaenia, Black Manakin, and Red-shouldered Tanager, while other stops will give us a chance at Guianan Red-Cotinga, Pompadour Cotinga, White-winged Potoo, Rufous-winged Ground-Cuckoo, and Marail Guan. A short boat ride will get us to the Iwokrama Field Station for lunch, after which we’ll bird the trails in search of Bronzy Jacamar, Chestnut and Waved Woodpeckers, and Amazonian Antshrike. We may also see Gray-winged Trumpeter, Black-tailed, White-tailed, Violaceous, and Collared Trogons, and woodcreepers including Plain-brown, Wedge-billed, White-chinned, Buff-throated, Chestnut-rumped, and Barred. As the day comes to an end, we’ll look for Ladder-tailed Nightjar, Great and Common Potoos, and the rare White-winged and Rufous Potoos. Night at Iwokrama. Day 12: We’ll take an early morning boat trip around Indian House Island, where dawn song may include five species of tinamou, Marbled Wood-Quail, Band-rumped Swift, White-banded and Black-collared Swallows, and Guianan Streaked-Antwren. After breakfast at the field station, we’ll set out by boat again for the half-hour trip to the foot of Turtle Mountain; along the way we’ll be looking for raptors including Greater Yellow-headed and King Vultures, Gray-headed, Double-toothed, and Plumbeous Kites and Black-faced Hawk. We’ll explore the trails up to an elevation of 900 feet for a view of the forest canopy below, with chances of Green Aracari, White Bellbird, Little Chachalaca, Black-bellied Cuckoo, Guianan White-necked and Collared Puffbirds, White-lored Tyrannulet, and Helmeted Pygmy-Tyrant. In the late afternoon we’ll visit the trails at the Field Station again to look for Swallow-winged Puffbird, Black-spotted Barbet, a variety of woodpeckers, Guianan Toucanet, numerous antbirds, and Thrush-like Schiffornis. After dark, we’ll set out on the river once more in hopes of one or another of its four species of caiman and nightbirds such as Spectacled Owl, Long-tailed Potoo, Zigzag Heron, or Blackish Nightjar. Night at Iwokrama Field Station. Day 13: Quill rattling by Spix’s Guan or Crestless Curassow may start us off as we bird around the Field Station this morning; we’ll also be looking for Buff-throated Foliage-gleaner, Olivaceous Woodcreeper, Eastern Slaty-Antshrike, Sooty-headed Tyrannulet, and Tiny Tyrant Manakin. In the afternoon we’ll take a boat to Stanley Lake, where we’ll be looking for Sunbittern, Green Ibis, and Capped Heron. Night at Iwokrama Field Station. Day 14: We’ll spend the morning on the trails around the field station, then after an early lunch fly back to Georgetown. We’ll make a final visit to the Botanical Gardens for chances to meet up with American Pygmy Kingfisher, Guianan Piculet, Yellow-bellied Elaenia, Mouse-colored Tyrannulet, Straight-billed Woodcreeper, Pied Water-Tyrant, Hooded Tanager, Violaceous Euphonia, and Pale-vented Thrush. Night in Georgetown. Day 15: We'll transfer to the airport for a flight back to London where the tour ends on Day 16.
The ground arrangements for this tour are organised by our American associates WINGS.
E-mail or phone +44 (0)1767 262522 for availability.
Last updated August 2010 |
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