Gray crowned Yellowthroat, Arenal Kioro Suites, Costa Rica, Mar 29, 2025
MORE PHOTOS TO COME ONCE I GET FLICKR TO COOPERATE AGAIN!
To start the trip we took an afternoon flight down to Charlotte on Saturday where we spent the night. The hotel we stayed at was in a business park that had some decent habitat and some walking trails and the location proved to be fairly productive. I had three species of warblers including Yellow rumped Warbler, Palm Warbler and Pine Warbler (all new for me in North Carolina). No photos as I didn’t want to unpack all my gear.
We then took a morning flight out of Charlotte down to Liberia in Costa Rica where we arrived around midday local time (two hours behind us) and then spent an hour plus getting through immigration. It was sunny, hot and windy in the lowlands. The weather changed as we moved up in elevation and by the time we started our way around Lake Arenal on our way to the lodge the clouds moved in and the rain started. We finally made it to the lodge a little after four and I got a little birding in around our room with just one species of warbler, Chestnut sided Warbler, to show for my efforts.
Wilson's Warbler, Arenal Observatory Lodge, Costa Rica, Mar 24, 2025
Tennessee Warbler, Arenal Observatory Lodge, Costa Rica, Mar 24, 2025
Northern Waterthrush, Arenal Observatory Lodge, Costa Rica, Mar 24, 2025
Chestnut sided Warbler, Arenal Observatory Lodge, Costa Rica, Mar 24, 2025
Louisiana Waterthrush, Arenal Observatory Lodge, Costa Rica, Mar 24, 2025
Buff rumped Warbler, Arenal Observatory Lodge, Costa Rica, Mar 24, 2025
Golden crowned Warbler, Arenal Observatory Lodge, Costa Rica, Mar 24, 2025
On my first full day at the lodge I headed out before dawn. The skies were mainly overcast with just a few stars visible as I walked to the far southeast corner of the property with warblers being a major target. I spent the next nearly three hours under threatening skies that eventually started producing some rain just as I was finishing up my walk. Despite the gloomy conditions I tallied seven species of warblers including both waterthrush species, Gray crowned Yellowthroat, Tropical Parula, Chestnut sided Warbler (just one!), Golden crowned Warbler (including some gathering nest material) and Buff rumped Warbler. The rain then continued on and off (mainly on) for the remainder of the day with the afternoon a washout. Nonetheless I did get out between bouts of rain during the morning plus birded from our deck and I turned up a few more warblers including Black and White Warbler, Tennessee Warbler, Yellow Warbler and Wilson’s Warbler bringing my total for the day to 11 species…not too bad considering the conditions.
Chestnut sided Warbler, Arenal Observatory Lodge, Costa Rica, Mar 25, 2025
Chestnut sided Warbler, Arenal Observatory Lodge, Costa Rica, Mar 25, 2025
Tennessee Warbler, Arenal Observatory Lodge, Costa Rica, Mar 25, 2025
Black and White Warbler, Arenal Observatory Lodge, Costa Rica, Mar 25, 2025
Lake Arenal, Arenal Observatory Lodge, Costa Rica, Mar 25, 2025
I was out once again before the sun was up and unfortunately the rain started up again and I had to wait about 15 minutes for it to slow down enough to attempt to make the couple mile walk out to the far northeast corner of the lodge property. One of my target warblers was Kentucky Warblers and once I made it into the forest I had one. I had some fleeting views but not long enough to get a photo. I did get a recording of the calls as the bird circled around me for several minutes. During the remainder of my walk before heading back for breakfast I added seven more species of warblers as I dodged some spotty rain and drizzle. After breakfast I headed back out as the rain continued to be spotty and I added a couple more species for the day including a decent number of Chestnut sided Warblers with many in heavy molt and a few with near breeding plumage. The time period of late morning through midday was mainly rain free and I was able to get a bit more walking in and added another species for the trip with a couple Black throated Green Warblers in a mixed flock of mainly northern breeding species. A few distant birds got away without being identified as the group worked through the tops of the trees. By early afternoon the rain picked up in intensity and stayed that way for the rest of the day. By the end of the day I totaled 11 species of warblers once again.
Chestnut sided Warbler, Arenal Observatory Lodge, Costa Rica, Mar 26, 2025
Buff rumped Warbler, Arenal Observatory Lodge, Costa Rica, Mar 26, 2025
Tennessee Warbler, Arenal Observatory Lodge, Costa Rica, Mar 26, 2025
Wilson's Warbler, Arenal Observatory Lodge, Costa Rica, Mar 26, 2025
Tropical Parula, Arenal Observatory Lodge, Costa Rica, Mar 26, 2025
Tennessee Warbler, Arenal Observatory Lodge, Costa Rica, Mar 26, 2025
On the last full day at the observatory lodge I was out the door early with the intention of heading way out on the trails to try to get some photos of the Kentucky Warbler I found the day before. Not surprisingly it was raining a little first thing in the morning but it didn’t seem to bad some I took the chance on making the walk. I regretted that decision after walking quite a distance out and then getting caught in a downpour. I took shelter for a while and when there was a slight lull I started back. Of course the rain picked up again and I got soaked. I only got a few warblers during that walk. Once I got back the rain of course stopped again. I stayed fairly close to the room and then made a stop for breakfast. The rain seemed to have stopped and I took another chance to make a longer walk and once again got caught in another downpour. All was not lost as I did add some warblers before the rain came down. The remainder of the day continued with the on and off rain although we actually had a decent amount of the afternoon rain free. I almost made a third attempt to take a long walk but decided that I didn’t want to get caught for a third time in a downpour in the same day. I spent the rest of the day taking either short walks or sitting on the deck. By the end of the day I had tracked down eight species with no new ones for the trip.
Buff rumped Warbler, Arenal Observatory Lodge, Costa Rica, Mar 27, 2025
Black throated Green Warbler, Arenal Observatory Lodge, Costa Rica, Mar 27, 2025
Tennessee Warbler, Arenal Kioro Suites, Costa Rica, Mar 27, 2025
Yellow Warbler, Arenal Kioro Suites, Costa Rica, Mar 27, 2025
I had some of the morning available at the observatory before we got picked up at 10AM for the 25 minute drive down to Arenal Kioro Suites near La Fortuna. Again I was up early and once again it was raining off and on and it was even windier than any other day. After getting caught in the rain a couple times the day before I didn’t venture too far away from shelter. Nonetheless I still got to cover some of the trails and found birds despite the occasional rain. Nothing new in the few hours I had available with a total of eight species. We made it down to Arenal Kioro late in the morning and I birded around the grounds and once again had to dodge rain showers. Among the three species of warblers I added a couple Yellow Warblers for the day.
Yellow Warbler, Arenal Kioro Suites, Costa Rica, Mar 28, 2025
Chestnut sided Warbler, Arenal Kioro Suites, Costa Rica, Mar 28, 2025
Chestnut sided Warbler, Arenal Kioro Suites, Costa Rica, Mar 28, 2025
On the first full day at Arenal Kioro I got out early once again and the rain actually held off for a good portion of the day with just short bouts of light rain or drizzle with no downpours…progress! I birded around the grounds for most of the morning and some of the afternoon. I ended the day with five species of warblers, which is not too bad given the limited area of the grounds of the lodge. The big achievement of the day was not having to spend time inside due to heavy rain.
Gray crowned Yellowthroat, Arenal Kioro Suites, Costa Rica, Mar 29, 2025
Gray crowned Yellowthroat, Arenal Kioro Suites, Costa Rica, Mar 29, 2025
Chestnut sided Warbler, Arenal Kioro Suites, Costa Rica, Mar 29, 2025
The last full day at Arenal Kioro dawned with a little fog that lifted quickly with the remainder of the day staying dry with a mix of sun and clouds and feeling more like I would expect it to feel in the dry season. I once again walked the grounds and had some good luck with warblers with a total of eight species for the day. My early morning walk was quite productive as I ran across a mixed flock that contained mainly warblers with Chestnut sided Warbler and Tennessee Warbler making up the majority of birds with the other species being Black and White Warbler and Yellow Warbler. They appeared to be moving through the area and not stopping and they were not present in the area the previous day. After a brief break for breakfast I was out again for a few more hours and got some fantastic looks at Gray crowned Yellowthroats. After lunch I got a massage and then birded around the property once again but didn’t find any new warblers in my travels.
Magnolia Warbler, Arenal Kioro Suites, Costa Rica, Mar 30, 2025
Sunday would be a travel day as we would be leaving Arenal Kioro and heading to San Jose to drop off Sherri for her flight the following morning and then I would continue on to Hotel Quelitalas. I had the morning free to bird around the grounds once again and I was up early checking for owls again (quite successfully I might add) and then I headed down the entrance road to once again check the area where I had a selection of warblers the day before. I had some great looks at a pair of Buff rumped Warblers as I walked down the road. Once I made it to the previously productive spot I noticed the activity was a bit lower but the quality made up for a slight reduction in numbers. I added the first of two new warblers for the trip with a Magnolia Warbler working through the low trees and I got a few photos despite the poor lighting. The Magnolia Warbler was a new warbler species for me in Costa Rica and my total for warblers there now stands at 35 species. As I scanned through birds I discovered a stunning Prothonotary Warbler. That bird was not cooperative at all and only showed itself occasionally and only for fleeting glimpses. I eventually got a few marginal shots of it. I then hiked back up the hill to join Sherri for breakfast before I headed out again for a large portion of the morning before packing up and getting ready to head to my next destination. We had a relaxing lunch before making the nearly three hour ride to San Jose to drop off Sherri before I continued on for almost another two hours to Hotel Quelitalas where I arrived around six. I ended the day with nine species of warblers, all at Arenal Kioro. The arrival at Hotel Quelitalas had a bit of a snafu when I arrived as for some reason my credit card didn’t go through and they canceled me. Thankfully we got it straightened out quickly and my room was still available. In fact I was the only guest for the night and they fired up the kitchen so I could have dinner.
On my first full day at Hotel Quelitalas I spent the entire day around the grounds and hiked several miles including some very steep trails to get to some higher elevations. It was nice to not have to deal with any rain beyond a couple of sprinkles late in the afternoon. By the end of the day I had tallied nine species of warblers with three new species for the trip with Blackburnian Warbler, Golden winged Warbler and Slate throated Redstart. None of these were new for the year as I had seen them all during my trip down to Costa Rica in late January into early February. I also had an interesting interaction with a Golden crowned Warbler as it dropped down in front of me and performed a distraction display. I presumed there was a nest nearby.
For my second day at Hotel Quelitalas I focused on tracking down a few more target species with some success. Along the way I ran across a few warblers including what appeared to be the same mixed flock I had the day before that contained Golden winged Warbler, Blackburnian Warbler, Tropical Parula and Slate throated Redstart. I also had the same experience with a Golden crowned Warbler as I had the day before as it dropped to the ground and faked an injury of some sort to distract me from what certainly is a nest site. No new warbler species for the day and I ended the day with eight species of warblers.
I had a few hours in the morning available to bird and I made the most of what turned out to be the sunniest day of the whole trip. Just half a dozen species of warblers for the couple hours of effort.
I ended my latest trip to Costa Rica with a total of 18 species with one of those new for me in the country (Magnolia Warbler). The addition now pushes my warbler species total in the country to 35 species.
