Santa Marta Mountains in Colombia warblers

White lored Warbler, El Dorado Lodge, Magdalena, Colombia, Feb 4, 2020

Santa Marta Warbler, Cuchilla San Lorenzo, Magdalena, Colombia, Feb 5, 2020

Yellow crowned Redstart, Cuchilla San Lorenzo, Magdalena, Colombia, Feb 5, 2020

Back from another trip to the south to find some new warbler species with the latest trip being to the Santa Marta Mountains in the northeast part of Colombia. The isolated mountain range rises abruptly from the sea and has one of the highest level of endemic bird species anywhere in the very bird rich country of Colombia. The mountains have three endemic warbler species: Santa Marta Warbler, White lored Warbler and Yellow crowned Redstart.  Another bucket list trip that I was happy to finally check off.  I arrived at my lodging for my first night just a bit before sunset but I still managed to find a warbler for the trip with a close up look at a couple Rufous capped Warblers (chestnut capped subspecies).

Rufous capped Warbler, Cerro Kenedy Oriente, Magdalena, Colombia, Feb 4, 2020

Blackburnian Warbler, El Dorado Lodge, Magdalena, Colombia, Feb 4, 2020

White lored Warbler, El Dorado Lodge, Magdalena, Colombia, Feb 4, 2020

The first full day started off early with a 5:30am pick up and then a hour ride over bumpy roads to our first stop. I hired a guide, Breiner Tarazona, through Multicolor Birding Colombia and was quite happy with my decision.  The guide was first rate and got me on all the birds I wanted to see and then some,  During our first stop we walked along the road at a spot that  turned up many Rufous capped Warblers plus a Blackburnian Warbler and a couple American Redstarts. We didn’t see any other new warbler species the remainder of the morning as we explored a couple different elevations as we moved up toward El Dorado Lodge. We arrived at the lodge around noon and then I had a couple hours to explore by myself during which the only warbler I had was a Blackburnian Warbler gleaning insects off the side of the lodge. I finally met back up with the guide at three and we went in search of one of my target warblers, the White lored Warbler. We heard some distantly and eventually caught up with some. It took quite a bit of time to get good looks and even longer to get some acceptable photos. It certainly is an active species that seems to shun any areas that provide good looks and any light. Beyond the White lored Warbler we had several Blackburnian Warblers, Black and White Warbler and Slate throated Redstart.

Santa Marta Warbler, Cuchilla San Lorenzo, Magdalena, Colombia, Feb 5, 2020

Yellow crowned Redstart, Cuchilla San Lorenzo, Magdalena, Colombia, Feb 5, 2020

Yellow crowned Redstart, Cuchilla San Lorenzo, Magdalena, Colombia, Feb 5, 2020

Slate throated Redstart, El Dorado Lodge, Magdalena, Colombia, Feb 5, 2020

Blackburnian Warbler, El Dorado Lodge, Magdalena, Colombia, Feb 5, 2020

Black and White Warbler, El Dorado Lodge, Magdalena, Colombia, Feb 5, 2020

On Wednesday morning we headed out a bit after four to make another long bumpy ride headed up to around 2500m to look for the remaining two target warbler species, the Santa Marta Warbler and Yellow crowned Redstart. We arrived before dawn and got to witness a gorgeous sunrise looking toward the snow covered peaks. The most difficult of my three target warblers to find is the Santa Marta Warbler which only occurs at higher elevations and is patchy in its distribution. In addition to that the species is typically active and singing early in the morning after which point it goes quiet and is very tough to find (if not impossible). We lucked out in having one singing not long after dawn and eventually we got some looks and photos of this skulking species. After exploring some other areas at the high elevation we returned to the vehicle and had breakfast. While eating we heard a Yellow crowned Redstart singing nearby. We dropped breakfast and got some looks at the bird as it worked its way through some vegetation about 30 feet away. I thought that was the best looks we would get but I was wrong. The bird then flew in directly at us and landed just above my head at arms length! You didn’t even need binoculars to see the bird! I actually had to take several steps back in order to be far enough away from the bird to allow my camera to focus. The bird stayed close to us for several minutes and allowed for lots of photos to be taken. Eventually it dropped down out of sight but continued to sing occasionally. I was quite happy to get the last two remaining target birds in a short time in the morning. The rest of the morning we worked our way back down toward the lodge and had another Yellow crowned Redstart as well as a Slate throated Redstart. I went out on my own for a bit before lunch and added another Yellow crowned Redstart, Slate throated Redstart, White lored Warblers and Blackburnian Warblers on a trail near the lodge.

White lored Warbler, Finca Cincinati, Magdalena, Colombia, Feb 5, 2020

The afternoon was spent at some lower elevation sites which produced several more fleeting looks at White lored Warblers plus a first for the trip Tennessee Warbler.

White lored Warbler, Finca Palo Alto, Magdalena, Colombia, Feb 6, 2020

Tropical Parula, Finca Palo Alto, Magdalena, Colombia, Feb 6, 2020

The final full day began a little later than the previous day (which was nice after such an early start the day before). Our entire morning was spent doing some roadside birding on the road below the lodge and along the road to Minca where we stopped for lunch. Yet again we ran across several pairs of White lored Warblers and yet again they stayed mainly out of view and remained not very cooperative for photos. In a mixed species flock I added another warbler for the trip with a Tropical Parula which the guide said is not typically seen as high in elevation as we were at. Also in the flock were a couple Tennessee Warblers, Blackburnian Warbler and Slate throated Redstarts. I arrived at my lodging for the final night in mid afternoon and then left Friday morning for the trip over to Barranquilla airport for my flight back home.

I had a total of ten species of warblers for the trip with three of those being new ones for me.  A very successful short trip to the tropics.