{"id":32402,"date":"2017-02-28T16:09:08","date_gmt":"2017-02-28T23:09:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ibo.boisestate.edu\/?p=32402"},"modified":"2026-05-11T11:29:18","modified_gmt":"2026-05-11T17:29:18","slug":"nicaragua2017","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.boisestate.edu\/ibo\/2017\/02\/28\/nicaragua2017\/","title":{"rendered":"Phenomenal birding and other wildlife in Nicaragua, February 2017"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Jay Carlisle<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"
Golden-hooded Tanager<\/a> at El Jaguar by Heidi Ware Carlisle<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I\u2019m lucky in that I am able to fulfill my passions for birding and international travel most years and it\u2019s always fun to visit new places. \u00a0This started with a birding trip with friends to western Mexico almost 20 years ago, then Panama and Peru the next 2 winters, and I\u2019ve been addicted since. \u00a0In recent years I\u2019ve started co-leading 1 or 2 group trips each year, starting with trips to Guatemala and Trinidad & Tobago in which I served as an \u201capprentice guide\u201d assisting my friend Alvaro Jaramillo of Alvaro\u2019s Adventures<\/a>. \u00a0Alvaro taught me many key aspects of guiding and we\u2019ve continued to collaborate since, which has included me running most of \u201cmy\u201d trips through his company, sometimes piloting new itineraries and other times benefitting from trips he\u2019s already planned.<\/p>\n

In April 2016, I met Liliana Chavaria-Duriaux (Lili) and Georges Duriaux, owners of the El Jaguar coffee farm and private forest preserve in Nicaragua, at a bird conservation meeting in Guadalajara, Mexico. \u00a0We quickly hit it off, especially while on a birding field trip, and we soon decided to collaborate on a birding trip for some of my Idaho birding friends to visit Nicaragua \u2013 a country I\u2019ve long wanted to visit, especially after flying over the extensive forests on the Atlantic\/Caribbean slope on return trips from Panama and Costa Rica.<\/p>\n

\"\"
El Jaguar Reserve<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Georges and Lili worked with Alvaro and I to create a diverse and exciting itinerary to explore four key regions of Nicaragua: (1) the north-central highlands, (2) the shores of Lake Cocibolca (aka Lake Nicaragua<\/i>), (3) the Caribbean lowland forests, and (4) the Pacific slope.<\/p>\n

\"\"
The lush tropical forest at Refugio Bartola was destroyed in some areas by Hurricane Otto<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

One twist worth noting is that Hurricane Otto made landfall in November 2016 and affected many forest areas in southeastern Nicaragua, including blowdown of canopy trees and this affected areas of Refugio Bartola and the nearby Reserva Biologica Indio Maiz. \u00a0Lili and Georges initially worried that we\u2019d struggle with forest species there but patches of intact forest remain within relatively short walking distance of the lodge and we still found amazing diversity there.<\/p>\n

\"\"
Pale-billed Woodpecker at Bartola. Photo by Heidi Ware Carlisle<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Though we didn\u2019t see every bird we hoped for (does this ever happen?<\/i> :-), the trip far exceeded my expectations in terms of bird diversity and was a great experience overall. \u00a0Lili and Georges were great to travel and bird with, we employed knowledgeable local guides, we stayed in comfortable lodges\/hotels, we ate great food, and the group made for a fun and cohesive birding team!<\/p>\n

\"\"
Enjoying the view of Rio San Juan during breakfast at the remote Bartola lodge<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Highlights:<\/h2>\n

We recorded 366 bird species during 10 birding days \u2013 of these, 14 species were \u201cheard only\u201d (i.e., owls, Great Tinamou, and a torturously distant Three-wattled Bellbird<\/i>) and 15 were only seen by 1 or 2 observers but 337 were species that were seen by all or most of the group!<\/p>\n

\"\"
The forests of El Jaguar support a rich bird community, including wintering Golden-winged Warblers!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Some of the most exciting\/interesting species included:<\/h3>\n