Brazil & Argentina #2

Brazil & Argentina #2

On our 12-day tour to the Pantanal and Iguazú Falls, we’ll explore two very different ecosystems; in Brazil we’ll visit a huge wetlands system while in Argentina we’ll visit the Atlantic forest. This is a shortened version of a trip we ran in 2022—on that trip we recorded 325 bird species and 14 mammal species (for a complete list, see the trip report). October is the end of the dry season and the perfect time to explore both of these sites.

Hyacinth Macaw (photo Eric Schroeder)

We begin this trip with our visit to the world’s largest wetland, the Pantanal, which provides us with the best opportunity on the planet to see Jaguar as well as other charismatic mammals, and of course it hosts a large suite of birds. Target birds include five kinds of kingfishers (Amazon, Ringed, Green, Green-and-rufous and American Pygmy), Red-billed Scythebill, Bare-faced Curassow, Great Rufous Woodcreeper, Agami Heron, Jabiru, Golden-collared Macaw, Golden-collared Macaw, Black-collared Hawk, Sungrebe, and Gretter Rhea. In addition to the Jaguar, mammal targets include Giant Otter, Giant Anteater, Crab-eating Fox, Marsh Deer, and Lowland Tapir.

Our visit to the Atlantic Forest starts on the Argentine side of Iguazú Falls, which not only provides dramatic scenery, but excellent birding. The Iguazu River, where it tumbles over the edge of the Parana Plateau, is by many people considered the world’s most spectacular waterfall. The falls span over 1.6 miles and are comprised of 275 distinct falls. But the birds are spectacular, too. One of our target birds occurs at the fall, the Great Dusky Swift, which roost on the waterfall cliffs. Our target Atlantic forest birds include Red-rumped Cacique, Toco Toucan, Chestnut-eared Araçari, Blonde-crested Woodpecker, Ochre-collared Piculet, Swallow-tailed Manakin, Southern Antpipit, Eared Pygmy-Tyrant, Chestnut-bellied Euphonia, Green-headed Tanager, Streak-capped Antwren, Surucua Trogon, Rufous-capped Motmot, Greenish Schiffornis, Rufous Gnateater, Dusky-tailed Antbird, and the elusive Black-fronted Piping-Guan.

Contact: Please refer to the itinerary below. For questions or to sign up, contact Eric Schroeder at tr***********@*ol.org.  Please do not contact the trip vendor first.

Price: $7950 per person sharing, which includes all internal transportation (e.g., domestic flights worth $500)

Single Supplement: $810…

Total Uruguay

Total Uruguay

TOTAL URUGUAY

Dates:  Nov 2, 2023 – Nov 16, 2023

Uruguay: rich avian and habitat diversity in a small territory.

Enjoy, at a great price, a 15-day small group (6-8 person) trip that includes every national park and the majority of the country’s IBAs (Important Bird Areas). Birding With Me is a woman-owned and operated company.  Florencia Ocampo, a biologist, started “Birding With Me” over 10 years ago.

Photo: Rufous Hornero – Steve Hunter

This tour is led by fully bilingual Uruguayan birding expert Rafael Tosi.  This tour is also designed to show you less-seen Uruguayan lifestyles and food, where you will get a sense of how people live in different parts of the country, and have an opportunity to get to interact with local people.

Uruguay is a small country in the Southern Cone of South America that enjoys a temperate climate very similar to our own. It is approximately 375 miles long both from north to south and from east to west. In spite of this tiny territory, it contains many different environments: the Pampas, the Atlantic Forest, savannas, wetlands, ocean coasts, countless water courses, grasslands, ravines, several hill ranges, palm tree forests, and  many others. This richness of landscapes results in a great diversity of bird species that can be seen easily, in a short time and traveling short distances.

The territory is also an important feeding and breeding destination for many migrant species, including in November (Austral Spring) birds on migration to southernmost areas of South America and South American birds coming to nest in Uruguay.

On this tour you will visit the most important hot spots in the country for birdwatching. Two of the principal 13 destinations on this tour were recently explored by scientists: Rincón de Franquía and Paso del Centurión. These are relatively new protected areas where biologists have only recently begun to research the flora and fauna. Many new bird species have been recorded in these areas in the last 3 years.

By the end of the tour, we hope to see over 250 bird species.

Total Uruguay Cost Structure:

8 guests @ US $2,800 per person, based on double room occupancy.

7 guests @ US $3,000 per person, based on double room occupancy.

6 guests @ US $3,200 per person, based on double room occupancy.

Single room supplement @ US $200 (limited availability).…

Araucana Lodge in Colombia—a Home Base trip

Araucana Lodge in Colombia—a Home Base trip

This seven-day trip is designed for birders who haven’t traveled abroad previously AND it offers the best of everything for birders who are on a tight schedule. Both beginning birders and seasoned veterans will be able to enjoy this birding tour and perhaps tick off a few mega-finds along the way! It can be combined with the Santa Marta trip, but it’s a self-contained itinerary, a trip that will ensure your international birding experience is a great one.

Why Colombia? Easy. It’s the birdiest country on earth, with 1,930 species—almost 20% of the world’s total in 1% of its landmass, with new species still being discovered and new records being announced regularly. There are several reasons for this: Colombia is tropical yet it also has ample elevation changes due to the Andes; it has both the Pacific and Caribbean coasts; it has a wide range of different habitats, and different habitats ensure a wide range of bird species.

Your home for the trip will be one of Colombia’s newest birding lodges, which will allow you to stay in very comfortable accommodations while birding some of the best sites in Colombia without having to spend much time in a vehicle—or packing your suitcase every other day! Araucana Lodge opened in January 2019 and was designed specifically for birders and nature lovers, with spacious rooms and all the comforts that ensure a good night’s rest.

Don’t forget to pack your camera—Araucana Lodge and many of the reserves along the route have excellent feeder set-ups that provide some of the best photographic opportunities in Colombia, with targets ranging from hummingbirds to toucans.

This trip includes visits to some of Colombia most iconic birding locations, including KM 18 and the San Antonio Cloud Forest (an excellent introduction to birding in the Colombian Andes), the San Cipriano Reserve (which features the humid forests of the Pacific lowlands), the Anchicaya Valley (which is located in one of the most biodiverse national parks in the planet), and an active Andean Cock-of-the-rock lek.

View Trip Bird List Here

Palm Deserts and the Salton Sea

Palm Deserts and the Salton Sea

On this five-day tour, explore California’s unique Mojave and Coloradan desert systems to search for specialized avifauna and other wildlife adapted to thrive in arid conditions PLUS the wildly scenic and wonderfully eccentric Salton Sea. Travel as a small group with desert-experienced nature & bird guides from Nature Trip to visit San Andreas fault Geothermal zones; High Desert, Joshua Tree habitats; Native Washington Palm Desert Oasis; the ultra-rich delta of the Imperial Valley, the incomparable Salton Sea; and Anza Borrego, California’s largest state park.

Your guides for this trip, Eddie Bartley & Noreen Weeden, have been leading Nature Trip tours since 2004 in California and birding the Palm Desert region for over 25 years.

More questions? Contact GGBA Travel Coordinator Dawn Lemoine at tr***********@********************ce.org.

ITINERARY Available Soon!

The Yucatan and Cozumel

The Yucatan and Cozumel

Mark Pretti has taken Golden Gate Bird Alliance members to SE Arizona, Oaxaca, Costa Rica, Ecuador and probably other places before my time on the Travel Desk.  We now have the exciting opportunity to travel with Mark to an all new location.  If you’ve traveled with Mark before, you know why he is one of our most beloved guides. 

Harboring about ten percent of Earth’s biodiversity, Mexico is one of the most biologically rich countries in the world.  During this journey, you’ll explore and learn about some of that richness as we visit Isla Cozumel and the Yucatan Peninsula. Though the region is well known as a popular resort destination, what’s often overlooked are its extensive tracts of native forest and its impressive diversity of flora and fauna.  In addition to rainforest, lagoons, mangroves, beaches, cenotes, and coral reefs, the area is of course rich in Mayan culture.

The trip starts in Cozumel and ends in Cancun.  All lodging, meals, guides, GGBA administration fee, and ground transportation is included in the cost.

Please see the detailed itinerary for all of the exciting details.

Estimated Cost for this 10-day trip:  $3,650 per person, based on double occupancy

Estimated Single Supplement:  $550

More questions? Contact GGBA Travel Coordinator Dawn Lemoine at tr***********@********************ce.org

Ready to register?  Contact Dawn first.  She will put you in touch with Mark Pretti Nature Tours.