Caribbean Endemic Birding tour

Welcome to Colombia! Upon landing at Ernesto Cortissoz International Airport (BAQ) in Barranquilla, we will transfer to your hotel. This is an arrival day with no scheduled activities or meals included, allowing you to rest up and be completely refreshed for the early morning start tomorrow. 

We set off 6am to Salamanca Park, on this route we will see our first birds of the Caribean like the Northern Screamer, Brown-throated Parakeet, Straight-billed Woodcreeper, American Pygmy Kingfisher, White-headed Marsh Tyrant, Red-rumped Woodpecker, Bicolored Conebill, Turquoise-winged Parrotlet, Yellow-chinned Spinetail but our main targets are the Endemic Sapphire-bellied Hummingbird, Chestnut-winged Chachalaca and Sapphire-throated Hummingbird.

Around lunch time, we’ll transfer to Minca, where will watch for birds like the Keel-billed Toucan, Crested Oropendola, Swallow-Tanager, Black-and-white Owl, Gartered Trogon, Scaled Piculet, Yellow-legged Thrush.

At Night we do a session looking for owls.

We spend a beautifully paced day exploring the shade-coffee plantations and secondary forests surrounding the charming town of Minca. Our relaxed trail walks focus on spectacular foothill species such as the Golden-winged Sparrow, Black-headed Tanager, Barred Antshrike, Blue-ground Dove, and the elusive Military Macaw.

Early bird, we board our comfortable 4WD vehicles to bird our way up the scenic, unpaved ridge road connecting Minca to our upper cloud forest lodge. We will make frequent, easy roadside stops to photograph and view an incredible wave of Sierra Nevada endemics, including the Santa Marta Foliage-gleaner, Santa Marta Blossomcrown, Santa Marta Antbird, Santa Marta Tapaculo, and Santa Marta Brushfinch.

An early 4:00 AM departure via 4WD takes us to the breathtaking San Lorenzo Ridge in time for sunrise. Enjoying a packed breakfast in the field, we will spend the morning tracking the highest-altitude endemics of the range: Santa Marta Warbler, Santa Marta Parakeet, Rusty-headed Spinetail, Santa Marta Antpitta, and the gorgeous Black-backed Thornbill. After a rewarding morning, we descend the mountains and transfer to the comfortable lowlands near Tayrona.

We spend a relaxed morning birding the dry forest fringes of the Tayrona area, keeping a sharp eye out for one of Colombia’s ultimate prizes: the rare and majestic Blue-billed Curassow. We will also look for Lance-tailed Manakin, Crimson-crested Woodpecker, and White-bellied Antbird. After lunch, we transfer toward the desert landscapes of Camarones, stopping along the way for Northern Scrub-Flycatcher and Caribbean Hornero.

We spend a spectacular morning exploring the unique xeric desert scrub of Camarones to find localized specialties like the stunning Vermilion Cardinal, Orinocan Saltator, Tocuyo Sparrow, and Buffy Hummingbird. In the afternoon, we step aboard a traditional local sailing boat for a calm, effortless cruise across the lagoons to photograph American Flamingos, Roseate Spoonbills, and various migrating shorebirds.

A final morning exploration of the Guajira dry forests ensures we clean up any missing regional targets, such as the White-whiskered Spinetail, Rufous-vented Chachalaca, and Pale-eyed Pygmy-Tyrant. After a relaxed lunch, we head south via private transport to the musical city of Valledupar to prepare for our mountain ascent tomorrow.

We head out early to visit Los Tananeos Nature Reserve, a beautifully protected riparian forest holding Military Macaws, Glaucous Tanagers, Black-backed Antshrikes, and Ruby-topaz Hummingbirds. Following lunch, we begin our smooth 4WD ascent into the isolated, dramatic peaks of the Serranía del Perijá, heading straight to our conservation cloud forest lodge.

Today is dedicated to the high-altitude wonders of the Perijá paramo. Moving at a very comfortable, steady pace, we will spend the day targeting a staggering list of recently split endemics found nowhere else on earth: Perijá Thistletail, Perijá Metaltail, Perijá Antpitta, Perijá Brushfinch, and the rare Perijá Starfrontlet. We also keep our eyes on the skies for the Andean Condor and Black-and-chestnut Eagle.

To ensure a relaxed and highly successful trip, today offers complete flexibility. We can return to the high ridges to spend more time with the endemics or explore the lush mid-elevation cloud forests to track down species we may have missed, such as the Golden-headed Quetzal, Grooved-billed Toucanet, or specialized tapaculos.

We slowly bird our way down the Perijá mountain roads, utilizing the vehicle for effortless roadside birding. We will focus on mixed feeding flocks and subtropical targets before transferring to our hotel in the lowlands at La Jagua de Ibirico.

Our final full birding day takes us into a specialized mid-elevation forest reserve to target the highly localized and endangered Perijá Parakeet. We will spend the day exploring this rich habitat, which also hosts Golden-headed Manakins, Black-fronted Wood-Quails, King Vultures, and the beautiful Rosy Thrush-Tanager.

After breakfast, we provide private transfers from our hotel to the Valledupar Airport (VUP) for your domestic connections to Bogotá or direct international flights home, officially concluding your epic northern endemic expedition.

Dedicated day searching for the rare and colorful Painted Parakeet along with other special bird species of the region.

Final transfer to Santa Marta or Barranquilla airports to conclude the Caribbean birding expedition.