Central America

Black-faced Solitaire - Elusive Singer

In wet mountain forests of Costa Rica, a slate-gray bird like this one sings as it moves furtively in the dense understory. It’s the Black-faced Solitaire. Naturalist and birding guide Roger Melendez has been listening to its eerie and gorgeous song for over 20 years. But even Roger has a hard... read more »

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Related bird:  Black-faced Solitaire (Myadestes melanops)

Plan Your Next Birding Trip!

Planning a trip? We’ve pulled together some online resources that can help you find that special place for birdwatching—or special bird—on that family vacation across the state or that business trip to the other side of the world. read more »

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Topics & Themes:  birding, birdwatching

Waking to Howler Monkeys - With Roger Melendez

Dawn breaks in Costa Rica. As in many places around the world, people wake to the crowing of roosters . . . or in Costa Rica, it might be howler monkeys! Costa Rican birding guide Roger Melendez says that the male wants to know… “Is everybody awake? Is everybody listenin' to what I’m... read more »

Dancing with Birds - With Heather Murphy and Rhona Baron

Like migratory birds, the dances of North America travel from nation to nation. Beautifully colored songbirds may breed in the far north, but they winter in Central and South America. During a Zumba class, Heather Murphy realized this combination of dance, music, and culture might be used to... read more »

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Topics & Themes:  migration, music
Related bird:  Calliope Hummingbird (Stellula calliope)

Manakins Make Their Own Fireworks

The White-bearded Manakin lives in Trinidad and throughout much of South America. The males court females by snapping their wings with firecracker-like pops. A flurry of males flits rapidly back and forth from one slender, bare sapling to another, a foot above the ground. When the male spots the... read more »

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Topics & Themes:  breeding display, sound
Related bird:  White-bearded Manakin (Manacus manacus)

Tanagers - Coffee Birds

This Scarlet Tanager (R), its cousin the Western Tanager (L), and your latte have a connection. Much of the birds' prime wintering habitat has been turned into coffee plantations. When shade-giving trees are cut down to grow coffee in direct sunlight, the tanagers' winter habitat is also removed.... read more »

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Topics & Themes:  migration
Related bird:  Western Tanager (Piranga ludoviciana), Scarlet Tanager (Piranga olivacea)

Ecotourism

Hiring a local guide when you visit an exotic destination can be a win-win-win situation. You receive the services of a local expert - and you might get to see this Green Violet-ear Hummingbird. The guide has employment. And the birds thrive, because those communities have an economic incentive... read more »

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Topics & Themes:  birdwatching

Ruby-throated Hummingbird

Ruby-throated Hummingbirds are the only hummingbirds that nest in the Eastern states. Most Ruby-throats spend the winter in Central America. By March, some males are already returning to the Southeast. But it's well into April before they reach the northern states. Female hummingbirds arrive a... read more »

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Topics & Themes:  breeding display, migration
Related bird:  Ruby-throated Hummingbird (Archilochus colubris)

Pirates and Parrots

Ahoy, Mates! September 19th is Talk Like a Pirate Day. No doubt the most famous image of a pirate with a parrot is Long John Silver in Treasure Island. During the 1700s, pirates plied the waters of South and Central America, home to many species of parrots, including this Blue and Yellow Macaw.... read more »

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Topics & Themes:  humor

Montezuma Oropendola's High-Security Nesting

A male Montezuma Oropendola holds forth in a tree bedecked with twenty or more hanging nests. The nests are intricately woven sacks hanging three feet or more from the branches. Oropendolas favor trees that are separate from other trees and often build near large nests of wasps, whose stinging... read more »

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Topics & Themes:  nesting
Related bird:  Montezuma Oropendola (Psarocolius montezuma)

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