TOURS – INTERNATIONAL

International Tour General Information

Reservation Deposits

10% deposit is required to reserve your space.

50% is due 120 days prior to start of tour.

100% is due 90 days prior to start of tour.

SINGLE SUPPLEMENT IS $500.00 UNLESS STATED OTHERWISE

Refunds and Cancellations

100% Refund 120 or more prior to start of tour.

50% Refund of total tour cost 90-119 days prior to start of tour*

25% Refund of total tour cost 60-89 days prior to start of tour*

*If total cost for tour has not been paid in full refund may not be applicable

NO REFUNDS LESS THAN  60 DAYS PRIOR TO START OF TOUR UNLESS SPOT CAN BE FILLED IN WHICH A 25% REFUND WILL BE ISSUED.

Trips DO NOT include airfare, food, drinks, tips, or other expenses not specifically mentioned in the tour description.

CDC and Local Guidelines for Covid-19 will be followed.

Spotted Wood-quail

Birding and Photography Tour in Costa Rica

March 18, 2023 – March 25, 2024

Cost -$2775.00 Per Person

Join Archaeopteryx Birding & Nature Tours as we explore the pacific slope, cloud forest, and mangrove wetlands of Costa Rica. We’ll be staying 3 nights in the Pacific lowlands at Playa Hermosa, Puntarenas, 2 nights in the cloud forest of the Quetzal Valley, and 2 nights in Vara Blanca, Alajuela. Our accommodations will be natural, but comfortable ecolodges off the beaten path of most tourism. Here is the tentative itinerary for the tour:

3/18- Arrive in San Jose and travel to Playa Hermosa that evening. We’ll have dinner and light birding around the property of our lodge and begin birding early the next morning

3/19- Calle Conga Hill. Here we will be looking for Scarlet Macaws, Fiery-billed Aracari, Great Kiskadee, Streaked Flycatcher, Tropical Kingbird, Montezuma Oropendola, Lesson’s and Turquoise-browed Motmot, Palm Tanager, Red-legged Honeycreeper, Inca Dove, Bare-throated Tiger Heron, Black-striped Sparrow, Bright-rumped Attila, Yellow-crowned Euphonia, Gray-headed Chachalaca, and Masked Tityra

3/20- Jaco Mamedales Quebrada Bonita Wetlands- Red-breasted Meadowlark, Grayish Saltator, Variable Seedeater, Morlet’s Seedeater, Scarlett-rumped Tanager, Blue-black Grassquit, Thick-billed Seed-finch, Common Black Hawk, Northern Jacana, Scissor-tailed, Willow, and Social Flycatchers, Green-breasted Mango, Southern Lapwing, Brown Jay, Rose-throated Becard, Gartered Trogon, Boat-billed Heron, Blue-gray Tanager, Rufous-naped Wren, Crested Guan, Amazon and American Pygmy Kingfishers, Crimson-fronted Parakeet, and Mangrove Swallow

3/21- Mangrove boat tour- Green and Ringed Kingfishers, Yellow-headed Caracara, Yellow-naped Parrot, Mangrove subspecies of the Yellow Warbler, Mangrove Vireo, Double-striped Thick-knee, Lesser Nighthawk, Collared Plover, Ruddy Ground Dove, Hoffman’s Woodpecker, Cocoa Woodcreeper, Common Tody-Flycatcher, Squirrel Cuckoo, Black-headed Trogon, White-fronted Parrot, Orange-fronted Parakeet, Rufous-browed Peppershrike, and Neotropic Cormorant

3/22- Batsu Gardens for Volcano Hummingbird, Northern Emerald-Toucanet, Spotted Wood-Quail, White-throated Mountain-Gem, Stripe-tailed Hummingbird, Lesser Violetear, Flame-colored Tanager, Sooty-capped Chlorospingus, Silver-throated Tanager, Large-footed Finch, Chestnut-capped Brushfinch, Long-tailed Silky-flycatcher, Ruddy-capped Nightingale-Thrush, Collared Redstart, and Talamanca Hummingbird

3/23- Spend the morning looking for the Resplendent Quetzal if we didn’t get to see him the morning before. We might also find Black Guan, Torrent Tyrannulet, Sulphur-winged Parakeet, Yellow-thighed Brushfinch, or Mountain Thrush. Then we’ll drive to Alejela province and check into Tiquicia Lodge

3/24- La Paz Waterfall Gardens. Bananaquit, Brown-headed Parrot, Green-crowned Brilliant, Black-bellied, Scintillant, and Rufous-tailed Hummingbirds, Slaty Flowerpiercer, Violet Sabrewing, Common Chlorospingus, Chestnut-capped Brushfinch, Sooty-faced Finch, Melodious Blackbird, and Slate-throated Redstart.

3/25- Birding from the Mirador Cinchona cafe. We’ll have breakfast and beverages with the birds before our flights home. This area is known for the Prong-billed and Red-headed Barbets, as well as Green Honeycreeper, Buff-throated Saltator, and Crimson-collared Tanager. Flights home should be scheduled no earlier than noon to provide time to drive to the airport

The cost for this tour will be $2775.00 per person shared occupancy with a minimum of 2 and a maximum of 5 participants. Meals are included for the first 3 days of the tour and then breakfasts for the remainder of the tour.
5% DISCOUNT FOR TOURS PAID IN FULL 120 DAYS PRIOR TO TOUR
10% deposit is required to reserve your space. $70 of this deposit is not refundable, as we need to book your space on the mangrove boat tour
Trip DOES NOT include airfare, food, drinks, tips, or other expenses not specifically mentioned in the tour description. The cost DOES include all park entry fees, professional birding guide, shared checklists, all transportation costs, and water & snacks. Please message us directly through Facebook, or call +1-609-553-0757 to book this tour with us, or to request additional information

Cheetah

Scouting Tour of Kruger National Park

November 17, 2023 – November 24, 2023

Cost $1500 Per Person double occupancy only.

*This is not a standard tour*

This tour is an invitation to come join us while we scout the area around Hazyview, South Africa right outside Kruger National Park. We will be spending half days in the field and plan to reserve a morning safari that will focus on the big 5 mammals as well as birds. We’ll also visit a bird hide in the Skukuza area for up close and personal photography. The locations we’ll visit for birding are no more than an hour and a half drive from our accommodations. Here is a sample itinerary for our week in South Africa:

Day 1, November 17th- 

We’ll begin our adventure at the gateway to Kruger National Park. Our first bird encounters may be Common Bulbul, Ring-necked Dove, Dideric Cuckoo, Black-collared Barbet, Fork-tailed Drongo, Tawny-flanked Prinia, and Lesser Striped Swallow

Continuing on the road to Skukuza we might encounter the Red-billed Quelea, Little Swift, African Green-Pigeon, Rattling Cisticola, Bronze Mannikin, Red-backed Shrike, White-rumped Swift, Green Woodhoopoe, Cinnamon-breasted Bunting, Common Swift, Black-winged Stilt, White-crowned Shrike, White-headed Lapwing, African  Jacana, European Bee-eater, European Roller, Southern Black-Tit, Red-eyed Dove, Double-banded Sandgrouse, Square-tailed Nightjar, Retz’s Helmetshrike, Croaking Cisticola, Cape White-eye, Red-winged Starling, Yellow-fronted Canary, Black Stork, Striated Heron, Black-winged Kite, Southern Boubou, Sulphur-breasted Bushshrike, Lesser Gray Shrike, Rufous-naped Lark, Green-backed Camaroptera, Wire-tailed Swallow, Southern Black-Flycatcher, Red-collared Widowbird, African Pipit, African Black Duck, Red-billed Duck, Laughing Dove, Gray Go-away-bird, Levaillant’s Cuckoo,  Black Crake, Pied Avocet, Senegal Lapwing, Curlew Sandpiper, African Woolly-necked Stork, African Darter, Little Egret, African Spoonbill, Hooded Vulture, Crowned Eagle, Dark Chanting-Goshawk, Common Scimitarbill, African Gray Hornbill, Southern Yellow-billed Hornbill, Brown-headed Parrot, African Black-headed Oriole, Plain Martin, Mosque Swallow, Yellow-bellied Greenbul, Violet-backed Starling, Red-backed Scrub-Robin, African Stonechat, Mariqua Sunbird, Cut-throat, Red-billed Firefinch, Purple Indigobird, Yellow-throated Bush-Sparrow, African Pied Wagtail, Golden-breasted Bunting, and Yellow-throated Longclaw

Day 2, November 18th-

We’ll participate in a safari tour at the Sabi Sand Game Reserve Safari. In addition to mammals, including the big 5, we should be able to spot some unique bird species in this area such as White-faced Whistling-Duck, Egyptian Goose, Woodland Kingfisher, Burchell’s Starling, Marabou Stork, Amur Falcon, Arrow-marked Babbler, Common Ostrich, Red-billed Oxpecker, Swainson’s Spurfowl, Greater Blue-eared Starling, African Firefinch, Southern Gray-headed Sparrow, Shelley’s Francolin, Water Thick-knee, Wahlberg’s Eagle, Verreaux’s Eagle-owl, Southern Red-billed Hornbill, White-fronted Bee-eater, Magpie Shrike, Pied Crow, Red-billed Buffalo-Weaver, Village Indigobird, Coqui Francolin, Natal Spurfowl, Emerald-spotted Wood-Dove, Black-bellied Bustard, Purple-crested Turaco, African Palm Swift, Blacksmith Lapwing, Wood Sandpiper, Hadada Ibis, White-backed Vulture, Bateleur, Martial Eagle, Common Buzzard, Red-faced Mousebird, Southern Ground-Hornbill, Pied Kingfisher, Little Bee-eater, Lilac-breasted Roller, Crested Barbet, Black-collared Barbet, Chinspot Batis, White Helmetshrike, Rufous-chested Swallow, South African Swallow, Sombre Greenbul, Yellow-billed Oxpecker, Wattled Starling, Cape Starling, Scarlet-chested Sunbird, White-breasted Sunbird, Spectacled Weaver, Village Weaver, Southern Cordonbleu, and Pin-tailed Whydah

Day 3, November 19th- Pretoriuskop Rest Camp

Red-headed Weaver, White-winged Widowbird, African Penduline-Tit, Fan-tailed Widowbird, Southern Pochard, Common Waxbill, Three-banded Plover, Lappet-faced Vulture, Speckled Mousebird, Eurasian Hoopoe, Trumpeter Hornbill, Cardinal Woodpecker, Black Cuckooshrike, Black-backed Puffback, Sabota Lark, Stierling’s Wren-Warbler, Red-faced Cisticola, and White-throated Swallow 

Day 4, November 20th- Kruger NP on an alternate road to Skukuza:

Yellow-billed Duck, Southern Carmine Bee-eater, Yellow-billed Stork, African Fish-Eagle, Crowned Hornbill, Ashy Flycatcher, Green-winged Pytilia, White-browed Coucal, Black Cuckoo, Crowned Lapwing, Wattled Lapwing, Black-headed Heron, Gabar Goshawk, African Goshawk, Black Kite, Cape Crombec, Yellow-breasted Apalis, Collared Sunbird, and Jameson’s Firefinch 

Day 5, November 21st- Mount Sheba Resort Grounds

This resort is open to birders for an entrance fee. We should be able to find the Cape Wagtail, African Swift, Speckled Pigeon, African Dusky Flycatcher, Knysna Turaco, Alpine Swift, Jackal Buzzard, Bar-throated Apalis, Greater Striped Swallow, African Paradise-Flycatcher, Yellow-throated Woodland-Warbler, Red-winged Francolin, Red-chested Cuckoo, African Wood-Owl, White-necked Raven, Rock Martin, Common House-Martin, Cape Robin-Chat, Familiar Chat, Greater Double-collared Sunbird, and Mountain Wagtail

Day 6, November 22nd- Timfenheni Loop Drive

This area might be our best option for the much sought-after Secretarybird. Unique birds of this area include the Spotted Thick-knee, Fiery-necked Nightjar, Black-crowned Tchagra, Bronze-winged Courser, Hamerkop, Secretarybird, Brown Snake-Eagle, and Groundscraper Thrush

Day 7, November 23rd- A morning stop at the Lake Panic Bird Hide, followed by birding in the Skukuza camp itself. Birds of the area include the Crested Francolin, Pied Cuckoo, Little-tailed Cormorant, Brubru, Bokmakierie, Southern Fiscal, South African Shelduck, Blue-billed Teal, Cape Shoveler, Harlequin Quail, Greater Flamingo, Rameron Pigeon, Kori Bustard, Freckled Nightjar, Marsh Sandpiper, Small Buttonquail, Dwarf Bittern, African Sacred Ibis, African Harrier-Hawk, Lesser Spotted Eagle, Steppe Eagle, Pearl-spotted Owlet, Crimson-breasted Gonolek, Icterine Warbler, Little Rush Warbler, Pale Flycatcher, White-browed Robin-Chat, Mocking Cliff-Chat, Mariqua Sunbird, Lesser Masked-Weaver, Long-tailed Widowbird, and Shaft-tailed Whydah

Day 8, November 24th- Morning birding for anything we might have missed and travel back to Johannesburg for flights home. 

There are plenty of food options in town for vegetarians, vegans, and omnivores alike. Some of the places we’ve researched and would like to visit are the Kuka Cafe, Pioneer’s Grill, and the Sgodi Phola Tavern. There is also a supermarket in town that’s only a 20 minute walk from our accommodations. And don’t forget the amazing South African wine! There is a wine store in town specializing in wines of the Cape. The price for this scouting tour will be $1.500 per person. This price includes transportation around the country, your hotel stay, and ebird checklists of all the species seen. It does not include your airfare to Johannesburg, meals, safari tour ($35), park entry fees, drinks, or tips.

Unique Ghana 7-Day Birding and Wildlife Photography Tour

November 5, 2023 – November 12, 2023

Cost – $3,250 Per Person

Day 1 = Arrival in Accra Ghana. Akwaaba (Welcome to Ghana). Upon arrival, you will be met by your guides who will welcome you and transport you to a bird friend hotel for a good night rest and prepare for your 7 days long bird, wildlife and photography excursion in Ghana. Overnight at Hotel Erata. (Accra).

Day 2 = Shai Hills Reserve – Sakumono Lagoon. Your birding excursion in Ghana will kick start today in the morning with a visit to the open grassland savannah of Shai Hills, hoping to see and photograph some savannah birds and others that are associated with this site like Mocking Cliff-Chat, Stone Partridge, Blue-bellied Roller, Broad-billed Roller, Violet Turaco, Senegal Parrot, Swallow-tailed Bee-eater, Red-necked Buzzard, Oriole Warbler, Long-crested Eagle, Black-bellied Bustard, Temminck’s Courser, Chestnut Owlet, Red-shouldered Cuckooshrike, Whinchat, Flappet Lark, African Crake, and Ahanta Francolin just to mention few. After an incredible morning at Shai Hills, we will scan Sakumono Lagoon to add residential and migratory shorebirds to our list before we make our way to Cape Coast. Overnight at Hans Cottage Botel. (Cape Coast).

Day 3 – 4 = Kakum National Park (Canopy Walkway), Abrafo Forest – Twifo Praso.
After an early breakfast we will set off for the world-famous canopy walkway at Kakum National Park which is the leading destination for bird watching in Ghana. A wonderful world of amazing canopy species awaits you there. We hope to get there early to see the first light and record the first species that will fly out. Our day will bring out Black Dwarf Hornbill, Violet-backed Hyliota, White-crested Hornbill, Congo Serpent-Eagle, Cassin’s Hawk-Eagle, Long-tailed Hawk, Brown-cheeked Hornbill, Red-cheeked Wattle-eye, Tit-hylia, African Piculet, Blue-breasted Kingfisher, Yellow-throated Tinkerbird, Little Green, Fire-bellied, and Buff-spotted Woodpeckers, Pin-tailed Whydah, Red-headed, Red-vented, Crested and Blue-billed Malimbe, Preuss`s and Yellow-mantled Weavers, Tambourine Dove, Blue-headed and Blue-spotted Wood-Doves, Ethiopian Swallow, Green-headed Sunbird, Lesser Striped Swallow, Green Crombec, Kemp`s and Gray Longbills, Swamp Greenbul, Western Bluebill, Copper-tailed, Long-tailed Glossy, and Chestnut-winged Starlings just to mention few of the incredible birds in this area. Overnight at Hans Cottage Botel. (Cape Coast).

Day 5 = Ankasa Forest Reserve. The key target for the day is Nkulengu Rail. We will be going all out to locate this rare species in the early morning hours. We will be searching for many Upper Guinea endemics such as Hartlaub`s Duck, White-breasted Guineafowl, Yellow-casqued Hornbill, African Finfoot, Shining-blue Kingfisher, White-bellied Kingfisher, Cassin`s Flycatcher, Red-billed Dwarf Hornbill, Olive and Dusky Long-tailed Cuckoos, Great Blue Turaco, White-throated Greenbul, Rufous-winged Illadopsis, Rufous-sided Broadbill, Shining Drongo, Forest Robin, Red-fronted Antpecker, Red-headed Quelea, Carmelite and Reichenbach`s Sunbirds, White-browed Forest-Flycatcher, Red-chested Owlet, Common Cuckoo, Gray-throated Rail, Red-thighed Sparrowhawk, Olive and Fraser`s Sunbirds, Black Cuckoo, Yellow-billed Turaco, White-tailed Alethe, Western Black-headed and Black-winged Oriole, Swamp Greenbul, Green-headed Sunbird, Golden Greenbul, Yellow-spotted Barbet, Yellow-throated Tinkerbird, Red-fronted Parrot as well as many additional incredible species can be found here. Overnight Hotel Frenchman’s Lodge.

Day 6 = Ankasa NP – Picathartes Site – Kumasi. The big day is today. We will be visiting the White-necked Rockfowl nesting site. Please make sure that you have enough memory card. We will check out of our hotel after an early breakfast and make our way to Bonlro village where we will be targeting some key species we missed during our days at other sites or to get better views of species we just had brief views of. We will look for the famous species and pre-historic bird, the White-necked Rockfowl. It is hard to contain your excitement as these legendary prehistoric-looking birds hop and jump on the rocks whilst preening themselves just meters from your eyes giving photographers amongst you a great view. We will then continue our journey to Kumasi after we have enjoyed our target bird for the day. Overnight at Excesa Lodge. (Kumasi).

Day 7 = Bobiri Butterfly Sanctuary – Tafo. Bobiri forest is one of the popular sites in Ghana where a number of birds can be seen including a huge number of
butterflies which will add more species to the tour. After early breakfast we will set off to Bobiri for some significant forest species like Narina Trogon, Gray Parrot, Long-tailed Hawk, Narrow-tailed Starling, Tit-hylia, Forest Woodhoopoe, Black Goshawk, Peregrine Falcon, Preuss`s Swallow, Compact Weaver, Simple, Plain, and Ansorge`s Greenbuls, Palm-nut and Hooded Vulture, African Harrier-Hawk, Velvet-mantled Drongo, Gray-throated Tit-Flycatcher, Dusky-blue Flycatcher, African Forest-Flycatcher, Black-headed Paradise-Flycatcher, Barn And Ethiopian Swallows, Green-headed Sunbird, African Cuckoo-Hawk, Black-throated Coucal, Little Flycatcher, Velvet-mantled Drongo, and Black-winged Oriole just to mention few. Overnight at Royal Bluemich Hotel. (Tafo).

Day 8 = Atewa Range Forest Reserve – To Accra – To the Airport. An early start as we head back into the Upper Guinea Rainforest habitat where so many of Ghana’s sought after special species are found. This morning we hope to see Tit-hylia, Green Hylia, Chestnut-winged Starling, Black-winged Oriole, Western Black-headed Oriole, Lowland Sooty Boubou, Blue-headed Crested-Flycatcher, Yellow-billed Barbet, Gray-headed and Red-tailed Bristlebills and the much sought after Yellow-footed Honeyguide, and Black-necked, Maxwell`s Black, Compact and Grosbeak Weavers, Whistling Cisticola, Black-crowned and Brown-crowned Tchagra, African Emerald Cuckoo, Klaas’s, Levaillant`s, Yellow-throated and Dideric Cuckoos, Black-headed Paradise-Flycatcher, Western Bluebill,
Dideric Cuckoo Tessmann’s Flycatcher and if we are lucky
Baumann’s Greenbul among others will be seen. After an incredible scan this day at Atewa we will then go to our hotel to shower, enjoy some meal before we find our way to the airport to say goodbye to Ghana.

The price for this tour will be $3,250 per person. This price includes transportation around the country, hotels, meals, entrance fees to parks, safari vehicles, water and daily ebird checklists. It does not include your airfare to Accra, drinks, or tips. 

Birding Queensland Australia

Late Summer 2023

$2550.00 PP Double Occupancy. Minimum 2 – Maximum 5

$600.00 Single Supplement

Have you ever wanted to visit the site of the famous Australia Zoo, home to Steve Irwin and his family? Archaeopteryx Tours can make that dream into a reality on this one-week birding and nature adventure to the Brisbane, Queensland area. This tour is designed to get a basic introduction to the birds of the Brisbane area.

August 16th- Arrive in Brisbane no later than 2pm. We’ll pick you up from the airport and our first stop will be the Dowse Lagoon in Sandgate for our first introduction to Australian birds. At this location we should see the Australian Ibis, Rainbow and Scaly-breasted Lorikeets, Pacific Black Duck, Noisyminer, Hard head, Silver Gull, Magpie Goose, Welcome Swallow, Tree and Fairy Martins, Maned Duck, Dusky Moorhen, Australasian Swamphen, Little Pied and Little Black Cormorant, Little Corella, Torresian Crow, Chestnut Teal, Australian Brushturkey, Australasian Darter, Wandering Whistling-Duck, Australasian Grebe, Tawny Frogmouth, Masked Lapwing, and Royal Spoonbill. Check into hotel for the night, have dinner, and talk about plans for the following days of the tour.

August 17th- A day at the Australian Zoo. Wild birds coming to the property include the Australasian Figbird, Lewin’s Honeyeater, Peaceful, Spotted, and Bar-shouldered Doves, White-throated Gerygone, Magpie-lark, Eastern Yellow Robin, Striated Pardalote, Golden Whistler, and the Silvereye.

August 18th- Marchant Park, Brisbane for Crested Pigeon, Brown Honeyeater, Willie-wagtail, Laughing Kookaburra, Variegated Fairywren, Rufous Whistler, Australian Magpie, Straw-necked Ibis, Brown Goshawk, Galah, Pale-headed Rosella, Gray Butcherbird, Bush Thick-knee, and the Long-billed Corella.

August 19th- Lytton Wader Roost and Wynnum Mangrove Boardwalk for the Sacred Kingfisher, Red-backed Fairywren, Gray Fantail, Rainbow Bee-eater, Australian Reed Warbler, Black Swan, Torresian Kingfisher, Yellow-faced, Blue-faced and Mangrove Honeyeaters, Mangrove Gerygone, White-faced Heron, White-browed Scrubwren, and Australian Pelican.

August 20th- Nature Reserve on Hawkesbury Road for Noisy Friarbird, Sulfur-crested Cockatoo, Rufous Fantail, Red-browed Firetail, White-throated Treecreeper, Black-faced Cuckooshrike, Spangled Drongo, Olive-backed Oriole, Pied Currawong, Eastern Whipbird, Pied Butcherbird, and the Pheasant Coucal.

August 21st- Eprapah Creek via Sewage Treatment Plant for the Scarlet Myzomela. Then onto the Tinchi Tamba Wetlands Reserve for Red-capped Plover, Pied Stilt, White-faced Heron, White-bellied Sea-Eagle, and Gray Teal.

August 22nd- Eagleby Wetlands for the Chestnut-breasted Munia, Gray Teal, Pacific Baza, White-breasted Woodswallow, Gray Shrikethrush, and Fan-tailed Cuckoo. Then Oxley Creek Common in the afternoon. Birds seen on this property include Brown Quail, Superb Fairywren, Tawny Grassbird, Black-fronted Dotterel, Australian King-Parrot, Little Lorikeet, and Striped Honeyeater.

August 23rd- Flights leaving in the morning. Drop off at the airport 7-8am for departing flights.

For advanced birders, I highly recommend a trip to the northeastern section of Queensland to experience seeing some of the endemic species of the province following this week. Price for this tour will be $2150 for the week (singles supplement of $600). Price includes transportation, hotel stay, water/snacks, bird checklists, and guide fee. The fee does not include meals. This tour is designed to stay in one area for the duration of the tour to avoid long road trips and hotel-hopping. We’ll be booking small groups only and we can take a minimum of 2 participants with a maximum of 5. Please contact us at archaeopteryxtours@gmail.com if you’re interested in signing up.

Birding and Photography Tour of Córdoba, Argentina

Late Fall 2023

Cost – $3375.00 Per Person Double Occupancy Minimum 3 – Maximum 5

We’re putting together a week-long tour in Córdoba, Argentina with our partners who reside in the country. They have knowledge and expertise on the species of the region and will help to find us as many species as possible. This is a photography tour, so we’ll be moving at a slower pace than a regular birding tour and we’ll be restricting our movement by staying at least 2 nights in each location. Here’s the itinerary for the tour: Day 1:
Arrival in Cordoba, Pampa de Achala, and full birding day there. Night in San Javier.
Place: Pampa de Achala
Target species: Olrog’s Cinclodes, Sierran Meadowlark, Darwin’s Nothura, Andean Swift, Paraguayan Snipe, Andean Condor, Cinereous Harrier, Black-chested Buzzard-Eagle,
Rufous-banded Miner, Cordoba Cinclodes, Puna Canastero, Cordilleran Canastero, Rufous-naped Ground-Tyrant, Grass Wren, Hellmayr’s Pipit, Plumbeous Sierra Finch, Ash-breasted Sierra Finch.
Name of the town: San Javier.
How many nights: 2
Habitat types: Grassland with rocky areas (see the video titled “Pampa de Achala” in folder).
How much walking and difficult: It is a mountainous terrain so there will be slopes and streams. But there will be no routes greater than 500 meters. Obviously, if you want to walk, we can do it, you decide.
Day 2:
Birding in San Javier and the surrounding area. Night in San Javier.
Places: Traslasierras Valley. San Javier, Luyaba and La Poblacion.
Target species: Red-tailed Comet, White Woodpecker, Cream-backed Woodpecker, Black-bodied Woodpecker, Olive-crowned Crescentchest, Brown-capped Redstart.
Name of the town: San Javier.
How many nights: 2.
Habitat types: Mountain or Sierran Forest, Chaco Forest.
How much walking and difficult: Very quiet walk on rural roads. There will be slopes but not too steep.
Day 3:
Birding in Chancaní. Night at Totoral.
Places: Los Tuneles, Chancani, Dean Funes, Totoral.
Target species: Black-legged Seriema, Chaco Eagle, Tataupa Tinamou, Sick’s Swift, Chaco Owl, Spot-backed Puffbird, Spot-winged Falconet, Crested Gallito, Crested Hornero, White-naped Xenopsaris, Suiriri Flycatcher, Cinereous Tyrant, Black-crested Finch, Cinnamon Warbling Finch,
Name of the town: Totoral
How many nights: 2
Habitat types: dry forest (see the video titled “Chancani” in folder)
How much walking and difficulty: All observations will be near the vehicle and a 3 km walk through flat terrain on a trail.Day 4:
Birding in Salinas surrounding area. Night in Totoral.
Places: Jose de las Salinas, Dean Funes, Chuña, Totoral.
Target species: Black-legged Seriema, Spot-winged Falconet, Crested Gallito,
Plain-mantled Tit-Spinetail, Plain Tyrannulet, Southern Scrub-Flycatcher, Salinas Monjita, Lesser Shrike-Tyrant, Black-crested Finch, Cinnamon Warbling Finch, Straneck’s Tyrannulet.
Name of the town: Totoral
How many nights: 2
Habitat types: Dry Forest. Salty area (see the video titled “Salinas” in the folder).
How much walking and difficulty: This day is going to be very hot. We need to wake up early and maybe we can’t be in the salt flats after 11 am. The terrain is easy but the sun can be overwhelming. Day 5:
Birding in Cerro Colorado. Night in Miramar.
Places: Cerro Colorado, Laguna del Plata, Miramar.
Target species: Chaco Chachalaca, Chaco Sparrow, Ultramarine Grosbeak, Ringed Warbling Finch, Shorebirds and Ducks, Chilean Flamingo, Andean Flamingo, James’s Flamingo, South American Painted-Snipe, Yellow-chinned Spinetail, Dinelli’s Doradito.
Name of the town: Miramar.
How many nights: 2
Habitat types: Sierran Forest, Lake, and Marshes. (see the video titled “Cerro Colorado” in folder)
How much walking and difficult: The terrain is flat but near the shore of the lagoon there is a lot of mud and you can sink. Here we say that “el barro te traicionará” (“the mud will betray you”) because it seems firm and suddenly you sink to the knee. I highly recommend wearing rubber boots. Day 6 and 7:
Mar Chiquita Lake. Return to Córdoba and flight to Buenos Aires.
Places: Miramar.
Target species: Chilean Flamingo, Andean Flamingo, James’s Flamingo, Dot-winged Crake, Rufous-sided Crake, Collared Plover, Two-banded Plover, Speckled Rail, Olive-crowned Crescentchest, Bay-capped Wren-Spinetail, Dinelli’s Doradito, Correndera Pipit, Solitary Black Cacique, Dark-throated Seedeater, Tawny-bellied Seedeater, Black-headed Duck, Lesser Yellow-headed Vulture.
Name of the town: Miramar.
How many nights: 2
Habitat types: Lake and Marshes. (see the video titled “Mar Chiquita” in folder)
How much walking and difficult: The terrain is flat but near the shore of the lagoon there is a lot of mud and you can sink. Here we say that “el barro te traicionará” (“the mud will betray you”) because it seems firm and suddenly you sink to the knee. I highly recommend wearing rubber boots. Price for this tour will be $3275 per person double occupancy. This price includes your airport pickup/dropoff, transportation, meals, any park entry fees, water/snacks, and a checklist of the birds seen on your tour. It does not include your airfare to Buenos Aires. We’re looking for a minimum of 3 participants with a max of 5 to be able to run this tour this year. Our partners can also assist anyone who’d like to spend additional days in Buenos Aires with accommodations, things to do, wineries, transportation, even restaurants that cater to dietary restrictions.

Keep checking back for other tours…

Advertisement