MONTE VERDE CLOUD FOREST RESERVE & LIST 
COSTA RICA

Region (Compass)

Lat:00^o00´S/00^o00´W ha topography msl 
Protected/registered status 
Best Time for visit (17-19th January, 2005)

Birding Site Guide

The Monteverde area was accessed from the town of Santa Elena where there was a good choice of cheap accomodation. I visited 3 different sites spending a day birding in each. The Monteverde Reserve was 6km from Santa Elena and reached by bus leaving at 6:15. The Santa Elena Reserve was about 5km from Santa Elena town in the other direction from Monteverde. There was also a bus leaving at about 6:45. The last day was spent at the Bajo Del Tigre trail which was 3km from town towards the Monteverde Reserve to which I walked. The Bajo del Tigre trail was at lower elevation and had very different species from the other 2. Monteverde and Santa Elena Reserves had good forest at similar elevations but I saw a few species in each reserve that I didn't see at the other. Several species were seen walking to or from the reserves. The weather was very windy and rainy on all days and really affected the birding. I saw only 1 of my target species, the Black Guan, at the Santa Elena Reserve. I saw 77 species including 22 lifers

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Species seen 

• Black Vulture Coragyps atratus
• Broad-winged Hawk ? Buteo platypterus
• Black Guan Chamaepetes unicolor Near-threatened
• White-winged Dove Zenaida asiatica Seen Liberia
• Buff-fronted Quail-Dove Geotrygon costaricensis
• White-fronted Parrot ? Amazona albifrons
• Squirrel Cuckoo Piaya cayana
• Bare-shanked Screech-Owl Megascops clarkii
• Green Hermit Phaethornis guy
• Violet Sabrewing Campylopterus hemileucurus
• Green Violet-ear Colibri thalassinus
• Fiery-throated Hummingbird Panterpe insignis
• Coppery-headed Emerald Elvira cupreiceps Endemic
• Stripe-tailed Hummingbird Eupherusa eximia
• Purple-throated Mountain-gem Lampornis calolaema
• Green-crowned Brilliant Heliodoxa jacula
• Magenta-throated Woodstar Calliphlox bryantae
• Orange-bellied Trogon ? Trogon aurantiiventris
• Blue-crowned Motmot Momotus momota
• Prong-billed Barbet Semnornis frantzii
• Blue-throated Toucanet Aulacorhynchus caeruleogularis
• Smoky-brown Woodpecker Veniliornis fumigatus
• Spotted Barbtail Premnoplex brunnescens
• Ruddy Treerunner Margarornis rubiginosus
• Spotted Woodcreeper Xiphorhynchus erythropygius
• Slaty Antwren Myrmotherula schisticolor
• Long-tailed Manakin Chiroxiphia linearis
• Mountain Elaenia Elaenia frantzii
• Olive-striped Flycatcher Mionectes olivaceus
• Rufous-browed Tyrannulet ? Phylloscartes superciliaris
• Yellow-olive Flycatcher Tolmomyias sulphurescens
• Yellowish Flycatcher Empidonax flavescens
• Bright-rumped Attila Attila spadiceus
• Dusky-capped Flycatcher Myiarchus tuberculifer
• Social Flycatcher Myiozetetes similis
• Tropical Kingbird Tyrannus melancholicus
• Black-and-yellow Silky-flycatcher Phainoptila melanoxantha
• Black-throated Wren ? Thryothorus atrogularis
• Rufous-and-white Wren ? Thryothorus rufalbus
• Ochraceous Wren ? Troglodytes ochraceus
• White-breasted Wood-Wren ? Henicorhina leucosticta
• Gray-breasted Wood-Wren Henicorhina leucophrys
• Black-faced Solitaire Myadestes melanops
• Orange-billed Nightingale-Thrush Catharus aurantiirostris
• Slaty-backed Nightingale-Thrush Catharus fuscater
• Ruddy-capped Nightingale-Thrush ? Catharus frantzii
• Mountain Robin Turdus plebejus
• Clay-colored Robin Turdus grayi
• Brown Jay Cyanocorax morio
• Yellow-throated Vireo Vireo flavifrons
• Lesser Greenlet Hylophilus decurtatus
• Golden-winged Warbler Vermivora chrysoptera
• Black-throated Green Warbler Dendroica virens
• Black-and-white Warbler Mniotilta varia
• Ovenbird Seiurus aurocapilla
• Wilson's Warbler Wilsonia pusilla
• Slate-throated Redstart Myioborus miniatus
• Collared Redstart Myioborus torquatus
• Golden-crowned Warbler Basileuterus culicivorus
• Rufous-capped Warbler Basileuterus rufifrons
• Three-striped Warbler Basileuterus tristriatus
• Bananaquit Coereba flaveola
• Common Bush-Tanager Chlorospingus ophthalmicus
• Sooty-capped Bush-Tanager Chlorospingus pileatus
• Hepatic Tanager Piranga flava
• Summer Tanager Piranga rubra
• Blue-gray Tanager Thraupis episcopus
• Silver-throated Tanager Tangara icterocephala
• Spangle-cheeked Tanager Tangara dowii
• Blue Seedeater ? Amaurospiza concolor
• Yellow-faced Grassquit Tiaris olivacea
• Yellow-thighed Finch Pselliophorus tibialis
• Chestnut-capped Brush-Finch Buarremon brunneinucha
• White-eared Ground-Sparrow Melozone leucotis
• Rufous-collared Sparrow Zonotrichia capensis
• Buff-throated Saltator Saltator maximus
• Great-tailed Grackle Quiscalus mexicanus

Other Fauna 
A total of -- species of mammals. 

There are -- recorded species of amphibians and reptiles. 

Flora 

Author: Charles Hesse

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