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info@tamanduaphoto.com
This tour ranges in altitude from sea-level to 3,200 m altitude in the Talamanca mountains, giving access to a wide variety of habitats and species within relatively short drives. The Chiriqui Highlands contain a rich mosaic of agricultural land and cloud forest, which includes the regional endemic-rich Volcan Baru and La Amistad national Parks.
Tamandua maintains a Hummingbird garden and a private cloud forest reserve, providing excellent watching and photo opportunities for a host of highland specialties.
Enrique Malek International Airport in David, Panama (Google Map)
Medium (some uphill walking, muddy trails, wet conditions)
max. 8 people + guide
1 person: US$ 2,799
2 pers: US$ 2,499 pp
6 pers: US$ 2,099 pp
8 pers: US$ 1,899
Among many others
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Arrival and pick-up at David’s international airport, and drive to our hotel in the Chiriqui Highlands. Depending on the time of your flight, there may be several birding stops on our way. Depending on the season, the endemic Veraguan Mango can be seen near the airport.
After an early Breakfast, we will drive to Volcán Barú National Park to search for Resplendent Quetzal in their feeding and display areas. The cloud forest along Los Quetzales Trail into the national park is shared with Long-tailed Silky-Flycatcher, Barred Becard, Black-faced Solitaire, Chestnut-capped Brush-Finch, Black-capped Flycatcher, Buffy Tuftedcheek, Ruddy Treerunner, Blue-throated (Emerald) Toucanet, Volcano Hummingbird and other highland specialties. Some sections of this trail are among the few places where the rare Silvery-throated Jay can be spotted.
Picnic lunch in the field.
After an early Breakfast, we will spend the whole day visiting La Amistad International Park, a World Heritage site part of the Talamanca Mountains, a volcanic range home to the highest concentration of regional endemic species in Panama, such as Silvery-fronted Tapaculo, Yellow-thighed Finch, Collared Redstart, Flame-throated Warbler, Prong-billed Barbet and Wrenthrush (Zeledonia).
This morning we will visit Tamandua’s private cloudforest reserve and hummingbird garden, in search of highland specialties like Volcano Hummingbird, Volcano Hummigbird, Maroon-Chested Ground Dove, Sooty Capped Clhorospingus, Fiery-throated Hummigbird, Costa Rican Pygmy-Owl…
After lunch we will visit the lakes of Volcan, close to their namesake town: two volcanic caldera lakes surrounded by secondary forest and coffee farms, providing a perfect habitat for birds like Scarlet-rumped Tanager, White-throated Flycatcher, Olivaceous Piculet, Masked Yellowthroat, and an assortment of wetland species.
Dinner and overnight at our hotel in Volcán.
Early morning drive to Finca Hartmann, a coffee-growing estate founded in 1940 and operated by the founding family to this day. We will visit the plantation and the coffee-processing facilities.
After our picnic lunch we will explore the property, site to several biological research programs, and its nearby forests for highland species like Orange-bellied Trogon, Golden-browed Chlorophonia, Red-headed Barbet, Chiriqui Quail-Dove, White-crowned Parrot, Fiery-billed Aracari, Golden-Olive Woodpecker, Pale-billed Woodpecker and many more.
Dinner and overnight at our hotel in Volcán.
After breakfast, we leave our hotel fully-packed and drive to Paraiso in the Chiriqui Lowlands, where we will search for Orange-collared Manakin, Spot-crowned Euphonia, Charming Hummingbird, Black-hooded Antshrike, Riverside Wren, Slaty Spinetail and many more.
We will visit Birding Paradise, a small family-owned property with a staggering variety of hummingbirds: Long-billed and Plain-capped Starthroats, Crowned Woodnymph, Snowy-bellied Hummingbird, Blue-throated Golden-tail and up to 24 hummer species are regularly seen at their feeders.
After a picnic lunch, drive to David airport for afternoon flights. We will do our final checklist enjoying a cup of some of the excellent highland coffees at the airport.