This tour covers a diversity
of habitats. In the first part of the tour there is fast-disappearing tropical
dry forest, cut-over rainforest in the Imataca
Forest Reserve, the gorgeous rainforest along the bird-famous
Escalera (leading up to La
Gran Sabaña) which is drier below and wetter on the slope,
and the magnificent grass-and-shrub lands in the tepui region of the
Gran Sabaña. South-eastern Venezuela
has some of the greatest endemism in all of South America, with more
than 35 endemics.
This 8 day birding tour for U$1980
includes
-
• Start and finish at Maiquetía
airport (Caracas International);
• Return flights from Maiquetía
to Puerto Ordaz (Ciudad Guyana);
• 8 days vehicle from Puerto
Ordaz to the Brazilian border;
• 8 days birding; target birds include
Yellow-knobbed
Curassow, Marail Guan, Harpy Eagle, Oilbird,
Sunbittern, Tepui Goldenthroat,
Guianan Cock o' the Rock, Guianan Red Cotinga, Capuchinbird,
White and Bearded Bellbirds,
Cayenne Jay, Golden-tufted Grackle and Tepui Brush Finch.
• 8 nts comfortable lodging in posadas
and small hotels (where the birds are);
• 3 meals per day and bottled water
as required;
• flight from Santa
Elena de Uiren to Puerto Ordaz.
Three extensions are offered -
• 1 day to Roraima
Tepui by helicopter from Santa Elena
de Uiren,
U$600,
(or small plane flight over several
tepuis if the helicopter is unavailable on the day).
• 2 days Angel
Falls.
U$500
• 3 days Puerto
Ordaz - La Cueva del Guácharo (Oilbird Cave)
- Caracas. U$440
Leaving out the helicopter to Roraima and the Oilbirds
-
8 days main tour plus 2 days Angel Falls would be
U$2480
An Itinerary
March 8. Meet at Maiquetía
Airport. Orange-winged Parrot, Red-crowned Woodpecker.
Stay at Hampton
Inn, Catia La Mar
9. Morning flight
to Puerto Ordaz (Ciudad Guyana). Birding
local parks beside the beautiful Caroní
River.
Capped Heron, Green-rumped Parrotlet, Black-crested
Antshrike, Oriole Blackbird. Drive south. Horned
Screamer?, Sunbittern.
Stay at
the Hotel Parador Taguapire, El Palmar.
10. Rio Grande (Logging) Reserve. Although this Reserve is almost completely logged now, the forest that remains is still some of the best lowland rainforest birding in Venezuela. Green-winged Macaw, Painted and Golden-winged Parakeets, Caica, Dusky, and Red-fan Parrots; Red-billed Toucan, Green and Black-necked Aracaris; Hotel Parador Taguapire.
11. Rio Grande Reserve.
This is still supposed to be one of the best places for Harpy Eagle,
and the US groups are still finding it there. Also Tropical Screech
Owl, Black Nunbird, White-tailed Trogon, Green- tailed and Paradise Jacamars,
Blue-chinned Saphire, Yellow-backed Tanager;
Hotel
Parador Taguapire.
12. Rio Grande Reserve.
This morning we might find Guianan Red Cotinga and Golden-tufted
Grackle before we leave to drive south to Las
Claritas, where we will stay with Henri
Pittier at La Baranquilla de
Fresa (Strawberry Ice Cream Cone).
Henri has 3 or 4 hummingbird feeders filled all the time and most of the
area specialities come to them; Rufous-breasted and Buff-breasted Sabrewings,
Peacock Coquette, Tepui Goldenthroat, and Long-billed Starthroat.
Stay at
La Baranquilla de Fresa.
13.
Las Claritas/San Isidro area. Not far from our lodgings is a
good lek of Capuchinbirds who give away their sub-canopy positions
with calf-like bellows which gives them their other English name, Calfbirds.
They're half-bald (like Capuchin Monks) and surprisingly big and seem to
sit around in pairs. The rare Blue-backed Tanager is here somewhere,
and Ruddy-breasted Finches along the roadside. Lunch and early afternoon
back at Henri's and the hummingbirds.
Scoping the tree-tops here may produce many new species such as Blue-cheeked,
Black-headed, and Blue-headed Parrots; and Black-spotted Barbet,
as well as many others families such as trogons, flycatchers, thrushes,
tanagers, oropendolas and caciques.
La
Baranquilla de Fresa.
14. La Escalera, the staircase, is the road up the escarpment of the Sierra de Lema. This rainforest is also excellent birding especially along the road. Yellow-knobbed Curassow, Marail Guan, Tepui Parrotlet, Masked Trogon, White-throated, White-fronted, and Scarlet-horned Manakins; and back to Henri's for lunch again and yet another chance at scoping something different. In the late afternoon we should investigate the lek of the Guianan Cock o' the Rock, up on the Sierra de Lema and look for Cayenne Jay, and Yellow-green Grosbeak. La Baranquilla de Fresa.
15. Up La
Escalera again and straight to the Cock
of the Rock lek for a chance for a good photograph. In
the forest nearby could be Warbling Antbird, Flutist and Coraya Wrens,
and Tepui Brushfinch. While we are having a picnic lunch on the
roadside both White and Bearded Bellbirds may be calling from tree-tops,
the latter especially may be in a good position for digiscoping, and as
we climb higher (the road has a gentle grade here) Greater Flowerpiercer
and Olive-backed Tanager may be found Sharpbill and Rose-collared
Piha are sometimes seen in this area too.
The afternoon turns us almost into
real tourists as we drive casually over the awesome vista that is La
Gran Sabaña. Well above the rainforested slopes, this
poor-soil grassland stretches all the way to Brazil.
Here and there, in the distance rise ancient mesas, called tepuis here,
some one or more thousand metres higher than the ancient peneplain
we are traveling on. It's a wonderful sight. Tonight we will stay near
the Brazilian border in the Hotel
Gran Sabaña, Santa Elena de Uiren.
16. Around Santa Elena there are Red-bellied and Red-shouldered Macaws, Least Nighthawks, Bicolored Wrens, and Tawny-headed Swallows.
The tour finishes today. Fly Puerto Ordaz (Ciudad Guyana), fly Caracas and home.
OR go on the first extension -
Helicopter to Roraima
Tepui.
16. If the weather is OK today
we will hire a local helicopter for a marvellous flight over the tepuis
and hopefully land and spend a few hours on the greatest tepui of them
all, Roraima. This could be an almost
pre-historic experience. In birding, always expect the unexpected but do
not expect Pterodactyls!
Hotel Gran Sabaña.
17. Fly Puerto
Ordaz, Caracas and home.
OR go on the second extension -
Two days Angel Falls.
17. Fly Canaima
via Angel Falls. Stay Canaima.
18. Boat Angel
Falls. Stay Canaima.
19. Fly Puerto
Ordaz, Caracas and home.
OR go on the third extension -
Three days touring to Caracas via the Oilbirds cave.
The third extension involves driving
from Puerto Ordaz back to Caracas
via La Cueva del Guácharo
(the Cave of the Oilbirds) which has much interesting dry forest
surrounding it. This gives way to shorter, drier forest and coastal
scrub as we drive further north then west along the coast.
Oilbirds. If
you haven't seen them it is an amazing sight when up to 15,000 fly out
of the Humboldt Cave just on dark, and a memorable walk underneath
them all (1200m into the huge cavern) in the daytime.
19. Drive from Puerto
Ordaz to La Cueva del Guácharo
(Oilbird Cave) to watch them all flying out at dusk. It's well worth
the effort.
Stay at the Hotel Saman, Caripe.
20. Walk into the Oilbird
Cave this morning. Drive through dry forest (Yellow Oriole, Black-faced
Grassquit, Lined Seedeater, - the rare Red Siskin is here somewhere),
via Cumana to Puerto
La Cruz (beside Barcelona).
Stay at the Gran Hotel Hesperia, Puerto La
Cruz.
21. Beside and amongst
the dry coastal scrub this morning American Flamingo, the common
Brown Pelican, the uncommon Venezuelan endemic Yellow-shouldered
Parrot, White-fringed Antwren, Stripe-backed Wren, and Carib Grackle
may be seen. Stay at
the Lincoln Suites, Sabaña Grande, Caracas.
22. Transfer to Maiquetía
and fly home.