Private Venture to
Oaxaca, Mexico

with James and Shelby Teague
February 14-21, 2010

To start with, I could not believe it had been 4 years since my last visit to Oaxaca.  Despite the problems a few years ago, Oaxaca City had barely changed and it was still a delightful place to walk around, explore and eat at the many restaurants that line the Zocalo. The historic site of Monte Alban is always a great place to start and an early morning walk there usually produces Blue Mockingbird and a host of orioles and hummers. We got the Mocker, but the dry conditions and subsequent lack of blossoms meant no orioles and just a couple of Dusky Hummingbirds. Thankfully a Dwarf Vireo showed itself before we left after lunch for the mountains. Cloud-forest birding can always be a little challenging, but we were lucky finding mixed flocks in the oaks as we walked the roadway. As well as the regular guys, a female Amethyst-throated Hummer was very nice, along with our first sighting of the amazing Red Warbler- surely one of the most beautiful and enigmatic warblers of all.

Garbage Gulch aka “Black Tank” is a must-do stop on any birding itinerary in Oaxaca and despite it being a little slow this morning, a pair of Bridled Sparrows was a nice find. We found Golden and Slaty Vireo and a pair of stunning Black-vented Orioles on our way north stopping to have a good hearty breakfast along the way- with accommodating White-eared Hummers as well. Birding was pretty good as we descended and then climbed farther into the mountains, but then a bank of fog and rain descended upon us. It rained all the way to Valle Nacional pretty well ending our birding for the day. The new cabins at San Mateo Yetla are along the river and are a great example of a community starting an eco-tourism activity that benefits the community as well as helping to protect the forests of the area. It was a cold rain too that was on and off all the next day, but the birding along the road to the Tuxtepec Reservoir was excellent. A lot of North American migrants were flocking in the fields- Indigo and Painted Buntings, Baltimore Orioles and Yellow-breasted Chats- all mixed in with the “locals”- Black-headed Saltators, Keel-billed Toucans and Brown Jays.

The next morning the rain had lessened a little but the sky was still overcast and cloudy. Montezuma Oropendolas sang and displayed in the trees around the cabin and an Amazon Kingfisher rattled off down the river at breakfast. Birding was a little difficult as the fog clouds swirled over the forested slopes making identifications somewhat challenging. But who could mistake the noisy Unicolored Jays or the very large Crested Guan that crashed into the treetops on noisy wing beats?

The cold rain even continued the following day in the normally dry Oaxaca Valley where the birds did not cooperate at all with barely anything moving above the reservoir at Teotitlan del Valle- usually a great birding locale. We persevered around the reservoir, which had plenty of wintering ducks and grebes along with blizzards of North American wintering warblers, but most of our dry country target birds eluded us that day. Thankfully a stop at the 16th Century Church of San Geronimo at Tlacochahuaya (yes, quite a mouthful!) produced our only Rufous-backed Robins of the trip. The trees in the park were fruiting which attracted these somewhat shy birds in for closer views.

We left Oaxaca City early the next morning, and the dawn opened with broken skies. Maybe the front with its cold rain had finally left the Central Valley and we could begin to warm up a little. Our next birding spot was high in the Sierra Madre del Sur towards the Pacific coast of Oaxaca, only about 200KM from Oaxaca City, but quite a drive through those windy mountain roads. The mountains in Oaxaca are beautiful with dry scrub merging into oak and pine forests which in turn climb into some beautiful patches of cloud forest. Banks of roadside flowers were buzzing with a host of hummingbirds; the most common species being Berylline and White-eared, but we also found a stunning male Bumblebee Hummer on its singing perch. His very high pitched whining song was very unusual but quite hard to locate. A female Sparkling-tailed Hummer was also feeding in the flowers, but best of all was the female Blue-capped Hummer- a hummingbird restricted to Oaxaca (and yes, a new bird for Simon!)

The cabins at San Jose Pacifico were wonderful with the hottest showers on our trip and a great breakfast, but who could have predicted Aztec Thrushes hopping all over the grounds? There was even one on the porch of the next cabin!

Other highlights had to be the pair of Chestnut-sided Shrike-Vireos, the warbler flock that must have contained 500 birds, including 100’s of Nashville and Townsend’s Warblers, a pair of Mountain Trogons and much more.

We finished the trip with almost 300 species in 8 days- I thoroughly enjoyed it and can’t wait to go back.

Simon Thompson 

Itinerary
Feb 13             Arrive in Oaxaca City
Feb 14             Monte Alban in the morning; La Cumbre in the afternoon
Feb 15             Garbage Gulch AM and drive to San Mateo Yetla after lunch- rain and fog
Feb 16             Tuxtepec: Camellia Roja and Presa Miguel Aleman (Reservoir), La Reforma PM
Feb 17             Valle Nacional AM and back to Oaxaca City
Feb 18             Teotitlan del Valle, Yagul, Tlacochahuaya and Oaxaca City
Feb 19             Highway 175 towards Miahuatlan & San Jose del Pacifico; Pluma Hidalgo and La Soledad
Feb 20             La Soledad Road; Pluma Hidalgo and drive back to Oaxaca City
Feb 21             Leave for home

Birdlist:

Least Grebe Golden-fronted Woodpecker Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Eared Grebe Yellow-bellied Sapsucker Mexican Chickadee
Neotropic Cormorant Ladder-backed Woodpecker House Sparrow
Anhinga Hairy Woodpecker American Pipit
American White Pelican Golden-olive Woodpecker Black-headed Siskin
Ruddy Duck Lineated Woodpecker Lesser Goldfinch
Green-winged Teal Olivaceous Woodcreeper House Finch
Blue-winged Teal Ivory-billed Woodcreeper Olive Warbler 
Ring-necked Duck White-striped Woodcreeper Blue-winged Warbler
Little Blue Heron Spot-crowned Woodcreeper Tennessee Warbler
Snowy Egret Rufous-breasted Spinetail Orange-crowned Warbler
Great Egret Scaly-throated Foliage-Gleaner Nashville Warbler
Cattle Egret Black-faced Antthrush Virginia’s Warbler
Green Heron Ochre-bellied Flycatcher Northern Parula
Bare-throated Tiger-Heron Northern Beardless-Tyrannulet  Crescent-chested Warbler
White-faced Ibis Greenish Elaenia Yellow Warbler
Wood Stork Tufted Flycatcher Magnolia Warbler
Black Vulture Greater Pewee “Audubon’s” Yellow-rumped Warbler
Turkey Vulture White-throated Flycatcher Black-throated gray Warbler
White-tailed Kite Least Flycatcher Townsend’s Warbler
Sharp-shinned Hawk Hammond’s Flycatcher Hermit Warbler
Cooper’s Hawk Dusky Flycatcher Black-throated Green Warbler
Crane Hawk Hammond’s Flycatcher Grace’s Warbler
Gray Hawk Cordilleran Flycatcher Black-and-white Warbler
Roadside Hawk Buff-breasted Flycatcher American Redstart
Broad-winged Hawk Black Phoebe Louisiana Waterthrush
Short-tailed Hawk Say’s Phoebe MacGillivray’s Warbler
Zone-tailed Hawk Vermilion Flycatcher Common Yellowthroat
Red-tailed Hawk Dusky-capped Flycatcher Gray-crowned Yellowthroat
Crested Caracaca Ash-throated Flycatcher Hooded Warbler
Laughing Falcon Nutting’s Flycatcher Wilson’s Warbler
American Kestrel Tropical Kingbird Red Warbler
Bat Falcon Couch’s Kingbird Slate-throated Redstart
Crested Guan Cassin’s Kingbird Golden-crowned Warbler
Common Moorhen Thick-billed Kingbird Golden-browed Warbler
American Coot Fork-tailed Flycatcher Rufous-capped Warbler
Northern Jacana Boat-billed Flycatcher Yellow-breasted Chat
Solitary Sandpiper Social Flycatcher Lincoln’s Sparrow
Spotted Sandpiper Great Kiskadee Yellow-eyed Junco
Least Sandpiper Rose-throated Becard Chipping Sparrow
Black-necked Stilt Masked Tityra Clay-colored Sparrow
Laughing Gull Black-crowned Tityra Lark Sparrow
Rock Pigeon Cassin’s Vireo Bridled Sparrow
Red-billed Pigeon Blue-headed Vireo Rufous-crowned Sparrow
Short-billed Pigeon Chestnut-sided Shrike-Vireo Rusty Sparrow
Mourning Dove Slaty Vireo Collared Towhee
White-winged Dove Golden Vireo Spotted Towhee
Inca Dove Dwarf Vireo White-throated Towhee 
Ruddy Ground-Dove Hutton’s Vireo White-naped Brush-Finch
White-tipped Dove Warbling Vireo Rufous-capped Brush-Finch
Olive-throated Parakeet Lesser Greenlet Chestnut-capped Brush-Finch
White-fronted Parrot Steller’s Jay Bananaquit
Red-lored Parrot Western Scrub-Jay Common Bush-Tanager
Squirrel Cuckoo Unicolored Jay Red-crowned Ant-Tanager
Groove-billed Ani Green Jay Hepatic Tanager
Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl Brown Jay Summer Tanager
Lesser Nighthawk White-throated Magpie-Jay Western Tanager
Buff-collared Nightjar Loggerhead Shrike Crimson-collared Tanager
Whip-poor-will Gray Silky-Flycatcher Blue-gray Tanager
Chestnut-collared Swift Cedar Waxwing Yellow-winged Tanager
White-collared Swift Aztec Thrush Scrub Euphonia
Vaux’s Swift Brown-backed Solitaire Yellow-throated Euphonia
Little Hermit Slate-colored Solitaire Blue-hooded Euphonia
Green-breasted Mango Orange-billed Nightingale-Thrush Red-legged Honeycreeper
Canivet’s Emerald Russet Nightingale-Thrush Blue-black Grassquit
Golden-crowned Emerald Ruddy-capped Nightingale-Thrush White-collared Seedeater
Dusky Hummingbird Swainson’s Thrush Large-billed Seed-Finch
White-eared Hummingbird Hermit Thrush Cinnamon-bellied Flower-Piercer
White-bellied Emerald Wood Thrush Rose-breasted Grosbeak
Cinnamon-sided (Green-fronted) Hummingbird Clay-colored Robin Black-headed Grosbeak
Berylline Hummingbird Rufous-backed Thrush (Robin) Black-faced Grosbeak
Rufous-tailed Hummingbird White-throated Thrush (Robin) Black-headed Saltator
Stripe-tailed Hummingbird American Robin Buff-throated Saltator
Blue-capped Hummingbird Blue Mockingbird Grayish Saltator
Amethyst-throated Hummingbird Northern Mockingbird Blue-black Grosbeak
Garnet-throated Hummingbird Curve-billed Thrasher Blue Grosbeak
Magnificent Hummingbird Brown Creeper Indigo Bunting
Sparkling-tailed Hummingbird Boucard’s Wren Painted Bunting
Ruby-throated Hummingbird Band-backed Wren Montezuma Oropendola
Bumblebee Hummingbird Canyon Wren Yellow-billed Cacique
Black-headed Trogon Bewick’s Wren Bronzed Cowbird
Mountain Trogon Happy Wren Eastern Meadowlark
Collared Trogon House Wren Great-tailed Grackle
Violaceous Trogon White-breasted Wood-Wren Baltimore Oriole
Amazon Kingfisher Gray-breasted Wood-Wren Bullock’s Oriole
Green Kingfisher Blue-grey Gnatcatcher Orchard Oriole
Blue-crowned Motmot White-lored Gnatcatcher Hooded Oriole
Emerald Toucanet Bushtit Black-vented Oriole
Collared Aracari Violet-green Swallow Altamira Oriole
Keel-billed Toucan Gray-breasted Martin Yellow-tailed Oriole
Acorn Woodpecker Northern Rough-winged Swallow Black-cowled Oriole
Gray-breasted Woodpecker Barn Swallow Audubon’s (Dickey’s) Oriole

Other Critters
Red-bellied Squirrel  Central American Agouti Various lizards
Butterflies
Magnificent Swallowtail Cloudless Sulphur Malachite
Three-tailed Swallowtail Creamy Stripe-Streak Tropical Admiral
Mexican Fritillary Soldier Rusty-tipped Page
Monarch Zebra Longwing