Dear Luke and Leia,
Today I wanted to tell you about birding in Panama and the different birds we saw… We saw quite a few!
Birding in Panama
We are not saying that we are ‘birders’ or into bird photography, nor do we know every bird’s name, we have totally enjoyed all the different colors, sizes and types of birds we’ve seen. Birding in Panama is very big and so far people have seen 978 species of birds.
There are several main places to go for birding there and many we have not been to, but we have gone to Soberania National Park at Pipeline Road as well as Boquete, in the western mountains to see birds. We also saw many in the mountain area of El Valle de Anton, about an hour and a half west of Panama City.
Soberania
In in Parque Soberania There is a ranger station called Panama Rainforest Discovery Center. Soberania has two good locations to walk, Pipeline Road and the Trails adjacent to the ranger station. At the station, there are guides that will take a Leica APO-TELEVID 77 high-powered telescope and climb the tower and spot birds and other wildlife for you. They know their species very well and speak great English.
Our guide used a Leica APO-TELEVID 77 spotting telescope.
Our guide set up the scope for us to see a bird on the other side of the lake.
At the Panama Rainforest Discovery Center itself, they have set up numerous hummingbird feeders. They are all loaded with the tiny birds, dive bombing each other to get to the nectar.
Tip: A note to the wise, do NOT wear a red hat or you may find yourself being greeted up close and personal by at least 5 species of hummingbirds, all buzzing you at lightning speeds.
Hummingbird feeders and the local dive bombers
Hummingbird resting and singing away.
Birds we have seen in Panama
Please let us know if you recognize any of these birds.
Woodpecker
Mott Mott
Parrot?
Green colored hummingbird
Flying parrot.
Toucan
Bright colors like this bold blue are found on birds everywhere.
Wildlife we have seen while birding in Panama
If you come, don’t just be on the lookout for birds though, as other wildlife will make themselves known to the patient observer.
Coatimundi
Howler Monkey
Large crocodile.
El Valle de Anton
Sleeping Indian from the floor of El Valle de Anton
El Valle is down inside an ancient volcano and boasts of a quiet existence with a small church and local farmers market. We stayed at a cabin there that we really liked. The owner loves her birds and had quite an efficient set up in her back yard to attract them. We saw birds all over her property and the hotel grounds.
Feeding the birds
Mott mott
El Valle is a great location to relax and hike, but it does have a few other amenities such as a reptile zoo, small animal zoo, and an ochid conservatory that all deserve some of your time.
Booth at the local farmers market.
Small church in El Valle de Anton.
Orchid garden in El Valle de Anton.
Boquete
Cloud forest surrounding Finca Lerida.
Boquete (bo-ket-tay) is located in the mountains north of the large western town of David. Ranging from 4,000 to 6,000 feet in altitude, Boquete is the perfect place in paradise for cooler temperatures, coffee plantations and mountain birds. Not only has Boquete attracted spectacular birds, it has caught the eyes of retirees and birders alike.
Finca Lerida
We stayed at a small hotel called Finca Lerida and they offered a full birding experience that came complete with early morning breakfast and a guide to take you into the cloud forest to sight the many fowl through the mist. We came in search of the famous Quetzal, but saw none.
Finca Lerida in Boquete, Panama
Entrance to birding trail at Finca Lerida.
We it is time for us to wrap up this letter. We hope you two are doing well and we miss you guys.
Love,
Nana and Pap
♥
P. S. – If you guys have Pinterest you can click the top left of any photos in our story to add them to your Pinterest boards. We would actually like that a whole lot. Here are some other pictures you might really enjoy, too:
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