Photo Gallery
Photos by Chris Wood
Our birding begins just to the north of the Port of Veracruz in a variety of settings: from woodlots, patches of scrub, and beaches…
…to a hotel rooftop, the well-known hawk-watch at Cardel.
Even lunch stops have interesting birds!
Veracruz is most famous for its tremendous passage of migrant raptors…
…but we should also see many other migrants: everything from hundreds of White-winged Doves and Scissor-tailed Flycatchers to much larger species like American White Pelican and Wood Stork, at times in the same flock.
While watching for migrants, we’re always on the lookout for residents, like this Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl…
…this superb Fork-tailed Flycatcher…
…and perhaps even this sleepy Northern Potoo.
After a few days in the lowlands, we’ll retire to the higher elevations around Jalapa, where the scenery is spectacular…
…and so are the birds. Here a Red Warbler…
…and here a Bat Falcon.
Did we mention the butterflies? Like this Anna’s Eighty-Eight.
One day we’ll head even higher to the Mexican Plateau with its odd assemblage of Joshua Trees, Scott’s Orioles, Cinnamon-bellied Flowerpiercers…
…and a surprising number of hummingbirds, including this male Lucifer.
After another evening in Veracruz, we’ll drive south to the Sierra de Los Tuxtlas.
This presents a nice introduction to tropical rainforests, with stunners like Keel-billed Toucan…
…and more subtle species such as this Eye-ringed Flatbill…
…but you never know what you’ll see, perhaps a Spectacled Owl…
…or even a Howler Monkey.