Brazil: Minas Gerais

Day 1: The tour begins at 6 pm in the lobby of our hotel in Belo Horizonte. Night in Belo Horizonte.

Day 2: This is a long traveling day as we drive through Belo Horizonte, cross the busy city, and make our way west to Serra da Canastra National Park. We may have time to check the shore of a lake as we pass through the city, where we have chance to find a few waterbirds including the rare Southern Pochard. The total time of the drive is approximately six hours, and because we want to arrive early enough to do some birding there, we’ll only stop for lunch…and for stunning birds such as Toco Toucan or Red-legged Seriema. Night in São Roque de Minas.

Days 3-5: We’ll have three full days to explore the surroundings of São Roque and the various elevations of Serra da Canastra National Park. We’ll spend one day on the top of the Canastra plateau, where the habitat is a mix of savanna grassland and a few patches of gallery forest. In the grassland we’ll be looking for the superb Cock-tailed Tyrant, Red-winged Tinamou, Sharp-tailed Tyrant, Ochre-breasted Pipit, Wedge-tailed Grass-Finch, Stripe-tailed Yellow-Finch, the uncommon but stunning Black-masked Finch, and the super cute Gray-backed Tachuri, one of numerous Brazilian endemics we’ll see on the tour. The savanna is dotted with gray and red termite nests, on top of which are often perched photogenic Peach-fronted Parakeets. These termite nests also attract the bizarre Giant Anteater (which mostly feeds on termites), and we’ll have a good chance of spotting one, as Canastra is one of the best places in the world to see this magnificent creature.

The gallery forest will offer a completely different set of birds, such as the secretive Brasilia Tapaculo, Rufous-winged Antshrike, and the secretive and handsome Sharp-tailed Streamcreeper. We’ll have our lunch at the upper part of the “Tapir waterfall,” where the São Francisco River drops from the plateau to the lower part of the National Park. The scenery is stunning, and in the shrubbery near our picnic spot we have a chance of seeing Black-throated Saltator, White-vented Violetear, White-rumped Monjita, Crested Black-Tyrant, Cinnamon Tanager, and Plain-crested Elaenia, among many others. We’ll stay as late as possible on the plateau since Giant Anteater are usually more active late in the day, and we may finish the day with a night bird or two, such as Least Nighthawk or Scissor-tailed Nightjar

On another day we’ll visit the lowest part of the park, at the base of the plateau. We’ll bird along the São Francisco River, looking for Brazilian Merganser, a species that requires very high-quality water and has disappeared from most of Brazil. In the forest along the river, we’ll find superb birds such as Helmeted Manakin, Toco Toucan, Curl-crested Jay, Pileated Finch, White-shouldered Fire-eye, Rufous-tailed Jacamar, and Ruby-crowned Tanager. We’ll also visit a small marsh where the gorgeous Streamer-tailed Tyrant, one of the most beautiful tyrant-flycatchers, breeds, and we might also find Yellow-rumped Marshbird, Chestnut-capped Blackbird, Rufous-sided Crake, Gray-cowled Wood-Rail, Masked Water-Tyrant, Sooty Tyrannulet, and even Aplomado Falcon.

We’ll spend our last day at the upper or lower part of the park, depending on which birds we may not have seen yet, or just want to see again. Nights in São Roque.

Day 6: After some morning birding on a road near our hotel, we’ll spend the rest of the day driving to Caraça. Caraça is unique. Created in 1774, the Caraça Sanctuary was first intended as a religious center and it is still an important place for pilgrims. The sanctuary and monastery are now open to public and the extensive trail system is wonderful for birding. The monastery is also famous for the Maned Wolves that come every night to a feeding station, just a few meters from visitors. We’ll be staying three nights in the monastery, giving us a good chance to see the wolves but also to absorb this beautiful and peaceful place. Night in Caraça.

Days 7-8: We’ll have two full days to explore the extensive trail system at Caraça. The birding here is usually excellent, and the list of range-restricted species seems endless: Hyacinth Visorbearer, Pale-throated Pampa-Finch, Serra Antwren, Hangnest Tody-Tyrant, Rock Tapaculo, and on and on. Mixed-species flocks usually include Brassy-breasted, Gilt-edged, Golden-chevroned, and Black-goggled Tanagers, while in the understory we may find Large-tailed Ansthrike, Dusky-tailed and Ochre-rumped Antbirds, Buff-browed Foliage-gleaner, and Rufous-capped Spinetail sometimes foraging together. Rufous Gnateater is common, though difficult to see, as is the smart Drab-breasted Tody-Tyrant. There are several leks of the stunning Swallow-tailed Manakin, and we may also find the elegant Pin-tailed Manakin. A small pond near the monastery usually attracts Slaty-breasted Wood-Rail and Blackish Rail, and Orange-eyed Thornbird is sometimes nesting nearby. Among the other birds we’ll be looking for are White-bibbed Antbirdand the rare Swallow-tailed Cotinga, while Surucua Trogon is always a crowd-pleaser. During our walks we also have a good chance of finding a group of Black-fronted Titi Monkeys, and in the evening we’ll wait for the famous Maned Wolves. Every night, in a custom started decades ago, food is left at the entrance of the church, and almost every night the wolves come. It’s an utterly memorable part of the tour. Nights in Caraça.

Day 9: After some morning birding near our lodging, we’ll depart for the Serra do Cipó. We’ll have the afternoon to bird the spectacular and isolated mountain where there are plenty of attractive birds, including Blue Finch, Horned Sungem, White Woodpecker, White-eared Puffbird and other specialties of the specific campo rupestre habitat within the cerrado ecoregion. Even the rare Cinereous Warbling-Finch can be seen here. Night in the Serra do Cipó.

Day 10: After a full morning birding around Cipó looking for the regional specialties, we’ll have lunch in town and then return to the Belo Horizonte airport, where the tour concludes about 3 p.m.

2025 Narrative

Brief Summary:

Our Minas Gerais tour lucked out with the weather – not too hot, not too windy, and no birding time lost to any untimely downpours or rainy mornings, despite the scary forecasts. Of course, that meant long days in the field, resulting in a massive bird list and wonderful sightings of mammals and other incredible critters. Topping the highlights were the blue, black, and red Swallow-tailed Manakins at Caraça practicing their elaborate dance in the forest understory. We had several close encounters with the majestic and elegant Red-legged Seriemas, including a family of four and two performing their piercing song a few yards away. Our afternoon in a light drizzle near our hotel was perfect for enjoying a memorable chorus of Chestnut-capped Blackbirds at marsh, evoking early spring at home with Red-winged Blackbirds. Toco Toucans were seen almost every day, yet their tropical colors and size were hard to comprehend at regular roadside sightings, such as at our short breaks next to main highways. Other bird highlights included duetting Black-capped Donacobius, a very confiding Brasilia Tapaculo, many Gilet-edged Tanagers at close range, the strange dance of Streamer-tailed Tyrants, bold Surucua Trogons far from the forest interior, White-eared Puffbirds at ridiculously close range, Rufous-capped Spinetails circling us in the bamboo understory, common Masked Water Tyrants around towns, garden, and ponds, a stunning male Hyacinth Visorbearer in fascinating stunted rocky habitat, and male Helmeted Manakins in their gorgeous black-and-red dress. We saw three Giant Anteaters on our day top the mesa a Canastra, one of them very close to the road. At Caraça we saw Crab-eating Fox one night, while the next an amazing Maned Wolf took center stage. All along the way we marveled at the fascinating scenery at every turn, enjoyed the delicious and diverse buffet lunches, had a few delicious capirinhas, and relished the amazing breakfast grill at Caraça. Our always cheerful driver Paulo guided us safely through the state of Minas Gerais, while we had three awesome drivers taking us around the rough roads of Canastra National Park. Topping it all was a congenial group of birders who enjoyed each and every sighting and adventure along the way.

Detailed Summary:

Our first official bird stop was to quickly snag the Southern Pochard that is usually present somewhere on the urban lake of Pampulha before we left Belo Horizonte for the long drive to Canastra. We lucked out with a lone bird being the closest bird to the shore, right near where we parked, and we were treated to an additional highlight of a Fork-tailed Flycatcher showing off its splendidly long tail as it flew over the lake. Handsome Crested Caracaras in flight punctuated our long drive westward, and after checking in to our hotel, we birded some open country and a riparian strip not far from town. On the way, we paused for the almost unnatural Toco Toucan and a White-eared Puffbird perched on a powerline. It was quite busy at the bridge over the Santo Antônio river, with a snazzy White-throated Kingbird beating out Tropical Kingbird for the first Tyrannus on our list. A Planalto Hermit buzzed the group shortly before a pair of enormous Crimson-crested Woodpeckers flew over and perched for distant scope views. We incited a mob of passerines amongst which was a White-winged Becard and a stunning male Helmeted Manakin.

We spent a full day exhaustively checking every accessible spot along the upper São Francisco River, tallying an impressive bird list, while the only ducks we glimpsed were Muscovy Ducks, not mergansers. Swallow-tailed Hummingbirds zoomed in nearly every time Rich imitated Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl, never ceasing to elicit oohs and aahs. A Rufous-tailed Jacamar was at one of the river views, while a stolid Plumbeous Kite perched high at another point where we hiked down to the river. Along the road we came across a pair of White-eared Puffbirds sitting on fence posts. We expected them to fly off as we approached, but they just sat still and eventually began to hunker down, thinking perhaps that we would overlook them if they didn't sit tall, and we came within just a few yards of these charming birds. On the short hike to the impressive view of the Casca D'anta waterfalls, we were charmed by a White-browed Warbler uttering its silvered cascade of whistled notes, while on the way back, a brave Rufous Gnateater sat out in plain sight at very close range, as did a Sharp-tailed Streamcreeper. One last check of the river was again duck-free, but a little bit of Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl imitation to bring in some passerines was instead met almost instantly by an actual owl flying in and landing right over our heads.

A gorgeous day was spent on top of the mesa in the extraordinarily rich grasslands of Canastra National Park. It was a bit windy in the morning, but that didn't seem to hamper the bird activity, as we soon tallied Brasilia Tapaculo, brought up a mob that had a rather brazen female Horned Sungem, and watched Cock-tailed Tyrants do their fluttering display. A Tropical Screech-Owl tooted back from a thicket, but we weren't quite expecting it to pop out and perch in the open in broad daylight like it did. Sharp-tailed Tyrant, Gray-backed Tachuri, Grass Wren, and Pearly-bellied Seedeater were additional highlights in the open county, and several Burrowing Owls were always worth stopping for. At our lunch stop we enjoyed close encounters with a Crested Black-Tyrant, but the flamboyant Fork-tailed Flycatchers bombing Crested Caracaras really stole the show. We watched a pair of soaring White-tailed Hawks while eyeing our first two Giant Anteaters – one about a quarter mile away, the other probably closer to two miles distant. As the afternoon progressed, the wind abated, and we had stellar views of a Collared Crescentchest singing at length on an open branch. Nearby we heard the insect-like calls of an invisible Dwarf Tinamou, one of the most elusive members of one of the most elusive families of birds. We began descending the mountain as dusk fell, stopping first to watch a Least Nighthawk flying over the road, then making yet another stop for two Scissor-tailed Nightjars sitting in the road. We watched them flying around, even seeing the male perched and singing, while at the same time a Spot-tailed Nightjar began singing above the road, eventually showing himself for a spectacular ending to the day.

We put our third day's effort into finding the Brazilian Merganser, and it paid off. The first pair was seen by only half the group (and none of the leaders or drivers) before they flew downstream. Then our driver Paulo, who isn't a birder, spotted them from a distant viewpoint looking well downriver, and that ended up being our best views of this elusive and highly endangered species. The early morning birding wasn't too shabby, with Swallow-tailed Hummingbird and Glittering-bellied Emerald in perfect light below the road as well as a flock of stunning Golden-capped Parakeets and cheeky Curl-crested Jays. On our way to the São Francisco River, we stopped for a pair of Red-legged Seriema walking nonchalantly among the dairy cows of this most famous of cheese-producing regions in Brazil. We the spent the afternoon very casually at a marsh not far from our hotel, persisting in the only measurable daytime rain on the entire tour, though it wasn't strong enough to staunch the bird activity. The chorus of Chestnut-capped Blackbirds that dominated the marsh was delightful to take in, sort of the Brazilian version of our spring Red-winged Blackbird exuberance. Adding to the experience were a pair of duetting Black-capped Donacobius, a soggy Guira Cuckoo, and several pairs of vocal Blackish Rails, one of which finally came out in the open for us to see.

We had some significant highlights on what was otherwise a travel day across the state, starting with an amazing Blond-crested Woodpecker coming to the papaya at the bird feeder first thing in the morning. A quick roadside stop for some seedeaters that vanished turned instead into a sighting of Grassland Yellow-Finches, a write-in bird on our master list. A small pond by a dairy farm was productive, giving us a pair of White-headed Marsh Tyrants, Bare-faced Ibis exhibiting breeding behavior, and a gorgeous Purple Gallinule. We had some time for late afternoon birding after checking in at Caraça, seeing Golden-chevroned Tanager and being surprised by a Robust Woodpecker that flew in landed on a palm trunk right in front of us for a few startling moments. The long wait for Maned Wolf this evening resulted in a fun encounter with a pair of Crab-eating Foxes coming in to the food.

Done with the long drives, we headed out on foot for our birding at Caraça. Before breakfast we stumbled into a wonderful mixed flock that included a group of stunning Brassy-breasted Tanagers, joined by a perched Black Jacobin. On our full-morning hike, we scored with the target Rock Tapaculo, and on the return had a wonderful encounter with a pair of Rufous-capped Spinetails in the bamboo understory. A Yellow Tyrannulet in the same area would be the only one for the tour. The afternoon took us to a rocky trail where the gorgeous Hyacinth Visorbearer soon made itself known, with at least three males singing on territories. Sapphire-spangled Emerald fed from flowers nearby, and the Pale-throated Pampa-Finch also performed as if on cue. A distant Surucua Trogon was a lucky spot, as was a bit of movement that turned out to be a pair of the Black-fronted Titi, a monkey which we had only heard until now. We were surprised to see a Maned Wolf coming up the steps as we were headed to dinner, a full hour before they put out the food and while a mass was being held in the sanctuary with the doors open right there to the patio. We finished our checklists with a few minutes after the Maned Wolf began coming to the food. We peered over a crowded portico to watch this amazing creature just a few yards away as it nearly emptied the platter over the next half-hour.

Our second pre-breakfast birding at Caraça featured a Green-backed Becard darting between treetops, a heard-only Frilled Coquette male doing his amazing display sound, and then views of a very skulky Large-tailed Antshrike. The morning hike started with a lek of Swallow-tailed Manakins just barely visible though the undergrowth doing some brief versions of their elaborate dance. We came across a pair of Surucua Trogons in uncharacteristically open habitat, while a pair of Rufous Gnateaters were in their preferred dense undergrowth but came out into the wide open for a moment. Two different Frilled Coquettes feeding in the canopy were a nice confirmation of the one we had heard earlier in the morning. In the afternoon we had an amazing encounter with a pair of Scaled Woodcreepers, possibly near their nest cavity, before we continued on foot up the road to a close group of feeding Gilt-edged Tanagers. We stayed out until dusk, and our reward was a nattereri Short-tailed Nighthawk flying and calling overhead.

We had a bit of birding at Caraça on our final morning before our travel onward, and the sightings of Magpie Tanager and an adorable Gray-capped Tyrannulet showed that we hadn't come close to exhausting our options here. The drive to the Serra do Cipó area was highlighted by a roadside Red-legged Seriema that decided to start singing as we had stopped to admire it. Once in the Espinaço mountains, we first connected with a Wedge-tailed Grass-Finch, and then well before dusk on a side road were surprised by an early emergence of several Least Nighthawks. We than enjoyed close encounters with a Swallow-tailed Hummingbird, a bird we never tired of, finally scoring with a Blue Finch, our main target for the afternoon.

With just one final morning to look for specialties of the cerrado habitats of the Serra de Cipó National Park, we walked an area of stunted woodland to find a displaying pair of Streamer-tailed Tyrants. A strip of riparian habitat gave us a very territorial Flavescent Warbler, a pair of Bran-colored Flycatchers attending a nest, and females of both Horned Sungem and Hyacinth Visorbearer. While in the short grassland and rocky habitat full of very localized endemic plants, we took a second glance at a passing vulture and noticed it was a Lesser Yellow-headed Vulture, a new bird for our master list. We finished up the morning on a road where a Blue Finch greeted us with its singing from a power line. A Rufous Hornero cavorted in the road near where we had a White-eared Puffbird on the fence, exemplifying the kind of birding we'll miss when back at home. We finished the morning birding when a pair of Rusty-backed Antwrens, scarce in the area, came in close. But then the birding wasn't quite yet done – when we were back at the lodge for our final packing, a family of Red-legged Seriemas with two young strolled behind our rooms. As they were apparently habituated to harmless humans, we were able to get amazing photos and then video as the male decided it was time to trumpet his presence, the female answering in duet from a short distance away.

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