West Mexico: Volcan de Nieve

Started the day at sunrise on the slopes of Volcan de Nieve, and this time we made it up to around the Km15 marker before stopping. This necessitated a 6am departure from the hotel, with a quick stop to grab some coffee and food for breakfast from a gas station… Literally the first bird of the day was a superb Mexican endemic Russet Nightingale-Thrush posing beside the track and it really didn’t seem to mind being watched and photographed as it remained in the same spot for several minutes. Yes! 

Russet Nightingale-Thrush (endemic)

But we were on a mission to find some new hummers and with just a few hours to spare before the long drive north towards Puerto Vallarta we set off higher up the volcano to an area that had a lot of flowers. Here we had a ‘hummer fest’ with Mexican Violetear, White-eared, a cracking male and several female Rufous, and several Broad-tailed Hummingbirds. 

Broad-tailed Hummingbird

Rufous Hummingbird 

I was particularly pleased to catch up with a female Amethyst-throated Mountain-gem which I had missed yesterday. 

Amethyst-throated Mountain-Gem

However, the star bird and after a 21 year wait I finally nailed Colima Warbler – after poor views in Big Bend, Texas when I was just a nipper! It appeared right beside the track at head height, feeding quietly in a dense bush and was on view for just a short while but it was close and in the bag. OH YES! There were also plenty of Gray Silky-Flycatchers, a near-endemic as it just hops over the border into Guatemala. 

Gray Silky-Flycatcher

The other goodie of the morning was a fantastic Red Warbler beside the track and apart from a large warbler flock containing all the usual suspects we had reached the end of our time here as it was 11am. When I tell you we finally reached the hotel on the seashore south of Puerto Vallarta at a little before 8pm, you’ll understand how tired I was feeling having driven for 9 hours to get here! We did see a few birds along the road but nothing new and with the prospect of wifi and field notes to type it was a late night for me! Oh but a calling Common Pauraque was too hard to resist and it gave exceptionally close views and flew around a couple of us repeatedly to round off yet another top day.

West Mexico: Volcan de Nieve

What better way to start another brilliant day’s birding under a cloudless blue sky than with a calling Collared Forest-Falcon? We drove up to over 10,000 feet today along a better track than yesterday, but only just! Our next stop was at an open area where we scanned the opposite slope and discovered Brown-throated Wren, Collared Towhee and Rufous-capped Brush-Finch. I was really pleased to see White-eared Hummingbird this morning, having missed it in Arizona last year as we were too early. Once we reached the first conifers we saw Brown Creeper, another obliging Chestnut-sided Shrike-Vireo, and a bunch of other common warblers. 

Chestnut-sided Shrike-Vireo (endemic)

It really is quite phenomenal to see so many warblers every day on this tour. Continuing higher there was Grace’s Warbler, a Green-striped Brush-Finch feeding in the track, Hammond’s Flycatcher, Ruby-crowned Kinglet and Rufous Hummingbird, but we only heard a Mountain Pygmy Owl.

Next up was Olive Warbler, Hepatic Tanager, Golden-browed Warbler, Copper-tailed and Mountain Trogons and for a few lucky individuals an Amethyst-throated Mountain-gem. It’s quite tricky getting to grips with hummers here as you have to stake out the lines of flowers in the forest and they don’t stay very long, so be quick! But everyone saw more White-eared Hummingbirds, as well as Rivoli’s (Magnificent) Hummingbird. 

Rivoli's Hummingbird

As we got higher Mexican Chickadees became common although it took me a while to see the first one, and Golden-crowned Kinglets were numerous. A singing Mexican Violetear was scoped at the top of a conifer, and we watched a Cinnamon-bellied Flowerpiercer doing what it does among some red flowers and a Grey-breasted Wood-Wren did its best to distract us. 

We’d been hoping all day for a Red Warbler and after a few brief single observer sightings we finally tracked one down for all to see at 5pm – it had only taken 10 hours to find it! It was unfortunate that only Gary really had a tickable view of a Colima Warbler in a quick-moving warbler flock later in the day.

But we still had time to visit the wetlands again where Sora and Virginia Rails appeared again, plus Black-crowned Night-heron, Tricoloured Heron, Common Yellowthroat and Least Grebe.

West Mexico: Volcan de Fuego

Today we visited the other side of the ‘Volcano of Fire’ and began another cracking day’s birding in Mexico with an Elegant Euphonia singing at the start of the dirt track. 

Elegant Euphonia

A little further up a Hook-billed Kite soared overhead before landing briefly in a nearby tree and in the same area we also saw several Black-headed Grosbeaks, Curve-billed Thrasher, Orange-crowned Warbler, Short-tailed Hawk, Lincoln’s Sparrow, Indigo Bunting and Western Tanager. These lower slopes were mainly being used for agriculture and it was tricky to find some weedy/scrubby slopes but at one of the first ones we checked, a covey of Banded Quail scuttled out from the fence line and out of sight – but straight onto our life lists! 

Banded Quail - another Mexican endemic

Our luck was truly in today as we found another Lesser Roadrunner, this one doing what roadrunners should be doing and running along a dirt road. Fantastic! It came really close towards us and even perched up on a fence post before disappearing. 

Lesser Roadrunner - found from W Mexico to Nicaragua

Continuing up the sunny hillside via a bumpy dirt track we also found a few birds feeding in a fruiting tree including Cassin’s and a Dwarf Vireo, Blue Grosbeak, Greenish Elaenia, White-striped Woodcreeper, Gray Silky-Flycatcher, and some of us saw a Long-tailed Wood-Partridge scuttle cross the track in front of us. 

White-striped Woodcreeper (endemic)

Higher up amidst mixed oak-pine woodland we saw Hermit Warbler, Plumbeous Vireo, Bridled Titmouse, Brown-backed Solitaire, Townsend’s Warbler, Olive Warbler and eventually nailed a superb Chestnut-sided Shrike-Vireo. 

Chestnut-sided Shrike-Vireo (endemic)

Our picnic lunch was in a nice location in the forest and during this time we kept ourselves busy with Painted and Slate-throated Whitestarts, Tufted Flycatcher, a gang of Transvolcanic Jays, Crescent-chested Warbler, Red-faced Warbler, and a pair of Grey-barred Wrens. Moving lower we found a pair of skulking Golden-browed Warblers, followed by a pair of Collared Towhees and also a brief Rufous-capped Brush-Finch.

Sora Rail 

Virginia Rail

Leaving here we visited the Ciudad Guzman wetlands and found Cinnamon-rumped Seedeater (split from White-collared Seedeater), Solitary Sandpiper, Killdeer, Least Sandpiper, Cinnamon and Green-winged Teals and lots of other common species along a quiet side road. Moving on to another nice spot we called in Sora and Virginia Rails before watching 1000’s of Yellow-headed Blackbirds flying through the valley to their roost. It was quite a day!

West Mexico: Volcan de Fuego - La Cumbre

A great day began with a drive along some dry forest and fields and this resulted eventually in a good sighting of the endemic Black-chested Sparrow singing from a perch on the grassy slope above us, after a bit if a runaround. They aren't the best photos in the world but the views were pretty decent and thats what matters...

Black-chested Sparrow - another Mexican endemic

I was amazed at the number of Orange-breasted Buntings here too and we also saw Stripe-headed Sparrow, Lark Sparrow, and along the river Yellow-crowned Night-Herons, Neotropic Cormorant and a Ringed Kingfisher. 

Volcan de Fuego (Volcano of Fire)

Then we drove up to the recently and apparently continuously erupting Volcan de Fuego where along the lower slopes (the upper roads were closed) we thoroughly enjoyed our crippling views of a group of Spotted Wrens. 

Spotted Wren - Mexican endemic

Moving up and we discovered a fruiting tree with several Brown-backed Solitaires and Gray Silky-Flycatchers feeding. 

Brown-backed Solitaire

We also saw Cassin’s Kingbird, Cooper’s Hawk, Ladder-backed Woodpecker, and a showy Canyon Wren. A side road really produced the goods with some confiding and stunning Vermillion Flycatchers we spent some time with, and a flowering tree held loads of common warblers as well as our first Slate-throated Whitestart and further up a few West Mexican Chachalacas as well. But I cannot tell you the exhilaration when, after some searching, Bill exclaimed “roadrunner, roadrunner, roadrunner…”. Holy Cow it was a Lesser Roadrunner sitting on a rock some 30 metres away calling back at my ipod. We lapped up the views, fired off a few photos and high-fived.! Perfect! 

Lesser Roadrunner - oh yes...!

After a lengthy lunch with live music and pretty girl singers we explored the lowlands and found a pair of Rufous-naped Wrens and a Laughing Falcon along with Hammond’s Flycatcher and Cassin’s Vireo. 

We ended the day watching the sunset at La Cumbre before calling in a Balsas Screech Owl that showed very well for a minute before flying off. And we were off too…!

The Mexican endemic Balsas Screech-Owl

West Mexico: Playa de Ora Road - Colima

This was a slower day as we birded the famous Playa de Ora Road that transects some interesting dry thorn forest but these days the road is almost impassable and it took some neat manoeuvring to get our two vehicles along it. Around the fields at the base of the hills a cracking male Orange-breasted Bunting appeared, along with the usual high numbers of Nashville Warblers, and a few Stripe-headed Sparrows. An Olive Sparrow showed well, as did Citreoline Trogon, a few Warbling Vireos, a flock of White-throated Magpie-Jays, and another Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl before we eventually nailed the endemic Flammulated Flycatcher. 

Flammulated Flycatcher (Mexican endemic)

Then we drove down to the beach where a huge flock of Blue-footed and Brown Boobies were fishing way offshore. Along the beach we saw American Kestrel, Ash-throated Flycatcher, Northern Mockingbird, and a female Blue Grosbeak.

Driving back up across the hills, we saw a Swainson’s Thrush feeding along the road, and eventually a White-bellied Wren before setting out on the 90 minute drive to Colima and along the way we saw a Roadside Hawk. We arrived at the motel at 5pm and took the opportunity for a rest before dinner.