Day 1 Arrival / Night in Lima
Day 2 Lima / Coastal Birding
Visit Lomas de Lachay, a dry desert forest 2 hours from Lima to look for peruvian endemics: Cactus Canastero, Thick-billed Miner, Raimondi’s Yellow Finch, Oasis Hummingbird, Peruvian Sheartail, Peruvian Meadowlark, Least Seedsnipe and more.
Day 3/4 Chaparri Ecolodge
Fly to Chiclayo and transfer to Batan Grande to bird the sanctuary Bosque the Pomac woodland for Rufous Flycatcher, Necklaced Spinetail, Peruvian Plantcutter , Baird’s Flycatcher and more. Other stops for Black-faced Ibis and Comb duck.
Hummingbirds gather each morning to bathe in the stream in front of the dining room. Watching this spectacle with a cup of coffee is a popular way to start the day. We may see Purple-collared Woodstar, Tumbes Hummingbird, Amazilia Hummingbird, Long-billed Starthroat, Short-tailed Woodstar and Oasis Hummingbird. Other specialities here include sulphur-throated and Cinereous Finch, Tumbes Tyrant and White winged Guan plus mammals like Sechuran Fox.
Day 5 Hotel El Bosque
Leaving the coastal strip behind we’ll set off early heading making selected stops along the way. We will pay particular attention to a side trail where we have seen Piura Chat-tyrant endemic, a very rare and local endemic. Other birds we may see include: Black-cowled Saltator, Andean Tinamou, Elegant Crescentchest, Three-banded Warbler, Bay-crowned Brush-Finch, Chapman’s Antshrike, Henna-hooded Foliage-Gleaner, Ecuadorian Piculet and White Seedeater.
Day 6/7 Owlet Lodge
These two days we’ll target the Marañon Crescentchest and other Marañon endemics including Buff-bellied Tanager, Chinchipe Spinetail, Marañon Slaty Antshrike, Marañon Spinetail, Marañon Thrush and Yellow-cheeked Becard. We will visit the Hummingbird Center where three male Marvelous Spatuletails have been seen regularly along with 9 other species.
At Abra Patricia area we’ll look for Ochre fronted, Chestnut and Rusty-tinged Antpittas. The garden at the Owlet Lodge has White-throated Screech Owl and Rufous-banded Owl. We’ll also seek the newly named Lulu’s Tody-tyrant. Other target birds—some very rare—include: Cinnamon-breasted Tody-Tyrant, Royal Sunangel, Straw-backed Tanager, Long-tailed Antbird and Large-footed Tapaculo and Long-whiskered Owlet.
Day 8 Moyobamaba
Speckle-chested Piculet and Ecuadorian Piedtail, the endemic Huallaga Tanager are targets today. Other birds we may find include White-eyed Parakeet, Red-billed Parrot, Black-mandibled Toucan and Blackish Antbird.
Day 9 Tarappoto
Fiery-throated Fruiteater, Spot-backed Antbird, Coraya Wren, Fiery-capped Manakin and Black billed seed Finch. At the feeders we’ll seek Rufous-crested Coquette, Saphirre-spangled Emerald, Long-tailed Hermit, Rufous-brestaed Hermit and Gray-breasted Sapphirewing. We also have a stop for the enigmatic Oilbird!
Day 10 Lima
Fly back to Lima in the morning and visit Pantanos de Villa for Great Grebe, Many-colored Rush Tyrant, Wren-like Rushbird and much more .
Day 11 Depart for home
Northern Peru offers many great birds including some of the most spectacular in the Americas. The sought-after Marvelous Spatuletail, a hummingbird with improbably long tail extensions, is certainly at the top of everyone’s list for Peru.
