INTRODUCTION:

In October 2005 Hurricane Wilma, a category 5 Hurricane, arrived at the Yucatan Peninsula where it stayed for the next few days. The effect was devastating, especially so for the Cancun area and Cozumel Island.

I was due to fly out on a family holiday the day Wilma hit. I’d been tracking the Hurricane for the past week and was not surprised when the phone call came telling me that the holiday was cancelled. Obviously bitterly disappointed on missing out on a cracking holiday and having spent the last 6 months of my life getting ’up to speed’ on Mexico’s birds I immediately re-booked the same holiday for April 2006. This would give the Yucatan time for Wilma’s effects to heal and April weather is a little less temperamental!

So 6 months on from the Hurricane how is the Yucatan looking? Evidence of Wilma is still present if you look hard enough. A lot of the under storey is now full of dead branches and foliage and some of the trees are still stripped bare and apparently dead. However the majority of the trees are now back in full leaf and flower and as I mentioned earlier you have to look pretty hard to see any evidence that a Hurricane had ripped through 6 months ago. Obviously I had no idea what the place looked like previously, I should image there is a big change, but as a first time visitor it didn’t appear that bad. As for the birds they are back too. Again I'm not sure if the numbers are down from pre Wilma (going on past reports for the area, noticeably early 2005, there seemed to be more reported then than now) but again as a first time visitor there were plenty about. Yes, I am pleased to report that the Yucatan Peninsula is alive and well and looking in good shape.

ITINARY & BIRD GUIDE:

I birded nearly every morning from first light (approx 6.15am) to about 10.00am. In the mid afternoon I returned to my hotel balcony to escape from the Caribbean sun and do some cracking birding from a comfy chair with cold beer in hand. I e-mailed the hotel one week before my arrival to request a 2^nd storey room overlooking the Jungle and golf course (more of which later). Boy was I right to do so. The view from both a relaxing out of the sun space and birding perspective was superb. I had a tally of 36 species from my balcony including such exotics as Aztec Parakeet, White-fronted Parrot, Cinnamon Hummingbird and Yellow-billed Cacique, not to mention half a dozen different Orioles and Flycatchers!! I stayed at the RIU Tequila room 1316. (clubhoteltequila@riu.com)

On the 17^th and 18^th I arranged to go birding further afield using the services of Luis Ku Quinores a local guide who works at the Dr Alfredo Barrera Marin Botanical Gardens in Puerto Morelos.

Luis is an exceptional birder who’s attributes tick all the right boxes. Polite, friendly, punctual and above all absolutely brilliant at finding and identifying birds! (Points of contact for Luis are motmotbird@hotmail.com, www.birdsofyucatan.com, and telephone (998)143-0833).

We corresponded through e-mail and I rang him on my arrival to confirm everything.

Be advised that birding with Luis is no walk in the park. He picked me up 5am sharp each morning. This meant getting out of bed at the latest 4.15am so best to keep off the Tequila and Carona Extra the night before!! On the 17^th we drove 1 ½ hrs south to Sian Kaan Biosphere Reserve and on the 18^th 1 ½ hrs inland to Punta Laguna. Once at these sites the birding is intense and continuous thought out the morning in increasing heat. Bodies start to flag, trust me! I like to think I’m reasonably fit but I’d had enough come 1pm.

Having said that , birding with Luis is a fantastic experience and highly recommended to serious birders.

SITES VISITED:

Prior to my visit I had made tentative plans to visit both the Botanical Garden and Cozumel Island. Luis advised against both of these sites as they are still recovering from the brunt of Wilma and not really worth the effort for the time being. Hopefully as time goes by these two excellent sites will be back to their former glory.

Playacar

I based myself in Playacar, a gated community of All Inclusive hotels and privately owned condominiums about an hour South of Cancun in the Mexican state of Quintana Roo.

Playacar is dominated by the Playacar Golf Course that winds it’s way around the hotels. The golf course is a superb environment for getting to grips and familiarising yourself with Mexico’s more common birds. Orioles and Flycatchers are abundant along with American Wood-Warblers, Woodpeckers and Hummingbirds.

Be aware, however, that the golf course is private and is signposted accordingly at every access point. Birders ( and joggers) seem to be tolerated in the first few hours of the day when only the ground staff are about. Once the first golfers tee off, however, you may be asked to leave. I was escorted off the course on one occasion when I’d outstayed my welcome (about 11am) so be warned. I have no intention of advocating trespass but to not walk the golf course most mornings would mean any visiting birder missing out on a lot of goodies like nesting Rose-throated Becards and Yucatan Jays that I found whilst wandering.

By the hotel RIU Lupita is a large artificial lake, again part of the golf course. This lake is easily viewable from the road and as it is the only real ground source of water in the area held such delights as Black-necked Stilt, Blue-winged Teal, Black-bellied Whistling Duck, Herons, Egrets and much more with a variety of passerines in the bushes such as Blue Grosbeak. So obviously worth seeking out.

Xcaret

This is a beautiful eco-archaeological park that is absolutely fantastic for a day out for all the family. Ensure you stay for the brilliant night show though. Built in the middle of the Mayan jungle it is an environmental theme park with underground rivers, ruins, beach and more importantly birds. If you want to guarantee seeing Turquoise- browed Motmot then this is the place to visit with multiple sightings of 3 or more together.

As Xcaret is only 10 minutes from Playacar I returned the next morning and birded the area outside the park. Highlights included Zone-tailed Hawk, Red-throated Hummingbird and lots of American Wood-Warblers.

Chichen Itza

A world heritage site, Chichen Itza is famous for its Mayan ruins. No trip to the Yucatan is complete without a visit to this site.

Being a long 3 hour coach journey inland this was not a birding trip more of an archaeological expedition! although I did take my ‘bins along for the ride.

En-route we stopped for a 15 minute break at a cenote. Cenotes are fresh water sinkholes from underwater rivers. This was a well known tourist trap, the name of which escapes me. However the site was very birdy with Yellow-winged Tanager, Social Flycatcher, Yellow-faced Grassquit, Groove-billed Ani, Cave Swallow and Clay-coloured Thrush all vying for my attention on a 15 minute walkabout.

At Chichen Itza the ruins are as spectacular as the guide books would have you believe. However as I was spending more time gazing in the direction of the jungle and not at the ruins my wife, Claire, gave me leave of absence to wander off for an hour. Although the temperature was climbing into the nineties and hundreds of tourists bimbled about I managed to get off the beaten track for a bit of peace and solitude and goodies such as Green Jay and Black Catbird, incidentally the only place I caught up with this supposedly common Yucatan species.

Sian Kaan

A Biosphere Reserve renowned for its birds, this is a site some 10km South of Tulum, 1 ½ hours from Playacar. The habitat is very diverse, from coastal mangrove, dense jungle, open farmland and forest clearings. The diverse habitat was mirrored by the birds seen including the likes of Bare-throated Tiger-Heron, Canivet’s Emerald, Tanagers, Buntings, Wood-Warblers and much more. I came away 6 hours later with a species count of 89.

Punta Laguna

Some 10km North of the more well known Coba this is another of Luis’s birding hotspots. Habitat is as diverse as Sian Kaan but with taller forest and lake. Again very birdy, the day kicked off with a cracking Collared Aracari followed by a multitude of other species such as Laughing Falcon, Pale-billed Woodpecker, nesting Royal Flycatcher and a glimpse of the much sought after Great Currasow. A total of 76 species were seen in a 7 hour birding spectacular.

SUMMARY:

In a strange twist of fate Wilma actually made my birding a better experience as visiting in April meant that all birds seen were in their pristine Summer plumage. Some of the American Wood-Warblers such as Chestnut-sided, Yellow-throated, Black-throated Green, Magnolia and Redstart were stunning in their breeding finery. If I had gone in October, as originally planned, then most if not all would have been in drab Autumn moult and far less attractive.

I eventually came away with a species list of 153, 100 being lifers. With only 2 half days hard birding and the rest done more leisurely around the local patch I think that’s a fair return.

Special mention should also go to the other Fauna of the Yucatan . The various lizards, some the size of Godzilla! The most beautiful butterflies, some the size of saucers! The cute looking Raccoon type Acouti, Guinea-pig type Agouti and Spider Monkeys. All memorable.

CONCLUSION:

The Riviera Maya is a great holiday destination, the weather and Hotel RIU Tequila was first class, the Mayan people open, honest and very friendly and the birds truly second to none. Just make sure you visit outside the Hurricane season!!(Aug-Nov)

Please feel free to contact me for any info I can help with on snbaines@blueyonder.co.uk.

SPECIES LIST

LEGEND:
PLAYACAR/PC, XCARET/XC, CHICHEN ITZA/CI, PUNTA LAGUNA/PL, SIAN KAAN/SK

LIFERS IN BOLD

SPECIES	SITE SEEN
Least Grebe	PC
Brown Pelican	XC
Neotropic Cormorant	PC, SK
Magnificent Frigatebird	PC, XC
Bare-throated Tiger-Heron	SK
Great Blue Heron	PL
Great White Egret	PC
Little Blue Heron	PC
Cattle Egret	PC
Green Heron	PC, PL
Glossy Ibis	PL
Turkey Vulture	PC, XC, CI, PL,
Lesser Yellow-headed Vulture	PL
Black Vulture	PC, XC, CI, PL, SK
Hook-billed Kite	CI
Grey Hawk	PL
Roadside Hawk	CI, SK
Zone-tailed Hawk	XC
Laughing Falcon	PL
Black-bellied Whistling-Duck	PC
Blue-winged Teal	PC
Lesser Scaup	PC
Plain Chachalaca	PC, PL, SK
Great Curassow	PL
Yucatan Bobwhite	PL
American Coot	PC
Grey Plover	PC
Black-necked Stilt	PC
Spotted Sandpiper	PC
Least Sandpiper	PC
Solitary Sandpiper	PC
Ruddy Turnstone	XC
Laughing Gull	PC, XC
Royal Tern	PC, XC, SK
Sandwich Tern	PC
Collared Aracari	PL
Yucatan Woodpecker	PC, SK
Golden-fronted Woodpecker	PC, XC, CI, PL, SK
Ladder-backed Woodpecker	SK
Golden-olive Woodpecker	SK
Pale-billed Woodpecker	PL
Ivory-billed Woodcreeper	PL
Barred Antshrike	PL
Greenish Elaenia	PC, PL, SK
Caribbean Elaenia	SK
Northern Bentbill	PL, SK
Eye- ringed Flatbill	PL
Yellow-olive Flycatcher	PL, SK
Royal Flycatcher	PL
Eastern Wood-Pewee	SK
Tropical Pewee	PL, SK
Least Flycatcher	SK
Bright-rumped Attila	PL
Yucatan Flycatcher	PC, XC, PL, SK
Dusky-capped Flycatcher	PC, PL, SK
Brown-crested Flycatcher	PC, SK
Great Kiskadee	PC, XC, SK
Social Flycatcher	PC, XC, CI, PL, SK
Streaked Flycatcher	PL
Sulpher-bellied Flycatcher	SK
Tropical Kingbird	PC, CI, SK
Couch’s Kingbird	PC, SK
Eastern Kingbird	PC, XC, CI, PL
Rose-throated Becard	PC, SK
Masked Tityra	SK
Mangrove Swallow	PC, XC, SK
Ridgeway’s Rough-winged Swallow	PC, CI
Cliff Swallow	PC
Cave Swallow	CI
Barn Swallow	PC, XC, SK
Spot-breasted Wren	PL, SK
White-browed Wren	PL
Southern House Wren	PL
Grey Catbird	PC, XC, PL
Black Catbird	CI
Tropical Mockingbird	PC, XC, SK
Clay-coloured Thrush	PC, CI, PL
Blue-grey Gnatcatcher	PL, SK
Tropical Gnatcatcher	SK
Blue-winged Warbler	PL
Tennessee Warbler	PL
Yellow Warbler	PC, PL, SK
Chestnut-sided Warbler	SK
Magnolia Warbler	PC, PL, SK
Yellow-throated Warbler	PC, SK
Black-throated Green Warbler	PL, SK
Black-and-White Warbler	PL, SK
American Redstart	PL, SK
Prothonotary Warbler	PL
Ovenbird	SK
Northern Waterthrush	PC, SK
Common Yellowthroat	XC
Grey-crowned Yellowthroat	PL
Yucatan Jay	PC, XC
Green Jay	CI, SK
Brown Jay	PC, PL, SK
Melodious Blackbird	PC, XC, PL, SK
Great-tailed Grackle	PC, XC, PL, SK
Bronzed Cowbird	PC, SK
Black-cowled Oriole	SK
Orchard Oriole	PC, PL, SK
Hooded Oriole	PC, XC, CI, PL, SK
Yellow-backed Oriole	PC
Yellow-tailed Oriole	PC, XC, PL, SK
Orange Oriole	PC, XC, CI, PL, SK
Altamira Oriole	PC, PL, SK
Baltimore Oriole	PL
Yellow-billed Cacique	PC, PL, SK
Common Ground-Dove	PL
Ruddy Ground-Dove	CI, PL, SK
Grey-headed Dove	SK
Red-billed Pigeon	PC, XC, CI, PL, SK
White-winged Dove	PC, XC, CI, PL, SK
White-tipped Dove	PL
Caribbean Dove	CI
Aztec Parakeet	PC, PL, SK
White-fronted Parrot	PC, XC, PL, SK
Squirrel Cuckoo	PL
Groove-billed Ani	CI, PL
Vaux’s Swift	PC, CI, PL, SK
Wedge-tailed Sabrewing	PL
Canivet’s Emerald	PL, SK
Buff-bellied Hummingbird	PC, SK
Cinnamon Hummingbird	PC, SK
Ruby-throated Hummingbird	PC, XC, SK
Black-headed Trogon	PL
Violaceous Trogon	PL
Turquoise-browed Motmot	XC, CI, PL, SK
Blue-crowned Motmot	PL
Black-headed Saltator	PC, XC, PL, SK
Northern Cardinal	PL, SK
Blue Grosbeak	PC, SK
White-collared Seedeater	SK
Yellow-faced Grassquit	PC, CI, SK
Blue Bunting	PL
Indigo Bunting	PL, SK
Painted Bunting	SK
Red-legged Honeycreeper	SK
Scrub Euphonia	SK
Yellow-throated Euphonia	SK
Yellow-winged Tanager	CI
Grey-headed Tanager	SK
Red-throated Ant-Tanager	PL, SK
Rose-throated Tanager	PL
Summer Tanager	PC, PL, SK
Scarlet Tanager	SK
Mangrove Vireo	PC, XC, SK
Red-eyed Vireo	SK
Yellow-green Vireo	SK
Yucatan Vireo	PC, PL, SK
Lesser Greenlet	PL, SK
Rufous-sided Peppershrike	PL, SK
Green-backed Sparrow	PL, SK