An Introduction to Birding in South-Eastearn Brazil
A multi-centre tour of 11 Nights & 12 days*
Price; £1650 per person, based on a couple sharing. Reduced rates for larger groups.
Price includes all terrestrial transport, all entry fees into National Parks, overnight accommodation, all guiding fees, all midday and some evening meals. You will be required to fund 6 nights evening meals where we eat out at local restaurants.
South-eastern Brazil covers a large area, but can prove to be a very rich & rewarding birding destination. It is most easily accessed by an arrival at Rio de Janeiro International airport, and then explored by car (normally a 4x4)
This multi-centre trip is designed to offer the first-time visitor to the region the very best chances of encountering the majority of this region’s endemic and most spectacular species.
*Please note that this tour can be extended by 2 nights to include the Marica coastal lowlands thus adding a number of extra species such as Restinga Antwren and Sooretama Slatey Antshrike plus a number of wetland/reed-bed species to our target-list. The Price increase for this extension would be an extra £110 per person for the 2 nights.
NB This trip is Lead by an Expat guide.
Itinerary
Day 1 Arrival
After an overnight Flight; meeting at Rio International Airport, followed by a drive out to our first birding stop at the serra da Bocaina, birding the pasa trez valley en-route.
Overnight: Serra da Bocaina
Day 2 Jungle Edge
All day birding jungle-edge at 1000m altitude, searching, in particular for Cotingas and Tanagers.
Overnight: Serra da Bocaina (2)
Day 3 Serra da Bocaina
A second day at this wonderful, and seldom birded, location, today we will be searching in particular for forest under-storey birds.
Overnight: Serra da Bocaina (3)
Day 4 Pereque
A day on the move, birding down the forested slopes and foothills en-route to our next stop, in the coastal region at Pereque.
Overnight: Pereque
Day 5 Pereque Lowland Forested Valley
A full days birding of the famous Pereque lowland forested valley. We will target, in particular, the mega range- restricted Black-hooded Ant-wren, amongst other rare endemics today.
Overnight: Ubatuba
Day 6 Ubatuba
The first of our two full days spent birding the Ubatuba humid scarp-slope jungles. Today we will visit the old cocoa plantations at Fazenda Capricornio & Fazenda Angelim to explore a very rich jungle-edge habitat. Our major target species for today will be that delightful & minute Cotinga, the Buff-throated Purple-tuft.
Overnight: Ubatuba (1)
Day 7 Ubatuba
On our second day in Ubatuba we will visit the Folha seca and Corcovado enclosed jungle trails, today we will be targeting jungle interior species such as Slatey Bristle-front and with luck the very elusive Russet-winged Spade-bill.
Overnight: Ubatuba (2)
Day 8 Ubatuba - Campos do Jordao Highlands
Our final morning in Ubatuba will be spent visiting the famous Hummingbird feeders at Jona’s place, followed by an afternoon’s drive back inland to the Campos do Jordao highlands, En route and before our final accent we will stop to bird the very productive Taubate rice paddies, always great for waterside species.
Overnight: Campos do Jordao
Day 9 Mountainous Zone
All day birding the mountainous zone of 1800-2700 meters. Special targets will be Vinaceous Amazon Parrot where we will stake-out a famous roost, Swallow-tailed Cotinga & Black-capped Piprites (most easily encountered here).
Overnight: Campos do Jordao (2)
Day 10 Campos do Jordao - Itatiaia
All morning birding around our hotel for more high altitude species such as White-spotted Woodpecker, Araucaria tit-spinetail & Red-rumped warbling Finch etc. Followed by an afternoon drive to our last location, Itatiaia. We will be stopping en-route to bird for some typical open farmland species such as Burrowing Owl and White-browed Blackbird etc.
Overnight: Itatiaia
Day 11 Itatiaia National Park
All day birding the 900meters altitude trails in the Itatiaia national park. Our major endemic taget birds today being Saffron Toucanet and White-bearded Antshrike. Early evening search for Owls & Nighthawks.
Overnight: Itatiaia
Day 12 Itatiaia National Park - Departure
All morning birding the lower parts of the Itatiaia park, circa 600meters for typical endemics such as Gilt-edged Tanager.
After lunch we will prepare to check-out and make a leisurely drive back to Rio de Janeiro airport to meet your return flight.
Target Species:
Serra da Bocaina:
White-breasted Tapaculo, Red-ruffed Fruit-crow, Red-Capped Parrot, Blue Bellied Parrot, Ruddy Quail-dove, Large-tailed Antshrike, Rufous capped Antshrike, Dusky-tailed Antbird, Speckle-breasted Antpitta, OLivaceous Eleania, Highland Eleania, Sooty Tyrannulet, Sharpbill, Long-tailed Reedfinch, Lesser Seedfinch
Pereque:
Mantled Hawk, Rufus-tail Jacamar, Red-eyed Thornbird, Spotted Bamboo-wren, Hooded Antwren, Black-cheeked Gnateater, Red-rumped Cacique, Long-billed Wren.
Ubatuba:
Fork-tailed Tody-Tyrant, Slatey Bristlefront, Spotted Bamboowren, Buff-throated Purple-tuft, Red-necked Tanager, Flame-crested Tanager, Brazilian Tanager, etc, etc.
Taubate:
Pinate Bittern, Southern subspecies Black-winged Stilt, White-faced Whistling-ducks, other waterfowl.
Campos do Jordao:
Vinaceous Amazon Parrot, Red-ruffed Fruitcrow, Araucaria tit-spinetail, Black-capped Piprites, Planalto Tyrannulet, Swallow-tailed Cotinga, Hellymayr’s Pipit, etc.
Itatiaia:
Red-breasted Toucan, Saffron Toucanet, Tawny-Browed Owl, Rufus-capped Motmot, Yellow-fronted Woodpecker, White-browed Woodpecker, Robust Woodpecker, Black-billed Scythebill, Tufted and White-bearded Antshrikes, Bertoni’s Antbird, Feruginous Antbird, Star-throated Antwren, Sharpbill, Drab-breasted Bamboo-Tyrant, Syristes, Brassy-breasted and Gilt-edged Tanagers, Olive-green Tanager, Swallow Tanager.
October 2011