ITINERARY

Notes on our itinerary

Our initial plan was slightly modified as one piece of luggage didn’t arrive with us. We had to wait till the next day to pick it up and hence we did some more birding than planned in the Chapala area. In hindsight we probably would have spent a bit more time and took different routes in Chacalilla as we could have found more target birds there (all seen in different sites). We also could have included a relaxing boat trip on the Rio El Tovar, as we had time to do so. We opted not to do as no ‘hard’ targets were there for us. We would include Paso Ancho on the way up from El Tuito towards San Blas.

In our trip, we feel we could do with 1-2 days less if you want to really focus on the top targets only. During the trip we were thinking of including Baja California, but we would have needed a few more days.

PRACTICALITIES

TRANSPORTATION

We booked a car online through Hertz. While the prices seemed quite low when booking from abroad, we were informed upon arrival at the rental booth that basic insurance was mandatory in Mexico. This significantly increased the initial price! We chose a car with high clearance, a Renault Captur, which proved to be very suitable. The high clearance was beneficial at several sites, including Volcan de Fuego and Cerro La Bufa.

For safety purposes, we were advised to use toll roads (“cuotas”) and refrain from traveling at night. We found the toll fees to be rather high and not always proportional to the distance traveled. As a result, we frequently checked the additional time required for the freeway (according to Google Maps) and often opted for the free alternative routes.

HEALTH & SAFETY

When you search for travel advice on your local foreign affairs website or look for online information about the safety conditions in these states, the results can be disheartening. The presence of various narco cartels is a common theme. It’s always challenging to make judgments from afar, so we reached out to several local birders/guides to get their opinions and recommendations. In summary:

• All the birding sites we intended to visit were deemed safe, even for night birding.

• It was advised to avoid traveling at night.

• Random exploration of unknown birding sites (areas without eBird data) was discouraged.

Throughout our entire trip, we never felt unsafe. We’re not even certain if we encountered any narcos. Generally, people were very friendly and helpful - having a basic understanding of Spanish was certainly beneficial.

We didn’t take any malaria prophylaxis and only had the standard vaccinations apart from that.

SIM CARD

We heavily made use of the mobile data to search for the latest news on our target species, searching and contacting accommodation, etc. We had an eSim which was topped beforehand and this worked out very smoothly!

WEATHER & TIMING

Our timing was more planned in function of our agendas than the best birding time. It seems that most birding tours go in March-April-May. We had very enjoyable weather throughout with no rain at all. Mornings were a bit cilly in higher altitudes, but during the day it was sunny and warm to hot weather. By going in January we surely had no chance of finding the Sinaloa Martin on their breeding grounds, but they are not guaranteed later in the season anyway. We felt that birds weren't too responsive and in many sites, we expected more vocally active birds...

ACCOMMODATION & FOOD

Hotels were easily found in all cities and towns. In cities, there was a good choice in price ranges, going from cheap hostels to exclusive luxury hotels. In smaller villages, choices were more limited and sometimes restricted to more basic accommodation. We mostly looked for accommodation on the spot to keep our flexibility in the itinerary. We only booked these in advance:

• random hotel near the airport of Guadalajara (plenty of options)

• the cabañas at Chara Pinta (getting in touch proved very hard, we never got a response from Santos +52 694 116 1989; Rene helped us out for which we are very grateful!)

• Rancho La Noria at Sierra San Juan (via Paul Lopez +52 311 877 0494)

Mexico is about food! Plenty of options to eat all day, going from desayunos, to gorditos, taquerias, food stalls and upscale restaurants! In many cases, they said to have no vegetarian options, but almost always managed to make something upon request. And there is cilantro and salsa picante! In several places, restaurants closed surprisingly early, so we often opted to have dinner before night birding.

VISA

We got a tourist visa upon arrival.

MONEY

ATMs were readily available in most towns. Credit cards were widely accepted, including at all gas stations, larger supermarkets, many hotels, and a few restaurants.

LITERATURE & INFORMATION

Bird identification:

• A Guide to the Birds of Mexico and Northern Central America (Howell & Webb)

• Birds of Central America (Vallely & Dyer)

• the handy Merlin app by the Cornell Lab, which comes with pictures, maps and sounds for most (not all!) species

• Sibley Birds 2nd Edition app

Bird sounds:

• numerous recordings from the excellent Xeno-Canto sound repository

• a great selection is featured in the Merlin app (see above)

• a collection of commercial CD’s including: "Bird Songs of Guatemala, Belize and Mexico", "Bird Songs of SE Arizona and Sonora, Mexico", "Bird Songs of West America" and "Birds of Mexico".

Logistical & bird info:

• Cloudbirders for trip reports

• eBird

• observation.org

SITE INFO

Here we only list the areas where we birded significantly, i.e. where we searched specifically for some species and did quite some effort to find them. On our trip, we also had many (sometimes random) roadside stops where we did not really ‘fully’ bird and those are left out in this overview.

Chapala area

Our trip didn’t start as smooth as hoped for: one of the checked bags did not arrive in Guadalajara. We were promised it would be shipped the next day. Hence, we decided not to travel too far away and pick up the missing luggage.

We drove south towards Lake Chapala and birded in the Parque de la Christiania, right in the middle of Chapala. About the first birds we saw after parking our car, was our main target! Several Black-backed Orioles were feeding in the trees at the entrance of the park (20.288989, -103.186980). Our very last morning was spent here as well, as we slept in Chapala which is located conveniently close to the GDL airport.

We moved on to the lake border at Ciénaga Ribera del Pilar (20.291970, -103.226871), where we tried to find some water birds. Water level seemed way too low to have any chance to find an Aztec Rail, so we decided to get it elsewhere later on the trip.

A short stroll along the Sendero El Caracol was entertaining but we didn’t see too many birds in the heat of the day. To reach it, one has to take one of the dirt tracks leading up into the hills. The trail itself starts at 20.326614, -103.221642. Here we sas our only Black-tailed Gnatcatcher for the trip. On our last evening, we gave it a try for night birding and found a single Elf Owl, 2 Western Screech Owls, a (Mountain) Northern Pygmy Owl and several Buff-collared Nightjars.

Black-backed Oriole

Nevado de Colima & Volcán de Fuego

These two sites are two different peaks in the same area. We were based at the Chalet de Colombo Hotel (19.631542, -103.503195), which is nicely and conveniently located in La Mesa very close to the Nevado de Colima. It is a bit pricey and there was only limited food service at the time of our visit. We easily found food in the direction of Ciudad de Guzman.

Our first day was spent along the Nevado de Colima. The turnoff is easy to find at 19.632508, -103.529420 and the dirt track is in fairly good condition. We made several different birding stops along the road up to the entrance gate of the National Park (19.593153, -103.593464) where an entrance fee must be paid. We did not enter as the better birding was done lower down. We made so many shorter and longer stops, it is hard to say exactly where we saw which species. During this day we found several Long-tailed Wood Partridges, good numbers of Mexican Violetear, some handsome Chestnut-sided Shrike Vireos, our first flock of noisy Transvolcanic Jays, noisy Grey-barred Wrens, a single Aztec Thrush, Green-striped Brush Finches, Cinnamon-bellied Flowerpiercers, our only Collared Towhees and many more other birds. At dusk we tried our luck at 19.628718, -103.534658 and had one singing Eared Poorwill and a Mexican Whip-poor-will.

Next day we moved to the Volcán de Fuego and started pre-dawn hoping to find another Eared Poorwill. The dirt track starts at 19.524905, -103.449475. Unfortunately there was quite a lot of traffic on this track by the people who work in the adjacent agricultural area. Banded Quails have been seen here, but to us it seemed very hard to find them with all the passing trucks. We explored a short sidetrack at 19.531496, -103.479575 and had our only Orange-billed Nightingale Thrush and Painted Bunting for the trip and our first Sinaloa Wrens, Rusty Sparrows and Spotted Wrens. In the lower oak zone a bit higher up (19.530211, -103.512136) we found birding slow/hard but managed to see the only White-throated Swifts of this trip and some more Transvolcanic Jays and Long-tailed Wood Partridges. We continued further up along the dirt track, parked the car at 19.532003, -103.523370 and birded several kilometers by foot along the ‘Camino Microondas’. Here we saw a Gray-collared Becard, a Dwarf Vireo, two (Mountain) Northern Pygmy Owls, more Transvolcanic Jays, Gray-barred Wrens, the first Rufous-capped Brush Finches and Happy Wrens and others. The track on this side is in much poorer condition than the one to Nevado de Colima, although still doable with a normal 2WD car.

Brown-backed Solitaire

Parque Ecológico La Campana (Colima)

While preparing our trip, we found out that this park at the northern edge of Colima city, seems a reliable site for Banded Quail. One early morning, we gave it a try, hoping we’d see it here and saving us time to look for it at other sites. It turned out well! We parked our car at the free parking lot at 19.268828, -103.728164. There were already lots of people around for an early morning workout.

The better area to search for them seems to be at the edge of the ruins. It took us a while and we even went into the archaeological site (entrance fee, but nice to visit) to look for the quails. In a far corner, we found a pool with water (19.268834, -103.724431) and the Banded Quails were not surprisingly around. Later on they moved into the nearby park again, where we could reconnect with them. We found the park pretty birdy and saw a lot of other/commoner species.

Banded Quail

Microondas La Cumbre & Camino a Piscila

Only 15 mins outside the city, this site is locally well known for hiking to see the sunset/sunrise above Colima. At 19.189445, -103.682943 there is a gate where a local family seems to be an unofficial guard. The gate is apparently locked at night, but the guy was very friendly (for a small tip) to leave it open some longer and open it again early in the morning so we could do some owling. This cobblestone road winds up all the way to some antennas at the top.

Before this we first explored the nearby Camino a Piscila (turnoff at 19.190598, -103.693304) during the heat of the day. This road was rather busy for birding with few decent locations for roadside birding. Nevertheless, we quickly found our first Colima Pygmy Owls for the trip, some beautiful Orange-breasted Buntings and a pair of very vocal Black-chested Sparrows (about here 19.187620, -103.696772).

Late afternoon we drove up slowly to the top towards the antennas, with a few stops along the road. Apart from some more Orange-breasted Buntings and several calling Lesser Ground Cuckoos, not much was seen.

Night birding started well with a tape responsive Buff-collared Nightjar right at the top and a few more perched birds on the road lower down. Somehow we failed to get a view of the calling Balsas Screech Owl, but next morning, in our pre-dawn attempt, we managed to see a very responsive pair at 19.186871, -103.690590. Mottled Owl was heard here as well.

Black-chested Sparrow

Camino Playa del Oro

Initially, this site was not included in our itinerary. We would drive from Colima towards Puerto Vallarta via the toll road passing by Guadalajara. As all our targets at La Cumbre were seen, we decided to take a different route, following the coast, and have a roadside stop here to break the journey. Basically, it is just a dirt road going to the beach - turnoff at 19.165391, -104.494757.

When we arrived, heath had already kicked in. We parked our car a bit further along the track in the shade and birded a bit back and forth along the road. We still had quite some bird activity. We encountered our first Lilac-crowned Parrots, Citreoline Trogons, West Mexican Euphonias, Fan-tailed Warbler, and our only Olive Sparrow of this trip as well as good numbers of White-bellied Wren. We didn’t stay too long as we wanted to reach El Tuito in time for night birding.

Citreoline Trogon

(Selva) El Tuito area

While preparing the trip, we saw that many tours preferred Playa del Oro (see above) above the Selva El Tuito region, probably for logistical reasons. We found the vast forested area of El Tuito more promising and chose Selva El Tuito to be the key site for the lowland species. We were based in the laid-backed town of El Tuito.

After a long drive, we arrived late in the afternoon. Our first site was the Camino La Bascula (and Rancho Los Otates). This dirt track starts at 20.354855, -105.316896. It first goes through some degraded area, but soon gets better pine-oak forest. Although still very hot, we had some bird activity and found a Colima Pygmy Owl and both our first Black-headed Siskins and Military Macaws. The main reason to be here was night birding. We enjoyed the sunset scenery with a beer at 20.351567, -105.294285. As soon as dusk came in, we had a pair of showy Buff-collared Nightjars. The top bird however, was a cooperative Eared Poorwill. Mottled Owl was heard here as well.

Next day, we spent the morning at the Camino Bioto. This dirt track starts at 20.304467, -105.377785. We basically birded the entire stretch of forest from the start of the track till the first large clearing (20.279519, -105.376920). Somehow, birding was slower than we expected/hoped. At the end of our morning, we were able to find quite a variety of species, including our first Elegant Trogons, some more Colima Pygmy Owls, our first Mexican Woodnymph, another Black-capped Vireo, the first of many Black-throated Magpie Jays, Happy, Sinaloa and White-bellied Wrens, a pair of responsive Rosy Thrush Tanagers, and some more Orange-breasted Buntings, etc

On the way back to el Tuito, we made a short stop at Rancho Primavera (turnoff at 20.337797, -105.352234). Its hotspot list features quite a lot of species, so we wanted to check this out. The friendly staff let us explore the grounds and have a look at the hummingbird feeders, but very little was seen during the heat of the day.

Orange-breasted Bunting

Jardín Botánico Vallarta

Half an hour to the north from El Tuito, we made an afternoon stop in the botanical gardens (20.464911, -105.291518). The multitude of flowers are known to attract loads of hummingbirds. The garden itself was well organized and has an impressive orchid collection, but the entrance fee was pretty steep to us. It was a funny experience and we felt outcasts in this overly touristic area. Nevertheless, we encountered many foraging hummingbirds, which gave good looks: a single (Jalisco) Mexican Hermit, a single Sparkling-tailed Jummingbird, some Ruby-throateds, a single male Golden-crowned Emerald, and abundant Cinnamon Hummingbirds. The hummingbird feeders at the restaurant were surprisingly little visited by the hummers. Around 13:00, there was a feeding session with fruits that attracted loads of other birds, including several San Blas Jays.

Chacalilla area

This was one of the strangest places to bird, as it felt like just some agricultural environment. Just outside of the rusty village of Chacalilla, we stopped at a marshy area: 21.618840, -105.265667. We did encounter a good number of species, like our first Sinaloa Crows and our only Rufous-bellied Chachalacas! Eventually, we found a covey of Elegant Quails in the cultivated area at 21.628635, -105.270906. In hindsight, we might have birded the wrong places? For example, we did not explore the trail that goes east. Luckily, all species we ‘missed’ but expected here were eventually seen in other sites during our trip.

Singayta area

When we arrived in Singayta, it was already hot and bird activity was low. First we made a short walk along the Camino Vivero Singayta. We parked the car at 21.570801, -105.232934 and walked the track in several directions. Apart from two nice Black-capped Vireos we saw a Citreoline Trogon and a Fan-tailed Warbler.

On the other side of the main road, at the edge of the little village, a track starts at 21.575597, -105.232321. We drove along the track and made a few stops where we birded. We did not see any noteworthy birds here...

San Blas area

Our first stop in the San Blas area was at Puente Las Islitas (21.527225, -105.246284). Despite being the middle of the day and busy traffic of beachgoers, we had immediate success in finding Rufous-necked Wood Rail in the mangroves.

Some more mangrove birding was done along the 74 going out of San Blas. We made several short stops at sites known as Humedales de San Blas and Mangles de San Blas. We found the first dirt track just past the bridge the most promising: 21.545554, -105.273511. A bit further along the road, we found a single (West Mexican) Mangrove Vireo at 21.556480, -105.274132. Late afternoon, we went to the wastewater treatment (Estanque de Aguas Residuales de San Blas) at 21.532482, -105.272740 but we didn’t see any special birds there.

Next morning we birded along the Camino al Cocodrilario (start at 21.524147, -105.225599). We saw our only Bare-throated Tiger Heron for the trip, and finally a single White-throated Flycatcher.

Looking back, we could have included a late afternoon boat trip on the Rio La Tovara (21.531954, -105.247466). There were no real targets for us, but others regularly see Mangrove Cuckoo, Boat-billed Heron and Northern Potoo...

Yellow-crowned Night Heron

Cascada del Cora

When moving from the San Blas area towards the Sierra San Juan, we made a birding stop at this less visited (by birders) site. We found out there was a slight chance of finding the Great Swallow-tailed Swift. We parked our car at 21.416591, -105.123230 and walked/birded until the viewpoint for the waterfall. Along this short stretch, we found our only Flammulated Flycatcher for the trip, another Citreoline Trogon and some more Black-throated Magpie Jays. A Black-capped Vireo and a Fan-tailed Warbler were seen as well. No swifts though.

Reserva Ecológica Sierra de San Juan & Rancho La Noria

Just outside the boundaries of Tepic, Sierra de San Juan (an old volcano) is a very nice birding site. We took a less traveled shortcut taking the southern route when coming from Cascada del Cora, which turned out just fine. On top of the crest, the Rancho La Noria (21.485069, -104.993770) is a well located base to explore this area. We stayed in the rustic cabins. It might get busy during weekends, so we made sure to avoid that. Food service on the other hand is only available during weekends, so we just drove down towards El Ahuacate (not too far).

Early morning bird activity is booming in the open space, right at the cabins. A plethora of warblers, orioles, tanagers, sparrows etc were seen here. Noteworthy birds included our first Buff-breasted Flycatchers in the scrub, our only (Dickey’s) Audubon’s Oriole high up in the trees and some more Spotted Wrens.

Lower down at the old quarry. A bit further down near 21.503726, -104.975041 we had a nice flock with our first Red-headed Tanagers amongst others. It is a reliable site for Eared Quetzal as well, but we did not try for it here.

Lower down on the other side, in a sharp bend at 21.476729, -105.001395, we found our only Bumblebee Hummingbird in the company of 2 Mexican Woodnymphs. A pair of Golden-crowned Warblers were the only seen on this trip.

The main reason, however, to bird here and spend the night in La Noria, is night birding! Late afternoon we walked up towards the crest and waited at 21.475273, -104.982770 until the night fell. Another somewhat distant Eared Poorwill was heard but didn’t want to play the game (dense vegetation didn’t help). The same was true for a Northern Saw-whet Owl, but we didn’t pay too much attention to it. The star bird here was the Cinereous Owl. Two birds vocally responded and eventually, we were treated with a silent bird flying in and pearching just right above our heads. Too close for decent pics and it flew off without a single shout, but what a bird!

In the foothills of Sierra de San Juan, but coming from El Ahuacate, we tried the ‘Camino Cerro San Juan’ which starts at 21.506215, -104.939569. Other people regularly saw Sparkling-tailed Hummingbirds here, but we did not find any.

Northern Saw-whet Owl

Chara Pinta Reserve (and surroundings)

Once, the Carretera 40 was the main connection between Mazatlan and Durango. Since the opening of the toll road the old highway barely gets any traffic above Copala, which makes birding way more pleasant. This road used to have a bad reputation, but we never felt unsafe.

We stayed one night in the cabañas of the reserve. We might have gotten the newest one, as it was very fine with hot water and a fireplace. There is solar energy for lumination, but no charging options. No food services here, so we took away some burritos from the nearby village of El Palmito. The other nights were spent in a basic hotel in El Palmito as it is cheaper and we didn’t need to bird in the reserve itself. Making a reservation for the cabins is a good idea, but we failed to get in contact and got some help from Rene (thanks a lot!).

A few km above El Palmito, we birded along the main road (KM 195.8) near the cliffs at 23.578049, -105.838831. We focussed on the fruiting trees below the road in order to find the highly wanted quetzal as this is a known site to find it. To no avail - a Mountain Trogon was the closest we came. Driving a bit further north, we searched at several roadside stops until we finally hit the jackpot at 23.596500, -105.847545. An Eared Quetzal vocally responded, but played hard to see. We failed to see it on our first attempt, but persistence paid off and we found it perched high up in a tree on our second day! Bonus birds here were a mixed flock of the iconic Tufted Jays and Steller's Jays.

Right at the entrance road of the Chara Pinta Reserve (23.564747, -105.849042) and the nearby bend (KM 200.5), we had a lot of bird activity, including Mountain Trogon, Mexican Chickadees, etc. In The reserve itself we mainly birded right at the cabañas and along the Sendero Arroyo. At the latter place we had Tufted Jays and Red-headed Tanagers. Closer to the cabins, we saw some more Buff-breasted Flycatchers, several Aztec Thrushes and a single skulky Colima Warbler. At night we had a lot of fun and saw Stygian, Northern Saw-whet (both on the trail towards the mirador) and Whiskered Screech Owl (Arroyo trail). The Arroyo trail should be a good spot to find Quetzals, but despite some effort, we failed to find one.

Tufted Jay

Haciendo Coyotes

Along the Durango Highway, this site is well known as a stakeout for the Sierra Madre Sparrow. It is strictly private property with restricted access. Luckily for birders, there is a possibility to have a look into the land from a public track. Once in the village of El Salto, take the dirt road at 23.792349, -105.341148 and continue over the bridge, take left at 23.788319, -105.331362 and continue all the way to the waste dump. We parked our car there and walked along the track to 23.795715, -105.320935 from where you can scan the area. Pay special attention to the barb wires where loads of sparrows can be observed.

Amongst the abundant Striped Sparrows we also found good numbers of Clay-coloured, the only Vesper and Brewer’s for the trip and ultimately 2 Sierra Madre Sparrows! The only Chihuahuan Meadowlarks on this trip were seen here as well.

There have been issues with trespassing birders, so make sure to stay on the public tracks!

Striped Sparrow

Puente Baluarte

On our way back to El Palmito, we took the new toll road and made a stop at the food stalls just before this bridge (23.542730, -105.756890). We walked the dirt track downwards in the direction of the river. It seemed like a private road, but the people were friendly and welcomed us to walk around for birding.

Soon we found our first target for which this site is a known stake-out: a Five-striped Sparrow. To our surprise and delight, we also found a pair of Black-capped Gnatcatchers, which turned out to be the only ones for this trip. Others have seen Lucifer Hummingbirds here in the past as well, but the very dry vegetation held very few hummers at the moment of our visit.

Five-striped Sparrow

Copala & Panuco Road

The first hours of the day were spent near the Chara Pinta reserve (see above), but then we quickly headed down again towards the Panuco Road. Our first brief stop was in the picturesque town of Copala, where some Yellow Grosbeaks were instantly found at 23.395677, -105.938653. Thanks for the stakeout, Jan!

We moved on to the nearby Panuco Road, which starts at 23.402799, -105.936731. Just round the first corner, we explored a short track. While birding the wooded vegetation and keeping an eye on the sky, we finally found a flock of White-naped Swifts. Apparently, at this time of the year, they tend to be more reliable at this altitude than higher up near Chara Pinta. Other birds seen here included several flocks of Military Macaw, Black-throated Magpie Jays, Rusty-crowned Ground Sparrows, and some more West Mexican Euphonias.

Yellow Grosbeak

Camino Pantitlan

Late afternoon, when arriving into the Mazatlan area coming from the Durango Highway, we made a short stop at this site. Basically, it seems just a dirt track between the old and new highway. We turned onto the dirt track at 23.229734, -106.141090, parked the car and birded a few hundred meters further. Our main target was the Purplish-backed Jay, of which we rapidly encountered a noisy and cooperative flock.

Purplish-backed Jay

Camino a Los Ébanos

As we already successfully birded several lowland scrub sites, only few real targets were left at this site. Nevertheless, birding was really nice in the early morning. The start of the dirt track is at 23.419992, -106.341210. We parked our car near a gully (23.421377, -106.327022) and birded further along the same dirt road. Apart from a handful of friendly farmers, there was no other traffic.

We soon found Joachim’s target bird, the Red-breasted Chat, our second group of Purplish-backed Jays, some more Black-throated Magpie Jays, another Citreoline Trogon and our only White-fronted Parrot for the trip.

Golden-cheeked Woodpecker

Booby Rocks (Mazatlan)

When leaving the Mazatlan area behind us, we crossed right through the city and had a brief stop along the coast at the Mirador Paseo Centenario (23.188748, -106.426458). From this scenic viewpoint, we scanned the so-called Booby Rocks with its seabird colony and eventually found a Red-billed Tropicbird among the Blue-footed and Brown Boobies. A telescope definitely comes in handy, but with some effort we managed without it.

Parque Ecológico de Tepic

Beforehand, while preparing our trip at home, we felt this was the key site for Aztec Rail. Hence we included some birding time here: one late evening and an early morning. Just like most people, we only heard the Aztec Rail. The better area seemed to be the reedbeds between the two bridges and we heard 1-2 birds at 21.484629, -104.858043. Seeing them seems quite a challenge, albeit not impossible. One probably just needs some luck with a cooperative bird. As we heard from other birders (thanks, Stephan!) that the rail was much easier at Laguna Atotonilco, so we decided to move on and try for it at the latter site.

El Jorullo (Paso Ancho)

We only found out during our trip on eBird that this seems a reliable site for Great Swallow-tailed Swift. We should have included this site on our way up from El Tuito to San Blas. On the way back from Tepic towards the airport in Guadalajara, we made a detour to give it a very short try at 20.577951, -105.201744 Unfortunately, no swifts were encountered during our brief stop.

Cerro La Bufa

The route back to Guadalajara, we made an overnight stop in the touristic village of San Sebastian del Oeste. This way, we could include some more night birding on Cerro La Bufa. We drove up the mountain untill 20.730323, -104.825929. We didn’t find any extra Eared Poorwills, only some more Whiskered Screech Owls and a Northern Saw-whet. We didn’t spend too much longer and went for a well deserved drink in town. Next morning, we decided not to drive up again but use our time in the following sites as there were more ‘important’ birds to see.

Whiskered Screech Owl

Laguna Atotonilco (Villa Corona)

On the way from Cerro La Bufa back towards Guadalajara, we made a brief stop at this lake (20.411544, -103.677488 ). In hindsight, we shouldn’t have made a visit to the Parque Ecologico de Tepic. On the northern side of this large lake a road goes right through the marshy edges. Both the road and the cycling/walking path next to it are about 2 meters higher up and gives a great opportunity to see the Aztec Rails walking in the reedbeds. We easily found several tape responsive birds that gave good views. Mexican Ducks could be harder to see from here as the water is too far away. Luckily we had two flocks flying by at close distance.

Aztec Rail