Welcome to the Birding Tours Colombia trip report series. These field journals offer an inside look at the logistics, highlights, and successes of our Colombia birding tours. Each report, penned by our expert birding guides in Colombia, showcases the incredible avian diversity awaiting you. Birding in Colombia is an unparalleled experience, and these summaries serve as a vital tool for clients planning their own adventure. We hope this Colombia birding trip report provides both inspiration and valuable insight into what makes our custom and scheduled tours so unique.

From Amazon Shield to Pacific Slope: A 24-Day Colombian Birding Triumph

This private birding tour in Colombia was designed for Katy Krigbaum and Birgit Fesler, two adventurous birders eager to experience the staggering contrast between Colombia’s Amazonian and Pacific avifauna. Their quest was for deep immersion, targeting the unique specialties of the Amazon Shield forests near Inírida, the transitional birds of San José del Guaviare, and the dazzling Chocó endemics of the Western Andes. With 58 new species on the line for them, this was a focused and ambitious itinerary.

Trip Report: A Private Colombia Birding Trip (Feb 2019) with Katy Krigbaum & Birgit Fesler

The air in the Anchicayá Valley was thick with humidity, alive with the sounds of the Chocó. We were scanning the canopy when a flash of color caught our eye—a stunning Five-colored Barbet, a prized regional endemic. This was a “lifer” for Katy and Birgit , and just one of many magical moments on an epic 24-day journey. This ambitious Colombia birding trip was designed to sample two of the country’s most legendary and distinct bioregions: the Amazon basin and the Pacific slope.

Trip Summary

The Journey: Amazon to Andes

This report covers the three major legs of our journey: Inírida, San José del Guaviare, and the Chocó.

Amazon Birding: The Inírida Specialties

Our Colombia birding tour began in Bogotá, flying to Inírida in the Colombian Amazon. From our comfortable hotel, we used local moto-taxis and river boats to access the diverse birding sites. The birding here was spectacular, yielding a huge list of Amazon Shield specialists.

Water and forest edge species were abundant. We quickly located Muscovy Duck, Blue-throated Piping-Guan, and an impressive four species of Macaws: Blue-and-yellow, Scarlet, Red-and-green, and Chestnut-fronted. Night birding produced Blackish Nightjar. The air was buzzing with hummingbirds, including Green-tailed Golden-Throat, Festive Coquette, Amethyst Woodstar, and Blue-chinned Sapphire.

We had excellent encounters with trogons, kingfishers, and the puffbird family, logging Black-tailed Trogon, American Pygmy Kingfisher, and Spotted Puffbird. The jacamars were a highlight, with White-eared, Brown, Bronzy, and Paradise Jacamar all showing well. Woodpeckers were also well-represented, from the tiny Orinoco & Golden-spangled Piculet to the larger Yellow-throated, Cream-colored & Golden-green Woodpecker.

The forest understory, a key part of Amazon birding, was alive with ant-following birds. We found Silvered & Yapacana Antbird among a huge variety of other antbirds and antwrens, plus Black-spotted Bare-Eye. Other finds included Orinoco Softtail, Plain-crested & Rufous-crowned Elaenia, Helmeted Pygmy-Tyrant, White-eyed Tody-Tyrant, and Fuscous Flycatcher.

The true stars of Inírida, however, were the cotingas and manakins. We had breathtaking views of Amazonian Umbrellabird, Capuchinbird, Spangled & Pompadour Cotinga, and Bare-necked Fruitcrow. These were followed by four manakin species (Black, White-crowned, Yellow-crowned, Wire-tailed) and a flurry of colorful tanagers like Paradise & Opal-rumped Tanager. We wrapped up this region with Rose-breasted Chat, Velvet-fronted Grackle, and Plumbeous Euphonia.

San José del Guaviare: Gateway to the Orinoco

After flying back to Bogotá, we took another domestic flight to San José del Guaviare, a fantastic transition zone. This site hosted many new birds for the trip. We started with great views of Little & Undulated Tinamou, Orinoco Goose, Pearl Kite, and the iconic Sunbittern. The forest also revealed Scarlet-shouldered Parrotlet, the bizarre Hoatzin, Great Potoo, Sand-colored Nighthawk, and Sooty-capped Hermit.

Kingfishers and barbets were prominent, with Green-and-rufous Kingfisher, White-chinned Jacamar, Chestnut-capped Puffbird, and the brilliant Scarlet-crowned & Gilded Barbet. We also added three species of Aracaris (Lettered, Chestnut-eared, Many-banded) and two more woodpeckers: Chestnut & Ringed Woodpecker.

The intricate forest flocks here were a new challenge. We tracked down eight species of Woodcreepers, including Long-billed, Striped & Elegant. Flycatchers and their allies included Yellow-crowned Elaenia, Cliff & Euler’s Flycatcher, White-browed Purpletuft, and Chestnut-crowned & Pink-throated Becard. We finished our time here with colorful sightings of Red-capped Cardinal, Magpie Tanager, Solitary Black Cacique, and Golden-bellied Euphonia.

Chocó Birding Tour: Anchicayá Valley & San Cipriano

For the final leg, we flew from Bogotá to Pereira and began a long loop by 4×4, eventually flying out of Cali. This route allowed us to explore the upper ridges of the Western Andes, the Pacific lowlands at San Cipriano, and the mountainous route from Aguaclara to El Danubio & El Queremal in the gorgeous Anchicayá Valley. This Chocó birding tour segment was the most productive of the entire trip.

We started with key large targets, finding Berlepsch’s Tinamou and the endemic Baudo Guan. Raptors were impressive, with sightings of Black-and-white & Ornate Hawk-Eagle. The forest held many secretive doves, and we successfully located Dusky Pigeon, Pallid Dove, and Purple & White-throated Quail-Dove. Parrots included the Rose-faced & Saffron-headed Parrot.

Our nocturnal birding efforts were rewarded with Crested, Mottled & Black-and-white Owl, plus the elusive Choco Poorwill. The hummingbird activity was intense; we saw Band-tailed Barbthroat, White-whiskered Hermit, the amazing Tooth-billed Hummingbird, Purple-crowned Fairy, and Purple-chested Hummingbird.

Trogons, motmots, and puffbirds were well-represented. We saw Blue-tailed & Black-throated Trogon, Broad-billed & Rufous Motmot, and four puffbird species: Black-breasted, Pied, Barred & White-whiskered. We also added the rare Lanceolated Monklet and two more stunning barbets, the Spot-crowned & Five-colored Barbet. The toucan list grew with Yellow-throated & Choco Toucan, joined by Lita & Cinnamon Woodpecker.

The deep-forest birding, a hallmark of Western Andes birding, was challenging but exceptional. We found Russet Antshrike, Spot-crowned Antvireo, and ten species of antwrens and antbirds, including Esmeraldas, Stub-tailed & Zeledon’s Antbird. We also tracked down Black-headed Antthrush and Northern Barred-Woodcreeper.

The flycatcher diversity was almost overwhelming. Highlights included Black-capped Pygmy-Tyrant, Black-headed Tody-Flycatcher, Pacific Flatbill, Whiskered & Ruddy-tailed Flycatcher, and Tufted & White-ringed Flycatcher. Cotingas and manakins put on a show with Rufous Piha, Black-tipped Cotinga, and four manakins: Green, White-crowned, Golden-collared, and Blue-crowned.

We finished this incredible Colombia birding trip with a final, dazzling array of wrens and tanagers—true Chocó endemics. We saw Scaly-breasted, White-headed, Sooty-headed & Whiskered Wren, and Slate-throated Gnatcatcher. The tanager flocks were world-class, featuring Golden-chested & Gray-and-Gold Tanager, Golden-hooded, Rufous-winged & Emerald Tanager, Scarlet-thighed Dacnis, Scarlet-browed & Scarlet-and-white Tanager, Lemon-spectacled & Ochre-breasted Tanager, Blue-black Grosbeak, and the Golden-bellied (Choco) Warbler.

Your Adventure Awaits

This incredible 24-day journey highlights the sheer scale of birding in Colombia, from the Amazon Shield to the Pacific Chocó. Each region offers a completely different suite of species and requires expert logistical planning.

Are you ready for your own Colombian birding adventure? Explore our scheduled Colombia birding tours or, like Katy and Birgit, let us design your dream custom birding trip across the Andes, Chocó, and Amazon.