Day 1. Arrival

Day 2. Morning walk in Botanical Garden, Santo Domingo.
Introduction to common species, including the national bird, the Palm Chat, and Black-crowned Palm Tanagers, Hispaniolan Woodpeckers, Vervain Hummingbirds and Antillean Mangoes. Afternoon drive, of about 3 hours, to Barahona. This will be our base in the southwest part of the country.

Day 3. VERY early morning departure for the north slope of the Sierra de Bahoruco. Very rough road! We try to arrive pre-dawn in cloud forest at 1200 meters above sea level to search for the La Selle Thrush, Western Chat Tanager, White-winged Warbler, Rufous Throated Solitaire and Hispaniolan Trogon, among other high elevation species. The rest of the day we spend slowly descending, exploring the different habitats, as they change with the changing elevation. In dry forest near Puerto Econdido we will look for the Bay-breasted Cuckoo.

Day 4. On this day we explore the southern slope of the Sierra. We drive west along the coast to the paved Alcoa Road near Pedernales. The target species are White-winged Crossbills, Antillean Siskins and Golden Swallows, resident Pine Warblers and Antillean Piculet. In the afternoon, we will visit a small wetland near Cabo Rojo for coastal and aquatic birds. We will make a brief stop at the Lagoon of Oveido to spot flamingoes and and Roseate spoonbills.

Day 5. Return to the lower elevations in the mountains above Puerto Escondido for another look for elusive dry forest species. Lunch and stroll at Rabo de Gato, site of camping area Villa Barrancoli!!! In the late afternoon we will descend to Lago Enriquillo, 44 meters below sea level, where the Palm Crow is regularly found in a cactus forest.

Day 6. Early morning drive to Cachote, a cloud forest habitat where we will look for the Easern Chat Tanager. We return to the hotel for breakfast and then drive to Sabana de la Mar with a lunch stop in Santo Domingo. The Hotel Paraiso Caño Hondo is located on the edge of Los Haitises National Park, where we will be looking for the Ridgway’s hawk.
The hotel is an enchanting site with waterfalls everywhere.
After dinner we will make a short drive to look for the Ashy-faced owl.

Day 7. In the morning we will walk for an hour or so, to search for the hawk. The trail can be muddy and a part is steep. Afternoon return to Santo Domingo and the Hotel Palacio in the Colonial Zone. There will be an opportunity for a stroll around the historic sites, shopping if so desired and a farewell dinner.

This itinerary is designed so that we may be able to see 26 of the possible 30 endemics. VERY difficult species are:

• Grey-headed Palm Tanager, reported only from Haiti.
• Ashy-faced Owl and Ridgway’s Hawk. See special section.

RIDGEWAY HAWK

OTHER OPTIONS

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