Costa Rica has 850 recorded species and boasts one-tenth of the world's total. Costa Rica has more species of birds than all North American combined. More than 630 are resident species and the remainder are migrational birds.

The country offers hope for rare jewels such as the Quetzal and the Scarlet Macaw. There are four major zones: the northern Pacific lowlands, the southern Pacific lowlands, the Caribbean lowlands, and the interior highlands. The Tempisque River Basin supports the richest freshwater birding in all of Central America.

If you are interested in birding in Costa Rica, make sure you have a copy of The Bird's of Costa Rica by F. Gary Stiles and Alexander Skutch (Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press, 1989)

Let us know what birds you are interested in seeing, and we will plan an itinerary with that in mind. For instance, if you want to see Quetzal, we will send you to the Trogan Lodge, instead of Monteverde. Our experience shows that the Quetzal is easily seen at the Trogan Lodge, and hard to see in Monteverde. For Macaws, Lapa Rios is great. Casa Corcovado has fabulous birding. Tortuguero is also a great choice for all kinds of water fowl, Toucans and Green Macaws. If you have a group of birders, we can organize a special tour for your group with an experienced birding guide.