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Birding in the Caribbean 

on the northern islands of  

the LESSER ANTILLES 

(ANTIGUA, BARBUDA, MONTSERRAT, 
GUADELOUPE, & DOMINICA)

February 8-16, 2009

(tour: FON/WI-2)

For Endemic & Specialty Birds,
on islands also interesting to visit for other reasons 


On Barbuda: an endemic, aptly named the Barbuda Warbler.

On Montserrat: the endemic Montserrat Oriole; On Guadeloupe: the endemic Guadeloupe Woodpecker
Both of these, also aptly named, in addition to other birds.

On Dominica: endemic & rare Imperial & Red-necked Parrots, 
and two superb specialties: the Plumbeous Warbler & Forest Thrush.

Also during this tour: an opportunity for some wonderful cetacean-watching,
with whales & dolphins, in addition to pelagic birds.
 

The Brown Trembler on Dominica

This tour follows one on the large Caribbean Island of Hispaniola
for endemic & specialty birds
 in the Dominican Republic

(tour FON/WI-1)

 February 1-8, 2009 

Links:

Itinerary for the preceding Tour in the Dominican Republic, FON/WI-1

Lesser Antilles List of Birds & Other Nature during previous FONT Tours     

Birds during previous FONT Caribbean Tours (with photos)     

Caribbean Rare Birds

Caribbean Butterflies

Photos of some Sea-life of the Caribbean during our Lesser Antilles Tours

Previous Lesser Antilles Tour Highlights

Sun, Feb 8:  A mid-day arrival on the Caribbean island of Antigua, in the northern Lesser Antilles. Some afternoon birding. Overnight on Antigua.  

Mon, Feb 9:   A day-trip from Antigua to the small island of Barbuda. That flat 62 square-mile island is 26 miles north of Antigua. There's 17 miles of white sandy beach. (Sand is the main export.) Most of the island's 1200 inhabitants live in Codrington. It should be noted, however, that nesting terns, turtles, and frigatebirds outnumber the human residents of the island by at least 10 to 1. Goats, guineafowl, deer, and wild boar roam the roads. There's a bird sanctuary that we'll visit, with mangroves and a lagoon, where frigatebirds nest. Other birds occur there too, and one of the species we're aiming to see on the island is one endemic to the small island, the Barbuda Warbler. (It was at one time 1 of 3 subspecies of the Adelaide's Warbler.) Overnight back in Antigua.

Tue & Wed, Feb 10 & 11:   These two days, on the island of Montserrat. The morning of Feb 23 we'll take a short 15-minute flight from Antigua to Montserrat. 
Montserrat is about 25 miles southwest of Antigua. But in contrast with Barbuda (about the same distance from Antigua, in the opposite direction), there are in Montserrat no white sand beaches as the island is volcanic. Montserrat is called the "Emerald Isle of the Caribbean", not just due to the greenness of the lush rain forest, but because a number of Europeans who settled the island were from Ireland. Wildlife in the forest includes a number of interesting regional endemics: tree frogs, dwarf geckos, anoles, and the "mountain chicken" (actually a frog). There's also kind of a half-snake, half-lizard galliwasp. 34 species of birds are said to resident, but the one we'll put the most effort into seeing will be the rare national bird of the island, the Montserrat Oriole.
One of the places that we'll visit during our stay on the island will be the Montserrat Volcano Observatory. In 1995, there was a major volcanic eruption on the island. That eruption, as well as Hurricane Hugo, a few years earlier in 1989, had quite a bad impact on many things, including the Montserrat Oriole. But, the bird still exists, and, as just said, we'll make a good effort to see it at the best recommended places (we're told that the area of a particular spring near a ghaut is good). A "ghaut" is a local name for a ravine. During our time in Montserrat, we're sure to learn more interesting things. We'll spend 2 overnights there.   
            
Thu, Feb 12:  This day, after the short 15-minute flight from Montserrat back to Antigua, we'll connect onto a flight to the island of Dominica, where we'll spend this, and the next 2 nights. Birding on Dominica will begin as soon as we arrive on the island. Overnight on Dominica.

Fri, Feb 13:  A full-day on Dominica, a spectacular island of peaks, ridges, and ravines. About half of the small island is over 1,000 feet above sea level. About three-fourths of the island is covered by forest, the most forest existing in the West Indies. And most of that forest is lush, either categorized as "rain" or "cloud" forest. In it, some special birds are to be found. Among them: the rare Forest Thrush, the localized Plumbeous Warbler, the Rufous-throated Solitaire (with its beautiful song), and 2 species of endemic parrots. Dominica is the only island in the Caribbean where 2 species of Amazons occur: the Red-necked and the Imperial - the latter, the largest of the parrots in the Caribbean. Overnight on Dominica.

Sat, Feb 14:  Another day of birding and experiencing Dominica (both onshore & offshore). This day, as we have during  previous Dominica tours, we'll take a boat-trip off the coast of the island. Birds in the area, above the water, have included for us in the past White-tailed Tropicbird, Red-footed Booby, and both Pomarine and Great Skuas. At the surface of the water, and below, we've seen some interesting marine mammals: both Great Sperm Whales and Dwarf Sperm Whales, and one time a pod of over 200 of the rarely-seen Fraser's Dolphins. Later in the day, a ferry-ride from Dominica to the nearby island of Guadeloupe.  

Sun, Feb 15:  This day, on the island of Guadeloupe. It's not really just an island, it's an archipelago. Whatever it is, it's French. Guadeloupe is called the "Butterfly Island", not because there are butterflies there (even though there are, and we'll certainly see some of them), but due to the shape of the island, or archipelago. However, it'll be a woodpecker that will be our primary quest on Guadeloupe. The Guadeloupe Woodpecker is endemic to Guadeloupe, and it's the only member of the woodpecker family in all of the Lesser Antilles. The "Tapeur" as the woodpecker is called in Guadeloupe, from the French word "taper", meaning  "to tap"), is a dark bird, rather similar, in fact closely related to the Lewis's Woodpecker of the American West. It's relatively common (in the right areas), but one has to go to Guadeloupe to see it. And that we will. And of course, we'll see some other nice birds and sights in Guadeloupe. Overnight on Guadeloupe. 

Mon, Feb 16:  After some final exploration and birding on Guadeloupe, we'll transfer to the airport for the departing flights for home. 

Price: 

US$ 2,795 per person based on double-occupancy.
Single-supplement:  US$ 375 

Includes:  
All accommodations. 
Meals: Breakfasts & Lunches (except those on Feb 8 ; and dinners).
Ground transportation on the various islands.
Services of the guide. 
Permits for entries to national forest land and restricted areas.

A deposit of US $500 is required to reserve a place on the tour.