The osprey, just one of Colombia’s 1,900-plus bird species.Jenn Smith Nelson/The Globe and Mail
Stepping out from my beachside room staring at Cispata Bay, the Caribbean air hits like a warm but welcome slap. Though far from the Canadian Prairies, a flitting, shining-green hummingbird whirs over a bush of pink blossoms, reminding me why I’m here. Fatigue and jet lag will have to wait.
Our group of avid birders meets guides Roger Rodriguez and Manuela Zapata of Nature Colombia tours, who’ll lead us along a new birding route, aiming to see as many of Colombia’s 1,900-plus bird species as possible.
A quick morning walk around Cispata Marina Hotel in San Antero offers a promising preview. In a maze of mangroves, I hear the mournful coo of a ruddy ground dove and a bicoloured conebill’s call. Sandpipers wade through puddles, a whimbrel struts in tall grass and brown-throated parakeets dart overhead. Then, a bucket-list bird, a roseate spoonbill, streaks past in a blur of pale pink.
The next morning, the heat intensifies as we board a boat to San Bernardo del Viento, a remote community accessible only by water. The open bay narrows into Cano Grande’s wetlands and mangroves, where a greeting committee of magnificent frigate birds and neotropical cormorants windsurf and cling to branches.
Black terns and brown noddies birds in Colombia.Jenn Smith Nelson/The Globe and Mail
Between moments of dodging twisted mangrove roots doubling as dense channel curtains, it’s peaceful. “Keep your fingers inside the boat and watch for the bare-throated tiger heron,” instructs Eduar Paez, our Agami Heron Birding Trail guide. Raptors arrive first as an osprey soars overhead. Before spying the elusive tiger heron, a black-bellied whistling duck does a fly-by. Herons appear one after another: tricoloured, little blue, cocoi, green and black-crowned night herons, all but one-lifers for me.
Ducking under narrow waterway bridges, music replaces birdsong as the village comes into view. At the dock, we’re welcomed by Nelson Padilla, who leads a locally run conservation committee. His father co-founded the initiative in 1982 in response to deforestation and overfishing, leading to the protection of 860 hectares of wetlands and the creation of the Agami Heron Birding Trail. “The ‘island of birds’ is the only known breeding colony of agami herons in Colombia,” Padilla says proudly.
“With only 10 nesting colonies recorded worldwide, seeing the agami heron is special,” Paez explains as we set out again manoeuvring through tranquil, tunnel-like mangroves.
Great egrets bob their heads to regulate their temperature in the heat.Jenn Smith Nelson/The Globe and Mail
From the shallows, snowy egrets and cormorants peer, tricoloured herons wade and elegant cocoi herons balance on branches like statues. A great egret bobs its head, attempting to regulate its temperature in the relentless heat. “On your left,” Zapata whispers. Through the dense green, a flash of brilliant chestnut and slate-blue – an adult heron. Elated and honoured, I watch it preen its shaggy white neck feathers. Nearby, juveniles, drab and brown, gawkily perch.
We pause at a raised platform, savouring the abundant sightings in heron heaven, before looping back. Approaching the village, Paez reminds us to duck but miscalculates and is smacked in the face by a massive palm frond. Laughter erupts.
After lunch at a riverside restaurant, we are back on the Sinu River, a massive flock of black terns creates mesmerizing shapes in the sky. Then, an unexpected discovery as a guest spots brown noddies, a seabird never recorded on Colombia’s Caribbean coast. Rodriguez beams, “That was my 1,419th bird!”
The conservation theme continues the next morning when we enter Los Tities de San Juan Reserve. We meet biologist Jaime Reyes of Proyecto Titi, a conservation program dedicated to saving critically endangered cotton-top tamarins and restoring their dwindling tropical dry forest habitat.
Later, deeper into the forest, tamarins scurry in the canopy, peering down with inquisitive Einstein-like features.
Before leaving, I plant a ceiba de leche tree, hoping its thorny trunk will someday protect these endemic, arboreal primates.
But on this trip, I am learning about so much more than just birds. In San Jacinto, we stop for breakfast, and I savour Colombian coffee and carimanolas, deep-fried yuca filled with beef and cheese. Later, our group heads to the Museo de San Jacinto, where I learn about gaitas, traditional Indigenous flutes made from dried cardon cactus, beeswax and duck feathers, designed to mimic nature’s sounds. That evening, our group is introduced to maestro Orlando Leones Ruiz, whose family founded folk group Los Gaiteros de San Jacinto. “This music is our heritage; we keep it alive by playing,” Ruiz says. Leones joyfully plays the gaita while his father keeps time on the tambor.
The Agami heron has only 10 nesting colonies recorded worldwide.Jenn Smith Nelson/The Globe and Mail
In the town square, locals in vibrant attire dance as musicians play. An elder extends his hand leading me into unfamiliar spins and shuffles. Though awkward, I’m delighted and embrace the joyful moment.
Departing from Cartagena, the trip’s final birding excursions take us to Turbaco’s Matute Reserve, a private sanctuary where we hear chestnut-winged chachalacas and add a crested oropendola and Trinidad euphonia to our lists.
I’m grateful to have seen 128 birds in four days. As I pack my binoculars for the last time, Rodriguez’s words linger: “Protecting this place isn’t just about saving birds or trees. It’s about preserving everything that makes Colombia, Colombia.” This journey has deepened my love for birding and left me in awe of a country working to safeguard its most precious treasures.
If You Go
Birding is excellent year-round, especially in the Colombian Caribbean. The dry season (December to April) offers more comfortable conditions than the lusher, wet season (May to November). To see herons in full breeding plumage, visit between July and August.
When in Colombia, carry both cash and a card, as some rural areas may not accept electronic payments. Many lodgings do not have hot water owing to the region’s heat and humidity. Bring binoculars, camera gear, lightweight clothing and a rain jacket, sturdy shoes, umbrella, reusable water bottle and sunscreen.
Use an experienced outfitter such as Nature Colombia to explore countrywide birding and cultural experiences. They know all the hotspots. Tours run eight to 10 days, with packages starting around $5,400 and include all accommodations, private transfers/transportation, meals, activities and entrance fees.
The writer was a guest of Nature Colombia and ProColombia. Neither reviewed nor approved this story prior to publication.
