About the Location
Bogarin Trail is a 16-hectare second-growth forest reserve located very close to the center of La Fortuna. Over 400 species have been recorded there on eBird. It has 2.5 km of trails, all handicap accessible. Also, Bogarin Trail is the best spot for finding sloths in the area with a population of thirty-plus sloths.
Why I Recommend It
An impressive number of species are packed into a small area. It’s easily accessible from La Fortuna (a five-minute walk from the park), without having to spend $20-30 on a taxi or have a rental car like some of the spots on the other side of Arenal Volcano (there are some awesome spots over there though). The feeders are great for photographing about twenty species of birds. The trails are all flat and easy to navigate. The prices are reasonable.
Birdwatching & Photography Highlights
The lists below are far from exhaustive, especially with over 400 birds having been recorded at Bogarin Trail. I chose a few of the highlights that are either easy to see there or one of the best spots in the area for seeing a particular species. Below you can find a gallery of some birds I’ve photographed there.
Feeder Birds
All the common feeder birds for Caribbean lowlands (Clay-colored Thrush, Scarlet-rumped Tanager, Blue-gray Tanager, Palm Tanager, Buff-throated Saltator, Red-legged Honeycreeper)
Gray-headed Chachalaca
Collared Aracari
Melodious Blackbird
Orange-chinned Parakeet
Muscovy Duck
Green Honeycreeper
Less Common But Frequent
Russet-naped Woodrail
White-throated Crake
American Pygmy Kingfisher
Crimson-collared Tanager
Great Spot For:
Uniform Crake – this elusive bird is hard to find. Bogarin Trail is the best spot in Costa Rica to see them. At least seven live in the reserve (all seven were seen together one afternoon).
White-collared Manakin – this bird is easy to hear but hard to see and even harder to photograph. However, Bogarin Trail’s fairly open understory makes it easier here than in most places.
Boat-billed Herons and Yellow-crowned Nightherons – the three ponds on the property are great for spotting these nocturnal birds.
Rufous-tailed Jacamars – these butterfly-eating specialists are fairly common on the property.
Motmots – Broad-billed’s are common and even the hard-to-find Keel-billed is spotted with some regularity.
Black-and-white Owl – a pair of them live at Bogarin Trail.
Gallery
Touring Bogarin
Bogarin Trail is one of my favorite spots for birdwatching and photography. I do private birdwatching and bird photography tours there some days. Please contact me if you’re interested or would like help in planning a visit there with one of the many guides on site.