Birding in Chile

Day 1: Arrival Into Santiago and Birding at Farellones
and Valle Nevado in the Afternoon

During the afternoon we will search in the vicinity of
Farellones for several Andean species including Mountain
Caracara, White-sided Hillstar, Rufous-banded and Creamy-
rumped Miners, Cinereous, Black-fronted, White-browed and
Rufous-naped Ground-Tyrants plus Greater Yellow-Finch,
Grey-hooded and Band-tailed Sierra-Finch. We will also look
for the endemic Chilean Tinamou and Chilean Mockingbird
and we might have the chance of seeing Red-backed
(Variable) Hawk and Aplomado Falcon.

Day 2: Lampa Marshes; Central Coast and Mouth of
Aconcagua

Early in the morning we will drive a short distance north to
visit some marshes. Here our targets will be South American
Painted-Snipe, Rosy-billed Pochard, White-cheeked Pintail
and Cocoi Heron. Later we will head westward to visit Chile’s
scenic Pacific coast and the productive rocky coast north of
Valparaíso. Here we shall search for the Chilean endemic
Seaside Cinclodes and endemic seabirds of the Humboldt
Current such as Red-legged and Guanay Cormorants,
Peruvian Booby, Grey Gull and the stunning Inca Tern.
During the afternoon we will continue exploring the coastal
areas, visiting a protected breeding colony of Humboldt
Penguin; we hope to be able to see here the scarce and
range-restricted Southern Sea Otter. Before ending the day,
will stop in a coastal marsh to see a variety of waterfowl
including Red Shoveler, Yellow-billed Pintail, Yellow-billed
Teal and Chiloe Wigeon, all three lowland coot species, Spot-
flanked Gallinule and Plumbeous Rail, which surprisingly is a
rallid quite easy to spot as it often walks in the open.

Day 3: La Campana National Park and Central Coast

Early in the morning, we will visit La Campana National Park,
where we will look for an interesting array of passerines, all
endemic to Chile, Dusky-tailed Canastero, Moustached
Turca, Dusky Tapaculo and White-throated Tapaculo. We
are also likely to encounter the remarkable Giant
Hummingbird, Striped Woodpecker, Austral Pygmy-Owl and
Chilean Pigeon.

Day 4: Pelagic Trip from Valparaíso and Laguna El Peral
Nature Reserve

Today we will make an unforgettable visit to the cold waters
of the Humboldt Current, considered to be one of the world’s
finest pelagic birding locations. We can expect to see a great
variety of tubenoses such as Black-browed and Salvin’s
Albatrosses. On recent trips we have often recorded Buller’s,
Chatham, Wandering (Antipodean) and both Northern and
Southern Royal Albatrosses. We should also find Southern
and Northern Giant-Petrels, Cape, Masatierra, White-chinned
and Westland Petrels, Pink-footed, Buller’s and Sooty
Shearwaters, Wilson’s Storm-Petrel, and Peruvian Diving-
Petrel. Other seabirds we may encounter include Red (Grey)
Phalaropes, Sabine’s Gulls and Chilean Skuas. During the
afternoon we will visit the Maipo rivermouth and surrounding
coastal wetlands, including the exceptional El Peral Nature
Reserve, where we will concentrate on finding the cryptic-
coloured Stripe-backed Bittern, the brood-parasitic Black-
headed Duck and the striking Many-colored Rush Tyrant. We
will also have a chance to find the scarce and local Warbling
Doradito.

Day 5: El Yeso Valley

We will have a full day for exploring the surroundings of El
Yeso reservoir in the Andean foothills, where we will hopefully
be rewarded with sightings of the endemic Crag Chilia plus
our first Andean Condors, Black-chested Buzzard-Eagle, and
several other Andean specialties such as Black-winged
Ground-Dove, Grey-flanked Cinclodes, Black-billed Shrike-
Tyrant and Yellow-rumped Siskin. Careful scanning of
grasslands and streams may produce the stunning
Diademed Sandpiper-Plover, our main target species for the
day. This is a lovely mountain spot where we will also have
chances for flocking Mountain Parakeets.

Day 6: Drive to Talca and Vilches Alto - Altos de Lircay
Nature Reserve

Early in the morning we will continue our exploration south of
Santiago to seek forest-dwelling birds of the Andean slopes.
Among others, today we shall be seeking for Rufous-legged
Owl, Magellanic Woodpecker, White-throated Treerunner
and quasi-endemic Chestnut-throated Huet-huet. Along the
road we will find the opportunity to observe the largest of the
tyrant-flycatchers, the Great Shrike-Tyrant.

Day 7: Altos de Lircay Nature Reserve - Colbun Lake -
Drive to Santiago

While exploring an Andean reservoir, our search will
concentrate on the endemic Dusky Tapaculo and the
threatened Chilean race of the Burrowing Parrot, which
usually congregates in noisy flocks. After an enjoyable
morning birding in the beautiful temperate forests of Vilches
Altos, we will be transferred to Santiago.

Day 8: Morning Flight to Puerto Montt - Llanquihue
Lake - Drive to Puyehue National Park

Today we will take a short flight in the morning (8:30 AM til
just after 10 AM) southwards to Puerto Montt, the entrance to
Chile’s Lake District. The grasslands, orchards and meadows
are ideal for Black-faced Ibis, the endemic Slender-billed
Parakeet, Chilean Flicker, Rufous-tailed Plantcutter,
Common Diuca-Finch and Grassland Yellow-Finch. During
the afternoon we will aim to Puyehue National Park where we
will attempt to find Black-throated Huet-huet, Ochre-flanked
Tapaculo, Des Murs's Wiretail and the local and rare Rufous-
tailed Hawk.

Day 9: Puyehue National Park

The sight of these magnificent temperate rainforests amidst
the fantastic mountain backdrop is simply breathtaking. Here
we will search for Green-backed Firecrown, White-throated
Treerunner, White-crested Elaenia, Patagonian Tyrant plus
other specialties of the Nothofagus forests.

Day 10: Drive to Puerto Montt - Coastal Mudflats

This morning we will explore again the park’s lush rainforests
in search of skulking tapaculos. During the afternoon we will
be transferred to Puerto Montt. We will scan the intertidal
mudflats south of Puerto Montt in search of wintering flocks
of Hudsonian Godwits, Red Knots and Sanderlings plus the
stocky Flightless Steamer-Duck, big flocks of Black-necked
Swans and Silvery Grebes and solitary individuals of the local
Snowy-crowned (Trudeau’s) Tern.

Day 11: Morning Flight to Punta Arenas and to the
Southern Tip of Chile

This morning we will take our fight to Punta Arenas, Chile’s
southernmost city. This can be a truly enjoyable flight as we
fly over seemingly endless Patagonian icecaps, deep fjords
and the rugged peaks of the southern Andes. We will bird
along the coast of the Straits of Magellan looking for Flying
Steamer-Duck and Crested Ducks, Kelp Goose, King
Cormorant, Rock Cormorant and Magellanic Oystercatcher.

Day 12: Ferry Crossing to Tierra del Fuego - Laguna
Verde and Bahía Inútil

On our crossing to Porvenir in Tierra del Fuego, by ferry, we
will enjoy the company of Black-browed Albatrosses and
Southern Giant-Petrels and the views of Magellanic Diving-
Petrel. Among our target species in Tierra del Fuego will be
interesting shorebirds such as Two-banded Plover,
Magellanic Plovers and Rufous-chested Dotterel. Then we
will explore the shrubby slopes and moorland of the
Baquedano Hills, as we search for specialties such as Great
"Magellanic" Horned Owl, Austral Canastero and the stunning
Black-throated Finch.

Day 13: Ferry Crossing to Mainland - Pali Aike road

Today we will cross the windswept steppes of Tierra del
Fuego and Patagonia in search of its specialties including
Ruddy-headed Goose, Least Seedsnipe, Tawny-throated
Dotterel, Short-billed Miner, Band-tailed Earthcreeper and
Chocolate-vented Tyrant. A short ferry ride will return us to
the mainland once again - en route, we may be lucky to see
the striking Commerson’s Dolphin following the wake. Chilean
Flamingo, Upland Goose, Coscoroba Swan, Silver Teal plus
thousands of shorebirds such as Wilson’s Phalarope, Baird’s
Sandpiper and White-rumped Sandpiper will be common at
the roadside wetlands while we explore and enjoy of the
beauty of this “big sky” open country. On the journey, we
should encounter Lesser Rhea, Cinereous Harrier,
Cinnamon-bellied Ground-Tyrant and Patagonian
Mockingbird.

Day 14: Morning Trip to Otway Sound - Afternoon
Flight to Santiago and Possible Evening Departures
Home

This morning we will visit the Magellanic Penguin rookery at
Otway Sound. On the rocky shores we will look for Dolphin
Gulls. We will then return to Punta Arenas to take a flight
towards Santiago, where our trip will end.

Detailed Itinerary

14 Days Birding in Chile

Farellones, Valle Nevado, Lampa
Marshes, Central Coast, Aconcagua
River, La Campana National Park,
Pelagic trip from Valparaíso, Laguna
El Peral Nature Reserve, El Yeso
Valley, Altos de Lircay Nature
Reserve, and Colbun Lake,Llanquihue
Lake, Puyehue National Park, Puerto
Montt andTierra del Fuego, Laguna
Verde, Bahía Inútil, Pali Aike road and
Otway Sound and More.

Birding in Chile:
Details

Please call Charles (in the USA at 720-320-1974 or toll free at
888-203-7464) or Ian (in the UK at 07719-052820 in Norfolk), and/or email
info@pibird.com. Also feel free to click here.