Day 8 Wednesday, January 16: Soroa to San Diego

	Bird of the Day: Yellow-headed Warbler

casa particular in San Diego


The sun rose over the hills. Barbara admired a striking banana tree in the casa backyard. A Broad-winged Hawk soared overhead.



El Chino decided we would do some birding up the hill nearby so wouldn't have to pack up from our casa until later. He showed us the casa where he slept in his own grass cabin. As this was also a good birding location, we hiked around, discovering may colourful specimens in the trees.



Next we went up the hill a little further and discovered a beautiful waterfall and a clear pool of water. More birds.



We were impressed to see some enthusiastic cyclists. This area, although hilly, is a popular cycling area. We saw one cyclist zip past us going down and then the same cyclist pedaling back up.



We drove to a birding trail where we had some good sightings. The yellow-headed warbler was a highlight. On our descent to the trailhead, we met some Canadian bikers from the Yukon. They were on a guided hike.




We walked around a castillo under reconstruction - great views!



Another interesting stop was an orchid/flower garden which is a national monument. It has one of the largest collections of orchids in the world. This visit reminded us that birds are not the only beautiful species in nature. And flowers are much easier to photograph! Although we did spot some birds too.



We picked up our bags at the casa and headed down the long hill into the valley. We were on our way to the small town of San Diego where we checked into a new casa and had lunch (ham and cheese sandwiches) - with beer! The up-down cyclist arrived with a local teacher who was helping him find a room. Our cyclist was a Canadian! Jean-Guy Bordeleau from Quebec City. He explained his water bottle had fallen off his bike and he had to pedal back up the hill to find it. We agreed he would join us for dinner.



A cheerful group of students were walking home for their siesta.



The teacher showed us a tree near the San Diego spa - it was full of birds. There was so much lively action, in particular we had trouble focusing on our tiny target species, the Red-legged Honeycreeper. There were many large Cuban Blackbirds calling and flying back and forth in the tree. Another special "tree" sighting was the striking Black-cowled Oriole. Both the Honeycreeper and the Oriole were sucking nectar from the red flowers on the tree.



We enjoyed our "siesta" birding adventure with the teacher. He spoke with some students who were playing basketball nearby. He explained his school needed sports equipment, particularly soccer balls; so we gave him a tip to buy a couple.



Now it was time to head out with El Chino in search of the Cuban Grassquit. Although it was difficult to spot these little birds in the grassy field, when they rose up into the trees we were able catch glimpses of them. Yellow-faced Grassquits also appeared with them.



On the way back to the casa we checked out the Red-legged Honeycreeper tree - no action at all this time.



It was time to share our dinner with the Canadian cyclist, Jean-Guy. His Cuban experience was quite different than ours. We all agreed that we were lucky to explore this beautiful country.



Birds seen January 16, 2013
*new birds bolded

Bird of the Day: Yellow-headed Warbler

1. Palm Warbler
2. Broad-winged Hawk
3. Stripe-headed Tanager
4. Red-legged Thrush
5. Turkey Vulture
6. Cattle Egret
7. Black-throated Green Warbler
8. Red-tailed Hawk
9. Cuban Bullfinch
10. Cuban Emerald
11. Great Lizard Cuckoo
12. Northern Mockingbird
13. Cuban Grassquit - lifer#42
14. Yellow-headed Warbler
15. Loggerhead Kingbird
16. Cuban Vireo
17. Cuban Tody
18. American Redstart
19. Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
20. Cuban Trogon
21. Gray Catbird
22. Mourning Dove
23. Cuban Green Woodpecker
24. Greater Antillean Grackle
25. House Sparrow
26. American Kestrel
27. Cuban Blackbird
28. Black-cowled Oriole
29. Red-legged Honeycreeper
30. Yellow-faced Grassquit
31. Common Yellowthroat

Trip Total: 118