May 2, 2015, Huatulco, Mexico — For most of my point-to-point travel this year, I’ve managed to arrange direct afternoon transfers to leave the mornings free for birding, but there are few places where that didn’t work with logistics. Today was one of those days. To get from Guatemala City to Huatulco (on the Pacific coast of Oaxaca, Mexico)—a relatively short distance—I had to take a two-hour flight to Mexico City at 6 a.m., sit in the Mexico City airport for seven hours, then hop less than one hour to Huatulco. Not exactly ideal.
Nevertheless, I arrived in Huatulco with an hour of daylight to spare and was met by Eric Antonio Martinez, an excellent birder from Oaxaca who will spend the next week with me here. We zipped out to a patch of dry forest this evening in time to see seven new birds (including great looks at a Colima Pygmy-Owl) before darkness fell. Eric, who spent five years in Huatulco guiding cruise ship passengers on bird walks (several hundred ships used to stop here each winter season before Mexico started charging exorbitant per-passenger landing fees and most of the ships went to Costa Rica instead), knew a great local spot for tacos. I am psyched to be eating Mexican food! Guacamole, tacos, salsa, and spiciness for dinner tonight!
New birds today: 7
Year list: 2366
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