Western Grebes

My husband and I just came back from a 3-week trip through the northwest, which was a lifetime goal for him. As birdwatchers, we were filled with hopes of seeing some of the many pacific birds missing in our life list. I will not describe most of the regular birds we saw since we learned quickly that riding the Amtrak from Chicago, IL to Portland, OR and from Sacramento, CA to Chicago, was not an ideal way to bird watch. We did get to see some Pronghorn Antelopes, Red Tailed Hawks, Common Crows and many ULB’s (Unidentified Little Bird). All this looking out the windows of our sleeper car at 80/90 miles an hour.

The birding fun began at our stay in Glacier National Park with the presence of 3 Black Billed Magpies that were common daily, in front of the lodge. White Crowned Sparrows were seed picking the lengthy flowerbed from the lodge to the train station. Cedar Waxwings were plentiful in the area and seeing several Cassin’s Finch was a first for us. Then the Grey Jays and Colombian Squirrels appeared on our drive through the Road To The Sun. Now that is the 2^nd most spectacular scenic road we’ve ever driven. Waterfalls galore in sizes, shapes and force. The few remaining Glaciers, the peaks and depths are breathtaking plus add the wildflowers! At Lake McDonald we took the boat tour and saw a pair of Bufflehead Ducks and some Tree Swallows. Sitting to rest on the porch of its lodge we saw our first Red-naped Sapsucker and his tree hole. While visiting the Logan’s Pass Visitor Center we also saw two Mountain Goats and a doe which standing about 10 feet from my husband decided to urinate (See picture).

We saw the Black Terns for the first time too.

At Crater Lake we admired Red Mantled Squirrels, Clarks Nutcrackers, Mountain Bluebirds, Mountain Chickadees, Oregon Juncos, Pine Siskins, Pine Warblers, Brown Creeper, Red Breasted Nuthatches, Townsend’s Solitaire and our first Bushtit happened at the Pinnacles trail. Seeing Western Tanagers at the Wildflower Garden was a delight again. Stellar Jays were common.

While driving the CA coast highway, we got our Western Gulls. Saw bulls/females seals sunning. A magnificent “Unknown” Red Sea Star on a pier support (See picture). Wild turkeys, Tricolored Blackbirds, Osprey, Glossy Ibis, hundreds of Cowbirds (with cow herd), Killdeers, and Marbled Godwits. We will not forget the sight in Clear Lake of hundreds of Western Grebes with their chicks (see picture). And last but not least, we spotted two Chestnut Backed Chickadees, which my husband had wanted to add to his list before we left Raleigh, NC. And to top that, our first California Towhee, with a large whitish moth/butterfly in his beak, paraded in front of our car and from side to side in the bushes for about 10 mins.

by John Gerwin

I was delighted to have 13 eager participants at my August 14^th workshop.  August is a risky time to try and do anything outdoors, in NC!  But this day was to be overcast (great optical ambiance actually for comparing binoculars), and with a forecasted high of “only” 88, we stayed cool all morning in the screened-in, covered but outdoor classroom at the Museum’s Prairie Ridge Ecostation.  This site is a wonderful place to visit anytime, lying at the “corner” of Reedy Creek and Edwards Mill roads, with ~25 acres of open, plant and animal habitat.  I spent a good half an hour or so, on the history, and future plans, for the site.  And then it was on to learning about what makes binoculars what they are, inside and out.  It always surprises me how much time I can spend talking about binoculars (well, I’ve been told I can spend a lot of time talking about most anything…….).  But that object dangling below your neck has a lot going on, and we covered that well, including: parts, light and how it interacts with all those lenses, what all those numbers mean, what goes wrong with images and why, care and cleaning, and the many (I have at least 12) things to consider when buying a pair; and of course, for those fairly new at it, how to use them.  Some folks were about to buy a first pair, whereas others were ready to upgrade or needed a second pair. I was able to assemble about 15 pairs of different brands, and models, and had asked folks to bring whatever they had.  So, for the last hour, we were able to stand on the back deck, and compare all these different binoculars while enjoying the very busy avian participants at the bird feeders just off the deck, and down below.  The pokeberry (pokeweed) and beautyberry are in full fruit, providing other images to “scope” out with the many binoculars on hand.  Optics available included things like: a pair of Nikon 7 x 35 Action, that run ~$80; some kid’s varieties: Leupold 6 x 30 and Eagle Optics 6.5 x 32 (both provide such a nice image to me that I keep them around the house for quick feeder watching, and plan to have one in the car); they run ~$110/$130, respectively; various styles of 8 x 40-42 representing a wide range of price options ($200-$1200), and then some crème-de-la-crème, a couple types of Swarovski’s: 8.5 x 42 EL, and 10 x 50 SLC; at ~$2300 new, these are not for mere mortals, but were certainly a delight to have on hand, through which everyone got a chance to watch some birds.  In the end, I continue to recommend the Nikon Monarch ATB 8 x 42, as one of the best values on the market. “Last year’s model” can be had now for under $300, a pretty stunning option for something that provides a great image with a 25 year warranty (from Nikon), and is waterproof.

I would urge you to contact Cynthia Fox at the Wild Bird Center in Eastgate Mall in Chapel Hill, if you’re in the market for some new optics, and shop locally.  She is loaded with both a great variety of optics to compare, and entertaining, insightful information about the details of each, and what will work best for you and your budget. She has been a big supporter of New Hope Audubon over the years, and she provides great personal service. You can tell her you’re with Audubon and that I sent you, and we’ll keep that Audubon support going.  Also, I just got this note from her (Aug. 18^th): “for those of you looking to buy/upgrade binoculars or scopes soon, Swarovski is offering a Tax Free sale September 8-11 on all their core products. In NC that is 7.75 unless your county added the extra .25%”.

Finally, if you have questions about optics, you may contact me at jgerwin@wakeaudubon.org. If you could not make this event but are interested in attending one, let me know 1) that you are interested and 2) when a good time would be. If I get enough replies, I can repeat this sometime over the winter.

Go out on a warm, humid August night, and you’ll hear strange noises coming from the treetops, bushes, and grasses: chirps, trills, shuffles, chips. No, these aren’t aliens taking over your vegetation, but a diverse, interesting and beautiful group of organisms comprising the order Orthoptera (Grasshoppers, Katydids, and Crickets).

Grasshoppers (family Acrididae) can be very common in open fields, and the number of different species found in a small area can be astounding!  All grasshoppers in North Carolina are diurnal, meaning they are only active during the day.  A few species of band-winged grasshoppers, in the subfamily Oedipodinidae, make noise while flying; this is known as crepitation.

Likewise, some katydids, particularly meadow katydids (those in the genera Conocephalus, Orchelimum, and Odontoxiphidium) are also active during the day, and can be heard calling from dense vegetation.  However, it’s after dusk that the true spectacle of orthopteran diversity can be observed.  Common True Katydids (Pterophylla camellifolia) can be heard with they’re eternal struggle of “Katy-did, Katy-didn’t”.  Several species of Coneheads (genus Neoconocephalus) prod the night with their long (and often loud) trills.  Short chirps and chips arise from members of the Bush Katydids (genus Scudderia), while Round-headed and Angle-winged katydids (Amblycorypha and Microcentrum, respectively) each give their distinctive shuffles and chips.

Let us not forget the smallest members of the summer serenade: crickets and trigs.  Most of us are familiar with the brownish black field crickets of the genus Gryllus commonly found around houses.  However, many more colorful representatives comprise this group, including the incredibly loud-for-its-size Handsome Trig (also called the Red-headed Bush Cricket, Phyllopalpus pulchellus); and the Columbian Trig, Cyrtoxipha columbiana.  Additionally, some lights left on at night are visited by the interesting and often misidentified tree crickets (Neoxabea and Oecanthus).

This group of insects can provide full nights of entertainment and great photo opportunities.  Bugguide.net and other sites can help with identification.  So grab a flashlight, clean out your ears, and enjoy the summer sounds of August.”

Introduction to Woodland Grasses

By Erik Thomas

This is the time of year when bird songs are being replaced by insect calls—cicaidas, katydids, and the like.  It’s also the time of year when the woodland wildflowers, or at least most of them, have died down until next spring, to be replaced by—well, by what?  Woodland grasses are one of the main plant groups that appears during the heat of summer.

Most people think of grasses as plants that grow in full sun.  However, we have several common woodland grasses in the Triangle area.  Most of them would make good ornamentals if you have shady spots and you need some greenery there.  These aren’t the kinds of grasses that you can mow, however.  They should be treated like ornamental flowering plants.

A couple of our common woodland grasses appear in the spring and then go dormant.  These species are Twoflower Melicgrass (Melica mutica) and Fowl Mannagrass (Glyceria striata).  They don’t look much alike.  Twoflower Melicgrass grows a foot tall or less and the stems have a series of seedheads that hang down from them.  Each seedhead has only two seeds in it and together they look like a big wheat grain.  It grows in well-drained sites.  Fowl Mannagrass, on the other hand, is tall and likes to have its feet wet.  It grows four or five feet high and you’ll find it in sites that have a little standing water after a heavy rain.  Its stems have lots of branches, and at the end of each branch is a small seedhead with several tiny seeds.

Giant Cane (Arundinaria gigantea) is in a group by itself.  It and its shorter down-east relative, Switch Cane (Arundinaria tecta), are our only native bamboos, but they don’t look like stereotypical bamboos.  Around here, Giant Cane usually grows three to six feet tall, though it can get much taller, and the stems look like reeds with leaves coming off them at intervals. The stems each live for more than one year.  It forms thickets in bottomland woodlands, normally where the soil is wet but not flooded.  These thickets are known as “canebrakes” and were a lot more extensive before Europeans came to America.  One bird species, the Swainson’s Warbler, is associated with canebrakes, and it’s thought that Swainson’s Warblers were a good deal more numerous back when the South had vast canebrakes.

A common species that appears in midsummer is Woodreed (Cinna arundinacea).  You see it as individual stalks growing in moist, shady woodlands.  The leafy stalks are about three feet tall.  They usually have several kinks near the base and then a long straight section leading to the seedheads.  The seedheads themselves grow on short branches at the top of the stalk.  All the seedheads together give the plant a soft, plume-like appearance.

Two late-summer species that are easy to grow are River-oats (Chasmanthium latifolium) and its cousin, Slender Wood-oats (Chasmanthium laxum).  Actually, I’m assuming that Slender Wood-oats is easy to grow.  I’ve grown River-oats and it’s really easy to cultivate, so I figure that Slender Wood-oats ought to be easy, too.  I’m hoping to find out for sure within the next year, assuming that I remember to collect some seeds this fall.  Both of these species grow in bottomlands that are partially shaded.  Their seedheads are flattened.  In fact, these flattened seedheads fooled botanists a century and more ago into thinking that they were closely related to Sea-oats (Uniola paniculata), which also has flattened seedheads, and they put River-oats and Slender Wood-oats in the genus Uniola.  Later on, the botanists figured out that the similarity was only superficial and gave them their own genus, Chasmanthium.  River-oats and Slender Wood-oats both grow about two feet tall and can form dense colonies.  In River-oats, the seedheads are diamond-shaped overall, about half an inch long and a third of an inch wide, and quite attractive.  They turn golden-brown or purplish-brown when they ripen in the fall and stay on the stems until winter.  In Slender Wood-oats, the seedheads are chevron-shaped.  River-oats is sometimes available in nurseries.  It tends to spread out over time by seeding and some people find it too aggressive for a garden, but it can be effective at stopping erosion in woodland gullies.

Some grasses have long awns in their seedheads, just like bearded wheat.  Awns are needle-like structures that grow underneath each seed and may be an inch long.  Three common woodland grasses have awns like that.  Bottlebrush Grass (Elymus hystrix, listed in many manuals as Hystrix patula) likes drier situations and is more common west of Durham than to the east.  It’s easy to recognize because the seedheads at the top of each stem look like a bottlebrush.  The seeds and awns stick straight out from the stem in four rows.  If you look down the stem from the end, the seeds make an X.  Another species with long awns is Bearded Shorthusk (Brachyelytrum erectum).  Its seeds and awns don’t stick out from the stem—instead, they press against the stem, making the seedheads look a lot more like an ear of bearded wheat.  Unlike wheat, the seeds don’t grow in two rows, they’re smaller than wheat grains, and there aren’t anywhere near as many seeds in one head.  Bearded Shorthusk likes the shade.  It forms loose clumps in dry to moderately moist forests.  The third common awned species is Common Wild-rye (Elymus virginicus).  Common Wild-rye likes moist sites on the edges of woodlands.  Its heads look a lot like the head of a cereal grain.  They have lots of seeds in them.  However, the seedheads are round, not flattened, because the seeds don’t grow in two well-defined rows.  Its awns are only about half an inch long or less.  All three of these species grow in the summer.

One late-summer woodland grass that you don’t want to grow is Japanese Stiltgrass (Microstegium vimineum), also called Nepalese Browntop.  This species is native to Asia and was accidentally introduced because shippers in Asia years ago had used it as cheap packing material for packages they sent here to the United States.  Once the packages got here, people threw out the dried grass, which came complete with seeds, and the seeds sprouted.  Japanese Stiltgrass has been taking the South by storm.  You’ll find it growing in any wooded park or greenway in the Triangle.  You may have it in your yard, too.  This time of year, it looks like pleasant greenery carpeting forest floors.  Once its seeds get ripe in October, it rapidly turns brown and dies off.  It’s extremely aggressive and crowds out other plants.  The only good thing I can think of about it is that it’s easy to pull up.  Whereas the other grasses I discussed above are perennials and have strong root systems, Japanese Stiltgrass has a weak root system because it’s an annual.  If you try to get rid of it, you’ll need some persistence.  The seeds can remain viable in the soil for several years, so even if you kill one year’s crop, old seeds will sprout the next spring.  Don’t hesitate to fight the good fight, though.  Japanese Stiltgrass can be recognized because its leaves are rather short for a grass, only one to three inches long and about a quarter to half an inch wide.  While other grasses have leaves shaped like swords, Japanese Stiltgrass has leaves shaped like daggers.  The stems lop down on the ground or, in dense colonies, arch upward, and they grow in a zigzag fashion.

The trip is an evening cruise out of Manteo over to the bridge and back.  Besides birds there is a chance you will get a pretty sunset!  You must reserve your spot in advance. Details below:

Saturday, July 24 (reserve by July 21)
Saturday, July 31 (reserve by July 28)

Join a guided sunset tour to the breathtaking Manns Harbor purple martin roost aboard the Crystal Dawn. Come enjoy the views, learn about the roost, and see 100,000+ birds up close!

*Reserve your seat now!
*Tickets: $30 per person
*Full refund if cancelled by weather ***
*Depart at 6:00 p.m. from Crystal Dawn dock at Pirate’s Cove Marina, Nags Head-Manteo Causeway.
*Returns at approximately 10 p.m.
*Light refreshments available (or bring your own).
*Use a credit card or Paypal instant transfer via our donation button to purchase tickets. Please make a payment of $30 per ticket and note what day you are reserving.
*Or send your check to:
Coastal Carolina Purple Martin Society
PO Box 172 Manns Harbor, NC 27953
*Please provide your contact information: phone # & email address.
*Call (252) 394-6205 for further information, and to let us know if you will be paying by check via mail.

***all other cancellations of no-shows cannot be refunded and will be considered general donations to the Coastal Carolina Purple Martin Society.

For more information, check out their site!

According to the Neuse Riverkeeper Foundation, Falls Lake suffers from an unhealthy amount of nutrients within its waters. The N.C Division of Water Quality has been working closely with stakeholders in hopes of developing a new set of rules that will help to protect and restore our beloved Falls Lake back to health. Therefore, this Thursday is the time and place to come out and HAVE YOUR VOICE HEARD; please don’t let these new rules be put into place without first having your say!!

Remember, there is a great deal at stake here, please let the DWQ know your thoughts and opinions regarding the wellness of such an important asset for the inhabitants of the Raleigh/Wake County area.

For more information on the Neuse Riverkeeper Foundation-
http://neuseriver.org/neuseissuesandfacts/fallslake.html

For more information on the Public Hearings-
http://portal.ncdenr.org/web/wq/ps/nps/fallslake

www.meetup.com/Wake-Audubon-Meetup/calendar/13402037

Contact Sean Higgins for more details
Departure Time: 7:00 AM from the NC Museum of Natural Sciences, 11 West Jones Street, Raleigh

Birds, Birds and Humpback Whales

12 – Day Birding & Natural History Trip: January 14 – January 25, 2011

Day 1 – Friday, January 14: Raleigh/Durham to our US Gateway City and on to Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic

Our adventure begins at Raleigh/Durham International airport with our flight to Miami. Please arrive at RDU no later than two hours prior to our scheduled departure time. Dave Davenport and John Gerwin will be there to meet you and help you get checked in. Upon arrival at Miami’s International Airport we will transfer to our departure gate for our flight to Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. Once we arrive in the Dominican Republic we will clear customs and immigration before we meet Kate Wallace, our guide/driver, and transfer to the Hotel Palacio. The rest of the afternoon will be free to relax prior to dinner. After dinner we will return to our rooms at the hotel for a night of much needed rest. The Hotel Palacio occupies a 17^th century mansion complete with stone-walled walkways and an interior courtyard. The rooms are comfortable and the service is excellent. (D)

Day 2 – Saturday, January 15: Santo Domingo Botanical Gardens and Depart for Puerto Escondido and Sierra de Bahoruco National Park

After an early breakfast we will visit Santo Domingo’s National Botanical Gardens. These lush tropical gardens provide a variety of suitable habitats for birds including some species which are not easily seen elsewhere like least grebe, limpkin and the endemic Hispaniolan parakeet (all Hispaniolan endemics will be italicized). We should readily see the Dominican Republic’s national bird, the palmchat and other commonly encountered birds could include Hispaniolan lizard-cuckoo, mangrove cuckoo, Hispaniolan woodpecker, Antillean palm-swift, vervain hummingbird, Antillean mango, gray kingbird, black-whiskered vireo and black-crowned palm-tanager. We will have the entire morning to bird the gardens before breaking for lunch. After lunch we travel west toward Puerto Escondido – the gateway to the incredibly bird-rich forests of Sierra de Bahoruco National Park. The drive to Sierra de Bahoruco will take about four hours and once we leave the main roads we will wind our way to Puerto Escondido on the north slope of the park. Just outside Puerto Escondido is a birding camp called Villa Barrancoli that is operated by our guide. This rustic camp will be our home for the next three nights as we access this truly remote and wild area. Most of us will be staying in tents set up underneath shelters, but there are also two cabins with beds available that will be used by those participants for whom camping in a tent may be difficult. Everything we need will be provided for us in camp including bathrooms and delicious authentic Dominican meals prepared for us by members of the local community. It is important to keep in mind that this part of the island is very remote and this camp is really our only option for visiting this area and seeing some of the rarer endemics like bay-breasted cuckoo, La Selle thrush and western chat-tanager. This national park is home to over 100 species of birds including 28 out of 30 Hispaniolan endemics which will more than make up for the rusticity of camp. After settling into camp we will have dinner and retire early in preparation of our very early start tomorrow morning. (B,L,D)

Day 3 – Sunday, January 16: Sierra de Bahoruco – the Highlands of Zapoten

Today we will depart very early to drive further into the park and higher in elevation. Our goal is to reach an area of cloud forest called Zapoten just before dawn. We need to depart early because the road is very rough and because we want to increase our chances of seeing two high altitude endemics, La Selle thrush and western chat-tanager. Both of these birds are easier to see at dawn as they forage along the road. Later in the day they both become very skulking and keep to the forest making them much more difficult to find.  Even though the early morning will be focused on finding the two specialized species there will be plenty of other high altitude species we will look for including scaly-naped pigeon, white-fronted quail-dove, Hispaniolan emerald, Hispaniolan trogon, narrow-billed tody, rufous-throated solitaire, green-tailed ground-tanager, Hispaniolan highland-tanager, Hispaniolan spindalis, Antillean euphonia and Antillean siskin. Once we begin to bird our way back down slope other species we could encounter include broad-billed tody, Hispaniolan lizard-cuckoo, Antillean piculet, white-necked crow, Hispaniolan oriole and hopefully the rare and beautiful bay-breasted cuckoo. We will concentrate our efforts to find the bay-breasted cuckoo in an area known as La Placa which is also good for flat-billed vireo. After a full day of birding we will return to camp for dinner and overnight. After dinner, if we are not too tired, we can drive some areas of the road after dark to look for the two endemic nightjars, least pauraque and Hispaniolan nightjar. (B,L,D)

Day 4 – Monday, January 17: Sierra de Bahoruco National Park

We will have another full day to explore this region of Sierra de Bahoruco. This day was added to make sure we have adequate time to find this area’s endemics. If we haven’t yet seen the bay-breasted cuckoo that will be the main target of the day. We also will concentrate on other highland species we may have missed yesterday and tonight will give us another opportunity to try for the least pauraque and the Hispaniolan nightjar. After another full day of birding we will return to Villa Barrancoli for dinner and our final night in camp. (B,L,D)

Day 5 – Tuesday, January 18: Puerto Escondido Thorn Forest, Lago Enriquillo and Jimani

After breakfast we will pack up and wind our way out of  Sierra de Bahoruco to the dry thorn forests of the lowlands and the shoreline of Lake Enriquillo. The main focus of our efforts in this area will be one of the two endemic corvids, the palm crow, which is fairly common along the lakeshore. This Manhattan-sized saline lake, located 145 feet below sea level, could also produce shorebirds, egrets, terns, herons and greater flamingos. If we are lucky we could also spy an American crocodile sunning itself on the banks. We will also visit an area near the dusty border town of Jimani to look for Caribbean coot. After a full day we will travel southeast to the town of Barahona and then a further 10 kilometers south along the coastal road to the Hotel Club El Quemaito – our accommodations for the next three nights. This hotel is located on a cliff overlooking the ocean and has basic, but comfortable rooms, good food, a swimming pool and a small beach just down the road. (B,L,D)

Day 6 – Wednesday, January 19: Alcoa Road

This morning we will be up early as we journey to the south slope of Sierra de Bahoruco. Our destination is the paved Alcoa Road that was originally built to maintain a former bauxite mining operation by Alcoa. This road reaches a unique habitat – the high elevation pine forests which are home to today’s primary targets, the Hispaniolan crossbill, Hispaniolan siskin and golden swallow (note: the golden swallow is likely now an endemic as it hasn’t been recorded in Jamaica for quite a long time now). We will also be on the lookout for Hispaniolan emerald, Antillean piculet, plain pigeon, Hispaniolan parrot, loggerhead kingbird, Caribbean martin and both olive-throated and Hispaniolan parakeets. This area, indeed the entire Sierra de Bahoruco, is great for wintering warblers and we could see as many as nineteen species. Once we have finished birding the Alcoa Road we will make a brief stop at the wetlands near Cabo Rojo, where we may see shorebirds and ducks, depending on the water level. After another exciting day we will return to the Hotel Club El Quemaito for dinner and overnight. (B,L,D)

Day 7 – Thursday, January 20: Oviedo Lagoon

Today we will be up and out early as we drive an hour and a half south of the hotel to Oviedo Lagoon. Once at Oveido we will board our boats for a trip on the brackish lagoon. The lagoon is shallow and we should be able to get very close to Greater flamingos, roseate spoonbills, white ibis and a host of other waders, shorebirds, gulls, terns and pelicans. By cutting the motor we should be able to approach the birds to within easy photographic range. We could also see some ducks and will be especially on the lookout for resident West Indian whistling-duck and white-cheeked pintail among the migratory species like blue-winged teal, American widgeon and lesser scaup. We will also stop at an island within the lagoon to look for two giant iguana species – the massive rhinoceros iguana and the endemic Ricord’s iguana. After our early morning boat trip we will return to the hotel and should have some free time in the afternoon to relax or go beachcombing. Dinner and overnight will once again be at the Hotel Club El Quemaito. (B,L,D)

Day 8 – Friday, January 21: Cachote and Depart for Sabana de la Mar

This morning we will depart early for Cachote which is the best site to see another rare and skulking endemic, the eastern chat-tanager. After looking for, and hopefully finding, the eastern chat-tanager we will return to the hotel for breakfast, pack up and begin the long drive to Sabana de la Mar on the north coast of the island. We will stop in Santo Domingo for lunch before continuing north to the small town of Sabana de la Mar. Sabana de la Mar is the gateway to Los Haitises National Park and Samana Bay where large numbers of humpback whales migrate each winter to mate and give birth. Today will be a long day of travel, but once we reach Sabana de la Mar we will settle into our accommodations for the next four nights at the Paraiso Cano Hondo Hotel. This is a very unique hotel with excellent food and extremely comfortable rooms! The Jivales River runs through the property and has been channeled into ten magical waterfall-fed pools that will provide the perfect soak after a long day of travel on hot bumpy roads! After settling into our rooms and soaking in the pools we will have dinner. After dinner we will look for a very special endemic, the ashy-faced owl, before retiring for a welcome night’s sleep. (B,L,D)

Day 9 – Saturday, January 22: Los Haitises National Park

Los Haitises National Park consists of dense tropical lowland vegetation and broadleaf forests blanketed over karst limestone hills and valleys. It is also full of rivers, mangrove swamps  and includes a few karst islands jutting up out of the bay. This park is home to 110 species of birds including many endemic species. Most importantly, Los Haitises is the last stronghold for the endemic and critically endangered Ridgway’s hawk. With only about 50 pairs left this handsome hawk is one of the rarest raptors in the world. This morning our focus will be on finding the hawk. We will depart early for the park and will follow one of the park guards into a valley where the hawks are monitored. Despite how rare they are we stand a good chance of seeing them today. While searching for the hawk we could also see plain pigeon, white-necked crow, broad-billed tody, Hispaniolan Pewee, Stolid Flycatcher, black-crowned palm-tanager, Hispaniolan parrot and Hispaniolan oriole. After our early morning hawk walk we will return to Paraiso Cano Hondo. We should have some free time this afternoon to relax, find the hammocks, catch up on our bird lists and/or swim in the pools. Dinner and overnight will once again be at the Paraiso Cano Hondo Hotel. If we missed the ashy-faced owl last night we could try again tonight.  (B,L,D)

Day 10 – Sunday, January 23: Los Haitises National Park

Today we will have another full day to explore Los Haitises. We will hike through the humid tropical forest on a different trail than the one we used to find the hawk. The Park is known for its incredible scenery, but we will also be on the lookout for any bird species that we haven’t seen yet. After our hike we will take a boat trip to visit the mangroves and bay islands looking for yellow warbler, white-crowned pigeons, magnificent frigatebirds and brown boobies. During the trip we will also stop to visit three limestone caves to see the ancient Taino pictographs drawn on the cave walls. After a full day we will return to the Paraiso Cano Hondo Hotel and enjoy another great dinner. (B,L,D)

Day 11 – Monday, January 24: Bahia de Samana for Humpback Whales

After breakfast this morning we will depart the hotel for our whale watching trip out in Samana Bay. The waters off the north shore of the Dominican Republic are home to the majority of  wintering humpback whales in the Atlantic. During the moths of January through March there may be as many as 10,000 whales near the DR including an estimated 200 to 300 in Samana Bay. These whales depart their North Atlantic feeding grounds to breed and give birth in these warm tropical waters. We will spend the morning plying the bay looking for whales. Humpbacks are among the most acrobatic whales and with luck we could see them breaching – leaping out of the water and crashing back in. It will truly be a privilege to spend time with these fantastic animals. After a full morning out on the ocean with the whales we will have lunch on the small island of Cayo Levantado. After lunch we can enjoy some beach time on the white sands of Cayo Levantado and take a swim in the turquoise waters before we return to our hotel. Tonight we will have our farewell dinner before packing for tomorrow’s journey home. (B,L,D)

Day 12 – Tuesday, January 25: Departure for the US

This morning we will depart early to travel from Sabana de la Mar back toward Santo Domingo and the airport. We should reach the airport in plenty of time to catch our late afternoon flight back to Miami. Once in Miami we will clear immigration and customs before transferring to our departure gate for Raleigh/Durham. (B,L)

* Please note that EcoQuest Travel, Inc. will make every effort to adhere to this itinerary, but dates, times, activities and prices are subject to change depending on scheduling and availability.

Cost:

$3,093.00/person all-inclusive tour package

$   600.00/person estimated international airfare*

$3,693.00/person all-inclusive

*Note: It is EcoQuest Travel’s philosophy to provide an all-inclusive price, but due to the volatile nature of the airline industry, we are only able to provide an estimated airfare at this time.  The actual date of ticketing will determine the price.  Typically, we are accurate in our estimates, but please note that there may be a slight difference in pricing at the time of ticketing. If ticket prices at the time of booking are lower than our estimate the savings will be passed on to you. If they are higher you will be invoiced for the difference.

What’s Included:

· Round-trip airfare from Raleigh/Durham to Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic

· All ground and boat transportation within the Dominican Republic

· All accommodations – based upon double occupancy (single occupancy is available at an additional cost)

· All tours within the scheduled itinerary

· Meals are included throughout the trip (except while in transit)

· Permits, entrance fees and guides

· The leadership services of EcoQuest Travel professionals

What’s Not Included:

· Gifts and items of a personal nature

· Gratuities (for local guides)

· Fees associated with obtaining a passport

· Travel insurance (please see the Travel Insurance Section below)

· Costs associated with pre-trip medical planning (such as vaccines)

Travel Documents:

A passport valid for at least 6 months after our arrival is required for travel in the Dominican Republic. No visa is required for US citizens.

Group Size:

The trip cost is based on a specific number of participants – 12 people.

Health Requirements:

The Dominican Government does not require any vaccinations; however, there are several vaccines that would be prudent to consider prior to traveling to the Dominican Republic. These include Hepatitis A, Typhoid, and Hepatitis B. One should also check to make sure that vaccines against Tetanus/Diphtheria and Polio are up to date. Malaria is present in the Dominican Republic and anti-malarial medications are highly recommended. Information on travel- related diseases and vaccines to prevent them can be found on the Centers for Disease Control website at: www.cdc.gov/travel

We highly recommend discussing all medical issues related to travel with your doctor well in advance of the proposed travel date.

Payments and Reservations:

A deposit of $1,000.00 per person is required along with your reservation form in order to reserve space on the trip. This ensures airline seating space and necessary early deposits. We encourage you to send the deposit well in advance of the date the first payment is due, as paying the deposit is the only way to secure your spot. Personal checks, money orders and credit cards are accepted. If paying by personal check it should be made payable to EcoQuest Travel, Inc. and on the memo line please indicate: For Dominican Republic Trip 2011. If paying by credit card you can include your credit card number and expiration date on your reservation form. This form is available on our website: www.ecoquesttravel.net and can be filled out online and submitted via email, or downloaded and mailed. Alternatively, you can phone your credit card information in to EcoQuest Travel at: (919) 963-3038. EcoQuest Travel accepts Visa, MasterCard and most bank debit cards.

· A payment of at least $1,346.00 is required no later than July 2, 2010

· The remainder of the trip expense ($1,347.00) will be due on or before October 1, 2010

Cancellation:

The initial deposit, as well as subsequent payments, will be used to purchase airline tickets and pay deposits for accommodations, travel arrangements, etc. in the Dominican Republic. Therefore, if you must withdraw from the trip, irrespective of reason, a refund will not be possible. We strongly suggest that you protect yourself with the purchase of trip cancellation insurance. We will try to retain a wait list for this trip and it is possible that if you end up not being able to participate we will attempt to find a replacement for you; however, it is your responsibility to find a replacement or to have insurance.

· Please note that in the event EcoQuest Travel, Inc. does not have enough participants for this trip a refund of the initial deposit of $1,000.00, and any subsequent payments, will be issued.

Travel Insurance

EcoQuest Travel, Inc. partners with Access America and CSA to provide the best possible travel insurance for our clients.  They offer trip cancellation and worldwide emergency services (such as emergency evacuation and emergency medical services) as well as a host of other benefits.  You can find more information on EcoQuest Travel’s website (www.ecoquesttravel.net) including how to get quotes and sign up. You do not have to use Access America or CSA and may choose to use another company.  Either way, EcoQuest Travel, Inc. strongly suggests the purchase of trip cancellation/medical insurance.

Note:  Pre-existing conditions will be waived by Access America if you purchase travel insurance within 14 calendar days of your initial trip deposit.  For more information please see our website. To locate the travel insurance section of our website look on the destination page in the “click to go to” section on the right hand side of the screen under “purchase insurance”.

General Information

Upon receiving your deposit and reservation form you will be sent an information packet containing flight information, baggage requirements, hints on what to bring and other useful information. The climate will vary from potentially hot and humid in the rainforest to hot and dry in lowland areas. It may be cooler at night –especially at elevation. You will want to bring a camera, film and binoculars. Again, a more exhaustive list will be provided after you are registered for the trip.

Trip Leaders:

Dave Davenport: Zoologist and President – EcoQuest Travel, Inc.

John Gerwin: Curator of Birds – North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences