The Dominican Republic

Ridgway's Hawk © David Ascanio

A birding adventure exploring areas of high endemism in the most biodiverse of the Greater Antilles: The Dominican Republic. Located in the east of the wonderful island of Hispaniola, this country hosts impressive avifauna due to the amazing mix of habitats including cloud forest, tropical moist and dry forest, wetlands, farmland, and beaches.

The Dominican Republic is surely the most geographically diverse country in the Caribbean. It contains four mountain ranges, with peaks rising over 10,000 feet, as well as an inland lake, Enriquillo, that lies an astonishing 130 feet below sea level. Nearly half the plant species are endemic, and we will visit at least four of the country’s five major vegetation zones. The birding, of course, is superb. Out of a remarkable 30+ endemic bird species, we have a chance to see most of them. Among the numerous possibilities, we should encounter the Hispaniolan Lizard-Cuckoo, Hispaniolan Parrot, Hispaniolan Parakeet, Hispaniolan Emerald, Hispaniolan Pewee, Hispaniolan Woodpecker, Hispaniolan Trogon, Antillean Piculet, and White-winged and Green-tailed warblers (the latter previously called Green-tailed Ground-Tanager). We will explore key areas in search of La Selle Thrush, Ridgway’s Hawk, Bay-breasted Cuckoo, Hispaniolan Crossbill, and Ashy-faced Owl.

The todies are a special family of birds endemic to the Greater Antilles. Presumed to have been more widespread (in Middle America), today’s populations are a relict and have diverged in various species. While there is a single endemic species in the other islands forming the Greater Antilles, in the Dominican Republic we have two, and we should see both of them.