Rio Chiquito

Last visited 1st January 2006

This site lies within the Sierra de Agalta, in the Olancho region of eastern Honduras. This is one of the most remote and little studied regions of Central America, but there are some great birds and there is the chance to make some interesting discoveries. The trail starts in the Agalta Valley at El Ocotal and climbs fairly steeply all the way up through secondary and primary rain forest to Rio Chiquito (N15º01.276’ W085º52.920’), which lies at an altitude of 1251m. Birding on route, it will take about 4 to 5 hours to get up and about 3 to 4 hours to walk down. There is a decent cabin at Rio Chiquito that you can use to stay the night. It is pretty basic, but it has a tin roof and a simple place to cook. It is used by the local farmers during the months of December and January, when they are picking the coffee that they farm in the hills nearby. At other times, it is available to use. It can be a bit cold at night, so be sure to bring something warm for the night.
There were a number of good birds in the area, with Three-wattled Bellbird, Keel-billed Motmot and Central American Pygmy-Owl all heard from right around the cabin. The bellbirds are a particular specialty of the region, with the Sierra de Agalta being the only site in northern Central America. The males have a distinctive call that they make from exposed branches at the very tops of the tallest trees. This makes them fairly easy to spot. We also saw a group of Resplendant Quetzals on the way up and large flocks of Red-throated Parakeets lower down.

Access
This site lies deep within the Olancho on the unpaved road between Guanaco and San Esteban (route 39). Driving from Guanaco, you go over a hill after about 10km and then head down a long slope into the Agalta Valley. Pretty much at the bottom of the hill there is a right turn, with a sign saying ‘Post policial El Ocotal 1km’. Head down this road and you will soon see the police post. You can leave your car here or head down the hill about another 200m and ask to leave it at the house at the bottom (this is what we did and left it overnight for 50 Lempiras). The path up the hill lies to your left just past the police post and before you reach the house. Follow this path for about 1km, until you reach a T junction. Go left and then after a few hundred metres the path heads steeply up the hill. I remember that it was pretty much obvious from here onwards. I recommend going with a guide and I used Rozel Ortiz, who has worked with many ornithologists and knows quite a lot about the birds. He lives nearby in Linares and his details can be found on the page for La Chorrera.

Species List (31 Oct – 1 Nov 2006)

.: C=Common ; F=Fairly Common ; U=Uncommon ; R=Rare :.