By Robbie Lisa Freeman

Originally published in the Western Tanager, March-April 2020, Vol. 86 No. 4

When my intended trip to Thailand fell through, I found myself scrambling for a new destination to go binging on exotic birds. Scouring the internet, I stumbled upon BirdsCaribbean.org, the largest organization dedicated to the conservation of wild birds and their habitat in the Caribbean. Turns out, BirdsCaribbean.org had established something called the Caribbean Birding Trail which, according to Executive Director Lisa Sorenson, was designed to educate birders about the more than 700 species of birds in the Caribbean, including 171 endemic species found nowhere else in the world! I was smitten. This was starting to sound like the trip of a lifetime, with lots of lifer birds to be seen. Even more exciting, I would be travelling in December, when more than 150 migrating birds wing their way to the region.

Further research ensued, and BirdsCaribbean.org led me to some of the top birders and field experts on various islands. I reached out to three of them, and my trip was solidified. I was headed to Guadeloupe, Dominica and Saint Lucia to chase as many of the endemic birds of the Caribbean as my 24-day adventure would allow.

Still, even as I packed, I had moments of trepidation. Would we even find birds? With the category 5 Hurricane Dorian savaging the Bahamas in September 2019, and Hurricane Maria destroying 90 percent of Dominica’s structures in 2017, I wondered how the birds of the Caribbean had survived. What was their current plight? Were they thriving, or had habitat destruction caused a steep decline?

Guadeloupe: December 7–15, 2019

Patio Paradise

I opened my eyes at sunrise our first morning at Rochers Caraibes Eco-Village in Pointe-Noire, Guadeloupe to a cacophony of chirping, chortling, twittering, and singing sounds. I pulled back the gauzy mosquito netting on our king-sized bed and stepped lightly to the floor. With excited wonder, I unlocked the French doors to our over-sized outdoor deck and was stunned at the hundreds of birds flitting in the treetops, lining the deck rails, and hopping around the patio. Our hostess, whom we’d told of our love for birds, had filled her deck-side feeders in the early hours to make sure we awoke our first day to an amazing birding experience. I grabbed my camera and sat immersed in delight for an hour, clicking off dozens of shots of Bananaquits, Bullfinches and Purple-throated Caribs raiding the feeders.

Bananaquits, small nectivores abundant throughout the West Indies, Mexico and beyond, have curved beaks, a bright yellow chest, charcoal-black head, wings and tail, and a wide white eye stripe. Nicknamed the sugar bird, the Bananaquits were happily partaking of several feeders stocked with raw brown sugar. Not to be outdone, the much larger Lesser Antillean Bullfinch and his mate occasionally muscled their way to the sugar bowl. Endemic to the Lesser Antilles, the male is characterized by glistening black plumage, punctuated with a reddish throat and lores. The female has fine features of her own, with her brownish-grey body, and reddish-brown wings, tail and undertail coverts. But perhaps the most exotic morning visitor was the Purple-throated Carib, a large hummingbird endemic to the Lesser Antilles and distinguished by its brilliant black plumage, maroon-purple throat, and long curved beak.

Three amazing birds by 7 AM, and we hadn’t even left the patio.

Anthony Levesque

We met Anthony Levesque at the Parc National de la Guadeloupe, part of a nearly 54,000-acre UNESCO biosphere reserve where visitors will find lush tropical rainforests, waterfalls, mangroves, and the promise of birds that they’ve likely never seen before — and may never see elsewhere. There are 286 discovered species on Guadeloupe, Levesque tells us. He should know. He discovered over 50 himself during his 22 years of field work as a ranger for Petite-Terre Nature Reserve, a wildlife consultant with the National Hunting and Wildlife Agency of France, and founder of AMAZONA, an NGO devoted to bird study, conservation, and education on Guadeloupe. Today, Levesque is still active in AMAZONA, but his main business is Levesque Birding Enterprise, focused on guiding, bird surveys and educating kids at school.

With a steely charm, a sharp eye for spotting, and an encyclopedic knowledge of Guadeloupe’s birds, Levesque is just the kind of expert you want by your side when your top goal is to spot the most coveted bird on Guadeloupe, the Pic de Guadeloupe. Found nowhere else in the world, the Guadeloupe Woodpecker is the only surviving endemic bird of the island. Often, it can be heard tap-tapping high up in the trees in Parc National, and seen — if you’re lucky — through a scope, which is how we viewed our prize. When asked about the impact of hurricanes on these rare birds, Levesque explained that woodpeckers can actually thrive in the aftermath of a hurricane. “With the decimation of forests, there are more dead trees that act as perfect habitat for woodpeckers and other cavity-nesting birds,” said Levesque. “While habitat loss does potentially threaten the woodpecker, for now the Pic de Guadeloupe is a relatively stable population.”

Other birds of the area may not have fared as well. Levesque has, for the past six years, been working with local birders to maintain a Breeding Bird Survey. The latest results seem to indicate that species like the Bridled Quail Dove, Scaly-naped Pigeon and Forest Thrush have diminished.

“Although hurricanes are not new to this region, they are happening more frequently, and the recovery of birds seems to be happening more slowly,” said Levesque.

Other primary threats to birds in Guadeloupe, besides climate change, have been the introduction of non-native species, such as the mongoose and common cats.

“The mongoose was introduced in 1883 with the idea that it would rid the island of rats invading the sugar plantations, and initially it was hailed as a success,” Levesque explained. “But researchers later dispelled that myth, as rats are nocturnal and mongoose hunt during the day.  Instead, other native wildlife, such as ground-nesting birds, lizards and sea turtle became endangered, or disappeared, according to researchers.”

Even as he spoke, a mongoose emerged from the low brush, stalking the Bridled Quail-Doves scavenging around the park. These birds, rarely found outside of the Lesser Antilles islands, feature an iridescent turquoise or blue cowl below the nape of the neck, with magenta on the mantle just above the wings. A prominent white whisker stripe extends from the base of the beak to the neck, resembling a bridle.

Eager to showcase all of the nine birds endemic to the Lesser Antilles, Levesque pointed out a Forest Thrush foraging in nearby shrubs. Thanks to its large, yellow eye ring and white spotted belly, this predominantly brown bird is fairly easy to identify.

One of my favorite birds of the day, the Lesser Antillean Saltator, was foraging in the taller trees. This songbird has jewel-green plumage on its back and feathers, with a light grey chest and throat, brown eyes, and a large white eyebrow. Saltator, meaning dancer or leaper in Latin, may refer to the way the bird leaps through the trees when foraging, or hops on the ground.

Perhaps the oddest bird sighted was the Brown Trembler, with its long decurved beak, yellow eyes and curious habit of drooping and shaking its wings at its sides as it forages. The first one I saw was skittering up a tree branch, trembling its wings frantically as it tracked his prey.

Before the day was through, we had seen all nine of the birds endemic to the Lesser Antilles. But there was more to Guadeloupe’s birding trail than the rain-forested Basse-Terre side of the country.

Grande-Terre

To the east of Basse-Terre, you can cross a narrow sea channel to the Grande-Terre region of Guadeloupe. Known for its beaches, flat plains and sugar plantations, tourists flock to this region, as do shorebirds and other regional birds. Having ticked off a number of our dream birds with Levesque, we set out to wing it on Grande-Terre, choosing to let serendipity guide us.

We picked Sainte-François as our hub for Grande-Terre, visiting the ports and beaches for our first sightings of seabirds such as Royal Terns and the Magnificent Frigatebirds. Continuing to the easternmost point of Grande-Terre, we discovered one of the most incredible landscapes in Guadeloupe – Pointe des Châteaux, overlooking the turbulent Atlantic Ocean. Climbing the rock staircase to the top of the point, we stood beneath the enormous 33-foot-tall cross of Pointe des Châteaux, which commands a 360-degree view of nearby islands and sculpted cliffs. While the views alone were breathtaking, as we hiked back down through the scrubby brush and trees to the parking lot, we saw a flash of yellow. A quick look through the binoculars confirmed my hope: we had spotted the Paruline jaune, or Golden (Yellow) Warbler. Though fairly widespread in the area, this was one of my most sought-after birds. We tracked several in the low trees at nearby beaches.

One last adventure on Grande-Terre took us north to Porte d'Enfer Lagoon. Contrary to its name, which translates to Gate of Hell, this hidden haven has truly stunning views. A calm lagoon played host to Snowy Egrets and Great Blue Herons. In the distance, smooth waters gave way to surging waves that crashed desperately into the stark white cliffs rising from the ocean. While hiking, the birding gods of Guadeloupe had one more surprise for us. Glancing up into some scrubby trees I spotted movement, and grabbed my binoculars. The Antillean Crested Hummingbird, one of the few hummingbirds in the world with a crested head, was foraging nimbly for nectar. I felt as light as that hummingbird. Guadeloupe had delivered as a magnificent first stop on our three-island journey to discover the Caribbean Birding Trail.

This is the first in a series about the Caribbean Birding Trail. Stay tuned for the next story on Dominica in our May/June issue.

Robbie Lisa Freeman is a public relations professional in the health, fitness and wellness industry and a contributing writer to the Western Tanager.