Río Lagartos

Río Lagartos is located on the north coast of the Yucatán Peninsula, due north of Valladolid and Xocén, where we had spent the previous night. While primarily a fishing village, this town of less than 4000 inhabitants has, in recent years, become a popular tourist destination due to the large population of American Flamingos that frequent the mangrove-lined lagoons. 

We arrived at Río Lagartos just before sunset, giving us a few minutes to stroll down to the docks to watch the last vestiges of the sunset. Large flocks of American White Pelicans floated offshore, while Laughing Gulls, Sandwich Terns, Royal Terns, Black Skimmers and Ruddy Turnstones roosted on some of the lesser-used docks. Of course, dozens of men hawking flamingo boat tours caused the walk along the waterfront to be anything but tranquil, but that is how it goes in towns like this, I suppose. 

December 7, 2021

We woke before dawn to give us a chance to beat the heat. Our destination was a little used dirt track south of town that cuts through the scrub, known as Ejido San Salvador. The landscape away from the coast has a desert feel to it with a sandy substrate and lots of cacti and other plants that are well-adapted to xeric environments. 

My main bird target for the morning was the range-restricted Yucatan Wren, along with another Yucatán endemic species in Black-throated Bobwhite. Yucatán Gnatcatchers are occasionally reported along here, too (though the skeptic in me sees that none of the eBird listings for that species include photos, audio, or any details at all). 

While leaving town just before dawn, we noticed a few hummingbird feeders attached to a street-food stand. Two male Mexican Sheartails with full tail streamers were attending it. We enjoyed them for a minute or so, but it was a busy street and so we left without getting the camera out for photos.  

Yucatan Wren - Río Lagartos, Yucatán, Mexico

Well, that was easy! We heard the first Yucatan Wren from the car with the windows rolled down, while we were still a few minutes from our destination. We would see several more upon exiting the car at the dirt track, and others not long after that. The Yucatan Wren ended up being one of the more common and conspicuous birds during the morning.

Yucatan Wren - Río Lagartos, Yucatán, Mexico

The bobwhite, on the other hand, remained unaccounted for. I have mentioned on this blog before that birding by ear in southern Mexico during November/December can be difficult since very few species are vocalizing, and bobwhites in general are far more often heard than seen. But though the bobwhites were being elusive, the birding was fantastic. We enjoyed more Yucatan Wrens, a calling Collared Forest-Falcon, a Turquoise-browed Motmot, a solid selection of flycatchers and multiple White-eyed and Mangrove Vireos. The day was becoming quite warm, even at 7 AM, and the rising sun indicated that we only had a short window until the temperatures were unbearable.

Lagoon along Ejido San Salvador - Río Lagartos, Yucatán, Mexico

Half an hour into our walk, Laura and I stumbled across a beautiful wetland ringed by mangroves and home to numerous ducks, herons and shorebirds. 

Blue-winged Teal - Río Lagartos, Yucatán, Mexico

Black-crowned Night-Heron - Río Lagartos, Yucatán, Mexico

Northern Jacana - Río Lagartos, Yucatán, Mexico

Perhaps the biggest highlight here were two Least Bitterns -an adult and an immature - that were hunting in the shadows.

Least Bittern - Río Lagartos, Yucatán, Mexico

Least Bittern - Río Lagartos, Yucatán, Mexico

Laura alerted me to a female Mexican Sheartail perching quite close by and lit up perfectly by the low sun angle. 

Mexican Sheartail - Río Lagartos, Yucatán, Mexico

We heard a Clapper Rail clapping off, found a half-dozen species of shorebirds including several Stilt Sandpipers, and watched two Soras. 

Stilt Sandpipers - Río Lagartos, Yucatán, Mexico

We found a mixed flock of songbirds and so I encouraged them with a bit of Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl playback. A few Painted and Indigo Buntings came in, along with Morelet's Seedeaters and various flycatchers, warblers and hummingbirds. 

Canivet's Emerald - Río Lagartos, Yucatán, Mexico

A skulky, odd looking vireo grabbed my attention. Eventually, we had a good enough look to confirm that it was a Yucatan Vireo. This species is typically limited to the eastern Yucatán Peninsula and there are only a few records from the Rio Lagartos area, despite heavy birder coverage. An unexpected highlight, and a "lifer" that we thought would have to wait until we visited Cozumel. 

Yucatan Vireo - Río Lagartos, Yucatán, Mexico

We walked back to the car as the heat of the morning had arrived in force. Along the way, numerous Black Spiny-tailed Iguanas perched on top of a rock wall beside the dirt track. 

Black Spiny-tailed Iguana (Ctenosaura similis) - Río Lagartos, Yucatán, Mexico

We continued driving to the northeast towards Cancuncito and Las Coloradas. We stopped at a few roadside wetlands and I put my spotting scope to good use. One saline pond contained hundreds of heron-types - mostly White Ibises - along with a few shorebirds new for our Mexico lists. 

Glossy Ibis - Río Lagartos, Yucatán, Mexico

Lesser Yellow-headed Vulture - Río Lagartos, Yucatán, Mexico

Western Sandpiper - Río Lagartos, Yucatán, Mexico

Black-bellied Whistling-Duck - Río Lagartos, Yucatán, Mexico

A Turquoise-browed Motmot was cause for a slight diversion away from the shorebirds. What a spectacular bird!

Turquoise-browed Motmot - Río Lagartos, Yucatán, Mexico

After packing up the hotel room, we hopped back in the car and drove over to a small boardwalk that cuts through the mangroves at the east end of the town of Río Lagartos. Called Sendero Peten Mac, this boardwalk is a good place to look for wood-rails since the elusive Rufous-necked Wood-Rail can sometimes be found here. This species is only found in mangrove habitats, and it was one that neither Laura nor I had seen before. 

Sendero Peten Mac - Río Lagartos, Yucatán, Mexico

Sendero Peten Mac - Río Lagartos, Yucatán, Mexico

We struck out on Rufous-necked Wood-Rails. However, we found several Russet-naped Wood-Rails, a species typically found in freshwater habitats but which will sometimes overlap with Rufous-necked Wood-Rails in brackish habitats. 

Russet-naped Wood-Rail - Río Lagartos, Yucatán, Mexico

And from there we made the long drive westwards across the Yucatán Peninsula to the town of Celestún, where we had two nights booked.