I walked from our accommodation and saw 4 Turquoise-browed Motmots and a few Vaux's Swifts on the way before I wandered slowly down the road that passes through good dry forest and scrub. It didn't disappoint with a good numbers of birds seen including a couple of new ones. Caribbean Doves were calling everywhere, a pair of Masked Tityras passed through and I also had Lineated Woodpecker and several Velasquez's Woodpeckers. Very pleasing were several Least Flycatchers, a species I've always failed to find in the past and a pair of Olive Sparrows skulking in roadside scrub. In that same scrubby area I had c5 Blue Buntings, a female Painted Bunting and 2 White-browed (Carolina) Wrens. A total of 4 Blue-grey Gnatcatchers, Spot-breasted Wren, 2 Altamira Orioles, 2 Hooded Orioles, Jucatan Jays, Brown Jays, Mangrove Vireo, White-eyed Vireo, Ivory-billed Woodcreeper and Boat-billed Flycatcher. As I turned round and began to retrace my steps I then hit the jackpot with a great find of a spanking Blue-headed Vireo. A bit of a rarity in these parts and a tick for me! The other main sighting on the walk back was a large flock of Cave Swallows passing overhead, presumably from their roost on the ruins.
Back at the carpark a White-fronted Parrot showed well in treetops before I returned to our room (where 2 Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers where in the usual tree)
Turquoise-browed Motmot
Masked Tityra
Painted Bunting
Least Flycatcher
Yucatan Jay
White-fronted Parrot
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
The rest of the morning was spent at the Choco Story museum including a weird Mayan cocoa ceremony! 2 Yellow-headed Parrots and a point blank Olivaceous Woodcreeper were not to be sneezed at though!
Yellow-headed Parrot
We then checked out and made our way north to our next overnight stop in Izamal. En-route a failed detour to find a cenote had us driving through the very derelict looking village of Cacao where nearby I fluked a Crane Hawk perched on a snag.
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