Birding Pipeline Panama

Birding Pipeline Panama

Rainy-day Policy

One of the great things about Panama is we get lots of rain, especially between April and November. Of course, rain isn’t good for birding. Most guides charge the whole amount, even if you get rained-out, but we don’t think that’s quite fair, so this is what we do. When your guide shows up to get you, you’ll owe him $100. For each hour he's with you after the pickup, you’ll owe him 20% of the morning’s price until the full price is reached. You make the decision whether to continue birding. This has never been needed!

Nando will have his Swarovski binoculars, Swarovski scope, tripod, bird song player, laser pointer, and field guide.

What time of year to bird?

Many folks like the dry season (about Dec through Mar) better than the green season, but each season has its pluses and minuses. In the dry season, the days are sunnier (birds may quiet down earlier; sometimes better, sometimes worse for photography) and hotter (bring plenty of water!), but you don't have to worry about getting rained on. In the green season, it tends to be cloudier, cooler (the birds may stay active later), and muddy, but it may rain. However, most days during the green season are wonderful birding all morning; typically, it starts clouding-up when we get back to the vehicle and rains en route to the hotel or when you're back in your room taking a nap. See our Rainy-day Policy above.

Photos, here by permission, were taken while birding with Kent Livezey: Streak-chested Antpitta (Rolando Jordan), male Crimson-backed Tanager (Evelyn Fiddes), Common Potoo (Evelyn Fiddes), Striped Owl (Evelyn Fiddes), female Fasciated Antshrike (Franklin Kwai Ben), female Ringed Kingfisher (Mario Olteanu), collared anteater (Angela Hooton), male mantled howler monkey (Saurin Munshaw), three-toed sloth (Saurin Munshaw), Geoffroy's tamarin monkey (Franklin Kwai Ben). Header photos of male Spotted Antbird (Jacques Giraud) and Keel-billed Toucan (Wayne Lynch) are here by permission. Website by Kent Livezey.

Phone: 507.6829.3965

Email: pipelinebirding@gmail.com

The Panama bird field guide:

Angehr G, Dean R. 2010. The Birds of Panama: a Field Guide. Cornell Univ. Press, Ithaca, New York, USA. 456 pp. At www.amazon.com.

Pipeline Road (with or without adjacent Ammo Ponds), or Panama Rainforest Discovery Center, or Plantation Road, or Old Gamboa Road/Summit Ponds (all near Gamboa, 40 minutes west of Panama City).

1 person: $180; 2 people: $230; 3 people: $270; 4 people: $360; for 5 to 10 people: $75 per person; this is for 6 hours of birding. For 8 hours, add $70 to the total price. These are not private birding trips, they are open to up to 10 people. Please note that these times include roundtrip transportation time.
On-site birding from about 6:15 (depending on sunrise time) to about noon.
There is no charge for pickups or dropoffs anywhere in "regular" parts of the city (e.g., along Avenida Balboa, Casco Viejo), the Summit Rainforest and Golf Resort (www.summitrainforestpanama.com), or Gamboa.
- Places to stay in Gamboa (from plush to rustic): Gamboa Rainforest Resort (www.gamboaresort.com), Canopy B&B (www.canopytower.com), Mateo's B&B (phone 6690-9664).
There may be a charge for pickups and/or dropoffs elsewhere (e.g., other parts of the city, Playa Bonita).
Rarely, when birding Pipeline Road, park guards are present and charge $5 per person; if this occurs, this would be in addition to the prices listed above.
Discovery Center charges $20 per person with a guide ($30 per person without a guide), payable in cash at the center; this is in addition to the prices listed above.

*For private tours, contact us for quotes.

Click on these links for all birds reported in eBird for Pipeline Road, Ammo Ponds, Panama Rainforest Discovery Center, Plantation Road, and Old Gamboa Road.

To bird in Cerro Azul, which is about 45 minutes east of Panama City at 800 m elevation, add $21.40 per person entrance fee and $12.00 per person for lunch to the 8-hour price above. Here are some of the eBird links for various places in the Cerro Azul area: Birders' View, Maipo Trail, Altos del Frente, Las Nubes.

To bird in other parts of central Panama (like San Francisco Nature Reserve near Torti) or eastern Panama (like the Darien), contact us for quotes.

No deposit is required. Please pay in cash right after birding.

Book your tour at pipelinebirding@gmail.com