We ended up staying at the top end of Tulum, and persusing eBird had suggested that a lot of trip ticks might be found at the new Quintana Roo airport. Think of this a modern Mayan site, as just like archaeological ruins it is the access roads through the jungle that are the real draw. And boy is there an access road - it is huge, like a motorway, and goes in for miles. It's a reasonable distance south of Tulum, but once off the main road you head off vaguely north for quite a while, doubling back on the yourself such that when you arrive you are nearly opposite Tulum again. There is a keen eBirder in the area called Daniel, responsible for all of the enticing pins (now seemingly consolidated into one central pin with 199 species since May 2024), and we actually met him not that long after we arrived - he is an airport employee with responsibility for relocating wildlife that strays onto the now built-on areas, so collecting snakes and so on. I imagine he has his work cut out as so much forest has been removed.
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| Keel-billed Toucan |
We concentrated on the road that runs directly parallel to the airport rather than the entrance road as that was quite busy with traffic. We went nearly all the way to the far end where there is a military case, and then started birding on the far side of the road just far enough away that the soldiers wouldn't be able to see us. This is also the side of the road that borders untouched forest and whilst it is fenced off you can get really good views of the verge and the trees. We also birded the airport side of the road to the east of all of the construction and where there is a footpath/trail set slightly into the trees, and this was rather good too.
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| Collared Aracari |
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| Ivory-billed Woodcreeper |
We spent about two and a half hours here, starting at 7am, and recorded 30 species. Of note was an Olive-sided Flycatcher which was a new bird for the site, three Keel-billed Toucan, a group of Collared Aracari, a flight of Yellow-lored Amazon, several Lineated Woodpecker, Ivory-billed Woodcreeper, Bright-rumped Attila, Tawny-crowned Greenlet, Lesser Greenlet, and a pair of Scaled Pigeon. The only real issue was how busy the area was, with lots of noisy trucks and buses drowning out the birds, and ultimately this caused us to leave and somewhere else.
Somewhere else was the village opposite the ruins at Muyil. We had birded here before on our last visit and found it extremely productive. Unlike the airport this is lovely and quiet, and we spent an hour and a half walking round the largely zoned yet undeveloped streets. One of these roads ran out and turned into a track which led to a clearing in the forest and a memorable encounter with a Barred Antshrike. We also found two Masked Tityra, three Rufous-browed Peppershrike, Hooded Oriole, Green Jay, a nice group of Yellow-throated Euphonia, a Squirrel Cuckoo, two Black-headed Saltator and two Cinnamon-bellied Saltator, and a smart Prothonotary Warbler.
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| Masked Tityra |
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| Barred Antshrike |
After exhausting the village we crossed the road to find the ruins closed off and construction work occuring. Thinking we might be able to access the back of the site from the lagoon, and knowing there was a rear entrance there, we started to drive along the rough track to the side of the site. We were immediately chased down by two guys on a moped insistent on collecting a parking fee from us. Fine, but it does rather grate that all people want is money for doing nothing, all the time every time. We were indeed able to sneak in at the back, and walked along the deserted boardwalk that led through the flooded woodland. I am not sure how it has been closed for, but without regular traffic it is falling rather into disrepair. We did not find a great deal it has to be said, but Yellow-billed Cacique, Long-billed Gnatwren and Grey Catbird were new for the trip.
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| Muyil |
By now it was 1pm and we stopped off for lunch at our favourite taco stop north of Tulum to work out what to do. The tacos and pico de gallo were just as great as before. We did not really have much of a plan, but we came up with a good one which was to book a hotel in the jungle which had a good bird list. This cost us a pretty penny compared to the other places we had stayed, but Hacienda Wakax was really nice once we had negotiated the front gate who could not quite believe that two scruffy birders were attempting to stay there.
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| Wakax Hacienda |
Once checked in to our frankly amazing room we set about exploring the massive property. It is an old ranch. Well, not that old, quite recent in fact but made to look as if it were colonial. It used to be a private estate but was turned into a hotel a few years ago. In addition to several cenotes there is a large amount of forest with good paths through it, lots of open areas, a few swimming pools, and thoughtful placement of cool water and coffee throughout. And when we felt like a break we were able to stop off at the bar and observe the laguna from the deck with a cool drink in hand, or go for a swim. And seemingly we were the only guests. In short it was ideal. We spent the rest of the day here, walking nearly four miles without leaving the property, but it was actually pretty hard work. Perhaps it was the time of day? The only new bird for the trip was Neotropic Cormorant, #200. In addition we saw Olive-throated Parakeet, Collared Forest-Falcon (as we were having a swim), Collared Aracari, Turquoise-browed Motmot, lots of Yellow-throated Euphonia, Yucatan Jays, Carolina Wren and lots more besides.
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| Neotropic Cormorant |
After a nice meal in the restaurant later that evening we went for a nighttime walk in the forest looking for Owls but failed completely. We also managed to somehow leave the circular route I thought we were on and head out towards the Mayan Train line before I realised our error and we found our way back to civilisation. Final day tomorrow!
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