CUBA: ENDEMICS AND CULTURE ON THE CARIBBEAN'S BIGGEST ISLAND

February 6-17, 2020
$4550 per person sharing
$650 single supplement
From Miami (airfare not included)
Maximum 12 participants
Guides: Josh Engel and Freddy Garcia

Custom tours anytime

Just 90 miles for Florida, Cuba is home to about 24 extant endemic birds species, plus an endemic family! And we will have a chance for every single one. Cuba is easier than ever to get to, and is a surprisingly easy place to travel, with friendly people, delicious food, and wonderful music everywhere. We will hit the island's top birding spots and spend the last day sightseeing in Havana, the beautiful and historic capital.

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Yellow-headed Warbler

There are only two species in the Cuban Warbler family. This is one of them, Yellow-headed Warbler. Photo by Josh Engel.

Cuban American Kestrel

American Kestrels look very different in Cuba. Some of them have pure white underparts like this one. Photo by Josh Engel.

Bare-legged Owl

Like many birds in Cuba, Bare-legged Owl is different enough from its relatives that it is given its own genus, Margarobyas. Photo by Josh Engel.

Bee Hummingbird

Cuba is known for its small creatures, including the world's smallest bird, the Bee Hummingbird. Photo by Josh Engel.

Brown Pelican

The Cuban coast is full of beautiful beaches and characteristic tropical coast birds, like Brown Pelican. Photo by Josh Engel.

Blue-headed Quail-Dove

Once a nearly mythical bird, you can now see the gorgeous Blue-headed Quail-Dove feeding on rice behind a local restaurant! Photo by participant Jennifer Schmidt.

Cuban Grassquit

Seed-eating songbirds are popular pets in Cuba, so birds like Cuban Grassquit are declining in numbers. Photo by Josh Engel.

Cuban Oriole

As more taxonomic research in conducted and birds evolutionary histories are coming to light, Cuban is 'gaining' endemics. Cuban Oriole used to be lumped with other species and called Black-cowled Oriole. Photo by Josh Engel.

Havana

The old part of Havana is full of beautiful colonial architecture. Photo by Josh Engel.

Cuban Pygmy-Owl

Pygmy-owls are fierce-looking birds, and Cuban Pygmy-Owl is no exception. Photo by Josh Engel.

Classic car in the countryside

There are many American-made cars from 1940s and 1950s on Cuban roads. Many of them, like this one, are taxis. Photo by Josh Engel.

Olive-capped Warbler

Olive-capped Warbler is found only in Cuba and the Bahamas. Photo by Josh Engel.

Mojito

Cuba is rightly famous for its rum. Mojitos (like this one), piña colada, and daiquiris are delicious and available everywhere. Photo by Josh Engel.

Black-throated Green Warbler

Many migrants that breed in North America spend the winter in Cuba, including Black-throated Green Warblers. Photo by Josh Engel.

Cuban Tody

The tody family is five species of tiny, colorful birds that are only found in the Greater Antilles. Cuban Tody is common around the island, all the better for appreciating its beauty. Photo by Josh Engel.

Dowitchers

Cuban wetlands host large numbers of waders, shorebirds, ducks, and terns. This is just part of a large flock of Short-billed Dowitchers, Semipalmated Plovers, and other shorebirds. Photo by Josh Engel.

Zapata Sparrow

Many Cuban endemics are endangered, largely because of habitat destruction in their limited ranges. Zapata Sparrow is one of them. Photo by Josh Engel.