Sabana de la Mar: Bird Watching & Los Haitises National Park

Quisqueya “Dominican Republic & Haiti” is an island  with a highly diverse avifauna of more than 300 species. In addition to 32 endemic bird species, the country hosts an impressive assemblage of permanent resident species, overwintering migrants, and other transient species that stop to rest and refuel enroute to more southerly wintering or northern breeding areas. The island of Hispaniola’s high level of endemism and its contribution to global biodiversity have earned it the highest ranking of biological importance in a worldwide assessment of bird protection priorities.  During this experience we will get to oversee Sabana de la Mar, Los Haitises National Park and San Lorenzo Bay.

Sabana de la Mar Area   

The  Sabana de la Mar is a fishing town located on the northeast of the Dominican Republic, is known as the Capital of Los Haitises National Park because it is the door of this very important place, this town is around three of the most important natural reserve of the country: Los Haitises, La Jalda Waterfall and the Silver Bank (this is where the Humpback Whales come every year). 

These are some of the species of the area: Brown Pelican, Snowy Egret, Little Blue Heron, Tricolored Heron, Reddish Egret and Osprey, Palmchat , Hispaniolan Woodpecker, Hispaniolan Parakeet, Hispaniolan Lizard-Cuckoo , Black-crowned Palm-Tanager, Hispaniolan Mango and many more.

Los Haitises National Park & San Lorenzo Bay

The park is generally known to the tourist trade for its caves with pre-Columbian Taíno petroglyphs and its ragged coastline of islands and mangroves.  Many excursions depart from the Samaná Peninsula, which caters to a mix of high-end and adventure tourists, but the same tours can be arranged from Sabana de la Mar as well.

Some of the species found here are: Ashy-faced Owl (Tyto glaucops):  Locally common across much of Hispaniola.  Likely occurs at higher densities around limestone slopes and outcrops where it uses natural caves for nesting. Ridgway’s Hawk (Buteo ridgwayi):  Endemic to Hispaniola and now confined to the eastern D.R.  Rare in terms of numbers, but not hard to find and Hispaniolan Mango (Anthracothorax dominicus):  Traditionally considered conspecific with Puerto Rican Mango, together comprising the Antillean Mango, but they are distinct in size, proportions, and plumage, and seem certain to be ultimately classified as separate species. San Lorenzo a is 15 km2 bay, and the place where most of the marine life prefer to be.