Half-day birding experiences
Misnebalam/Progreso and Cuxtal/Aquaparque
For those who prefer a half-day birding experience from Mérida, with time to rest or enjoy the city’s cultural and culinary offerings or have time to atend to the Congress activities, we ofer these two options: Participants can head north to Misnebalam, a ghost town, and Progreso for coastal bird species, or explore the nearby Cuxtal Reserve, the closest protected area for flora and fauna conservation, combined with a visit to Aquaparque, known as the city’s “bird oasis”
Misnebalam and Progreso
Both sites together offer the perfect mix of ecosystems to enjoy the great diversity of birds found near Mérida, from lowland forests and farmlands to wetlands and mangroves.
This tour is the best option for a half day departing from Merida. We’ll pick you up half an hour before the sunrise and after a short drive, we will arrive at our first spot: Misnebalam road and Hacienda. This lowland forest area is very good for many endemic and semi endemic birds, including the Yucatan Gnatcatcher, Yucatan Woodpecker, Gray-throated Chat, Yucatan Jay, Black-throated Bobwhite, White-bellied Wren, Gray-throated Chat and others. With luck, we might even spot a Lesser Roadrunner or Ocellated Turkey. The area is also great for finding raptors, swallows, seedeaters, and wrens. In just a couple of hours we can see over 50 species.
We will continue on the highway to Progreso until we reach an area with a great mix of vegetation, including coastal sand dunes, mangroves, and shrubs. Here we'll find a different set of birds, including American Flamingos, Clapper Rail, Reddish Egret, and a variety of other egrets and herons. We might also spot American Pygmy, Belted, and Green Kingfishers. Sandpipers, Plovers, and other birds inhabit the mangroves. Just next to the mangroves, we can find the endemic Yucatan Wren.
This tour ends early, by 10:00am, on time to join the rest of the congress activities programmed or a nice day at Merida
Cuxtal Reserve and Aquaparque
Cuxtal Reserve is a well-preserved natural area just a few minutes from Mérida. Its importance for biological conservation makes it an excellent destination for birding.
Filled with trails, historic haciendas, and ancient towns, it is ideal for an early morning excursion, with short walks from the vehicle to observe local birdlife. Key species include the Lesson´s Motmot, Rose-throated Becard, Black Catbird, White-fronted Amazon, Black-throated Bobwhite, Yucatán Gnatcatcher, Yucatán Flycatcher, interesting raptors like Crane Hawk or Forest Collared-Falcon.
Acuaparque, a park located back in Mérida, is also known as the “Bird Oasis” because it features an artificial lake in the middle of the city of Merida, that attracts many species more commonly found along the coast. This site provides opportunities to see birds associated with aquatic ecosystems, such as herons, egrets, Limpkin, Snail Kite, Least Grebe, and a variety of tanagers; as well as interesting migratory warblers.
This tour ends early, by 10:00am, on time to join the rest of the congress activities programmed or a nice day at Merida.
Price and Reservation
Includes:
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Guiding services
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Entrance tickets
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Transportation from hotel/airport to all spots and Drop-Off at Mérida Congress venue or hotel
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Box lunch and Water
$66 USD
$1,155 MXN
*Price for each tour
Misnebalam, Dicember 2026
