Panama - Canopy Tower

Panama forms the narrowest part of the Meso-American Isthmus, which is not only of huge historical importance linking the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans by rail and canal, but also of considerable bio-geographical importance as the land bridge between North and South America. Panama offers some of the best birdwatching in Central America, harbouring nearly one thousand bird species in only 80,000 square kilometres and offering prime locations to witness the spectacular spring and autumn migrations. It also contains large tracks of avian-rich tropical rainforest, of which the Soberanía National Park extends right down to the suburbs of Panama City and the famous Panama Canal. Here we will spend an entire week residing in the canopy itself at the world famous Canopy Tower in the hands of expert ornithological guides.   The Canopy Tower was built in 1965 by the United States Air Force to house a powerful radar used in the defense of the Panama Canal. By 1969, the site was jointly used by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to control air traffic in the area, and by the Panama Canal Commission (PCC) as a communications tower. The FAA permit terminated on its own terms in June of 1979 and its function was deactivated, but the PCC continued to use a small area of the tower until 1995. In September of 1988, the radar tower received an important new assignment when it was reactivated as Site One in the Caribbean Basin Radar Network (CBRN). This network of radars was used by the United States government to detect airplanes suspected of carrying drugs from South America. The tower played this role until June of 1995 when it was closed and left vacant waiting for better days.   In November of 1996, the radar tower and the Semaphore Hill site, consisting of approximately 35 acres of rainforest within Soberania National Park, was transferred to Panama in compliance with the Torrijos-Carter Treaties. The government of Panama, in turn, signed a long term concession contract with Divertimento Ecologico, S. A., a Panamanian corporation, to transform the site into a center for the observation of the neotropical rainforest. A fitting use for Panama, a peace loving country with no armed forces. The radar tower is now The Canopy Tower, an exclusive ecolodge offering its guests an extraordinary opportunity to appreciate the rich and diverse fauna and flora of Soberania National Park.

Awaken to a tropical chorus of motmots, toucans, and fruitcrows. Your bedroom is at treetop level, no more than 40 feet from the birds. In the cool Panamanian dawn you can feel Panama's great rainforest awakening around you. Blue Cotingas and Green Shrike-Vireos, birds normally glimpsed high in the tops of trees, perch right outside your Canopy Tower room. Up a flight of stairs in the dining room, a cup of coffee and rolls await you. Settle down at a table next to the window. Above the endless tropical forest of Soberania National Park, a ship glides through the Panama Canal. The hooting of a distant troupe of monkeys punctuates the birdcalls. You keep your field guide open on the table in front of you beside your rolls and fresh orange juice. In complete comfort, you greet the morning sun.   Visiting in the second half of April we hope to combine our tours with the end of the spring migration and the beginning of the breeding season when birds are vocalizing more than in the dry season. The weather in April is still largely sunny, with daily tropical showers that help to reduce the mid-day heat. Although canopy birdwatching from the tower is an obvious highlight, the surrounding rainforest offers a variety of habitats and superb neotropical birdwatching including various trogons, motmots, jacamars, puffbirds, woodcreepers, manakins, antbirds and tanagers. The November tour should coincide with the incredible spectacle of the autumn hawk migration. Every year from the beginning of October till mid-November nearly 2 million Broad-winged Hawks, Swainson’s Hawks and Turkey Vultures fly south from North America and are funneled through Panama. Within this period, activity can vary from no birds recorded to a staggering half a million in just one day when the skies are filled with kettles of these birds riding the thermals! The Canopy Tower is indeed one of the locations used to count the migration, along with locations on the Pacific and Atlantic coasts. Climatic conditions will determine how many birds pass on a given day and on which side of the isthmus. We hope to be lucky enough to see this spectacular sight and to catch some of the other migrants passing through at this time of the year. November is at the end of the rainy season, but rains are mostly in mid-afternoon and rarely disturb birding completely.   This is a great place to start birding the neotropics. Hundreds of species can be seen right from your window, most of them clearly illustrated in Panama's excellent bird guides. The Canopy Tower is also a great place for those with a general interest in exploring the tropical forest. Giant, iridescent Morpho Butterflies flash their blue wings at you as you ride up the twisting road up to the Tower. Howler Monkeys startle you with a sudden roar overhead. Each shrub, tree and flower seems to be different from the last, reflecting Soberania's extraordinary diversity.   Come to the Canopy Tower with Naturetrek. Our client comments speak for themselves!