This photos of Paradise Palms Jamaica Tours / Rocklands Bird Sanctuary is courtesy of TripAdvisor

THE ROCKLAND'S BIRD SANCTUARY 

The Rockland's Bird Sanctuary is located in the beautiful city of Montego Bay. The Sanctuary also known to some as the Rockland's Feeding Station was originally owned and run for many years by Lisa Salmon known to the locals as 'the bird lady'. Sadly Lisa passed away in the year 2000, and she was in her 90's, however fortunately the property is still being run as a sanctuary by her nephew, and is managed by a guy name as Fritz, who has been working at the Sanctuary for the last 15 years.

At the Rockland's Bird Sanctuary you will find the Red-billed Streamertail and the Jamaican Mango birds which are so tame that they will come straight to a handheld bottle of sugar water and some of them will even sit on your finger to feed from the bottles. Research has shown that there are 4 species of hummingbird resident in Jamaica of which 3 of them can be found at Rockland's, however the 4th, which is the Black-billed Streamertail, is only found in the very eastern part of Jamaica (it is sometimes treated as a sub-species of the Streamertail). Fritz the guy who runs the Sanctuary provides seeds to put on your hand for the Black-faced Grassquit,Yellow-faced Grassquit and Orangequit. Also hopping around the feeders on the patio are Bananaquit and Greater Antillean Bullfinch.

At the Rockland's Bird Sanctuary there is an outdoor patio area, where you can sit and watch more birds such as Jamaican Oriole using the feeders. Common ground-Dove and Caribbean Dove can be found around the gardens, looking for the spilt seed provided in the sanctuary.

There is a guided tour which allows visitors to walk through the woods where you will be able to see some other Jamaican and Caribbean species as well as some familiar North American warblers wintering in the Caribbean, such as Black-throated Blue Warbler, American Redstart and Northern Parula. The endemic and Caribbean species most likely to be seen are: Jamaican Woodpecker, White-chinned Thrush, Rufous-tailed Flycatcher, Jamaican Tody, Jamaican Euphonia, Jamaican Vireo, Jamaican Becard, Vervain Hummingbird, Loggerhead Kingbird and Sad Flycatcher.

The hours of operation at the Rockland's Bird Sanctuary as posted in the local tourist office, are 2-5 pm, when the bird feeding will take place, however if you arrive earlier you will be invited straight on to a covered patio to see the hummingbirds.

The entrance fee for the Rockland's Bird Sanctuary is only US$8 however there is a separate fee for a guided tour, which is 'negotiable', so establish what you are willing to pay in advance. Fritz is very knowledgeable and will point out lots of the endemics and special birds during a walk along the wooded trail in the sanctuary.

The Rockland's Bird Sanctuary is located in the little town of Anchovy is about 3 miles outside Montego Bay, and is about a 20 minutes drive by taxi from Paradise Palms Jamaica Vacation Rental and down town Mobay. If you take the A1 route out of Mobay town towards Lucea you will pass through Long Hill Gorge, then look for a sign to the Sanctuary, indicating a left turn. This minor road is rather rough, and takes you uphill. You'll find the sanctuary on the right, a short way down the other side of the hill.

To read reviews about Rockland's Bird sanctuary on Tripadvisor please click on the Rockland's Bird Sanctuary website

Rockland's Bird Sanctuary Anchovy, St. James. Tel: 952-2009