This morning we had an early start and I packed an extra shirt, umbrella and my winter car coat (all nylon black stuffable weighs nothing) so if I got wet, I could change. Yesterday I was soaked and my camera and binocs had to be blowed dried last evening to get rid of the fog inside. Today we were lucky and we only had one shower and I only used the umbrella once.
We left at 6:15 am after breakfast for La Selva which is the International Bilogical Station where research is done here from all over the Americas. This place was started by Duke University in the fifties and now run by an international board. There are labs here and all kinds or research done on plants, mammals etc. Emily was a bit under the weather so she stayed behind.
We arrived to the early morning chorus of birds, the flycatchers were out (Tropical, Social), swifts and other birds. We spent all day here and got all kinds of birds this morning, Becards, Jacamar, and doves. There were Mangrove Swallows and Gray-breasted Martins flying around. We were fortunate that it was overcast as it was 28 degrees very early on. We walked the trails and had to be careful with stepping off the path (lots of snakes). We did not see any!
We walked into the forest to see the Vemiculated Screech Owl and it was a pretty owl to see and we went into the forest trail two at a time. There was the Rufous Mourner, Rufous-winged Woodpecker and the Grey-rumped Swift. There are a lot of birds here. We came across the Strawberry Poison Dart Frog and its call is really loud for such a tiny frog.
This butterfly was in the Butterfly House at La Quinta and is quite spectacular.
We saw several other birds at the feeders at La Quinta today. The Passerini's Tanager couple.
This is the Strawberry Poison Dart Frog and it is the size of a loonie. We also saw several in the landscaped areas of the restaurant we had lunch at, so they are everywhere.
We also viewed this slow moving lizard at La Quinta
This was the afterglow after the sunset at the end of the day.
We returned to La Quinta for lunch. Emily is fine and joined the group for the rest of the day. During the siesta time I stayed at La Quinta's feeders and watched some lovely birds. I did have a short siesta and we went back to La Selva for an afternoon of large birds such as the Crested Guan and the Great Currosaw, in addition to many other birds. . We saw the Giant Tinnamou and on the way home the Gray Hawk and the Scarlet Macaw. In between we had many many other birds.
We waited in the near dark to see the Green Ibis to fly down river and could hear them but never saw them. We also fought the mosquitoes which came out in the evening.
Both Sami and Emily contributed to the photos yesterday and today.
Bugs are not bad here but then I used a lot of Deet today. From our balcony today we found a Fasciated Tiger Heron in the creek across from us. Another beautifully patterned heron.
This was a full day of birding and there are not many hummingbirds in the Caribbean Lowlands. I did not see a single one and Emily saw one only.
Barb & Emily
We left at 6:15 am after breakfast for La Selva which is the International Bilogical Station where research is done here from all over the Americas. This place was started by Duke University in the fifties and now run by an international board. There are labs here and all kinds or research done on plants, mammals etc. Emily was a bit under the weather so she stayed behind.
We arrived to the early morning chorus of birds, the flycatchers were out (Tropical, Social), swifts and other birds. We spent all day here and got all kinds of birds this morning, Becards, Jacamar, and doves. There were Mangrove Swallows and Gray-breasted Martins flying around. We were fortunate that it was overcast as it was 28 degrees very early on. We walked the trails and had to be careful with stepping off the path (lots of snakes). We did not see any!
We walked into the forest to see the Vemiculated Screech Owl and it was a pretty owl to see and we went into the forest trail two at a time. There was the Rufous Mourner, Rufous-winged Woodpecker and the Grey-rumped Swift. There are a lot of birds here. We came across the Strawberry Poison Dart Frog and its call is really loud for such a tiny frog.
This butterfly was in the Butterfly House at La Quinta and is quite spectacular.
We saw several other birds at the feeders at La Quinta today. The Passerini's Tanager couple.
This is the Strawberry Poison Dart Frog and it is the size of a loonie. We also saw several in the landscaped areas of the restaurant we had lunch at, so they are everywhere.
We also viewed this slow moving lizard at La Quinta
This was the afterglow after the sunset at the end of the day.
We returned to La Quinta for lunch. Emily is fine and joined the group for the rest of the day. During the siesta time I stayed at La Quinta's feeders and watched some lovely birds. I did have a short siesta and we went back to La Selva for an afternoon of large birds such as the Crested Guan and the Great Currosaw, in addition to many other birds. . We saw the Giant Tinnamou and on the way home the Gray Hawk and the Scarlet Macaw. In between we had many many other birds.
We waited in the near dark to see the Green Ibis to fly down river and could hear them but never saw them. We also fought the mosquitoes which came out in the evening.
Both Sami and Emily contributed to the photos yesterday and today.
Bugs are not bad here but then I used a lot of Deet today. From our balcony today we found a Fasciated Tiger Heron in the creek across from us. Another beautifully patterned heron.
This was a full day of birding and there are not many hummingbirds in the Caribbean Lowlands. I did not see a single one and Emily saw one only.
Barb & Emily
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