Bird watching in Costa Rica - December 2024

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Jiffy (also jiff)

noun [in SING.] informal a moment: we'll be back in a jiffy.

ORIGIN late 18th cent.: of unknown origin.

So as you understand, in a jiff pretty much depends on your internet.

So I put a “Next” button here and I hope that there isn't any problem to understand how to use that one. So just CLICK the “Next” button on your left hand side and you will be on the next page in a jiff!

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คุณพูดภาษาไทยได้ไหม ไม่มีปัญหา ถ้าคุณต้องการไปหน้าถัดไป ให้กดปุ่ม “Next” ข้างบนนี้

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E ni Svenskar och inte förstår Engelska så ska ni skämmas. J och Björn, med det menar jag inte att alla mina stavfel ska ältas varje gång vi träffas.

Well, the flag of Skåne, just a BONUS flag.

December 2024

Day 5

Wednesday 25 ^th of December 2024 and I start my day at 5 thirty. A bucket of tea before packing my bags. 5 nights at Hotel de Montaña Suria and it had been very good.

Breakfast at 7 and my luggage was almost ready so I can leave as soon as I am back from the bird watching tour. Bacon and egg and of course two cups of tea to chase it down.

I am booked on a group tour and I hope that it will be a small group going to look for birds in the morning. It is only a two hours tour so never mind.

I had two plates of egg and bacon, running around looking for birds and a long trip to my next hotel. So, a sturdy breakfast is needed.

My second plate

I went back to my room and I completed my packing, just the computer remaining. I had put two big bags with DIET drink and cheese in the reception and I will be ready to leave pretty much as soon as we return from the bird watching tour.

I go out on the parking lot to look for the Sulphur-winged Parakeet as I had heard them while I had my breakfast. I spotted two of them but they were soon taking off and they disappeared. No picture and no sound recording.

But I got a picture of the Tropical Mockingbird.

Tropical Mockingbird

My Guide arrived when I was looking for the birds and I turned off my eBird app. He opened the door and he asked what I wanted to do.
- Up to you and the other passengers, I said
- The other passengers have cancelled.

Good, this was a cheap private tour and I really did not mind to be alone. We went to the bird feeding, Feathers Garden at Savegre Hotel.

This is the place we visited shorty to see how we liked it. We were alone when we arrived, my Guide had told me that most of the hotels were almost empty which was strange. But they are all fully booked for January to Marsh.

Sitting down, front row and there were a lot of Lesser Violetear and some of the Talamanca Hummingbird. The Talamanca Hummingbird is really big compared to the other hummingbirds. It is in the size of a hummingbird, at least that’s how I estimated the size.

Female Talamanca Hummingbird

Male Talamanca Hummingbird

Male Talamanca Hummingbird

Male Talamanca Hummingbird

Male Lesser Violetear

Male Lesser Violetear

Male White-throated Mountain-gem

Male White-throated Mountain-gem

Rufous-collared Sparrow

Male White-throated Mountain-gem

Male White-throated Mountain-gem

Male White-throated Mountain-gem

Lesser Violetear in the back

Rose-breasted Grosbeak

Listen to the Slaty Flowerpiercer

Sound from www.xeno-canto.org

Remarks from the Recordist

Recorded with my mobile phone using my JBL microphone with the Merlin app. High Pass Filter applied with Audacity.

Sitting in the tree above me singing. Lesser Violetear can be heard in the back.

Listen to the Lesser Violetear

Sound from www.xeno-canto.org

Remarks from the Recordist

Recorded with my mobile phone using my JBL microphone with the Merlin app. High Pass Filter applied with Audacity.

Wing flaps + sound from when they fighting with each other’s feeding. Slaty Flowerpiercer can be head singing in the back.

Baltimore Oriole

Baltimore Oriole

Flame-coloured Tanager

Male Lesser Violetear

Male Lesser Violetear

eBird Report

Savegre Hotel, San José, CR
Dec 25, 2024 08:40 - 09:30
Protocol: Stationary
12 species

Lesser Violetear 8
Talamanca Hummingbird 5
White-throated Mountain-gem 2
Acorn Woodpecker 2
Clay-coloured Thrush 1
Rufous-collared Sparrow 3
Baltimore Oriole 3
Tennessee Warbler 3
Flame-coloured Tanager 1
Rose-breasted Grosbeak 1
Blue-grey Tanager 4
Slaty Flowerpiercer 2

View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S206520733

This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (https://ebird.org/home)

My Guide ask me if I want to go look for a new species down along the river where we had been the other day. we have to walk past the fish farm where we had stopped last time. I was on and I turned off my eBird app.

We went back to the van and we took off towards the gravel road leading to the fish farm. My Guide had seen the endemic Spangle-cheeked Tanager a couple of days ago and we were hopingto see the bird.

The Spangle-cheeked Tanager will be anew LIFER for me in case we have luck finding the bird.

We park the car and we get through the gate to the gravel road and we walk along Sagreve River and we cross the bridge over the river. We are hearing one Lesser Violetear and I take the opportunity to record the bird.

Listen to the Lesser Violetear

Sound from www.xeno-canto.org

Remarks from the Recordist

Recorded with my mobile phone using my JBL microphone with the Merlin app. High Pass Filter applied with Audacity.

Bird singing from high above us in the trees. We can hear Sagreve River in the back.

We reach the fish farm

We reach the end of the road at the fish farm and we get out on the walk path through the forest. It is about 200 meters from the road until the area where my Guide had seen the Spangle-cheeked Tanager.

We walk along the path in the forest and suddenly, my Guide spot one Spangle-cheeked Tanager in the vegetation. I had no hopes of getting any pictures so I was pleasantly surprised that the pictures turned out to be quite OK. Good enough for my eBird report.

We turn around to walk back to the van. We see one Common Chlorospingus jumping around in one of the trees but no pictures.

Spangle-cheeked Tanager

Spangle-cheeked Tanager

Spangle-cheeked Tanager

Listen to the Grey-breasted Wood-Wren

Sound from www.xeno-canto.org

Remarks from the Recordist

Recorded with my mobile phone using my JBL microphone with the Merlin app. High Pass Filter applied with Audacity.

Birds seen in the dark vegetation. We can hear the Sagreve River in the back and the Lesser Violetear. Last seconds of the recording is the Lesser Violetear.

Grey-breasted Wood-Wren

We continue towards the van and suddenly, we hear one Grey-breasted Wood-Wren next to the walk path. dense vegetation so it was impossible to see the bird but I got a recording. Suddenly, my Guide spotted the bird.

Impossible to get the bird in the dark and they disappeared in the vegetation. My Guide spotted three birds, but I could only see two of them. We did not give up and we could spot one of them again and I was lucky, one picture out of several was good enough for my eBird report.

In a good mood when we continued towards the van, crossing the bridge and we spotted one Louisiana Waterthrush on the other side of the river. A new LIFER for me, second for today and I never got any pictures, DARN!

We are almost back at the gate to the paved road and my Guide spot one Ruddy-capped Nightingale-Thrush in the bushes. Again, very dark so I had no hopes to get any picture. But again, I was lucky and I got one of all the pictures that I can use for my eBird report.

Ruddy-capped Nightingale-Thrush

eBird Report

Walk along Rio Sagreve, San José, CR
Dec 25, 2024 09:37 - 10:18
Protocol: Traveling
1.4 kilometer(s)
7 species

Lesser Violetear 2 Heard only
Grey-breasted Wood-Wren 2
Ruddy-capped Nightingale-Thrush 1 “LIFER”
Common Chlorospingus 1
Rufous-collared Sparrow 1
Louisiana Waterthrush 1 “LIFER”
Spangle-cheeked Tanager 2 “LIFER”

View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S206520797

This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (https://ebird.org/home)

Today's track along Sagreve River

Listen to the Sulphur-winged Parakeet

Sound from www.xeno-canto.org

Remarks from the Recordist

Recorded with my mobile phone using my JBL microphone with the Merlin app. High Pass Filter applied with Audacity.

Coming back to the hotel after bird watching and I hear the Sulphur-winged Parakeet on the parking. Bird not seen but most likely the same birds I have seen and heard on the parking the last days.

What a morning this turned out to be, I had expected nothing, my last morning in the Savegre Valley. But I got 3 LIFERS and I was in a good mood when we go back to Hotel de Montaña Suria.

getting out of the van and I could hear the Sulphur-winged Parakeet again. I tried to get a recording before I got to my room. They will soon come to pick me up for transportation to Arte de Plumas Birding Lodge .

I left my room at 11 thirty and I was sitting outside the reception when they came to pick me up 10 minutes before 12 o'clock. They parked the car and they went in to the reception, two guys so I did not think it was for me.

But I could hear them asking for me and I asked why they were two Drivers.
- I am the Translator, the Driver do not speak English.

We fill up the back of the car with my stuff and we are soon on the way to Arte de Plumas Birding Lodge and we expect around 3 hours. I asked if it was possible to stop to buy glasses on the way. The Translator suggested Walmart in Cartago.

We are on our way to Arte de Plumas Birding Lodge

Leaving Savegre Valley

I have my refreshments

I asked them to stop so I could buy some refreshments but as it is Christmas everything is closed. We passed a restaurant that was open and we discovered that they had a mini mart and I got a fewbottles of refreshments. And some peanuts that I enjoyed in the back seat together with my diet drink.

We reached Cartago and we had to drive through the city to reach Walmart. Never mind, we would have had to pass through the city anyway to get to Arte de Plumas Birding Lodge . They do not have any glasses at Walmart, but I bought some cheese.

My Translator bought some chocolate, and I could not help myself and I bought some chocolate for myself as well. (That I hope I will never have to eat)

Getting back to the car and we pass two House Sparrows and I report the bird to eBird. Good, now I have both a House Sparrow and a Feral Pigeon reported from Costa Rica. I was looking high and low for a House or Tree sparrow in Panama without any luck.

We stop to take pictures of the mountains

We stop to take pictures of the mountains

Ruddy Pigeon

We stop to take pictures of the mountains and I discover a pigeon sitting on a wire high above us. I try to take a picture and I report the bird to eBird. We continue towards the hotel and it is really a beautiful view over the mountains and the clouds.

We have a drizzle every now and then, it is the end of the rainy seasson and everything is green. I see birds everywhere but we cannot stop every now and then.

But I see some big black birds on a wire when we pass an am pm convenient store and I ask my driver to go back. I get out to try to take some pictures of the birds. Great-tailed Grackles and now the Driver wonder what I am doing.

He tells me, via the Translator that there are many of them at the hotel.

Female Great-tailed Grackle

Male Great-tailed Grackle

Driving past sugar cane fields

Local coffee plants

Local coffee plants

Turkey Vulture

We reach Arte de Plumas Birding Lodge around 15 thirty and we unload the car. I liked my room and I have a balcony overlooking the garden and the birds.

So, I will enjoy my morning tea on the balcony looking at the birds feeding in the morning and I was looking forward to this while setting up my IT centre.

The told me that there were two different toucans here:
1) Keel-billed Toucan
2) Collared Aracari

I have seen the Keel-billed Toucan and the Collared Aracari in Panama, but I want to have some good pictures. So there is a little something to look forward to.

My room at Arte de Plumas Birding Lodge

My room at Arte de Plumas Birding Lodge

My room at Arte de Plumas Birding Lodge

My room at Arte de Plumas Birding Lodge

I will have my breakfast on my balcony

View from my balcony

View from my balcony

View from my balcony

I arranged my stuff in the room before going out on the balcony with my camera. I had to “test” sit the chair on the balcony. I got a new LIFER, the Montezuma Oropendola and that is my fifth lifer for today.

I had seen the Chestnut-headed Oropendola in Panama, but no good pictures. I hope to get good pictures here, but it was too dark today so a crazy ISO speed was required and the pictures was no good.

But good enough for my eBird report. I had forgotten my mosquito repellent and it was really needed and I went inside my room again for my evening tea.

The hotel Manager would arrange for mosquito repellent for me.

Montezuma Oropendola

Montezuma Oropendola

Chestnut-headed Oropendola

Chestnut-headed Oropendola

Arriving and I had asked for 5 avocados for breakfast and dinner and they would arrange this for me and they would look for the mosquito repellent at the same time.

We spoke about birding tour and they have a special bittern down at the river that we would go to have a look at. He asked when I wanted to go and I suggested Friday. I will wear my sandals foranother two day.

My toe still looks like a mushy mash and the pain is back, not any severe pain. But two more days with sandals might do the toe good.

I went to bed after having had tea and some cheese and I was looking forward to my breakfast on the balcony tomorrow morning.

To find out if I see any birds, just click HERE

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