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I Registered for a Coronavirus Vaccine Today!

On my round of errands this morning, one stop was at the public clinic to sign up for my Coronavirus Vaccine as one of an expected. 3.7 million to be vaccinated in Costa Rica this year, basically the whole population. It has begun all over the country as a free vaccination provided by the government with millions of doses already in country. As an older adult I should be called in before younger people and within the month the technician told me. I just wait for the phone call, in Spanish, and hope they speak slow enough for me to understand! 🙂

Though millions of doses are already here, more have been ordered says this Tico Times article: Costa Rica to purchase coronavirus vaccines for 648,000 more people

I also saw my female private practice GP doctor this week and already my hurting knee is much better and less swollen. Medical services here are really good! Both public and private and cheap or free!

¡Pura Vida!

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Collared Trogon Female (Orange-bellied)

At first I labeled it an “Orange-bellied Trogon,” but after checking my book I’m calling it a Collared Trogon Female because of the darker shade of orange on the belly, with Orange-bellied having a lighter shade of orange (the only difference) in the book. Then after checking online with eBird+, I see that they are longer calling it two species but all “Collared” with some as an “orange morph” of the Collared Trogon. These constantly changing names and identifications make birding a little complicated sometimes! 🙂 Also the book says it only appears in the highlands of Costa Rica and Western Panama while eBird says it is the same bird in some of the highlands of South America. 🙂

  • Collared Trogon Female
  • Collared Trogon Female

These were photographed on the Robles Trail, Hotel Savegre, San Gerardo de Dota.

Right now I have two photo galleries from previous trips around Costa Rica for both the Collared Trogon and the Orange-bellied Trogon. I’m waiting to see if I should combine those two galleries. 🙂 And in those galleries you can see the slight differences of the two.

And to read further, see eBird’s Collared Trogon page or if you are a subscriber, even more info on “Birds of the World” Collared Trogon page. My hobby is getting complicated! 🙂

¡Pura Vida!

This trip’s Hotel Savegre BIRDS Gallery (22 species)

U.S., Canada, or U.K. Visitors Now Need Negative Test To Return Home

If any readers are planning on visiting Costa Rica in January and beyond this year, it might be helpful to read this article: Preflight Testing For Departing Costa Rica – Logistics And Tips: on the blog called “Two Weeks in Costa Rica.” Like birding, traveling is getting more complicated too! 🙂

¡Lo siento!

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Collared Redstart

A tiny bird sometimes difficult to see in a thick Cloud Forest even with the bright colors, found only above 1,500 meters in the highlands of Costa Rica and across the border in Western Panama. I’ve seen and photographed only 2 other times, once in San Gerardo de Dota at the Trogon Lodge and later on a Monteverde trip in the Santa Elena Cloud Forest Reserve. You can see those photos (better) in my Collared Redstart Gallery to which I will eventually add these. CLICK an image below to enlarge:

  • Collared Redstart
  • Collared Redstart
  • Collared Redstart
Above photos made on the Robles Trail at Hotel Savegre, San Gerardo de Dota.

This trip’s Hotel Savegre BIRDS Gallery (22 species)

I’m home now with a lot of “catching up to do” as always after a trip and part of that will be sharing more photos from this trip! 🙂

¡Pura Vida!

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Bigfoot?

Large-footed Finch is the “official” English common name for this cloud forest bird that my excellent guide, Marino, found for me this morning. This “lifer” for me (1st time seen) is one of several we found near the top of our mountain on the Robles Trail this morning. The feature photo above is the only one to show his feet, which don’t seem that large to me, but maybe to a finch? 🙂

I will share more birds from today later. CLICK image to see larger . . .

  • Large-footed Finch
  • Flight Initiated!
  • Large-footed Finch
  • Large-footed Finch
  • Large-footed Finch
Large-footed Finch at Hotel Savegre, San Gerardo de Dota, Costa Rica

It would be hard to praise Hotel Savegre too much with virtually everything perfect here from the food to the rooms, trails, birds and vistas! 🙂 Though the birds of this trip haven’t been added yet, you can see all my others in Costa Rica Birds Gallery, 350 species!

¡Pura Vida!

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Resplendent Quetzal

This morning at 5:15 I head out with my guide Marina in his pickup to where he knows that the Quetzal feeds for breakfast. We get there and sure enough, by the time the sun provides enough light, they’re having breakfast and perching in various trees. At our spot we saw 2 males and 2 females. You can frequently see them at Monteverde but almost always here in San Gerardo de Dota. I waited until this morning because the hotel was full over the weekend and thus I had the guide to myself, solo!

Male Resplendent Quetzal

Female Resplendent Quetzal

NOTE: This is the national bird of Guatemala, but if you want to see one, it easier find in Costa Rica! 🙂

¡Pura Vida!

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Long-tailed Silky-flycatcher

This morning I went to the nearby Batsù Gardens across the road and down a couple of hundred meters with so many bird photos it will be after the trip before I present them all. So for today, just one, the Long-tailed Silky-flycatcher, which I haven’t seen since the last time in San Gerardo de Dota. And funny thing is that after getting back to my room I saw an adult and two juveniles in the tree in front of my room but with bad light and no good photos, thus this one is from Batsù. Tomorrow morning is my Quetzal excursion, so hopefully several good Quetzal photos. 🙂

¡Pura Vida!

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Tres Amigos Today

The hotel is nearly full for the weekend with Costa Ricans getting away from the city for the weekend, more common now with COVID and few tourists here. Thus I postponed my Quetzal hike until Monday morning when not many here. Thus today and tomorrow just hiking around on my own, avoiding people. And getting a relaxation massage this afternoon! 🙂

My morning hike in the forest and then the hotel gardens only gave me 3 birds (and a couple of butterflies for later). All 3 birds are common in this cloud forest and I’ve photographed before. My hike on the “Song Birds” trail gave me lots of singing but most high in trees and tiny, thus only 2 photos from the trail and then another in the garden. One of my knees is hurting, so I’m limiting my walking a little now, expecting special birds both Monday and Tuesday.

Click an image to see larger:

  • Flame Tanager, Immature Male
  • Ruddy-capped Nightingale-Thrush
  • Rufous-collared Sparrow
My Tres Amigos today! 🙂

¡Pura Vida!

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On the Rio Savegre!

My mountain lodge is on this beautiful little mountain stream that grows to a bigger river before it feeds the Pacific Ocean. Savegre Hotel is first class and much bigger, more modern than my last visit here in 2009, literally a 4 Star Hotel back in the wilderness on a dirt road, hours from a city! But not sure about the internet connection yet and may be limited to one photo per post. Pura vida from San Gerardo de Dota & Savegre Hotel!

🙂

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A Little Jewel

On one of my walks on the nearby “Country Lane,” I found this simple little tree covered in yellow blooms, like many Costa Rica trees now, and liked it!

The Feature Photo is the broad view of the landscape with the little solo tree, while below I include a closer view from another angle, all from behind a fence, and I never cross fences! 🙂

Country Lane Yellow Tree

“Nature is pleased with simplicity. And nature is no dummy.”

~Isaac Newton

¡Pura Vida!

Tonight or tomorrow I will begin reporting on the Cloud Forests of San Gerardo de Dota in Savegre Hotel. It is a lot different from my Central Valley coffee farming town of Atenas! 🙂

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December 2020 Arenal Gallery

Just in time! The night before I leave on another trip I finished my photos from the Christmas 2020 trip to Arenal Observatory Lodge with more than 50 species of birds! And 5 are lifers for me! Plus a whole lot of other photos from this favorite lodge. For now the birds are presented alphabetically by their English Common Name. Later I will make time to arrange by species families according to my birding guide book. Overall I’m pleased with this collection of photos and moving on to the next collection! 🙂 To see gallery CLICK above link or the image below:

¡Pura Vida!