Category: Tarcoles River

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Scarlet Macaws, Lapas, Guacamayo Rojo

Scarlet Macaw flying over the mouth of the Tarcoles River at Pacific Ocean.
All Photos by Charlie Doggett, Tarcoles, Costa Rica

Scarlet Macaws were the main reason I spent a couple of nights at Carara National Park, where one of the two breeding colonies of Scarlet Macaws live, the other being at Corcovado NP and the surrounding Osa Peninsula which I visited in 2009 and got a few distant photos there. I also photographed a couple of the macaws on my 2010 and first Tarcoles River Crocodile & Birds cruise. But there were more macaws this time as June and July is the breeding season. My guide for two days here was Victor Mora Shaves of VicToursCostaRica. He is not a serious birder, but knows most of them and many of their songs or calls. And he did know we could get closer to macaws in Tarcoles Village than in the national park, thus we went there first thing Friday morning where all but one of these photos were made. We returned to Tarcoles Saturday morning for a mangrove boat tour with just me and him for a lot of other birds but no Macaws except flying way overhead. A separate post on that is coming with other bird photos. I’ll also do a post of our hike in the park for tomorrow, though it was a little disappointing compared to other parks I have visited (for the quantity of birds). Well here are some of the decent shots of Scarlet Macaws, not a single great one here, but okay and typical of shots birders get. You just can’t get close like in the zoo. But no zoo shots here!

Names used in Costa Rica are  Guacamayo Rojo  o Lapa  Note that I stayed in Hotel Villa Lapas which in English would be The House of Macaws. This artwork of Lapas is between the rest rooms off the lobby area helping define their location and name: 


The blue is Guacamayo Azul and the red Guacamayo Rojo and both are Lapas.
Hotel Villa Lapas is the closest to Parque Nacional Carara.
Problem with painting is that there are not blue & yellow macaws here!
They’re in South America and more rare than scarlet. Blue or Hyacinth
Macaws are even more rare, but did live in Central America once.

Scarlet Macaw, a typical shot in the trees.  Tarcoles, Costa Rica.
The one on right is upside down, also common.
Scarlet Macaw “loving couple” – they mate for life! Tarcoles, Costa Rica.
“Double-Dating” with one upside down!  🙂  Tarcoles, Costa Rica
Scarlet Macaws in different light – Tarcoles, Costa Rica

Scarlet Macaws above the Tarcoles River Mouth, Tarcoles, Costa Rica
Colorful birds! And beautiful flying!

Scarlet Macaws inside Carara National Park, Costa Rica.
Photo made across pond with cell phone through spotting scope.
Better photo ops with the fishermen in Tarcoles!

Rainforest Alliance article “About Scarlet Macaws.”  in “Kids Corner” 

Color is a power which directly influences the soul.
~Wassily Kandinsky
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Tarcoles Village

Dog on Porch Roof, Tarcoles, Costa Rica

Tarcoles Village is where the Tarcoles River goes into the Pacific Ocean near Jaco and Carara National Park. It is where I have taken four boat trips on the river including the one today. It is where we got our good photos of Scarlet Macaws yesterday morning before going into the park where they are even more difficult to photograph. (Sharing those photos in tomorrow’s post.) And it is just a typical Tico small town, quiet, lazy, hot, and humid with sights like above and below before you get on your boat for the cruise. 

A boy brings in part of the morning catch at 8:30.
You can buy fresh fish along the road.
He caught those fish in a boat like this.
Then repair the nets for tomorrow’s catch.

The main road through Tarcoles.

And the only sign seen more than Coca Cola,
Costa Rica’s own, locally made, Imperial Beer.

For you Nashville readers, Kevin Hunter has ridden through this village with me for our birding/croc cruise. I came here two mornings on this trip; Friday for Macaw photos and Saturday for photos of other birds from a private boat. Someday I will just come and photograph the village. 

Growing up in a small, hot, humid town like this in South Arkansas near Louisiana and Mississippi brings me to a quote by Harper Lee in To Kill a Mockingbird.  Life in Tarcoles is like this:
“Maycomb was a tired old town, even in 1932 when I first knew it. Somehow, it was hotter then. Men’s stiff collars wilted by nine in the morning. Ladies bathed before noon after their three o’clock naps. And by nightfall were like soft teacakes with frosting from sweating and sweet talcum. The day was twenty-four hours long, but it seemed longer. There’s no hurry, for there’s nowhere to go and nothing to buy…and no money to buy it with.” 
― Harper Lee, To Kill a Mockingbird
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Tarcoles Catch-up Photos

On March 24, our first night at Manuel Antonio, we had a slow internet connection and I only shared one beach sunset photo. Here’s a few of many from our stop on the Tarcoles River enroute to beach.

Yellow-headed Caracara
Tarcoles River, Costa Rica
Striped Basilisk
Tarcoles River, Costa Rica
Yellow-crowned Night Heron
Tarcoles River, Costa Rica
Common Black Hawk
Tarcoles River, Costa Rica
Tiger Heron
Tarcoles River, Costa Rica
Black-necked Stilt
Tarcoles River, Costa Rica
American Crocodile (Great Egret in background)
Tarcoles River, Costa Rica
This was my third time on the Tarcoles River and we always see and photograph more than 20 species of birds along with the promoted crocs and usually basilisks and iguanas plus some other lizards. That night I got lots of different kinds of beach sunset photos. Here’s one more I just have to show: 
Sunset over the Pacific Ocean
Manuel Antonio Beach, Costa Rica

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The Beach!

Sunset at Manuel Antonio Beach, Costa Rica

We have very slow internet connection in our motel on the beach, so only one photo which took 20 minutes to upload. The croc, birds, horse and other sunset photos will have to wait until later! We drove to Tarcoles River this morning for our croc and bird safari cruise, then on to Manuel Antonio National Park and beach where we have a hotel on the beach. This photo was made from behind our hotel. Tomorrow we take a guided hike into the rainforest and then chill out the rest of the day.

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Last 4 Tarcoles Birds

You can see all the birds in my Tarcoles Gallery or wait until the last week of March when I’ll be at Tarcoles again with Kevin this time. Enjoy these then I’ll go back to blogging about life in Atenas.

White Ibis
Tarcoles River, Costa Rica

Brown Pelican
Tarcoles River, Costa Rica

Green Heron
Tarcoles River, Costa Rica
Northern Jacana
Tarcoles River, Costa Rica
“The bird of paradise alights only upon the hand that does not grasp.”
John Berry
My Trip Advisor Review of this trip with photos!

I’ve been photographing birds in Costa Rica since January 2009 and have a special gallery of Costa Rica Birds, with more than 100 species presented alphabetically by English name. 

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Tarcoles Trees

Palms and a Tour Boat like the one we were on

In case you are tired of birds, here’s some trees! But I do have more bird photos to share if nothing exciting happens around home the next few days.  🙂  Here are 5 trees photographed from our boat and I’m sorry I haven’t researched the proper names of any except the one already photographed in Atenas. I just like looking at trees regardless what they are called!  🙂  Always, you can click a photo to see it larger.

 

The shapes, the designs, the colors, the strength, all awe me!

 

Pink Trumpet Tree or Roble de Sabana
See earlier posts: one from balcony and one up close.
It seems to be this month’s blooming tree, like Poro last month.

 

Lone Wolf!

 

“Umbrella Tree” said our guide.
Look close for cow under it on left, avoiding the sun.

My Trip Advisor Review of this trip with photos!

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More Tarcoles Pix

Billed as a “Crocodile Tour” but we saw more than 20 species of birds too!
Yeah, that’s me! See, Costa Rica hasn’t changed me much!

I have a photo gallery with at least one photo of each of the 20+ birds and animals photographed in my PBase Gallery. Here are four more of those for the blog readers.

My new friend Barry in the photo op sign at Jose’s Crocodile Tour.
He did one of me in this too! The tour guys get closer than this to crocs.
Belted Kingfisher
Tarcoles River, Costa Rica
Little Blue Heron
Tarcoles River, Costa Rica

Maybe some more from Tarcoles tomorrow, or to see now hit this link to my PBase Gallery.

Explanation of trashy, muddy banks of river: it was at low tide. We were near mouth of river where it empties into the Pacific Ocean. This is the same river that my neighbor from Spain is building a dam on, further inland of course. We nature lovers don’t like the dams, but it is one of very few in Costa Rica.

My Trip Advisor Review of this trip with photos!

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Beach Properties & Back to City

Another beautiful day of sunshine until late afternoon, rain for dinner and sleeping!. And if this is the way rainy season is most of the time I will like it! In both Gambia and South Florida it was usually in the afternoons and they say that is true here sometimes, but not this week so far.

We looked at two beach condos at Jaco Beach with one on another empty beach seen below and the condos are like really nice condos in South Florida. They are tempting to buy because some, like the one in the photo, have been slashed to less than half the original asking prices because they are not all selling or maybe have overbuilt. This could mean I might get a good deal later on a rental, though the guy said an investor-owner can make more renting in season to tourists than he could on me year around. They can get as much per week in season as I would pay per month, so I’m not likely to end up in one of these. The ocean view is from an area of properties where you could build with just the lot selling for $160,000! You pay for these views! I’ll look at poor man’s property on my own next week.

Click to enlarge photo and note that these are web-sized. Please contact me to use one and I will send you a larger file.

From building property looking over the mouth of
Tarcoles River where it flows into the Pacific

“King of the Mountain!”
Crocodiles in the Tarcoles River

 Another near empty beach! This one by condo below.

Lobby of one of two condos we visited. A Vacation Condo mostly..
Reminded me of South Florida! Very nice!
For two days after our two-day seminar, we will be looking at properties in the Central Valley area, closer to more services and shopping, medical, entertainment, etc. I’m back in San Jose and Hotel Autentico for a week now. It will be nice to stay unpacked for awhile. Tomorrow our two-day seminar is led by ARCR, the Costa Rica Resident’s Association where all our questions will be answered by lawyers, movers, doctors, and expats who live here. Then I do my own thing for 4 days. A full two weeks! But fun! And educational!