charliedoggett.net
A cool, tiny butterfly in the Hairstreak Family the size of a small fingernail that is bright blue on top of his wings which he seldom shows. See one top view in my gallery at Dusky-blue Groundstreak, Calycopis isobeon. This is only the third one that I’ve seen. Here’s three shots . . .
The two blue ones are almost certainly in the Dancer Family / Argia Family, while the beigey one with a hint of turquoise is one that I will not be certain about a family, though I think he also could be a dancer or possibly in the Clubtail Family / Gomphidae Family. Dragon & Damselflies usually stay near water and that is a matter of perspective for my garden which is 200-300 yards from the nearest stream. But that is where I found them. I will post on iNaturalist and hopefully the Dragonfly book author will identify them, though sometimes he only gives a family. Here’s the 3 photos . . .
. . . as the birds seem to be making their return (though still windy some). And the National Bird, the Yigüirro, is singing his heart out as if it were April and the rains about to start. Some say that means the rainy season will begin earlier in April or maybe in March? Not normal, but then nothing about the weather has been normal this year. This shot was of a solo Gray-headed Chachalaca, Ortalis cinereiceps (my gallery link) in my Cecropia Tree. They are often in flocks, but none yet in my garden.
¡Pura Vida!
For my birthday in July, I’m going back to Esquinas Rainforest Lodge to celebrate my 85th birthday at the same place I celebrated my 83rd! But I did not do a photo book for that trip, so this is a delayed report as a gift to the lodge this July. It is paperback and only 22 pages, but shows the variety of nature you can experience there. For a free preview of all pages, go to this book in my bookstore at https://www.blurb.com/b/12361792-a-walk-in-the-rainforest
¡Pura Vida!
Note that in my bookstore there is a separate edition of this book listed with a different cover. That is because I like to offer both the softcover and the hardcover image wrap editions, but now the crazy programmers at Blurb are requiring each edition to be created and uploaded separately. I don’t like technology that makes things more complicated like this! 🙂
I think! 🙂 It has the wrong markings for a juvenile Spiny-tailed Iguana which I see a lot in my garden and with my books and an online search I was not able to nail down a species right now, but I think he is in the large Anole family. I posted the pix on iNaturalist, so hoping someone there will identify this active little lizard on my Cecropia Tree. Here 3 shots from 3 different angles . . .
The Common Spurwing, Antigonus erosus (my gallery link) is like several species with the top and bottom sides of the wings being totally different which you can see in this set of just 3 photos . . .
This Clay-colored Thrush, Turdus grayi (my gallery link) is the National Bird of Costa Rica and widely believed since pre-Columbian days to be the bird who sings in the rains in April & May. One neighbor says they are already singing in his yard, though I haven’t heard them in mine yet. Yesterday morning it was the White-winged Dove out-singing all of the other birds in my garden. 🙂 And I have no idea what that means! 🙂
And interestingly, at night I’ve had both the Common Pauraque and the Tropical Screech Owl singing me to sleep! (Merlin sound ID) 🙂 But no photos of either in my trees at night. The linked photo of a Pauraque was at Maquenque Ecolodge where I’ve seen more species than any other place, and it was a daytime shot! 🙂 Here’s four shots of the Yigüirro in my garden the other day . . .
I’m beginning to see some of the old “regulars” back in my garden when the wind is not too strong, but overall, butterflies are still scarce and I don’t expect a lot before May. But I’ve had at least two of these Polydamas Swallowtail, Battus polydamas (my gallery link). Here’s 3 shots of one individual in my garden recently . . .
The high winds this time of year seem to keep away both birds and butterflies from my efforts to photograph, except for one bird! And in my neighborhood he seems to never stop soaring, The Turkey Vulture! Cathartes aura (linked to my gallery). I don’t get to regularly see an Eagle or Hawk soaring, but this vulture I can see almost every day as he makes riding the wind drafts look easy and motivates me to want to soar! 🙂
“One can never consent to creep when one feels an impulse to soar.” ~Helen Keller
And may you soar today in whatever you do! Windy or not! 🙂
¡Pura Vida!
This Dark Calephelis, Calephelis velutina (linked to my gallery) seems to be fairly rare, with this being my third sighting and not very many have been submitted to iNaturalist CR or butterfliesandmoths.org. This one was in my garden while the last one was in the neighborhood on Calle Nueva. And my first sighting was in Cartago Province at Guayabo National Monument. Here’s two different views of this Metalmark Family butterfly species from Monday in my garden . . .
¡Pura Vida!