Seeding Bamboo on the Road to Volcan Barva
Bamboo, that massive grass, is a common component of eastern Asian forests. When I was in Thailand in 2007, the huge clumps of bamboo that made up much of the understory in the forests around Doi...
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What to Do When Birding in the Rain in Costa Rica
October is part of the official rainy season in Costa Rica. Each year, low pressure systems get together to stew up a massive dumping of water upon Costa Rica and other parts of Central America. The...
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Birding in Costa Rica at Paraiso de Quetzales
Costa Rica is definitely a hot, tropical country. At 9 degrees latitude, the sun’s rays can burn with the intensity of some vicious alien device. In the humid lowlands, you sweat but just can’t seem to...
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Check out the Good Birds on Poas when Birding Costa Rica
Poas Volcano is somewhat overlooked as a birding destination. Birders in search of highland specialties head off to the more extensive forests on Cerro de la Muerte and have a grand old time with the...
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How to see 11 Raptors and 16 Hummingbird species when Birding Costa Rica
I had been looking forward to guiding this past Saturday. My client wanted to see as many birds as possible and a combined trip to Virgen del Socorro and Poas Volcano seemed like the perfect choice for...
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Birding in Costa Rica on the Providencia Road
Whether guiding or not, I try to get out birding at least once a week. It provides a much needed escape from the greater San Jose area of Costa Rica (an over-urbanized place with skinny, twisting...
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An Impressive Day of Birding around Poas
Poas Volcano is one of the most visited tourist attractions in Costa Rica. Buses, cars, and even bicycles make the long, uphill trek to Poas National Park every day of the year, weekends being...
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The Unspotted Saw-whet Owl becomes Spotted in Costa Rica
The Northern Saw-whet Owl is a tough bird to see. While growing up in western New York, I was lucky enough to live in an area where, if you were patient enough, they could be readily seen. Finding a...
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VaraBlanca- Overlooked Costa Rican Birding Hotspot
Birding hotspots don’t just earn that claim to fame for the bird species that show up. While rarities and high quality species are certainly part of the hotspot equation, other factors also determine a...
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A Bird Count on Poas
Poas is the name of the volcano that I can see off to the northwest of my home. It’s an obvious stand-alone mountain that is usually topped by clouds. On sunny days, though, close scrutiny of its upper...
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A Dozen Birds from Poas to Sarapiqui
Always lots of birds to see in Costa Rica. The more you look, the more you see, especially when you spend time in birdy habitats. This past week, a couple of days guiding along the...
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More Great Birding in Costa Rica on the Poas-Varablanca-Cinchona Route
I really like guiding in the Poas area. Not only is it the best highland birding site within an hour’s drive of the Central Valley, but it also turns up a diverse set of species (including many...
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A Couple Hours of Birding on Poas is Always Good
Green space is where the birds are and that’s why I drive 45 minutes up to Poas Volcano. That’s one of the closest places with intact forest habitat and the birding is always good. Between the house...
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A Brief Trip Report from Guiding in the Poas Area, November Third
Sort of continued from A Brief Trip Report from Guiding El Tapir and Quebrada Gonzalez One Day and the Poas Area the Next.. As it turned out, hitting sites from the Central Valley and the Poas area was...
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Hanging Out with Hummingbirds from Poas to Sarapiqui
Yesterday, I guided a couple on the Poas-Cinchona-Nature Pavilion route. This always makes for a fun, easy-going tour because it puts the focus on feeders and photography with such extra possibilities...
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Some Bird Images from Miriam’s Cafe, San Gerardo de Dota, Costa Rica
Any birder who has been to Costa Rica knows what “San Gerardo de Dota” means. This montane location translates to “Resplendent Quetzal” and/or “Savegre Lodge” for most birders but for me, it also means...
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Bird Photos from a Quick Trip to the Barva Highlands
Barva Volcano is the top of Braulio Carrillo National Park and the nearest, quality highland habitat to my place of residence. I can see the ruffled jade top of the mountain from the window and the...
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Starting 2015 with Costa Rican Pygmy Owls and Quetzals
A week ago, a large percentage of us humans celebrated the start of another new year with best wishes and the usual countdown. It’s hard for me to take it seriously because calendars are totally...
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A Friendly Buff-fronted Quail-Dove at Monteverde
For birders in North America, a quail-dove is far from familiar. Certain other dove species might be as normal in the yard as the family dog but not yee quail-doves. In the official ABA area, the main...
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What’s a Streak-breasted Treehunter?
For the non-birder, the title of this post surely sounds like some crude joke. For us birders, though, we know that it must refer to some kind of weird bird. At least we hope it does because how could...
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