Charlie, Author at Retired in Costa Rica

July 17, 2020July 15, 2020

Maquenque’s Small Birds

“Small” is relative and normally would have included the Honeycreepers and Hummingbirds which came in earlier posts. And of course these two swallows could have also been with the Wetland Birds. I’m just trying to spread out the many bird photos from Manquenque.

The smallest birds are fun to see and try to photo, though difficult in rainforest shadows and often overcast skies. Here’s my efforts with these 6 and go back to see the Honeycreepers, Hummingbirds, and Wetland Birds if you missed those posts and like birds! 🙂 CLICK an image to enlarge.

See also my Costa Rica Birds Gallery.

And for more about the place, Maquenque Eco-Lodge & Reserve Website.

¡Pura Vida!

July 16, 2020July 16, 2020

Woodpeckers, Woodcreeper, Thrush & Wren

Okay – an odd combination! 🙂 But I’m trying not to show too many birds at one time as I continue to share the many birds I photographed at Maquenque.

My collection from the past has much better images of the Pale-billed Woodpecker but I’m lucky to have even this shot, shooting through the jungle vines, limbs, leaves to a distant and constantly moving bird – but the pale -billed is not seen that often and I wanted to include him.

The woodcreeper was also difficult to shoot among the trees but I lucked into just this one decent shot (if enlarged). Bird-photography in the rainforest is a tough challenge sometimes, but very rewarding when you get even one shot! CLICK an image to enlarge it and better see the bird.

See also my Costa Rica Birds Gallery.

And for more about the place, Maquenque Eco-Lodge & Reserve Website.

¡Pura Vida!

July 15, 2020July 14, 2020

Maquenque Hummingbirds

Here are 6 Hummingbirds that I tried to photograph, though in the dark shadows of the rainforest trees, but still interesting! CLICK image to enlarge.

See also my Costa Rica Birds Gallery.

And for more about the place: Maquenque Eco-Lodge & Reserve Website.

¡Pura Vida!

July 14, 2020July 13, 2020

Maquenque Wetland Birds

Or you could call them “water birds” since they eat fish and other water creatures requiring water. 🙂 Because there are so many rainforests and bodies of water all over Costa Rica, most of these birds are fairly common here with the featured image being an exception: The Green Ibis is seen only in a few place, more rare than the White Ibis which was not seen here this year.

I’m still working on my bird photos of 60+ species and will continue to present them here in manageable groupings and then I will introduce a Maquenque 2020 Gallery where you can see all my photos from last week’s visit to my best birding lodge in Costa Rica! While still at Maquenque, I presented these 3 groups of birds on the blog (click titile to see):

Parrots and Toucans (My “Rainforest Fireworks” for 4th of July)
Honeycreepers (a favorite small bird category)
Kingfishers (expert fishers who could be included here)

And today’s I call Wetland Birds: CLICK image to enlarge.

Tomorrow will be 6 Hummingbirds at Maquenque which were hard to photograph in the dark shade of the forest, but always interesting! 🙂

See also my Costa Rica Birds Gallery.

And for about the place, Maquenque Eco-Lodge & Reserve Website.

¡Pura Vida!

July 13, 2020July 11, 2020

Maquenque Rainforest Flowers Part 2

Flowers in the wild here are for me kind of like birds and butterflies, I find new ones almost every time I go into the forest! Here’s 14 more added to yesterday’s photo. CLICK an image to enlarge and enjoy! I’m still working on the bird photos which may take a few more days or I may present them in little groups also. Keep reading!

See also my Flora & Forest Gallery for more flowers!

¡Pura Vida!

July 12, 2020July 11, 2020

Maquenque Rainforest Flowers Part 1

Yes – these all grow wild in the rainforest even if they have moved some up near the lodge. And I really tried to get a name for each flower which I did for the 13 today and for all but 3 of the 14 for tomorrow. I make a big deal out of all the birds here and could just as easily for all the unique flowers. Enjoy and remember to CLICK an image to enlarge.

14 more rainforest flowers tomorrow in Part 2!

Maquenque Mammals

There were others of course that I don’t have photos of, like Howler Monkey I heard but did not see, squirrels, and the farm animals I did not photo like cows, horse, pigs, etc. So this is just a few with the Coati being the one seen the most! They are in the same family as the raccoon and can be bigger pests, especially for food! 🙂 CLICK an image to enlarge it.

See my CR Mammals Gallery.

Maquenque Eco –Lodge Website

¡Pura Vida!

July 10, 2020July 10, 2020

Maquenque Damsel & Dragonflies

I walked over two wetlands bridges every time I approached or left my room (3 or 4 times a day) and thus saw a lot of dragonflies, but sorry to say no really great photos, but they are always interesting! 🙂 And there is no easy way to identify this beautiful creatures. Online websites are conflicting and no dragonfly book for Costa Rica.

My CR Dragonfly Gallery has more!

By discovering nature, you discover yourself. ~Maxime Lagacé

¡Pura Vida!

July 9, 2020July 9, 2020

Coffee Break = 6 Birds!

In the post “On the Road” I mentioned that on our way back from Maquenque we stopped for coffee at Cinchona, and even though in the middle of the day, I photographed 6 species of birds while drinking one cup of coffee (10-15 minutes) AND 2 of them were lifers! That’s new birds for me! The new ones were the Bronze-tailed Plumeleteer and the Prong-billed Barbet. Every time I stop there I hope to get a shot of the Red-headed Barbet and after 3 stops, nada! But this time I got his uglier cousin. 🙂 CLICK to enlarge an image.

See my Costa Rica BIRDS Gallery for many more birds!

And this view of San Fernando Waterfall is a bonus when stopping at Soda Cinchona! 🙂 And you can see all my Costa Rica Waterfalls in my **CR Waterfalls Gallery.**

¡Pura Vida!

July 8, 2020July 21, 2020

Maquenque Butterflies

As common after trips, I’ve been overwhelmed with things to do since I returned from Maquenque Eco-Lodge and with so many bird photos to process (60+ species) it may be awhile before I share those, so here is a small collection of 7 species of butterflies. Every living thing loves Maquenque! 🙂 CLICK an image to enlarge.

It’s very tough for me to focus. I’m like: ‘Look, something shiny! No, focus. Oh, there goes a butterfly!’ ~Gabby Douglas

🙂

My Costa Rica Butterfly Gallery has more than 106 species now!

¡Pura Vida!

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Author: Charlie

Maquenque’s Small Birds

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Woodpeckers, Woodcreeper, Thrush & Wren

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Maquenque Hummingbirds

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Maquenque Wetland Birds

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Maquenque Rainforest Flowers Part 2

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Maquenque Rainforest Flowers Part 1

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Maquenque Mammals

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Maquenque Damsel & Dragonflies

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Coffee Break = 6 Birds!

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Maquenque Butterflies

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