Category: Garden

Both my gardens and ones I visit

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Brazilian Skipper

I saw this simple little guy with his distinctive three squarish spots two or three times in October and here’s just two of the photos with more to be seen in my Brazilian Skipper Gallery. As the butterfly season slows down here (peak time for me is May-September) I am seeing less of the more colorful butterflies and many more of the skippers. I just roughly counted more than 20 species of skippers photographed in October this year! And around 4 or 5 were new species for me! This one was not new but is a nice little Skipper that is also seen in a good portion of the states.

Brazilian Skipper, Atenas, Alajuela, Costa Rica
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Spiders . . .

. . . are almost no one’s favorite wildlife, even though they are an important part of ecology and eliminate other less desirable insects. I try to photograph many of them that I see at home and when traveling which can be seen in my Spider Gallery of photos. Here’s two of the lastest seen at my house, one inside and one outside . . .

Genus Kiekie Spider, Atenas, Alajuela, Costa Rica
Golden Orbweaver Spider, Atenas, Alajuela, Costa Rica

¡Pura Vida!

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Banded Yellow

This is a new species for me and thus no gallery yet. Though this Banded Yellow, Eurema elathea is is very similar to the Barred Yellow, Eurema diaria which is in my gallery and I could have some of those mis-identified, or this one! 🙂 I still struggle with some identifications, but believe this one to be Eurema elathea, which is more common in South America, but we have lots of South American butterflies here in Costa Rica and iNaturalist Costa Rica has recorded 9 observations.

Banded Yellow, Eurema elathea, Atenas, Alajuela, Costa Rica

¡Pura Vida!

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White-winged Dove

One of my “regulars” here is the White-winged Dove, Zenaida asiatica (my gallery link). They are found from the southern half of the United States on south as far as Columbia in South America.

And by the way, the morning I wrote this post (Wed), I had a young Kee-billed Toucan in my Cecropia Tree, the first I’ve seen for awhile, but I did not have my camera with me and as I pulled out my cell phone, he flew away. But hopefully I will start getting toucan photos again! 🙂

White-winged Dove, Atenas, Alajuela, Costa Rica

¡Pura Vida!

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Hecale Longwing

Hecale Longwing, Heliconius Hecale (my gallery link) is found from Mexico south to the Peruvian Amazon, including my garden in Costa Rica! 🙂 My gallery includes sightings in 8 different Costa Rica locations on both slopes. Here’s a side view and a top view recently in my garden:

Hecale Longwing, Atenas, Alajuela, Costa Rica
Hecale Longwing, Atenas, Alajuela, Costa Rica

¡Pura Vida!

Toucan Sighting with No Photo!

Have I told you yet that a Keel-billed Toucan landed in my Cecropia Tree the other morning after breakfast? He was smaller than some, so probably immature or not quite an adult. And it was one of the few mornings that I did not take my camera with me to breakfast on the terrace! I slowly pulled the cell phone out of my pocket and turned it on just as he flew away! Oh well, that’s life! ¡Así es la vida! 🙂 And my camera has been with me for breakfast every day since! 🙂

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Yigüirro or Clay-colored Thrush

The national bird of Costa Rica was thought by the indigenous people to sing in the rainy season at the end of the dry season, late April or May. It is the Clay-colored Thrush, Turdus grayi (my gallery link) and is found from South Texas throughout Central America and in Columbia. There are always Yigüirros in my garden. Read about on eBird.

Clay-colored Thrush, Atenas, Alajuela, Costa Rica

¡Pura Vida!

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Great Kiskadee

Another regular visitor in my garden is the Great Kiskadee, Pitangus sulphuratus (my gallery link) is another common bird throughout Central and South America. Read more about him on eBird.

Great Kiskadee, Atenas, Alajuela, Costa Rica.

¡Pura Vida!