Category: Wildlife

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New Ranking of Birding Lodges

On January 5, 2020 I did a Blog Post 2020 Ranking of My Birding Lodges, which is now out of date and it even included Nicaragua and Panama lodges, where today’s is only Costa Rica and I have included the multiple trips to places I repeat with each bird count, but only those with 10 or more birds photographed by me. Even on eBird I count only the ones I get a photo of. These are from my birding visits since 2015, my first year living in Costa Rica.

Montezuma Oropendola at Arenal Observatory

The Feature Photo at top is my Treehouse Room at Maquenque Lodge, Boca Tapada.

And the 2021 Rankings by number of species are . . .

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Broad-banded Swallowtail

Broad-banded Swallowtail, Papilio astyalu, Atenas, Alajuela, Costa Rica

This is a new species for me. Many swallowtails are similar but the distinction of this one is the large cell spot on each upper wing, backside. Similar ones are Giant, Thomas, and Ornythion Swallowtails. In fact, the first one I photographed was at Monteverde that I had labeled as a Thomas Swallowtail. But I was wrong. It is now in my Broad-banded gallery, based on those two cel spots again.

You can read about the Broad-banded Swallowtail or Papilio astyalus on Wikipedia or see more photos I’ve made in my new Broad-banded Swallowtail Gallery. I base my ID on photos in the book A Swift Guide to Butterflies of Mexico and Central America and particularly the two big cell spots on the upper wings. Butterflies continue to amaze me! And below are 5 new shots of this new one for me . . .

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The Blessing of “Heart Treasures”

This beautiful Sunday morning I allow nature to wake me with the sunrise and sounds of a variety of birds in the trees around my casita. I eventually walk out on the terrace to witness the golden glow of distant hills around Atenas as the sun rises and I feel the refreshing cool morning air enter my lungs. I scan the trees and flowers for any creature stirring and then I prepare my breakfast to eat on the terrace, absorbing more of God’s natural beauty.

Morning on my terrace.

“The true blessings of life are the treasures hidden in the reservoirs of the human heart.”

~T. D. Jakes

Let me tell you about more heart treasures including a big new one coming this week . . .

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Banded Peacock on Zinnias

In addition to that leaf collection yesterday from “Country Lane,” I got this Banded Peacock Butterfly on the Zinnias one house has planted along the gravel road. Of course I have a Banded Peacock Gallery of my earlier photos which is a part of the bigger set of Costa Rica Butterflies Galleries.

¡Pura Vida!

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Experiencing Nature

My newest photo book is my cheapest ($8.83), smallest ( 6×9 in, 15×23 cm) and shortest (30 pages) as an introduction to why I retired in Costa Rica with 47 photos demonstrating my nature photography here. It’s not exactly a portfolio because of the cheaper paper, but . . . it actually is a cheaper version of a portfolio 🙂 and it also describes the 5 ways I experience nature and share it. As with all my books there is a FREE PREVIEW electronically of all pages in the bookstore at:

https://www.blurb.com/b/10782574-experiencing-nature-retired-in-costa-rica

Or click the front cover image below:

My Newest Book

This will become my “give-away” book to guides, lodges and others here in Costa Rica, since some of my other books are too expensive to keep giving them away as I have been. But I’m still not in the photo-selling or book-selling business. I’m retired! 🙂 I make my photos to share with others online and the books become ways to do that physically on occasions. Prints and wall art are available in my gallery with no profit for me, just a good service of (and profit for) my gallery host. 🙂

And while you’re in my bookstore, check out some of my other photo books! They have free previews too!

🙂

¡Pura Vida!

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Unidentified Moth or Skipper

I have the largest book I can find on butterflies and moths in Costa Rica and yet I continue to find and photograph live specimens not in my books nor can I find on the many websites – a little frustrating for someone who likes to label everything! 🙂 But anyway, here’s my newest unidentified butterfly/moth found in my garden in Atenas, Alajuela, Costa Rica:

On the outside wall of my house by the garden, Atenas, Costa Rica

Because I expect to be able to identify all my butterfly/moth photos, I’m frustrated:

“Expectation is the mother of all frustration. “

~Antonio Banderas

🙂

¡Pura Vida!

All my CR Butterfly/Moth Galleries

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Unknown Black Butterfly/Moth

Another new one today! And like those Skippers, I can’t identify with my books or the internet. This one is possibly a moth but not necessarily! 🙂 Since June 24 I’ve been trying to photo a new/different butterfly every day. I missed 3 days, but have posted 10 almost in a row and all 10 different. 🙂 Doesn’t take much to entertain me! 🙂 And that shows the vairety of butterflies in my garden!

Unknown Black or Charcoal Butterfly/Moth
https://www.cafepress.com/charliedoggett

¡Pura Vida!

I’m going to put this one in my Unidentified Moths Gallery, but you will see almost similar in my Unidentified Skippers Gallery and some identified Skipper Galleries. Or peruse all my Costa Rica Butterflies & Moths Gallery.

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Female White Angled-Sulphur

Three days ago I had a photo of a male which includes the 2 bright yellow splotches on upper wings and four little brown dots. The female of this species is all white but different from the all-white Florida White because of the very strong veins. Often the males and females are like two different species in butterflies and birds. 🙂

Female White Angled-Sulphur, Atenas, Costa Rica

¡Pura Vida!

See my White Angled Sulphur Gallery or the bigger CR Butterflies Gallery.

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Unnoticed Browns & Golds

And unidentified for me! Skippers take up almost half the pages in my butterfly ID book, 119 pages with only 161 pages for all the other butterflies! Plus browns & golds are a dominant color on possibly most of them, so you will forgive me for not finding these two Skipper butterflies in the book for identification. In my galleries I have identified seventeen different specific Skippers and have only one gallery for Unidentified Skippers with only 7 in it. 🙂 There is a general article on all 3,500 known Skippers on Wikipedia.

Skipper, Atenas, Costa Rica
Skipper, Atenas, Costa Rica

You thought I was going to run out of unique butterflies didn’t you? 🙂 Well, when I do I will go to other nature and the birds have been mostly away from my house the last week or so. And I will keep looking for more butterflies! My Costa Rica Butterflies Galleries. I have all the Skippers together alphabetically, Skipper, name; Skipper, next, etc.

¡Pura Vida!

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Butterfly & Holiday/Health Report

Like me recovering from cancer and the just-as-bad cancer treatment, this pitiful-looking damaged butterfly is still flying and eating! 🙂 He is a Ilus swallowtail or Dual-spotted swallowtail, Mimoides ilus (Wikipedia link) and note that it is very similar to another butterfly that I originally labeled this as, the Emerald-patched Cattleheart. The main difference is the Cattleheart has emerald or light-green spots on the upper wings instead of white as this Swallowtail has. (And by the way, Cattlehearts are in the Swallowtail family!) See my Dual-spotted Swallowtail Gallery or all of my CR Butterflies. Note that in the additional photos below this feature image there is one of a non-damaged Dual-spotted that got in my house on the window screen before I opened it and let him fly out.

Damaged Dual-spotted Swallowtail, Atenas, Costa Rica

And some more shots including of one not damaged (+ health update) . . .

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