charliedoggett.net
“He maketh me to lie down in green pastures” (Psalm 23).
I thank God daily for allowing me to live in a peaceful place surrounded by nature and the great outdoors with unlimited aspects of nature to photograph. Praise God from who all blessings flow!
“How many are your works, LORD! In wisdom you made them all; the earth is full of your creatures”. ~Psalm 104:24
And of course I have a Cows Gallery of my photos from all over Costa Rica. 🙂
¡Pura Vida!
Costa Rica is so diverse in all its species that after 10+ years here, it is still not unusual to find a new species as I have with butterflies about 4 or 5 times this year. I was processing my several photos of the Falcate Skipper shared the other day (Oct 27) and in only one of those photos, I found this other butterfly partly hiding it. I slowly and painstakingly removed the Skipper from this photo in Photoshop so I could share and post on iNaturalist & BAMONA without the confusion of another butterfly on the same flower. 🙂 This Emesis ocypore (scientific name) is not very common, found from Southern Mexico to Columbia and also in parts of Africa! Yes! On two continents! In the Americas he is most common in Costa Rica, though on iNaturalist CR there are only 19 observations reported. Mine will make #20 when I get to it! And on BAMONA only 3 now, mine will make 4! 🙂 Here is my one and only photo of this rarity from my own garden on October 17, 2025 . . .
I did start a gallery for this species, but with only this one photo! It is at this link: Dark Emesis, Emesis ocypore. Note that it is in the Metalmark Family, Riodinidae.
¡Pura Vida!
I saved what photos of flowers I made in my garden this month to share all at once on the last day of October. So below this introductory photo for the emailed version of the post is a gallery of 14 different flowers, just one shot of each species with 2 of those being wildflowers or “weed flowers” some will say. 🙂 That includes the intro photo below! Enjoy! As I have enjoyed the flowers and remember that I have a photo gallery of “My Home Gardens” (linked) that I keep adding photos to every month, thus it is always fresh or has new photos. 🙂
. . . on one of my few Golden Shrimp flowers blooming this year (not enough sun I think). This Red-tailed Stingless Bee has the scientific name of Trigona fulviventris and the Spanish common name of Abeja Culo de Vaca. I have 8+ species of bees in my Bee Gallery, with only two other shots of this species, also in my garden.
¡Pura Vida!
As I’ve said before in this blog, I really try to get both a top view and a side view(or bottom view) of every butterfly because of the sometimes big differences and the clues for good identification. Though not as radically different as some butterflies, there is a difference in the Fiery Skipper – Hylephila phyleus (my gallery link), as you can see in these two photos . . .
This striking flycatcher I’ve see on 3 trips, 3 times in my yard and once on Calle Nueva here in town. See the pix in my gallery at Streaked Flycatcher, Myiodynastes maculatus. Here’s two shots from my garden this month . . .
Not gorgeous, but another good pollinator! 🙂 This is my second time to see and photograph the Falcate Skipper, Spathilepia colonius (my gallery link), one of the many Skippers here, found from Argentina to Mexico. Here’s 2 shots, a top view and a side view, which is what I want of all butterflies! (You need both views for easy identification.) 🙂
This one with the bright blue tail is probably my second most common hummingbird this year after Rufous-tail, followed by Canivet’s Emerald which I photographed near the same time as this blue-vented, but the photos aren’t good enough to share. And you can see much better photos of this one in my gallery Blue-vented Hummingbird, Saucerottei hoffmanni OR Saucerrotia amazilia. Glad there are a few interesting birds as my butterflies are slacking off a little. Two so-so photos . . .
These green palm berries will eventually turn red and the birds will eat everyone of them, as you can see a Boat-billed Flycatcher doing in my October 11 post. 🙂 Just one of the many little interesting bits of nature found in my Leaves & Nature Things Gallery.
¡Pura Vida!
. . . but none up close. For the last couple of days I’ve heard the call or song of the Laughing Falcon, Herpetotheres cachinnans (my gallery link) coming from one of the many big trees on the hill north of me. Yesterday I was trying to find them from a distance when at least 3 of them flew overhead, possibly to K’s, above me, since he got photos of some in his trees. 🙂 I have usually had to go to national parks to see this interesting falcon, but now they are here. They are the same size as many hawks and I think an attractive bird. Another neighbor, Steve, has had one in one of his trees. Here’s two shots of one flying overhead . . .
