Category: Retired

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Zoo Birds?

Sure! I photograph ALL BIRDS, anywhere I find them, and many zoos are great places for birds, with some you will never get to see in the wild!

One of my many “quarantine projects” is getting my old “pre-Costa Rica” photos in my online gallery where I can see, use or reference them. One of the biggest galleries I am now working on is the gazillion photos I made at Nashville Zoo, my favorite zoo in the whole world!

And my first sub-gallery for Nashville Zoo is of course BIRDS! Today (Monday) I just finished my Nashville Zoo BIRDS gallery with 65 different species and a few of my favorite photos from Nashville days. About 6 of those are “wild” birds that just flew in for the ponds, trees, etc. Just be aware that these are older photos made between 2004 & 2014 and some birds may not still be there and of course there are new animals there I’ve never seen!   🙂

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First page of Nashville Zoo Birds alphabetically. Each is a gallery with multiple photos of that bird.

That got me thinking about the birds I’ve seen and photographed at other zoos, so today (Monday) I created a new page for my big BIRDS gallery:  Links to BIRDS in ZOOS with literally hundreds of bird photos from around the world and 40 zoos! Only a few birds in each zoo, none comparing to my Nashville Zoo collection, but a lot of birds and fun to collect! Staying busy at home!   🙂

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What the links page look like in my BIRDS Gallery.

 

¡Pura Vida!

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Unknown Insect

More than a week ago I cellphone-snapped a shot of this funny-looking flying bug in a drop of water on my bathroom counter. He was gone the next morning, either flown away or eaten by one of my many geckos.

Retirement in Costa Rica does include living with bugs and this year’s “pre-rainy season” seems to have included more than usual for me, especially flying  insects around the lights at night. I sometimes just never turn on the light in my bedroom at night to avoid being bothered by flying insects when in bed.   🙂

We hope that, when the insects take over the world, they will remember with gratitude how we took them along on all our picnics.     ~Bill Vaughan

 

🙂

¡Pura Vida!

 

See my photo galleries:  More Insects   –  OR   –   the separate Butterflies gallery. Insects are truly amazing!

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My Bird Count Today

Today is “Global Big Day” of counting birds where you live to help science better see what is happening to the health of our planet. I was out from 5:30 AM to 7:15 AM along the border between our housing project, Roca Verde, and the adjacent farms on the border-line gravel road called Calle Nueva (literally “New Street”) that serves as one emergency evacuation road from Atenas along with being a great nature walk and road for bicycles.

I’ve had better days and worse days of birding on that road, so maybe “average” is what the scientists want!   🙂   I observed at least 60 birds of more than 12 species, which is the number of species I photographed. I only report on eBird what I get photos of, which is not the typical eBird user, but I feel more confident with my reports because of that and eBird has volunteer “checkers” to make sure I labeled a bird correctly. Of my 60 seen, 30 were one flock of parakeets!   🙂

It was overcast or cloudy almost the whole time I was out, meaning poor light and white skies as terrible backgrounds most of the time! Only one photo has even a semblance of a blue sky. That’s life! There were no “lifers” or first-time birds for me, though my first time in Roca Verde to see and photograph the Rufous-capped Warbler, and the photo included here is of him “warbling!”   🙂   The name link is to my gallery with shots of this bird from 4 other locations in Costa Rica and some are better shots. And then maybe a first for me at Roca Verde is the juvenile or “immature” Yellow-faced Grassquit which at that age does not have the bright yellow on his face.

Here’s my mostly weak photos against drab skies, but they show you what I saw today:

9 May 2020 Birds

On March 29 I got 19 species of birds on this same walk on Calle Nueva.

See all of my BIRDS galleries or go for just Costa Rica Birds.

¡Pura Vida!

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WILDFLOWERS – Tennessee & Costa Rica

Okay, yesterday I compared waterfalls so today as I finished my last gallery in the Pre-Costa Rica TENNESSEE Photos gallery, I must do the same with wildflowers. The last gallery for the state of Tennessee is simply Tennessee WILDFLOWERS and again I tried to pick just one photo from each of about 150 species of wildflowers for this gallery with more variety or multiple images in the location galleries where they first appear. The wildflowers were another of the many elements of nature that I enjoyed during my 37 years in Tennessee with an amazing variety!

Shot with Velvia Film
Tennessee Coneflower  —  Growing across from my Nashville row house in the Bicentennial Capital Mall State Park where I spent many hours with nature.

And the featured photo at top is on a huge Magnolia tree in the same park near my house. The beauty of nature is everywhere!

-o-

Similarly I have enjoyed the beautiful tropical wildflowers (most of my garden is wildflowers). See my Costa Rica through regional flower galleries in my big gallery of flowers I call FLORA & FOREST Costa Rica. Click and enjoy! I’ve only been here 5 and a half years, but spend most of my time with nature now! Just one of the many reasons I love being Retired in Costa Rica!

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Growing in a ditch along my street uphill from my house. Pura vida!

 

“Do you know why wildflowers are the most beautiful blossoms of all, my son?”

Dain shook his little head.

Soft waxen curls blew forward in the breeze as she lifted her storm-gray eyes to gaze out over the sea of petals. “Wildflowers are the loveliest of all because they grow in uncultivated soil, in those hard, rugged places where no one expects them to flourish. They are resilient in ways a garden bloom could never be. People are the same, son—the most exquisite souls are those who survive where others cannot. They root themselves, along with their companions, wherever they are, and they thrive.”

― Micheline Ryckman, The Maiden Ship

 

¡Pura vida!

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What is it?

Sidewalk graffiti? Gang tag? Logo? Coat of Arms?  —  Something else interesting, like the flowers that I see on my walks. You see so much when you walk! Why would I ever want a car again?  🙂

¡Pura Vida!

 

 

NOTICE: Authorities have stated that borders will remain closed until May 15, 2020. We will wait on the Decree that regulates this to determine what other measures are impacted by this new date.

Sorry tourists! You will have to wait until at least May 15 or longer if the border closing is extended more.

BUT COSTA RICA IS ON THE DOWNHILL SIDE OF ITS COVID19 CASES CURVE! All the efforts of social distancing, hand-washing and business and event closings has paid off in a big way! And no stupid Republicans here to demonstrate against health protections!   🙂   We work together here! Read on . . .

TICO TIMES ARTICLES:

Costa Rica adds fewest number of known COVID-19 cases in more than a month

Costa Rica extends coronavirus border restrictions until May 15

Migrants traveling to U.S., stranded in the Panamanian jungle, now face COVID-19

Rincón de la Vieja Volcano registers moderate eruption   (One I visited last year. See article for video of eruption.)

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Mini-Art in my Garden

All art is but imitation of nature.

Seneca the Younger
No new flower or wildlife in these photos, but each one is a new expression of “nature as art” as I walked through my garden Sunday with camera in hand. I love doing this occasionally and though maybe the same subjects, the art is different each time!

And that Yigüirro is singing his heart out every day now “calling the rains in” which happens every April in anticipation of the May rains or the beginning of the rainy season, our winter here. That is why he is the national bird of Costa Rica.

See my FLORA & FOREST Gallery for more flowers or Birds Gallery or Butterfly Gallery. 

¡Pura Vida!

🙂

 

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Widening our bridge

One of the things that drives perfectionist Americans crazy about Costa Rica is the multitude of one-lane bridges all over the country even in the cities! Look no further than right outside the main gate to Roca Verde Housing Development! Our entrance gate is on Avenida 8, better known by the little bario (neighborhood) there as Calle Boquerón. Just outside our gate going towards central Atenas you cross the little rainy season stream that goes by the cow pasture in front of my house. And of course on a one-lane bridge! Don’t know why or who influenced it, but the city of Atenas is widening that little bridge.

The concrete tubing for water flow has already been extended and fill dirt and rocks added around it and as I photographed Monday they were pouring concrete for maybe a base to something or a wall? These two school kids out of school for Coronavirus will probably soon be joining the city construction team as they sit here and learn how easy it is to build a bridge over a concrete pipe.   🙂

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Walking from town, the bridge is just before Roca Verde gate on the right.  Note also on the right the pedestrian sidewalk & bridge built by volunteers a few years ago.

 

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School’s out and these two boys are learning how a bridge is built here over a big pipe!

 

“If Rome had been built in a day we would have used the same contractor.”

¡Pura Vida!

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Dental Emergencies Only

Monday I returned to my dentist to see if the infection was gone so they can finish my root canal, stuffing it with something they get from a tropical tree. Unfortunately it still had infection though improved a lot and not painful, but I need more antibiotics and time. I wait 2 more weeks for it to be completed. Patience!

And when I arrived I witnessed this new sign (feature photo) taped to the front door that they now accept only emergencies, but they assured me that my infection is included in what the government accepts as “emergencies.” So I do get to go back in 2 weeks for what I hope is the last time!   🙂

Everything is different now with Coronavirus! The whole world is in a state of change!

They must often change, who would be constant in happiness or wisdom.

~Confucius

¡Pura Vida!

 

And if the virus caused you to cancel your Costa Rica vacation, try this very short 1 minute “Virtual Vacation”  video clip. ¡Pura vida!

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Butterflies

These two common butterflies were photographed in my garden last Friday – not brilliant but always interesting as all wildlife! See more of my butterfly photos in my Butterflies Gallery.

Beautiful and graceful, varied and enchanting, small but approachable, butterflies lead you to the sunny side of life. And everyone deserves a little sunshine.     

~Jeffrey Glassberg

🙂

¡Pura Vida!

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Green Orchid Bee

The Green Orchid Bee or Euglossa dilemma (Wikipedia) is a Central American Bee found only here naturally (and occasionally in my garden) though recently introduced into South Florida (an invasive species there). I like them for their iridiscente green color added to my garden from time to time. I do have a Bees Gallery for more photos of this and other bees here. Just one of the thousands of interesting insects in Costa Rica that I enjoy watching!   🙂   See also my Butterflies and More Insects Galleries for more bugs!

Green Orchid Bee

In my garden, Roca Verde, Atenas, Costa Rica.

¡Pura Vida!