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There are many Whites and some are easily confused, but this one seems to be the most common in my garden and you can see other photos of it in my Gallery: Giant White, Ganyra josephina. Here’s 2 photos (when possible, I always try to get a side view & top view) of the one in my garden 3 days ago . . .
This is just one of the many looks of the Fiery Skipper, Hylephila phyleus (my gallery link) as you can see in that gallery link. Just one shot here from my garden the other day . . .
¡Pura Vida!
The Motmot is sitting on the gutter of my house looking down into my gardens for insects to eat. 🙂 And remember that my house is on the side of a hill, so I can walk up the hill and look down on my roof. 🙂 The motmots are more frequent this year which maybe makes up for the fewer toucans I see now. See more photos in my gallery: Lesson’s Motmot. (From all over Costa Rica.)
And read on for a link to the newest Costa Rica nature video on YouTube… And the unexpected death of my next door neighbor.
¡Pura Vida!
Continue reading “Motmot, New CR Video & Neighbor’s Death”
There are two ponds here at Esquinas Rainforest Lodge, and both can have Caiman in them, with a total of 3 Caiman living here, a smaller version of the American Alligator. They are a native wild animal in this area, seen in most forests and farms. The 2 shots on land were at the central pond and the water shot at the Caiman Pond along the entrance road. Below these 3 Caiman photos are three of me and my birthday cake last night when the younger staff members sang “Happy Birthday” to me – in English! The first time since I moved to CR 10+ years ago! I had gotten use to “Feliz Cumpleaños.” 😊
See more of my photos of Caiman in my Caiman Gallery.
The Heraldica Clearwing, Ithomia heraldica (my gallery link) is a common-looking orange & black butterfly that’s found only in Costa Rica and Panama say some sources, while others say from Columbia to Mexico. Either way, mostly Central America. Here’s a couple of shots from my trek on Calle Nueva the other day.
seen on Calle Nueva that morning are the same as what I have regularly in my garden. Check out my photo collections in their two galleries with better photos than these two:
This same species of Anole I posted in 2018 and thought then that one of my books called it a “Stream Anole,” but I am now using iNaturalist more now (but use both books & it) and this is the iNaturalist match for both photos of this species: Copper Anole, Abaniquillo Centroamericano de Bosque Seco, Anolis cupreus (my gallery link). It is found only in 3 countries, Costa Rica, Nicaragua and Guatemala and here only on the Pacific Slope. It is interesting to see the big difference in how he looks when displaying his dewlap and not in these two photos . . .
Mexican Heather – Cuphea hyssopifolia (Wikipedia link) is sometimes called “False Heather” because it is not a real heather or even in the Heather family, just another unique Central American flower. This one was a “hitchhiker” with another plant from a nursery (Vivero), I think it came with one of the Lantanas that I bought and planted. Anyway, I like it as something a little different and have it in a pot with some Lantana where it attracts only those tiny little butterflies like Blues and Hairstreaks.
“Every flower is a soul blossoming in nature.” – Gerard de Nerval
¡Pura Vida!
Or it seems that I will do anything for one! 🙂 That is why I like going to the nature lodges where you can get closer to such colorful birds. Well, here are my step by step procedures for one of those many that come near my house (plus waiting for a blue sky!) 🙂 . . .
Continue reading “Anything for a Parrot Pix!”
He’s back! (And while the wind is still blowing!) As one of the most common tiny butterflies in my garden each year, maybe he is signaling the beginning of “butterfly season?” 🙂 The Rounded Metalmark, Calephelis perditalis (my gallery link) is only a little bigger than my thumbnail and yet is one of the most intricately-designed of all the butterflies. I even used a photo of one on my 2023 Christmas Card! 🙂
This one is the first of that species in my garden this year, but I expect there to be many more! 🙂 And a funny thing to me is that all my many photos of this species have come from my garden, not even one from another location in Costa Rica! But iNaturalist CR shows them all over, on both slopes, but with more in the hills and on the Pacific Slope for whatever reason.
¡Pura Vida!