Category: Wildlife

Posted on

A Rare Butterfly – Leuce Yellow

I’ve seen and photographed a lot of Yellows, but not only is this one new to me, there is only one other on butterfliesandmoths and it was submitted from the Dominican Republic, West Indies. I got several shots almost identical to this one on the tiny wildflower and then he was off, not to be seen again! 🙂

Leuce Yellow, Pyrisitia leuce, Atenas, Alajuela, Costa Rica

Butterflies of America has photos only of the old-fashion pinned specimens while iNaturalist has several live photos from South America & West Indies, if you click on “View More” after their first little photos. Both of those sites have a little bit of info on the species though they don’t include it being in Costa Rica! 🙂 But that is okay because being in the geographical center of the isthmus between North & South America, we get migrants of all species from both continents! (And West Indies!) Maybe my photos will change the ranges for this butterfly on some of these “official” websites! 🙂 Right now they all say that it is only found in the West Indies (Caribbean Islands) and South America. I fooled them, didn’t I! 🙂

¡Pura Vida!

Posted on

Correcting a Butterfly ID

Two years ago, in May 2022, I did a first time trip to a new lodge for me that a friend recommended, Chachagua Rainforest Hotel (link to my trip gallery) and I got a lot of bird photos and quite a few butterflies, two of which are still unidentified. BUT, one of those I identified then was misidentified, and for that I apologize! I first called it a Western Pygmy (blog post link). In retrospect, there is no excuse, but what caused it was that because it was a tiny little fingernail-sized butterfly, I assumed (a dangerous word!) that it was one of the many in the family Lycaenidae or Gossamer-Wings butterflies because all of them are very tiny like this one. Bad assumption as I have now learned that there are tiny ones in all of the families and this one is actually in the Riodinidae or Metalmarks family! It is a Simple Sarota (my species gallery link) or the scientific name Sarota acantus (butterfliesandmoths link where only two of us have submitted photos). 🙂 So I re-submit with the correct name!

Simple Sarota, Chachagua Rainforest Hotel, San Ramon Canton, Alajuela, Costa Rica
Simple Sarota, Chachagua Rainforest Hotel, San Ramon Canton, Alajuela, Costa Rica
Simple Sarota, Chachagua Rainforest Hotel, San Ramon Canton, Alajuela, Costa Rica

¡Pura Vida!

And see all of my Costa Rica butterfly photos arranged by families and then species in my gallery: BUTTERFLIES & Moths of Costa Rica (270+ species)

Posted on

Lineated Woodpecker

The Lineated Woodpecker or Dryocopus lineatus (eBird link) is one of the more colorful woodpeckers found throughout Central America and in most of South America, standing out with their bright red head of hair! Here he is often confused with the less frequent Pale-billed Woodpecker, found only in Central America and southern Mexico, but his black face and the white neck line running all the way to his bill quickly distinguish him from the Pale-billed which cannot be identified by the bill because both have pale bills! 🙂 My Lineated Woodpecker Gallery shows that I’ve seen him all over Costa Rica including more than once here in my garden where this one was photographed in my Cecropia Tree last week, my favorite bird tree! 🙂

Lineated Woodpecker, Atenas, Alajuela, Costa Rica
Continue reading “Lineated Woodpecker”
Posted on

Brazilian Skipper

While at Villa Lapas in Tarcoles last month, I got only one butterfly with a decent photo and it is another semi-unusual or not seen much here butterfly, though on butterfliesandmoths it seems to be quite common in the Eastern USA. It is the Brazilian Skipper, Calpodes ethlius (link to my gallery) and this was my second time to see one. Here’s just one photo . . .

Brazilian Skipper, Hotel Villa Lapas, Tarcoles, Puntarenas, Costa Rica

¡Pura Vida!

Posted on

Canivet’s Emerald Hummingbird

This “uncommon” Central American Hummingbird also has another common name now (in one book) of “Salvin’s Emerald” and the scientific name with either is “Cynanthus canivetii” and you can read more about them on eBird. This is my third time to see this species, all in my garden, and it was difficult to ID all three times! 🙂 See all my other shots in Canivet’s Emerald Gallery. There you will see the big difference in male and female. This one I’m featuring today is a female that I shot in my garden two weeks ago. Yes, I’m that far ahead on my blog posts thanks to that little two-night trip and I hope to stay somewhat ahead! 🙂 And oh yes, my main hummingbird continues to be the Rufous-tailed Hummingbird and I will share another photo of him soon I hope.

Canivet’s Emerald, Female, Atenas, Alajuela, Costa Rica

¡Pura Vida!

Posted on

Cyptic Remella

This is my second time to see the Cyptic Remella, Ramella vopiscus (my gallery link) and only 3 of us have reported this species on butterfliesandmoths. My other sighting was on the Caribbean Coast at Hotel Banana Azul. I continue to be amazed at the huge number of butterfly species here in Costa Rica and my collection continues to grow. Here’s two shots of this Remella . . .

Cyptic Remella, Atenas, Alajuela, Costa Rica
Continue reading “Cyptic Remella”
Posted on

Introducing A New Bird Book!

CLICK this front cover image to see a free preview of all pages!

To celebrate what will be 10 years of living in Costa Rica come December, I decided to publish a coffee table book of my favorite bird photos that turned out to be a lot! 174 photos! Each includes both the English and Spanish common names of that bird plus the location where I photographed it. Whether a birder or a lover of “Nature As Art,” I think you will like this 86 page photo book printed on premium matte paper. It might even become a collector’s item some day! 🙂 It will definitely become the book that I gift to the birding lodges I visit over the next year or two! 🙂

You can see a free electronic preview of all 86 pages by clicking the above image of the book cover or go to this web address: https://www.blurb.com/b/11961281-costa-rica-birds

BACK COVER of the book.

¡Pura Vida!

Posted on

13 Singing – 1 Photographed!

Since around the first of the year I have been using the sound identification feature of my Merlin phone app to identify birds. For years I only used it to identify birds by photograph. I was slow to adapt to the new sound recording ability, always hesitant to add new technology, like the old man that I am! 🙂 But when I did, I was so surprised at how easy it was to punch a button and record singing birds, usually many at at the same time! With it identifying each one and highlighting the ones singing at that moment! While at Carara Park a week or so ago I heard almost 3 times as many as I photographed! But I still prefer photos! 🙂

So while preparing my breakfast the other morning I turned it on and in 10 minutes it recorded 13 different species singing around my house! Including 2 Trogons! (Black-headed & Gartered). So I took my camera with me to the terrace to eat breakfast and hopefully see and photograph some of those 13. I got useable photos of only one! 🙂

It was the Yellow-green Vireo, Vireo flavoviridis (eBird link) shown by eBird to appear from the southern edges of the USA to the northern edges of South America, so in other words, mostly a Central American! 🙂 Here’s 3 shots from my terrace the other morning while drinking coffee after breakfast. And to be fair, I did see 2 others of those 13 recorded, but did not get useable photos of the Clay-colored Thrush or the Blue-gray Tanager (their back sides). And you can see other photos of this one in my Yellow-green Vireo Gallery which I’ve seen only 2 other times here in Atenas and nowhere else. Now here’s 3 shots from the other morning, including one of him/her singing . . .

Yellow-green Vireo, Atenas, Alajuela, Costa Rica
Continue reading “13 Singing – 1 Photographed!”