Night Hike Frogs

Last night before a late dinner I took the “Night Walk” which is always a favorite almost everywhere I go in Costa Rica and especially here with the large variety of wildlife! I was the only participant and my guide favored frogs as I do, though we did see some spiders and other creatures, I will just share the 7 frog photos I got which included 3 or 4 new species for me. And thanks to Antonio for helping to make most of these photos! Young people handle cell phones better than us old guys!  🙂

This morning I finally got to go on the rubber raft “Safari” on the Rio Tres Amigos and though not a large number of birds, I did get a nesting Sunbittern! A Rare sight! I will share on some future blog post, but for now, last night’s 7 different species of frogs . . .

The Guide called it a “Green Bone Tree Frog” while online I found it without the green. Boca Tapada, Costa Rica

Continue reading “Night Hike Frogs”

Masked Tree Frog

The brown on either side of the eye appears to go through the eye and is thus “the mask.” Like many frog species, he comes in different colors making ID less obvious as you can see in my Masked Tree Frog GALLERY or read about the Smilisca phaeota on Wikipedia.  We found him in the fountain pool outside the Reception Lobby of Arenal Observatory Lodge.

Smilisca phaeota, Masked Tree Frog, Arenal Observatory, Costa Rica

 

 

 

¡Pura Vida!

And . . .

Historic Biodiversity Agreement in Montreal!  Tico Times article

Night Hike Creatures

Masked Tree Frog
Villa Blanca Cloud Forest Reserve
Near San Ramon, Costa Rica

Masked Tree Frog
Villa Blanca Cloud Forest Reserve
Near San Ramon, Costa Rica

Masked Tree Frog
Villa Blanca Cloud Forest Reserve
Near San Ramon, Costa Rica

Unknown Frog 
 Villa Blanca Cloud Forest Reserve
Near San Ramon, Costa Rica

Slim-fingers Rain Frog 
 Villa Blanca Cloud Forest Reserve
Near San Ramon, Costa Rica
Bullfrog   (Really Big!)
Villa Blanca Cloud Forest Reserve
Near San Ramon, Costa Rica

Pug-nosed Anole 
 Villa Blanca Cloud Forest Reserve
Near San Ramon, Costa Rica

One of 3 Species of Walking Stick Insects
Villa Blanca Cloud Forest Reserve
Near San Ramon, Costa Rica

One of 3 Species of Walking Stick Insects We Saw
Villa Blanca Cloud Forest Reserve
Near San Ramon, Costa Rica

One of 3 Species of Walking Stick Insects We Saw
Villa Blanca Cloud Forest Reserve
Near San Ramon, Costa Rica

Wolf Spider
Villa Blanca Cloud Forest Reserve
Near San Ramon, Costa Rica

Forest Floor Millipede 
 Villa Blanca Cloud Forest Reserve
Near San Ramon, Costa Rica

White-crowned Parrot Sleeping 
 Villa Blanca Cloud Forest Reserve
Near San Ramon, Costa Rica

Obviously this night hike was dominated my many kinds of frogs. I do the night hike every time it is offered in one of these nature lodges and they are all very interesting and very different. On this trip we saw two snakes but I did not get a usable photo. We also saw some other kinds of frogs not shown here, lots of other insects, and heard even more. It was about 2 hours in the dark with our only light being flashlights, even for the photos, which explains partly why these photos aren’t so good. And this was unusual to not see a red-eyed tree frog, but we had the masked tree frogs which I guess you could call blue-eyed!  🙂  We also saw no mammals including no bats, no owls or other birds beyond the sleeping parrots. Each hike is unique!

I still have many other interesting photos from the first day which will just have to come later! This morning was the bird hike and I’ll show those photos tomorrow. I like it here! Not touristy and not many people! Their website link again:  Villa Blanca Cloud Forest Resort and Nature Reserve.

My Trip Gallery on this visit


¡Pura Vida!