It was Monday February 15th
and it was an optional early start to explore the grounds at La Ensenada with
most of the group taking up the option.
We walked in the opposite direction this morning across an open area. We found a pair of Black-headed Trogons
within the compound of the lodge that provided some nice views and as we
started to walk away from the compound a Roseate Spoonbill flew over. A Streak-backed Oriole was then found amongst
a party of feeding Baltimore Orioles and yet another Ferruginous Pygmy Owl was
seen and observed. Three hummingbirds
feeding in a tree were identified as Ruby-throated and a little further on we
had added Spotted Sandpiper, Hoffmann’s Woodpecker, White-fronted Amazon,
Orange-fronted Parakeet, Rufus-naped Wren, White-lored Gnatcatcher and
Melodious Blackbird. We continued up to
the top of a slight incline to the edge of a piece of woodland. There were a few birds feeding in the canopy
of several of the trees and we found three Rose-throated Becards and two
Tropical Gnatcatchers and a White-necked Puffbird performed well nearby. As we walked back for breakfast there was a
Common Squirrel Cuckoo, a Gartered Trogon, a Panama Flycatcher and two
White-coloured Seedeaters and a Crested Caracara flew over.
Black-headed Trogon
Gartered Trogon
White-necked Puffbird
White-necked Puffbird
White-throated Magpie-Jay
After breakfast we planned to
do a short walk in an attempt to see a Long-tailed Manakin before we left for
our final destination but I walked down to the jetty before we did so. I saw a Magnificent Frigatebird and three
Brown Pelican over the sea and there were two Semipalmated Plovers on the rocks
to the right and Royal Terns were packed tightly on the rails of the jetty,
amongst which there were a few Sandwich Terns and several Laughing Gulls were
actually on the Jetty along with twenty Ruddy Turnstones and ten Surfbirds.
Surfbird
When the group had assembled
we drove the short distance close to where we had seen all the birds yesterday
but this time walked up an incline. In
some scrub near the bottom of the slope there was a Grey-crowned Yellowthroat
and as we walked up the hill we had several views of a Spectacled Owl as it
moved ahead of us. We entered the edge
of the woodland where several birds were called but all I managed to get on was
a Yellow Warbler. As we walked back down
the slope two Long-billed Gnatwrens were found but they were quite difficult to
see as they were keeping in cover and were constantly on the move. They were calling constantly, which helped in
tracking them and with patience I eventually got reasonable views.
Grey-crowned Yellowthroat
Other species we had before
departing were American Black Vulture, Inca Dove, Common Ground Dove,
While-tipped Dove, Groove-billed Ani, Great Kiskadee, Tropical Kingbird,
White-throated Magpie-Jay, Clay-coloured Thrush, Montezuma Oropendola,
Great-tailed Grackle and Tennessee Warbler.
We didn’t see very much on the
journey to our final destination at the Hotel Villa Lapas and we arrived just
before lunch. It was rather chaotic when
we arrived with several busses appearing to be getting ready to leave and so we
went through the restaurant to view the river.
There wasn’t too much on view but we did have several Jesus Christ
Lizards, so called because of their ability to run across water.
The plan for the afternoon was
another boat trip into the mangroves and initially I wasn’t sure if I wanted to
go having done something similar yesterday and this one being an additional
cost on the trip. However after
considering the potential species I decided to go, which led to the whole group
participating.
After some lunch and checking
into our rooms we left on the bus for the boat trip. There was a planned stop off on route to
visit some woodland and although the reason was being kept secret I was hoping
that it might be to see Black-and-white Owl, which Richard and I had been
putting pressure on Yehudi to deliver on.
We followed Yehudi through a
plantation of balsa wood and turned left where he stopped after a short
distance under a rather large tree. He
placed his scope looking away from the tree and then told everyone how he been
put under pressure to deliver on owls this week and as he was half looking away
in the direction of the scope I assumed that what we were about to see would be
in the direction of the scope. He then
said the last of the owls was Black-and-white and turned and said there are two
just here. I looked up to see two Black-and-white
Owls sitting side by side just above us and the scope wasn’t even needed. We spent about fifteen to twenty minutes
observing and photographing the owls before we returned to the bus and
continued on to for boat trip.
Black-and-white Owl
Black-and-white Owl
Black-and-white Owl
Black-and-white Owl
The boat trip was with Jose´s
Crocodile River Tour, which is based on the River Tarcoles. Once we were all on the boat we set off downstream
and then took a right turn and followed a channel in the mangroves. One of the first birds we saw as we left the
key was a Zone-tailed Hawk, which was one of the birds I was hoping to
see. There was also a Wood Stork and a
Roseate Spoonbill on the sandbank opposite and six Blue-winged Teals on the
opposite bank. As we turned and headed
for the channel there were several American Crocodiles resting on the exposed
shore along with an immature Yellow-crowned Night-heron and a Little Blue
Heron. There were at least three
Boat-billed Herons and three Black-crowned Night-herons roosting in the
mangroves as the channel narrowed.
Zone-tailed Hawk
Zone-tailed Hawk
Zone-tailed Hawk
Bare-throated Tiger-heron
Bare-throated Tiger-heron
Bare-throated Tiger-heron
American Crocodile
Immature Yellow-crowned Night-heron
Boat-billed Heron
We spent quite some time
slowly cruising down the channel with frequent stops to look at birds before we
turned and headed back. We had a
Scaly-breasted Hummingbird, two Steely-vented Hummingbirds but unfortunately
there was no sign of any Mangrove Hummingbird.
We saw two Green-backed Herons, two Great Blue Herons, four Great White
Egrets, a Tricoloured Heron, another four Little Blue Herons and four Snowy
Egrets. Common Black Hawks were just
that, with seven being seen that included an immature and we had at least five
Green Kingfishers and a single American Pygmy Kingfisher. Prothonotary Warblers were quite common with
at least six being seen and we also had nice views of a Mangrove Warbler, which
is a race of the American Yellow Warbler and a Tropical Pewee.
American Pygmy Kingfisher
Green Kingfisher
Little Blue Heron
Tricoloured Heron
Immature Common Black Hawk
Mangrove Warbler
As we came out of the channel
we headed towards the Gulf of Nicoya before turning and coming back to the
river. During this time we saw several
White Ibis, over fifty Brown Pelicans, ten plus Magnificent Frigatebirds, five
Neotropical Cormorants, two Anhinga, two Yellow-headed Caracara, a Red-lored
Amazon, four Yellow-naped Amazon and circa thirty Mangrove Swallows.
American White Ibis
Anhinga
Brown Pelican
Immature Brown Pelican
Great Blue Heron
Female Magnificent Frigatebird
Male Magnificent Frigatebird
Mangrove Swallow
Neotropical Cormorant
Yellow-crowned Night-heron
Tropical Kingbird
We came back up the river
pretty slowly and had poor views of a distant Crane Hawk and at least ten
Scarlet Macaws flew over.
Other species recorded during
the trip were Northern Jacana, Spotted Sandpiper, Barn Swallow, Tropical
Kingbird and Blue-grey Tanager.
Other birds seen during the
day were White-tipped Dove, Inca Dove, Common Ground Dove, Groove-billed Ani,
Turkey Vulture, American Black Vulture, Great Kiskadee, Clay-coloured Thrush,
Tennessee Warbler, Montezuma Oropendola and Great-tailed Grackle.
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