Bare-throated Tiger-Heron

After watching the kingfisher of the last post, Erika turned on the Villa Lapas bridge and explained, “That looks like a Tiger-Heron!” A Bare-throated Tiger-Heron to be exact. You can see that the heron’s throat is not feathered. This tiger-heron is the only one with a bare throat.

We encountered Bare-throated Tiger-Herons throughout our Costa Rica trip. They were especially common in the one mangrove swamp we visited. I found their plumage to be remarkably variable. This individual seemed remarkably strikingly plumaged.

Tiger-Herons eat fish, frogs, crustaceans and insects, probably whatever they can catch. Although we saw them during the day, the species by nature is crepuscular or nocturnal. Bare-throated Tiger-Herons are found from the Mexican lowlands south through Central America to northernmost South America. Apparently there is one record from southern Texas (Handbook of Birds of the World).

Ringed Kingfisher

A river runs through the grounds of the Villa Lapas eco-lodge. A tall, wide bridge connects two sides of the hotel accommodations.  Here, on 2 July 2017, perched one of our first birds at the lodge. A Ringed Kingfisher patiently watched for fish. At first the bird was hard to identify—it faced away from us. Only when the bird turned sideways could we see this bird’s massive bill. In the last 40 years, Ringed Kingfishers have expanded their range into Texas. Usually they are found from the Mexican lowlands, through Central America, and south across much of South America.

Unlike Belted Kingfishers, Ringed Kingfishers seldom hover before plunging for their prey. Instead they sit patiently, sometimes for hours. They mostly consume fish. On the other hand, like our Belted, Ringed Kingfishers depend on high, dirt banks in which to excavate their nests. The absence of such landmarks can limit these birds’ occurrence (The Birds of North America).

Villa Lapas

We spent the next three nights near the Pacific Coast of central Costa Rica at Villa Lapas. This eco-lodge is a cluster of cabins in the rain forest adjacent to Carara National Park. The forest here is the northernmost extension of the Pacific rainforest remaining in Costa Rica. The rooms are comfortable, despite the forest attempting to colonize the cabin roofs. The cabins were air-conditioned. Not that I am complaining, but air-conditioning caused our camera equipment to fog over for a half-hour as we emerged every morning. I am sitting on our porch waiting for my lenses to clear.

The grounds were gorgeous, and full of birdlife. A clear stream—at least until a night of torrential rains— runs through the grounds, and the hotel maintains a couple of small pools, ideal for searching for frogs and dragonflies. Dennis was disappointed that previous floods had taken out other pools. Overall, we felt that the hotel offered a good introduction to Costa Rican dragonflies and birds. The nearby National Park allowed us to venture deep into the jungle. Lapas, by the way, is a word for macaw. We saw Scarlet Macaws every day.

Dusky Dasher

On the far side of the Rio Tarcoles bridge, on 2 July 2017, we found a female Dusky Dasher (Micrathyria schumanni). This species is found from Mexico south to Venezuela, and not in the United States. We got excited because our fearless leader, Dennis Paulson, did not immediately provide us with a name. After our return home, Dennis researched and concluded that this dasher is the only one whose females have an almost pain, brown abdomens.

Square-spotted Dasher

Despite the Tourist Police attempts to keep our being devoured by crocodiles on the Rio Tarcoles bridge (Puntarenas, Costa Rica), we managed to photograph a few dragonflies. The first is a Square-spotted Dasher (Micrathyria ocellata). This species ranges from central Mexico well into northern South America. I am aware of no records from the United States.

This dragonfly has no common name. Our intrepid guide and soon to be author of the Dragonflies of Costa Rica, suggests the name Square-spotted Dasher. Note, however, that English or Spanish names for Costa Rican dragonflies and damselflies found outside the United States are not officially sanctioned by anyone.

American Crocodile

Our second stop on 2 July during our Costa Rica dragonfly tour was one I shall not soon forget. The highway (Route 34) crosses the Rio Tarcoles. The bridge is two-laned, with heavy traffic. Sidewalks, basically only wide enough for one person, run on both sides of the bridge. Tourist activity abounds. To think that this experience was free of charge! We parked and walked across where we rejoined our bus. We wondered what attracts the crocodiles. Undoubtedly they are fed. Pedestrian fatalities? Dragonfly hunters who venture down the river banks? We were scolded by tourist police when we tried to search for dragonflies.

American Crocodiles have “catholic diets” (Scientific American Blogs). They are tolerant of salt water, which has allowed them to inhabit many areas of the Caribbean. They range from northern South America up both coasts of Central America and Mexico. They are also found in Florida. The bump on their slender snout in front of their eyes is distinctive. Modern crocodiles grow up to 4 meters in length. Old records exist of animals almost twice that long.

Brilliant Blue Skipper

Several of our companions on our Costa Rican dragonfly tour knew their butterflies. This butterfly is a Brilliant Blue Skipper, Paches loxus. I knew North American skippers tend to be black and brown and difficult to identify. We saw several species of azure skippers during our trip. Surprisingly the Brilliant Blue Skipper appears to have little Internet presence, aside from a few photographs and specimens. Thus, I can’t tell you much about it. Perhaps a butterfly expert would care to comment.

Lineated Woodpecker

While we watched the grassquit of my previous post, Erika heard a woodpecker drumming. She spied the bird working in a distant, large tree. Lineated Woodpeckers are common from the Mexican lowlands south across much of northern South America. This large woodpecker inhabits both humid and moderately dry forests. It prefers open woodland near clearings and forest edges, and even big trees in pastures or gardens

Lineated Woodpeckers eat a wide variety of wood-boring arthropods. They also take fruits, seeds, ants and other arthropods. They feed at all levels of the forest, including on the ground. They may feed at one location for 15 minutes before flying long distances to new feeding areas. They tend to be wary (Handbook of Birds of the World).

Blue-black Grassquit

Blue-black Grassquits fed on the Calle Loro roadside weeds as we came out from our dragonfly creek. This photo is of a female. Their streaky flanks are good field marks. Central American males are black. Some controversy exists on just how to classify grassquits. I thought they are small sparrows. The Handbook of Birds of the World considers them to be tanagers.

Grassquits are common from Mexico south across much of South America. Blue-black grassquits are found in weedy fields and roadsides. They  eat seeds and a few insects or berries. The forage on the ground or from weed-tops. They often form large flocks.

Black-winged Dragonet

Back up from the creek, we found a Black-winged Dragonlet along the Calle Loro roadside. This species is an uncommon stray into the south-central United States. Its main range is from Mexico and Central America south to Colombia and Ecuador. Adult Black-winged Dragonlets aestivate during the dry season. With the rains, they move from forests to open ponds (Odonata Central).