Costa Rica 2013
Fifteen Years Later

January 20, 2013 - La Selva Biological Station

A full day of birding at La Selva. Early breakfast here, then off along the very fancy – concrete – trails of La Selva. A couple of real treats, including a Great Tinamou, and a couple of very high energy moments with mixed flocks. The trails are paved with concrete with a roughened surface. Excellent walking, but it was hot and extremely humid. A couple of light drizzle intervals but not real rain.

At a couple of points, the trails climbed up on what sure looked like andesite lava flows. The vegetation, of course, smothers most of the rocks. I couldn't find anything at the Registration Center on geology, so it's hard to know. But La Selva isn't that far from those big volcanoes.

Saw three of the major big ground birds today: Great Tinamou, Crested Guan and Great Curassow. Also decent views of Mantled Howler Monkeys and, crossing the suspension bridge, a displaying Green Iguana and a handsome juvenile Gray Hawk.

While this is on the northerly, Caribbean flats, and the Puerto Viejo River through the Station is sluggish, we are quite a long ways from the Gulf of Mexico, probably 30 miles.

We had a siesta under the ceiling fan after lunch. Then tried several places for the Pink-billed Seedeater in the nearby village of El Tigre. No luck. But did find some other good photo ops and got some other good birds.

This is primarily a tropical research station, but they seem to tolerate birders without complaint. We do have to wear plastic wrist bands, but that seems to be primarily for the cafeteria. A terrific place for birds; 467 species documented here.

Birds
Great Tinamou
Crested Guan
Great Curassow
Great Egret
Cattle Egret
Black Vulture
Turkey Vulture
King Vulture
Roadside Hawk
Gray Hawk
Short-billed Pigeon
White-winged Dove
Ruddy Ground-Dove
Squirrel Cuckoo
Groove-billed Ani
Common Pauraque
White-collared Swift
Gray-rumped Swift
White-necked Jacobin
Bronzy Hermit
Long-billed Hermit
Violet-crowned Woodnymph
Blue-chested Hummingbird
Rufous-tailed Hummingbird
Slaty-tailed Trogon
Gartered Trogon
Broad-billed Motmot
Rufous-tailed Jacamar
Black-mandibled Toucan
Keel-billed Toucan
Black-cheeked Woodpecker
Rufous-winged Woodpecker
Chestnut-colored Woodpecker
Pale-billed Woodpecker
Brown-headed Parrot
Olive-throated Parakeet
Orange-chinned Parakeet
Red-lored Parrot
Mealy Parrot
Fasciated Antshrike
Western Slaty-Antshrike
Dusky Antbird
Wedge-billed Woodcreeper
Cocoa Woodcreeper
Streak-headed Woodcreeper
Paltry Tyrannulet
Common Tody-Flycatcher
Tropical Pewee
Long-tailed Tyrant
Bright-rumped Attila
Great Kiskadee
Boat-billed Flycatcher
Social Flycatcher
Gray-capped Flycatcher
White-ringed Flycatcher
Tropical Kingbird
Snowy Cotinga
White-collared Manakin
Masked Tityra
Cinnamon Becard
White-winged Becard
Lesser Greenlet
Southern Rough-winged Swallow
House Wren
Stripe-breasted Wren
White-breasted Wood-Wren
Tropical Gnatcatcher
Clay-colored Thrush
Golden-winged Warbler
Tennessee Warbler
Yellow Warbler
Chestnut-sided Warbler
Crimson-collared Tanager
Passerini's Tanager
Blue-gray Tanager
Golden-hooded Tanager
Blue Dacnis
Red-legged Honeycreeper
Green Honeycreeper
Variable Seedeater
Thick-billed Seed-Finch
Bananaquit
Yellow-faced Grassquit
Orange-billed Sparrow
Red-throated Ant-Tanager
Black-faced Grosbeak
Blue-black Grosbeak
Red-winged Blackbird
Black-cowled Oriole
Baltimore Oriole
Chestnut-headed Oropendola
Montezuma Oropendola
Olive-backed Euphonia

Mantled Howler Monkey

Great Curassow Male

Rufous-tailed Jacamar

Black-faced Grosbeak
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