Cinnamon Teal (Anas cyanoptera)

El 24 de Febrero en Lagunas Catfish Farm, camino a Playas del Coco, Guanacaste, Dennis Rogers, y Rick y Debbie Anderson vieron un macho de Anas cyanoptera (Cinnamon Teal). Otro buen pato desde el mismo lugar donde salieron los dos A.creca (Green-winged Teal) una semana antes. No vieron el A.creca.

Rapaces en el puente del Rio Sucio

Ayer domingo 22 en la mañana me fuí con una amiga para el Braulio Carrillo, e hicimos una parada sobre el puente del Río Sucio para buscar los Falco rufigularis y tomar fotos del río.
Justo llegando al puente (a eso de las 8:30) pasó volando una bandada de unos 25-30 Touit costaricensis. Unos 1o minutos despues, vi una rapaz blanca, y grande acercandose mientras planeaba, al empezar a planear sobre la línea de árboles me di cuenta que no era un Leucopternis albicollis, sino un Spizaetus melanoleucus (Black and White Hawk-Eagle).
El individuo empezó a tomar altura y volar sobre las montañas al lado de SJ del puente, entonces llamé a Kevin Eisley quien estaba con un grupo de pajareros frente a la percha del Falco rufigularis, para cuando llegó otro individuo de Spizaetus también estaba planeando. Gracias a Kevin pudimos verlos con telescopio!!
Ambas aves estuvieron planeando mas de 5 minutos junto a un grupo grande de vencejos, hasta que se fueron alejando nuevamente. Era una pareja de macho y hembra, era fácil ver la diferencia de tamaño entre ambos. Esta era mi primer vez viendo este bicho en CR.
Posteriormente, desde el mismo sitio vimos : Leucopternis albicollis, L. princeps, Sarcoramphus papa, Buteo platypterus y Falco rufigularis. Nada mal para una mañana dominguera, y tras esto nos dirijimos a Quebrada Gonzales donde la actividad estaba tranquila.
César Sánchez

Scissor-tail and Orange-fronted Parakeet, Santa Ana

Sitting on my back porch this morning in Pozos Santa Ana, spotted a scissor-tail flycatcher, Gray-crowned Yellowthroat, Orange-fronted Parakeets (8), Ruby-throated Humingbirds, and Broad-winged Hawk. Also in the evening, a Yellow-naped Parrot roosted in trees behind house. This happens irregulary but at least every other month. I have no idea if it is an escaped cage bird or not (probalby). I saw another yellow-naped fly overhead near HSBC bank in Santa Ana just 20 minutes earlier.

Also I had a fun several hours of birding at the Nogal Private Reserve (Chiquita) in Sarapaqui this Thursday. Next time I'm there I will get a GPS reading. Nothing rare but saw 77 species and enjoyed seeing Slate-headed Tody-Flycatcher, Blue-Black Grosbecks, and group of 6 Green Ibises.

Green-winged Teal

Two male Green-winged Teal (Anas creca) were seen at the Lagunas Catfish Farm ponds along the highway to Playas del Coco, Guanacaste on Feb.15. They were in amongst some 1500 Blue-winged Teal (A.discors). Also of note and seen there during the same visit were 5 female N.Shoveler (A.clypeata), 1 female N.Pintail (A.acuta), 31 Am.Coot (Fulica americana) and 5 S.Lapwing (Vanellus chilensis). Most of the ducks were in the inner ponds that can't be seen from the highway. However, you can ask for permission to enter if you stop in at the restaurant and talk to the owner Rob Willis. He has been very hospitable to birders and so far asks only that you patronize the restaurant. I had the catfish fish and chips and they really hit the spot.

Killdeer en Santa Ana de Pozos

17 Feb, 2008, pasaron 2 Killdeers (Charadrius vociferus) cerca mi casa en Santa Ana de Pozos. Fuera la primera pimera vez que verlos en esta area.

Hoy en la manaña por 3 horas, visité el Teleferico del Pacifico cerca Jaco. Vi 66 especies desde la pista 9.64203, 84.61348 y los senderos del parque , nada especial aparte de el Turquoise-browed Motmot, Eumomota superciliosa (afuera de su range?) y Marbled Wood-Quail, (comun pero me encanta su canción). Los guias y staff del teleferico son muy amables. Voy a volver cuando tengo mas tiempo.

saluods,

Lance

Blue-headed Vireo

El 16 Feb, Carlos Jimenez y Jim Zook vieron un Vireo solitarius (Blue-headed Vireo) en los Cerros Diria (900m) detras de Santa Cruz, Guanacaste. Fue en el bosque alto siguiendo el camino despues de la pulperia en Vista del Mar.

Official List of the Birds of Costa Rica 2007

The Scientific Committee of the Ornithological Association of Costa Rica informs that the Official List for Costa Rica update 2007 it is now available on-line on our web www.avesdecostarica.org

We have also opened the period for reception of Forms for the update 2008. For more information please visit the Scientific Committee website www.avesdecostarica.org/comite.htm

Cordially,
Gerardo Obando

Lista Oficial Aves de Costa Rica 2007

El Comité Científico de la Asociación Ornitológica de Costa Rica desea comunicarles que en el sitioweb de la asociación www.avesdecostarica.org ya se encuentra disponible en-línea la última actualización del Listado Oficial para CR.

No olviden que ya estamos recibiendo formularios para la actualización 2008. Para más información pueden visitar el sitioweb del Comité Científico www.avesdecostarica.org/comite.htm

Cordiales saludos,
Gerardo Obando

Crested Caracara in Santa Ana

I saw the crested caracara this morning while running. They have become common in this area (Pozos de Santa Ana). Addtionally, there are several pairs of resident Yellow-headed Caracaras. I've seen them off and on for over a year. I have commonly seen both birds near el Rodeo area for over 3 years now.

Wood Storks in Santa Ana

This morning while running I saw 15-20 wood storks circling. Most I have seen in Santa Ana at one time. I usually see 1-3.

Spotted Rail and Curlew Sandpiper

Here are some notes on the Spotted Rail (Nov.18, 07) and the Curlew Sandpiper (Nov.21, 07).

The coordinates for the Spotted Rail are 10.441, -85.3603. The Google Maps satellite images have great resolution but were taken in the dry season and so show dry looking rice fields. If you pan out a bit you can see that the Rio Tempisque is not far away. When I was there in November the fields closest to the river were fallow and mostly covered with water and overgrown with aquatic vegetation and the roads were just drying out enough to drive on without getting struck. The areas further away from the river were mostly in mature rice that was just being harvested. There were many ducks and shorebirds here and this is an area that you can reach via public roads without having to go through any gates. I found the rail by pure luck. I was driving slowly with the window down and heard the distress call of a frog, the one they make while being eaten by a snake. I stopped and walked over towards where the noise was coming from and as I came to the edge of a water filled ditch the rail scurried out of it and up onto the berm at the edge of a rice field. It stopped and looked at me from about five feet away and I froze not daring to raise my binos. This staring match didn't last long, but what a glorious few seconds that was. The afternoon sun was at my back and there was hardly any wind. It finally shot off into the flooded rice and out of sight. Never did find out what was making that frog cry, but it wasn't the rail.

The Curlew Sandpiper was in flooded rice fields at the La Cutacha sector of Pelón de La Bajura ( 10.4118, -85.3825 ). The roads were just starting to dry out and the mucking tractors were making their first passes through fallow muddy fields that still had a fair amount of standing water (see attached Jabiru photo to get an idea of conditions, the Golden and Black-bellied Plovers were in this same field) This is inside the Hacienda and behind a locked gate (at the good time of year). You need to get permission and enter from the Interamerican highway just W of Pijije (entrance to Lomas Barbudal is at Pijije). It is a U shaped area surrounded on three sides by the Río Tempisque, and if there is a big flood, it fills in with water during the wet season. If you were to go there now in verano the area is much as the satellite photo shows it except that it is super dry and dusty and a main thoroughfare for trucks hauling sugar cane across the Rio Tempisque. They build a temporary crossing in the dry season so cane from the N side of the river can get over to the El Viejo mill at La Guinea.

Almost got a photo of the sandpiper but just as I was setting up to digiscope it a Peregrine blew through and chased up the 3000 or so other shorebirds and ducks that were with it (G. and L. Yellowlegs, BN Stilts, Stilt Sandpipers, Dowitchers, BB Plovers, Am.Golden Plovers, and assorted peeps). I spent the next 1.5 hours trying to find it again but had to finally give up as the sun got bad (only view available was looking W) and the birds started to doze with bills under wings. In the search also picked up a Ruddy Turnstone, some Collared Plovers and a Wilson's Phalarope. Also a few Franklin's Gulls and both Caspian and Gull-billed Terns. An amazing shorebird show so far from the coast. The ducks were also great there too, mostly BW Teal but also both Whistling-Ducks, 4 N.Pintails, 9 N.Shovelers, 11 L.Scaup and 1 Am.Wigeon. Throw in 9 Jabirus and a ton of the other Palo Verde type marsh regulars and it was not to be beat.

JZ