This is probably a shot of the same individual, taken in October 2013, as he sat waiting for a meal.

I sit here this morning in my ranchito trying to ward off the pesky Green Heron (Butorides virescens), who has his beady eye on my koi. So far he has taken only tiddlers but I’d still rather not have him here. The photo above is by kind courtesy of friend Stephanie De La Garza, her surname being a remarkable coincidence since it means “of the heron”!

Stripe-throated hermit and rabo de gato (porterweed)

A Stripe-throated Hermit (Phaethornis striigularis), attracted no doubt by the hummingbird feeder and hovering close to my face, is a little bit unusual. This species is easy to identify from its small size, decurved bill and overall brown coloration. The Costa Rican variety has no stripes on the throat, by the way! The photo is by kind courtesy of Carol Foll and flickr’s Creative Commons License.

The typical morning sounds in the garden for this time of year are the singing of the national bird, the Clay-colored Thrush, the loud chatter of the Black-headed Saltator, and the persistent call of the Piratic Flycatcher. Unfortunately, there is also the screech of Great-tailed Grackles, which are becoming ever more numerous thanks to the increased number of cows in Carlos’s nearby pasture. He’s selling far too much Turrialba cheese!

Bird of the day in my garden is the now resident Blue-crowned motmot (Momotus coeruliceps), of which there are actually two giving their mot-mot call every morning. To sign off with, here’s a nice pic of two birds taken here in Costa Rica by Karel Straatman:

It Takes Two, baby!!