Jamaican Woodpecker

 

The Jamaican Woodpecker is a species of wooded habitats. The white face framed by the red of its nape and crown and its finely barred black-and-white back is distinctive. Usually first detected by its determined excavation of rotting wood.

Although our resort was fairly sterile tree and shrub wise, there was usually a couple woodpeckers hanging around.

However, on the first early morning of birding, I was trying my best to get an image of a woodpecker in the row of trees between ours and the next resort, when a security guard informed me I was in a restricted area for photography as the next resort was a nudist resort.

Rufous-tailed Flycatcher

 

The Rufous-tailed Flycatcher is a medium-sized woodland species endemic to Jamaica that prefers moist forests where it typically “flycatches” from perches in thick foliage beneath the canopy.

Note its bright rusty tail and the extensive rust on its wings. Other flycatchers we observed like the Sad Flycatcher is much smaller-bodied and smaller-billed and lacks the rusty tail and wings. And the similar Stolid Flycatcher is also smaller-billed and smaller-bodied with more limited rust on tail and wings. The Rufous-tailed Flycatcher has a darker gray head and chest than either Sad or Stolid Flycatchers.

Jamaican Tody

 

Another cool endemic bird to observe in Jamaica was the Jamaican Tody. It seems every Caribbean Island has it’s own endemic Tody as this is the fourth uniquely endemic Tody we have photographed in the Caribbean Islands.

The Jamaican Tody is a small, gemlike, woodland species usually found in pairs. Its rather large head, long bill, and short tail create a unique profile. Also note the shimmering green upperparts and red throat. It usually hunts from low-to-middle level perches, sitting nearly still before leaping upwards to snatch prey.

Red-billed Streamertail

 

We have just returned from a week’s vacation with family in Negril Jamaica. Although a resort type holiday I hired a guide to go birding in the Bluefields Mountain area of the parish of Westmoreland. We observed 42 species on our day of birding, observing 19 new lifers of which 16 are endemic to Jamaica.

My trip was set up with Wolde Kristos of RAJ and my guides for the day were Deceita and Tasha, both excellent birding guides. My day was a very enjoyable experience and I would highly recommend them. Their website with contact info is at www.Jamaicabirding.com

Probably the most enjoyable bird to observe was the Red-billed Streamertail.

This long-tailed beauty is Jamaica’s national bird along with the Black-billed Streamertail, which is now considered a separate species. The male has a glittering green body, black crown, and red bill. The younger males and molting birds may not have the signature tail streamers, giving them a somewhat different look. And the female lacks the long tail and is similar to Black-billed Streamertail, but usually shows a pink tinge to the base of the lower part of her bill. Her relatively large size and longer bill help separate her from the Vervain Hummingbird. We were able to observe the Vervain around the resort however I was unable capture a decent image.

Found in forest in most of the island. Local names for this species include “doctor bird” and “swallow tail humming bird”.

American Flamingo

 

We had such a short time ashore on Bonaire however we were extremely happy and enjoyed our afternoon birding Bonaire with Susan Davis from Bonaire Bird Tours.

Susan was an excellent guide around the south end of the island and we observed many species.

Her email address is susan@bonairebirdtours.com

Her webpage is here www.bonairebirdtours.com

The American Flamingo is a resident breeder on Bonaire. Thousands could be seen gathering in the Bonaire salt flats.

Brown Noddy

 

During sea days on our cruise, I would periodically check the sea for sea birds. On this occasion I observed a Brown Noddy trying to hang on to the Radome of the cruise ship. Eventually the wind blew the Noddy off the Radome and away it flew into the ocean.

Radomes are the big white balls on top of cruise ships. A Radome is made up of two parts, a Radar and a Dome, hence the name Ra-dome. The dome covers the radar equipment protecting it from the weather and hiding it from guests.

The Brown Noddy is a dark-bodied tern of tropical offshore waters, rarely seen from mainland. They breed in colonies on rocky and sandy offshore islets. Sometimes found with offshore feeding flocks of boobies and other terns. They feed by picking from the surface, not plunge-diving like most terns. 

Adults are solidly dark brown with a white cap. The white is limited to the forehead on immature. Cornell All About Birds

Brown Booby

 

We had observed Brown Boobies in the Galapagos Islands however when a half dozen adult and immature started following the cruise ship one day the opportunity for flight shots was overwhelming. Although I’m pretty sure I would have won the pickleball, shuffleboard and bingo tournaments that day. Not to mention the Karaoke contest.

Brown Boobies are large seabirds of inshore and offshore waters in tropical regions of the Atlantic, Indian, and western Pacific Oceans.

Head, neck, and upperparts are solidly brown. The adult has a well-demarcated white belly and the immature has a variably mottled brown belly that rarely looks solidly brown.

It is often seen from beaches, sometimes just beyond the breakers. They breed in colonies on offshore islands, nesting on the ground.

Recently showing up more regularly as a vagrant on inland lakes and reservoirs in the U.S. and Canada, and further north along the Atlantic coast. Cornell All About Birds

Tropical Kingbird

 

The Tropical Kingbird is a gray-headed bird with bright yellow underparts and a pale gray-green back. It has a whitish throat and dark gray-brown wings and tail.

Tropical Kingbirds forage by catching large flying insects on the wing, sallying out from a favored perch (often a telephone line) and returning to it to consume the prey. Also feeds on fruits, particularly during cooler weather. Perches conspicuously and when nesting flies out to confront many sorts of birds that come too close to the nest.

They are found in almost any open or semi open habitat. They favour parks, towns, and rural areas with scattered trees for nesting and other perches for hunting, often near water.

Great Green Macaw

 

The Great Green Macaw, also known as Buffon's Macaw or the Great Military Macaw, is a critically endangered Central and South America parrot found in Nicaragua, Honduras, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia and Ecuador.

The Great Green Macaw is an enormous lime-green parrot with long tail; unlikely to be confused with any other bird. Blue flight feathers, red on tail and forehead.

Prefers forested areas; often seen flying over in pairs or small flocks. Feeds on fruit; can be inconspicuous when feeding in canopy. Loud, raucous calls similar to other macaws.

Great Potoo

 

After trekking up into the mountainous area to observe the Great Green Macaw we stopped at Cahuita National Park to do a little trail walking. Bird activity was extremely slow as by now as it was around mid day. I got separated from the group and was slowly working up the rear end when a guide going the other way on the trail mentioned that there was a Great Potoo ahead. Up high and very camouflaged. I was having trouble locating the bird when a couple French birders claimed they had seen an owl up ahead on the trail. I was immediately interested but highly suspected that it would turn out to be the Potoo.

A monstrous nightbird, the Great Potoo is superficially similar to an owl but not related. They are a pale mottled gray with large head, larger than other potoos, and lack a dark mustache stripe. Well camouflaged and difficult to spot; most often seen roosting on a horizontal limb during the day (less often on a broken off snag like other potoos). Found in forested areas and edges. Active at night, when it feeds on large insects. Listen for its terrifying call, a harsh descending scream. Cornell All About Birds

Bronze-tailed Plumeleteer

 

The Bronze-tailed Plumeleteer is a medium-sized hummingbird, mostly green.

Fairly similar to other hummingbirds including Steely-vented, but note the red feet ( as seen here ) and a bronzy rump.

Females have whitish underparts and duller pinkish feet. Usually seen singly at flowers in forests or edges.

Sloths

 

Our next stop was Costa Rica. After spending a couple weeks in Costa Rica National Parks on previous trips, our one day adventure in the mountainous area to see Great Green Macaws seemed way too short. Although we were able to observe a number of both Two and Three Toed Sloths in the wild which was very cool.

The Hoffman's two-toed sloth is one of the world's slowest mammals—so sedentary that algae grows on its furry coat. The plant gives it a greenish tint that is useful camouflage in the trees of its Central and South American rain forest home.

Sloths are identified by the number of long, prominent claws that they have on each front foot. There are both two-toed and three-toed sloths.

All sloths are built for life in the treetops. They spend nearly all of their time aloft, hanging from branches with a powerful grip aided by their long claws. (Dead sloths have been known to retain their grip and remain suspended in the air.) Sloths even sleep in trees, and they sleep a lot—some 15 to 20 hours every day. Even when awake they often remain motionless, and two-toed sloths are generally silent. At night they eat leaves, shoots, and fruit from the trees and get almost all of their water from juicy plants. National Geographic

Snail Kite

 

On our skiff nature excursion on Gatun Lake I was extremely happy to be able to photograph this Snail Kite. Surprisingly birds were very limited on the lake with Mangrove Swallows, Brown Pelicans, Ani, Southern Lapwing and Magnificent Frigatebirds the only other birds we observed. We had observed Snail Kites in action on our Florida birding trips but never this close.

The highly specialized Snail Kite flies on broad wings over tropical wetlands as it hunts large freshwater snails. These handsome gray-and-black raptors have a delicate, strongly curved bill that fits inside the snail shells to pull out the juicy prey inside. Unlike most other raptors, Snail Kites nest in colonies and roost communally, sometimes among other waterbirds such as herons and Anhingas. They are common in Central and South America but in the U.S. they occur only in Florida and are listed as Federally Endangered.

Both the Limpkin and the Snail Kite evolved to feed almost entirely on freshwater apple snails. These very different bird species coexist peacefully for the most part, largely segregated by their methods of hunting. Limpkins can hunt snails in dense reedbeds and other thick vegetation, wading in on their long legs and using their long bills to move floating vegetation to look for snails. Kites usually fly over open water and drop down to catch snails up to 6 inches deep in the water.

Geoffroy's Tamarin

 

Our next stop was the Panama Canal. After traversing the first three locks on the Atlantic side of the canal we entered Gatun Lake where we went on a nature cruise on a small skiff. The primary purpose of the cruise was monkeys and we were able to locate Howler, Squirrel and Panamanian Tamarins.

Geoffroy's Tamarin, also known as the Panamanian, red-crested or rufous-naped tamarin, is a tamarin, a type of small monkey, found in Panama and Colombia. It is predominantly black and white, with a reddish nape. They are diurnal and spends most of its time in trees, but does come down to the ground occasionally. It lives in groups that most often number between three and five individuals, and generally include one or more adults of each sex.

It eats a variety of foods, including insects, plant exudates, fruits and other plant parts. Insects and fruits account for the majority of its diet, but exudates are also important.

Cotton-top Tamarin

 

Tamarins are small New World monkeys found in Central and South America. Unlike other monkeys, they have claws on most of their toes instead of nails. They have very long tails and are arboreal, eating a wide variety of things, such as fruits, plants, and small animals.

Our guide in Colombia also found us a Cotton-top Tamarin, which is named for the shock of white hair that sits atop its head. The monkeys, nicknamed the cutest in South America, entertain researchers with their endless antics. However, Cotton-top Tamarins are among the most endangered primates in the world. They are found only in northwestern Colombia, and their tropical forest habitat is being destroyed for cattle ranching, agriculture, and urban development. Cotton-tops are also captured and illegally sold as pets.