La Sevegre Costa Rica

Cloud Forest near La Sevegre © John N Murphy

On 8th February we moved on to San Geraldo de Doto and the small town of La Sevegre where we were booked into the Sevegre Hotel de Montana.  This small pastoral mountain town of less than 150 poeple, is situated on the Pacific face of the Talamanca Mountains, a three hour drive inland from the west coast. The Savegre River runs down this steep valley from cloud forests above.   The whole valley offered excellent birding with a wide range of very comfortable accommodation.  The 9km drive down this valley was a bit hairy at times on dust tracks but the rewards at the end of it were well worth the scary moments.

Bird highlights here included nesting Resplendent Quetzals, Torrent Tyrannulet, Southern Beardless Tyrannulet, Black Guan, Swallow-tailed Kite, Red-tailed Hawk, White-collared Swift, Vaux's Swift, Grey-rumped Swift, Acorn Woodpecker, Black Phoebe, Grey-blue Tanager,  Flame-colored Tanager, Summer Tanager, Silver-throated Tanager, Bay-breasted Warbler, Black & White Warbler, Wilson's Warbler, Black-checked Warbler, Collared Redstart,  Rufous-collared Sparrow, Yellow-thighed Finch, Sooty-capped Bush Tanager, Slaty Flowerpiercer, Yellow-faced Grassquit, Sulphur-winged Parakeet, Yellow-billed Siskin, Orange-billed Trogon, Elegant Euphonia, Long-tailed Silky Flycatcher, Tufted and Yellowish Flycatcher, Clay-colored and Sooty Robin, and a selection of Hummingbirds that included Green-crowned Brilliant, Purple-throated Mountain Gem, Volcano Hummingbird, White-throated Mountain Gem and Scintilliant Hummingbird.

Elegant Euphonia © John N Murphy

Black Guan © John N Murphy

Black Phoebe © John N Murphy

 Acorn Woodpecker © John N Murphy

 Rufous-collared Sparrow © John N Murphy

 Flame-colored Tanager male © John N Murphy

Flame-colored Tanager female © John N Murphy

Clay-colored Robin © John N Murphy

 Sooty-capped Bush Tanager © John N Murphy

 Slaty Flowerpiercer  © John N Murphy

  Silver-throated Tanager admiring his own reflection © John N Murphy

Yellow-thighed Finch © John N Murphy

Turkey Vulture

Turkey Vultures or TV's as they are fondly called in North America are one of the most numerous birds of prey in the skies of Costa Rica.  No matter where you looked in Costa Rica you would see TV's or their close cousin the Black Vulture.

Crocodile

These freshwater American Crocodiles were a large attraction on the main bridge over the Tárcoles River on the North side of the Carara National Park.  Locals had given them all names like George Bush or the oldest one was called Fidel Castro.  Can you see the resemblance?

Magnificent Frigatebird

Also along the same stretch of coast near Tárcoles, where the Brown Pelicans were fishing, large groups of Magnificent Frigate birds would be loafing about waiting for the chance to catch any prey that the Pelicans would leave slip from their large gaping bills. Every time I see Frigatebirds they always remind me of our close ties to dinosaurs.

Brown Pelican

Brown Pelicans were encountered every day as we visited a small beach on the shore just south of Tárcoles village.

Costa Rica 2012

Rio Tárcoles with the Carara National Park to the right © John N Murphy

I have just returned from a fantastic two week holiday in Costa Rica, Central America.  My itinerary was as follows.

5th-8th February, Villa Lapas, Carara National Park.
8th - 10th February, La Sevegre Hotel Montana, San Gerardo de Dota.
10th-12th February, Horquestas, near La Selva Biological Research Station, Brauilio Carrillo NP.
12th-15th February, Monteverde, Hotel Belmar, near Arenal/Monteverde NP.
15th -18th February, Lake Arenal and Hotel Royal Corin near Aernal Volcano and Observatory.

On the 5th February we arrived at San Jose Airport via Newark, New Jersey and drove the hired car for 2 hours, directly to the west coast and Carara National Park.  Here we spent three nights at Villa Lapas on the edge of the park. 

The Carara National Park covers an area of 11,600 acres and is one of Costa Rica's most famous birding destinations. It is the Northern most site on the South Pacific Slope sitting on the southern bank of the Río Tárcoles River.  Some of the bird highlights were; Chestnut-mandibled Toucan, Great Kiskadee, Fiery-billed Aracari, Scarlet Macaw, Cherrie's Tanager, White-whiskered Puffbill, Black-faced Antthrush, Chestnut-backed Antbird, Dusky Antbird, Striped-throated Hermit, Shinning Honeycreeper, Great-tailed Grackle, Squirrel Cuckoo, Inca Dove, Bare-throated Tiger Heron, Crested Caracara, Turkey Vulture, Blue-crowned Motmot, Masked Tityra, Common Tody Flycatcher, Orange-fronted Parakeet, Black-throated & Slaty-tailed Trogons, Rufous-naped Wren, Rufous-tailed Jacamar, Red-crowned Woodpecker, Boat-billed Flycatcher, Ringed Kingfisher, Magnificent Frigatebird, Northern Jacana, Black-necked Stilt, Boat-billed Heron, Groove-billed Ani, Blue-gray Tanager to mention a few.  There was also lots of visiting birds over-wintering from the US that included,  Louisiana and Northern Waterthrush, many Spotted Sandpipers and a vast array of North American warblers, waders and other migrants.

Below is a selection of images taken in this region and the first in a batch of many more to come over the next week or so.  I hope you enjoy some of Costa Rica's delights.

LOTS MORE IMAGES TO BE ADDED TO THIS PAGE PLEASE CHECK BACK LATER

 Bare-throated Tiger Heron © John N Murphy

Fiery-billed Aracari © John N Murphy

Orange-chinned Parakeet © John N Murphy

Yellow Warbler © John N Murphy

Spotted Sandpiper © John N Murphy

 Rufous-naped Wren © John N Murphy

Black-throated Trogon © John N Murphy

 Blue-crowned Motmot near the Tárcoles River © John N Murphy

 Groove-billed Ani's © John N Murphy

Boat-billed Flycatcher on the Tarcoles River © John N Murphy

White-whiskered Puffbill in the Carara NP © John N Murphy

Louisiana Water Thrush near Villa Lapas © John N Murphy

Scarlet Macaw in flight © John N Murphy

Crested Caracara near Táracoles © John N Murphy

Cattle Egret near Tárcoles © John N Murphy