April 2019 Local Sparrow Hawks busy building their nest

I love these birds and it is such a great thing to be able to watch them as they go about their breeding activities.  There is a lot of calling and backward and forwards to break off nest material.  Every sighting is so exciting.  They always nest late and have evolved to have their young when there are plenty of young inexperienced fledglings to feed them on.

Male Sparrow hawk breaking off twigs 

I was so pleased with this shot as it captures the intensity with which he goes about his work.
During my observations it was the male doing most of the nest building. The female tended to hang around and do quite a lot of calling.

Vocal female Sparrow Hawk

In a break from the nest building I managed to capture this pleasing portrait of the male

Male Sparrow hawk at rest

The male can be distinguished by his smaller size, and has a blue grey top of the head and chestnut cheeks and barring.  A truly handsome bird!

April 2019 Local Kestrels performing in the high wind

It was a very windy day and I guessed the local pair of Kestrels would be out over the fields.  They seem to love this weather as they need to use very little energy to move around or simply hang motionless.  They have old fashioned names of Stand Gale, and Wind Hover and you can see why.  They are one of my favourite birds and who could ignore them when they hover in close proximity.
The Male has a slate grey head and tail that make him a very handsome bird.

Male Kestrel

 On the image below the male was being mobbed by a pair of Carrion Crows and showed great agility to easily out manoeuvre them.

This really is the right way up!

The female is also a beautiful bird and came even nearer to give me some special views

Female Kestrel

Shear concentration!

These being around together for so long are obviously a pair and it will be great to see how they get on in this new breeding season.  I hope later on to hear that high pitched screaming as the young beg for food.  That would be great!  Good luck to this beautiful pair!

April 2019 More Great Colours from Costa Rica

It's been dull and overcast now for a few days in the UK so sometimes it's great to go back over some of the beautiful and colour encounters from Costa Rica.  It's a really enjoyable thing to do.  I always remember in detail where each image is taken and it always helps to bring back the great memories.

Great Green Macaw

Scarlet Macaw

Shining Honeycreeper

Mealy Parrot

Scarlet-Rumped Tanager

 That's an enjoyable reminisce but as always it is also great to look forward to the Spring sights and sounds in the UK.

April 2019 Costa Rica what a colourful and beautiful country

I have just returned from Costa Rica and discovered what a truly beautiful country it is.  The people are really welcoming and friendly and are very proud of their country and the natural places within it.  Twenty five percent of the country is protected national parks.  They also produce over 95% of their energy needs from renewable resources.  There are rainforests and cloud forests with amazing wildlife to see.

Primary Rain Forest

It is really uplifting to experience a primary rainforest and know that is one of the most bio diverse eco systems on earth and has survived intact for millions of years.

Chestnut Billed Toucan

Collared Aracari

The birds are amazingly colourful and noisy.  There are three types of monkeys that can be seen in the forests.

White Faced Capuchin

The most familiar and confiding are the White faced Capuchins.  The Howler Monkeys are very noisy and dominate, and their calls can be heard across the canopy especially in the mornings.  What a great natural and thrilling sound.

Howler Monkey feeding

We also saw Spider monkeys on our trip.
There are many reptiles to be seen, Lizards, Iguana's snakes and crocodiles.

An Iguana

American Crocodile

Wherever you go people always point out if there is a Sloth in the trees.  Everyone seems to love them.  They are very slow moving animals.  We had ongoing laughter when a guide told us that they only come down from the trees once a week to go to the loo.  (Apparently they have a week to think about it!)

Three Toed Sloth

 We ended the trip on the pacific coast and the trip ended in glory when Scarlet Macaws landed in the nearby trees.  I have enjoyed birding for most of my life but I think these are the most beautiful birds that I have ever seen.

Scarlet Macaw

What an amazing trip with so many memorable sights and sounds.  I will never forget it.