Happy Monday!

 Happy Monday everyone!  

Wishing everyone a great day and a happy new week!  

Costa Rica, Fortuna 

Comments Off!  Enjoy your day!

Saturday's Critters #365

 Welcome to Saturday's Critters!

Hello and happy Saturday!

 

 If you love all God's creatures like I do and also like to blog about them and take critter photos this is where you can share your critter post. Link up your post and share your critters, join in with my critter party ! You can share any kind of critters the real ones, pretend ones, statues and paintings, a new or old post!

 

I wish all who celebrate... peace, love and happiness this Hanukah season!

 

I am running out of critters and bird photos to share. So I am sharing some of my archived photos from our 2010 trip to Costa Rica, we took a guided trip staying at various hotels starting at San Jose, Tortuguero on the Caribbean coast, Fortuna the gateway to Arenal Volcano Nat'l Park and Guanacaste on the Pacific Coast. We visited a coffee plantation, pineapple plantation, the butterfly garden, various nature river boat rides from the lodge in Tortuguero and a nature boat ride at Caño Negro, we hiked in the Poas Volcano Nat'l Park Cloud forest, on the Arenal Nat'l Park hanging bridges trail and walked on the beach in Guanacaste located on Costa Rica's Pacific coast. 


1.  The Butterfly Garden, various species of butterflies and lovely flowers and plants. 

 

 Click on photos for better viewing.

 

 

2.  Insects and reptiles and other miscellaneous wildlife. We saw Rhinoceros Beetles, Hercules Beetle, Crocodiles and Caiman, Iguana, various lizards, turtles, Beetles, Long-nosed Bats, Pit Viper,  Orb spiders and Ghost crabs.

 

 

 

 

3. The wild monkeys we saw in Costa Rica were the most common seen and heard Howler Monkey, Golden-mantled Howler Monkey, White faced Capuchin Monkey and Spider Monkeys.

 

 

4.  The flowers must taste delicious, this monkey was hanging a tree branch with just it's tail. The photos taken from the moving boat ride are not the clearest. But, I think it is cute.

 

5. Costa Rica bird lifers...These are not all the birds or lifers I was able to see on my trip. 

Ringed Kingfisher, Amazon Kingfisher, not sure if seen below we also saw the Green Kingfisher, Grey-necked wood Rail, Great Potoo, Bare-throated Tiger Heron, Slaty-tailed Trogon, Blue-Gold Macaw (not-sure if these two were escapees, seen in a tree at the Hanging Bridge Park area), Red-lored Parrots, Montezuma Oropendola, Passerini's Tanager, Palm Tanager, Blue-gray Tanager, Great Kiskadee and the Variable Seedeater.

 

 

6.  Before our breakfast or boat ride tours I walked around the grounds of the Tortuguergo Lodge. The Montezuma Oropendola had nest in a lot of the trees. 

 

7. It is a cool looking bird and they make some strange sounds. The male can be 20 inches long.  Their tale feathers are a bright yellow.

 

 

8. The nest is woven with fibers and vines, similar to an Orioles nest.

 

 

9. Costa Rica Toucan lifers...The top two toucans are the Collared Aracari, in the second row is the Chestnut-Mandibled Toucan and the last row is the Keel-billed Toucan. Seeing the Toucans in the wild was a treat for me. 

10.  Various wildlife seen in various areas around Costa Rica. Streaked Backed Oriole in Guanacaste,  Brown Pelicans, Iguana, the Coati (about the size of a house cat) crossed the trail in front of us at the Hanging Bridge park, a sloth was seen hiding in a tree above the river, a large Black Oxen, other Oxen and some horses seen along the road.

 

 

11.   The Collared Aracari was seen often by the boat dock at the Tortuguera Lodge.

Costa Rica was one of my favorite trips, the wildlife sightings are amazing. I took over a hundred photos each day we were there, I do have some previous blog post on Costa Rica.  I would love to take another trip to Costa Rica seeing parts of the country we missed. 

 

Thanks to all my visitors and for all your comments. Stop back to see any replies to your comments. I appreciate everyone who loves critters and has linked up their critter post.


Here is my linky:



 

Also visit:  I'd-Rather-B-Birdin. Thanks to the host Anni.

Happy Thankful Thursday!!

Happy Thursday! 

How is everyone, hanging in there I hope.  The vaccine is coming soon, be safe and stay safe. 

 Happy Birthday to my dear hubby!

I am continuing with some of my archived photos from a trip to Costa Rica in 2010.  I am so thankful I have a lot of my old trip photos archived on my external hard drive, they are easy to find. 

1.  I am sharing more images from  Tortuguero, Fortuna, Guanacaste, the Arenal Volcano, the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean.

 Tortuguero, Caribbean sunrise

 

2. Views of the Lake Arenal, Arenal Volcano and wind turbines.

 

3. Various Costa Rica Birds:

 First row on a utility pole at our Tortuguero resort the Collared Aracari Toucan, Black-cheeked woodpeckers on the same pole later, unknown hummingbird possibly a female Lucifer Hummingbird, Great Kiskadee, Anhinga, Blue-Gray Tanager, two Crested Caracara in flight, Snowy Egret and Crimson fronted Parakeet.

 

4. Guanacaste, Pacific Ocean and a Brown Pelican. I love watching the Pelicans, they look so peaceful when they fly by. 

 

 

5. Guanacaste sunset on the Pacific Ocean.

 

 

6.   I am thankful for beach time,  a walk on the beach in the warm sunshine.  Give thanks for a little, you will find a lot.

 Brown Pelican on the rocks, Magnificent Frigatebird, shells and beach, Whimbrel and Black-bellied Plover. 

 

7. Another look at the sunset. 

 

Hubby and I are looking forward to traveling again, maybe a trip in early May.  we are undecided it could be a fly-drive or a road trip.  Part of the fun of traveling for me is researching the place we are visiting. I look for the places to stay, parks, scenic views and drives.  

 

I am thankful we continue to stay safe and healthy. 

I hope everyone is careful, healthy and safe. 

Go outside and breathe deeply.  Enjoy every moment. 

Live simple and be happy!  😊 Keep smiling!

Thank you to Jutta for hosting Nature Thursday

Thank you Michelle for hosting Thankful Thursday. 
 

Thank you to Yogi the host of   Skywatch Friday
 

Thank you for visiting and for your nice comments on my previous post. Have a happy day!!  😊

Our World, My World

 Happy Monday!

 Dec 7th, it is my son's birthday. He is 28 today, Happy Birthday to Brian!   Hubby's birthday coming soon, on Dec 10th.  We have lots to celebrate in December, I just turned 64. I am looking forward to when things are back to normal in our country, when hubby and I can feel safe to travel.  Today I am sharing photos from my archives and March 2010 and a trip to one of my favorite places Costa Rica. On my next critter post I am sharing a lot of the Costa Rica wildlife, check it out.

I am linking up with Lydia of Where the Wild Things Were and the Favorite Fotos linky. Thank you Lydia for hosting the party.

1. A rainbow seen on the first morning of our 9 day tour. 

Click on photos for better views.

 

2.  During our tour we stopped at a craft market, the ox carts were on display.  The carts are unique with colorful painted designs.

 

3.  Tortuguero, we stayed at a park lodge which was just a walk away from the Caribbean Sea. The park is only reached by airplane or a boat ride. Our tour to the lodge included the boat ride. The lodge is located between a lagoon  on one side and the other side was the Caribbean Sea. The Howler Monkeys were constantly heard while staying at Tortoguero, the resort was nice with wildlife everywhere.

 

 

4. The nature boat rides were fun, the wildlife in Costa Rica is awesome. We saw various species of monkeys, lizards, a sloth and birds.

 

5.  Fortuna, Costa Rica..our hotel had a view of the volcano, we had a tour set up to visit the Baldi Hot Springs and we also hiked on the Hanging Bridges trail at the Arenal Volcano National Park.

 

 

 

6. Guanacaste on the Pacific coast of Costa Rica.  We stayed a nice resort on the beach. I think we were so busy during the day, I did not get in the pools at any of the hotels, all the pools looked beautiful.

 

7. A walk on the beach at Guanacaste Costa Rica. During our time here, we saw more monkeys and various bird species. 

 

 

8. Sunset at Guanacaste, Pacific Ocean

 

It is also Pearl Harbor Day, a day to honor the 2,403 service members and civilians who were killed during the attack on Pearl Harbor. From the beginning of the tracking on Feb 15th through today,  282,829 Americans have died from the Coronavirus, more people have died from the virus than all the wars put together. 

 There is so much talk about the vaccine coming out. It almost time to make new memories and visit new places, hubby and I will be happy when we are able to travel again.  Mean time we  are happy and healthy, I hope everyone is doing well too.

 

 

Wear your mask and keep your distance!  Be safe, stay safe!

 

What's happening in your corner of the world? Please check out and visit the following memes and links. I hope to see you there.

 
Thanks to Angie the host of  Mosaic Monday

Thanks to LadyFi  the host of Our World Tuesday!

Thanks for visiting and commenting, have a happy day and a great new week!

My World, 11th Blog Anniversary

Hello,

Happy Monday!  It is my 11th blog anniversary, these years have flown by.  I have many great memories looking back at my older blog post. My post shared years of birding, enjoying all things nature and traveling.  All the things I love and I hope you love too.  During the first part of 2020, we were limited on what we could do and where we could go due to the Covid virus. I am not sure if or when things will ever return to normal.  Covid is not something I like to blog about, I just wish for happier times and good health for all. 

 So images randomly picked from my past 11 years of blogging.  I hope you enjoy and I thank all my blog visitors for all the past and future comments.  

I have my eye on you!  Wood Duck , Nov 2009..Original post Wood Duck_November 2009

  I started making the mosaic images and participating with Mary and her blog called Little Red House. Mary was the host of Mosaic Monday back in 2009.  Now Angie of the blog Letting Go of the Bay Leaf is the host of Mosaic Monday. Maybe you can join in with the mosaic making party.

 Various Toucans, seen in the wild during our Costa Rica trip in March 2010. Original post Costa Rica trip_Toucans

At this time in 2011, I was joining in with the linking party called Our World Tuesday. Thanks to these lovely host Arija, Gattina, Lady Fi, Sylvia, Sandy and Jennifer.  Lady Fi is the host of Our World Tuesday. Some bloggers are gone but not forgotten. 


 Some of my favorite birds seen in 2011, original post Favorite-birds-of-2011.  I must add all birds are favorites, especially at the time of seeing them..

 Goldie Girl will always be remembered on my blog. This Goldie photo was taken in Dec 2012.  My original post Dec 30th 2012

 A Snowy Owl seen on the Delaware Shore in Dec 2013.. My original post Delaware Snowy owl

 A Violet Sabrewing seen while birding in Belize in May 2014, my original post Belize birds and critters

 In 2015, I blogged about our Washington state trip and a visit to the Dungeness Spit. This spot is my favorite near Sequim Washington, hubby and I almost moved there. We had a realtor show us a few homes.  One home was perfect,  we are kicking ourselves for not buying.   My original post was a year end for 2015 Year end 2015

Starting in Oct 2016, I started blogging from our place in Lakeland Florida, we were just a walk away from a lake and this Tricolored Heron.  My original blog post is here  Lakeland-Florida

 I started my Skywatch blog post back in 2009 with the Skywatch hosting team of Sandy, Wren, Sylvia, Louise, Fishing Guy and Klaus. A few of these bloggers Louise and Klaus have passed away, they are missed.  The others are MIA, I believe Tom, the Fishing Guy has stopped blogging. Now Alan of the blog Yogi's Den is the Skywatch Host at  http://yogisden.us/     
Join me and others from around the world watching the sky.

 In Dec 2017, I blogged about my favorite things/sights we saw during 2017.. The original post is here Thankful 2017 list

 In March 2018, one of my favorite places to blog about Assateague Island National Seashore and the ponies.  My original post Assateague, Md

Dec 2019, hubby and I went to Hilton Head SC. My original post is here Hilton Head SC

I am looking forward to another year of blogging and visiting your blogs.  Thanks so much for visiting.   I really appreciate your comments now and over the past 11 years. 


We are staying safe, wearing our mask and keeping the social distance.   I hope everyone is safe, happy and healthy. Take care and stay well. 



What's happening in your corner of the world? Please check out and visit the following memes and links. I hope to see you there.


 
Thanks to Angie the host of  Mosaic Monday

Thanks to LadyFi  the host of Our World Tuesday!

Thanks again for visiting and commenting, have a happy day and a great new week!

Back in time

Linking up with Camera Critters  and I'd-rather-b-birdin

I hope all my blogging friends up in the north are warm and  safe from the storm Nemo.

I am going back in time with these photos. Between working all week and the weather I have not been anywhere to take new photos. The blizzard has missed Maryland, only seeing some heavy wind gusts here.
So, off we go to Costa Rica to see my favorite birds and an iguana tree.
 Sorry, if you have seen these photos, I hope you do not mind seeing them again. I do not think I have shown the Iguana tree though so that might be new. They are some of the highlights we saw in Costa Rica, the wildlife sightings were just amazing.

We passed this iguana tree while touring with our group. This tree was filled with iguanas of all sizes. 

 There were so many iguanas on the tree, I could not fit them all in on one photo. It was amazing sight to see. How many iguanas can you find in the shot above. You could times that by 20 and that would be how many we saw on this tree.

Rhinceros beetle was a cool sighting in Costa Rica. It was one of the biggest beetles I have ever seen.

The Collared Aracari was seen quite a bit at our  Tortuguero resort.

The Keel Billed Toucan is one of my favorite toucan. The Toucan species are just awesome looking birds.

The Blue-gold Macaws were seen on the parking lot of the Swinging bridges. They were most likely escapees but still very cool to see the pair of them.


The wildlife of Costa Rica is awesome, if you ever have a chance of visiting Costa Rica I would say go for it. I hope you enjoyed my critters and birds.
To see more cute and wonderful critters please visit Misty Dawn's Camera Critters  and more beautiful birds seen at Anni's blog I'd-rather-b-birdin
Thanks to both Misty Dawn and to Anni for hosting these fun memes. I wish everyone a safe and happy weekend.

Crested Caracara

 I am linking up my  post with Wild Bird Wednesday and Nature Notes

More from my archives..the Crested Caracara is a bird of prey and is in the family Falconidae. I am not sure who reads different state listserves for birds that are being seen. But, it appears a Caracara has made it to New Jersey and is being seen near Cape May. So, I was reminded of the Crested Caracara I have seen on my previous trips. I wanted to share my Crested Caracara with my followers who might not know what this bird looks like.

The Northern Crested Caracara seen during our trip to Curacao.I believe these birds are also seen in the Texas area of the United States.

They kind of remind me more of a Turkey or Black Vulture than a bird of prey. I did read they are kind of sluggish and can even be scavengers. The shot above was taken during my trip to Costa Rica. Not the best flight shot but I thought is was neat to see two together.



To see more beautiful and wonderful bird photos please visit:
 Stewart's Wild Bird Wednesday and Michelle's  Nature Notes.
Thanks to Stewart for hosting Wild Bird Wednesday and thanks to Michelle for hosting Nature Notes.
I wish everyone a happy week ahead and Happy Birding!

Keel Billed Toucan

Keel Billed Toucan seen at the at the National Zoo in DC this past weekend.

The Keel Billed Toucan I saw in the wilds of Costa Rica last year.

I love seeing birds anywhere but seeing them in the wild is so much nicer.

To see more wonderful birds please click on my link for World Bird Wednesday and more fun post at Wordless Wednesday

Thanks to the hosts of both World Bird Wednesday and Wordless Wednesday. Also, thanks for stopping by my post. I hope the rest of your week is great.