The Tico Tweeter
The great September exodus is on. I am off to Toronto for a month. The Piessens are off to Boston, so there will
be no September outing or Tweeter. And
Penny Houghton leaves soon for New York on her annual UN stint, so if you
haven’t yet sent her your membership dues, please do so now!
We have a couple of exciting trips to look
forward to this Fall. Tortuguero in
October still has a few spots open.
Contact Pat and Willy Piessens if you want to join us on October
9-11. Xavier Vela is putting together a
trip to Rancho Naturalista near Turrialba on November 18-20. This is one of the premier destinations for
international birding groups, extremely pricey but worth it. The trails, the birding from the verandah,
the food and the accommodations are all first class. The owners are giving us a spectacular deal
at a huge discount, and I hope as many members as possible will sign up. This is a trip of a lifetime for birders and
you will never get the opportunity again to stay there at such a bargain.
So hasta luego! See you in Tortuguero.
--Dorothy
MacKinnon
October:
Tortuguero National Park
Laguna Lodge will be our home in Tortuguero
National Park from October 9 to 11.
[Note: this is Sunday to Tuesday.] We have reserved 10 rooms for the
outing and are almost fully booked.
The cost of the outing is a bargain - $140
per person ($199 for non-residents). It
will cover 3 days/2 nights in the lodge (Sunday to Tuesday), all meals,
round-trip transportation from San Jose, park fees, morning outings on day 2
with a local guide, and all taxes. [A
detailed description of the standard package offered by Laguna Lodge is posted
on their website http://www.lagunatortuguero.com/.]
We have arranged an extra early morning (2 hour) canal trip on day 3 in
addition to their standard package; we do not yet know its cost.
If you are interested in participating,
contact Pat [282-5365 or dew2dew@racsa.co.cr] for reservations or if you have
questions. Only ten rooms have been
retained, so reserve early. Participants
will need to pay Laguna Lodge directly at the time of the outing (by cash or
plastic) for the basic package. Expect
to pay about $15 or 7500 colones per person to cover gratuities, the early
morning trip on day 3, and the guide on this trip. Those who want to participate in other
activities organized by Laguna Lodge - such as watching turtles hatch at night
on the beach - will have to pay extra out of pocket on site.
On Friday, November 18, we will gather at
Rancho Naturalista, one of Costa Rica's most rewarding birding
destinations. This 125 acre resort is
above the town of Tuis, about 20 kilometers southeast of Turrialba, and takes a
little under two hours to reach from San Jose.
The more than 400 species makes this birder heaven. You can check their bird list and see parts
of the Rancho on their website: http://www.birdwatchingcostarica.com/ranchonaturalista/
The very special discount offered by the
owners (long time friends of several of our members) is a rare
bargain. The fee of $150 per
person includes meals and two nights (November 18 and 19). Note that the outing starts on a Friday and
ends on the afternoon of Sunday, November 20.
If you decide to join us, please contact
Xavier Vela at 289-5517 to make your payment.
He asks that you call him no later than October 3, so that the lodge may
set aside an adequate number of rooms.
The following message was forwarded by BCCR
member Judi Janiak, who will be in the USA at the time of the event. Anyone interested in participating in the
Jaco bird count should contact Randall Ortega directly. We will list the sites of other bird counts
around Costa Rica as soon as we learn their details.
From: RANDALL LEONARDO
ORTEGA CHAVES [ 5element@racsa.co.cr ]
Subject: first Central
Pacific Bird Count
To: Judi Janiak
<gitanajaj@yahoo.com>
Hi, we are going to do
the first Carara, Jaco, Tarcoles River bird count ever. We need avid birders to participate in the
Jaco area. Wondering if you are willing
to. December 03 at 5:00 am
Muchas gracias
Randall Ortega
Our esteemed bird guide and brunch host, Winnie Orcutt, introduced 11 BCCR members and three guests to ‘El Pital’, one of her favorite birding sites near Los Reyes in La Guacima. Before the rain came, we saw Boat-billed, Sulfur-bellied, and Gray-capped Flycatchers. Some watched a Ringed Kingfisher fly overhead while others were enchanted by a Blue-crowned Motmot. Many wrens were heard, but most hid in the bushes and were not seen.
Following the tour of El Pital, a delicious potluck brunch was relished by all at Winnie’s. We are especially grateful to her for her hospitality and for sharing her bird expertise with us. In addition, five birders, including Winnie, Sara, Peter, Ruth and me, celebrated their birthday with chocolate cakes prepared by BCCR’s pastry chef and president Dorothy MacKinnon. And we thank her for the divine treat. Everyone appreciated the potluck dishes, which ranged from spinach quiche to a barley salad.
Birds Seen [or Heard (H)] (20): Red-billed Pigeon, White-tipped Dove, Squirrel Cuckoo, Blue-and-white Swallow, Rufous-tailed Hummingbird, Ringed Kingfisher, Blue-crowned Motmot, Hoffmann's Woodpecker, Masked Tityra (H), Tropical Kingbird, Sulphur-bellied Flycatcher, Boat-billed Flycatcher, Gray-capped Flycatcher, Rufous-naped Wren, Rufous-and-white Wren, Plain Wren (H), Clay-colored Robin, Yellow-green Vireo, Rufous-capped Warbler, Blue-gray Tanager.
Participants: Sara
Clark and guest Ruth Dixon Mueller, Myrna Draper, Linda Leake, Anita Ligator,
Dorothy MacKinnon, Peter Negaard, Winnie Orcutt, Pat and Willy Piessens, Andrew
Russell, David Sagel, Xavier Vela and guests Graham and Susan Smith.
--Pat
Piessens
Last month we asked: What do hummingbirds and manakins have in common other than feathers and
being able to fly? Answer: only the
females tend the nests.
This month’s question: What are the three
main reasons birds migrate from here to North America to hatch and raise their
young?
The Tico Tweeter is
published by the Birding Club of Costa Rica.
Your comments and
submissions are welcome. Contributors'
statements and opinions (or spelling!) are not necessarily those of the
Editors.
One-year membership is $10 individual, $15
family. One-year subscription to the
Tico Tweeter newsletter only (sent by e-mail) is $7.50.
Club Officers:
Co-Chair: Dorothy MacKinnon, macamel@hotmail.com; Co-Chair: Dorothy Sagel,
Dorothy_Sagel@yahoo.com; Treasurer/Membership: Penny Houghton,
phought23@aol.com; Secretary: Pat Piessens, dew2dew@racsa.co.cr; Newsletter
Editor and Communications: Willy Piessens, dew2dew@racsa.co.cr;
Member-at-Large: Winifred Orcutt, dawin@racsa.co.cr; Member-at-Large: Peter
Negaard, 290-6396.