Sunsets

¹ Watching the sun set over the ocean is in my opinion one of the most beautiful sights in this world. In seeing something so beautiful I cant help but  praise the God that made the sun and the skies. All the following sunsets were taken in Costa Rica from Playa Hermosa in Guanacaste. 

Psalms 19: 1-6

1 The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. 2 Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge. 3 There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard. 4 Their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world. In the heavens he has pitched a tent for the sun, 5 which is like a bridegroom coming forth from his pavilion, like a champion rejoicing to run his course. 6 It rises at one end of the heavens and makes its circuit to the other; nothing is hidden from its heat. 

Rufus-collared Sparrow

  Here in Costa Rica there are many different species of sparrows and such but there is one particular sparrow that is truly everywhere you go. This is the Rufus-collared Sparrow. Its not that the other sparrows aren't around its just that many of the other sparrows are more common in the mountains or country. Turns out that most wildlife prefers the mountains or country but fortunately for me there are a few birds that thrive in the city and the city is currently all I have to view wildlife in right now. So the Rufus-collared sparrow is readily seen foraging around in the grass for seeds and bugs and hopping from yard to yard and flying from fence to fence. I would say that it is probably the most common bird here in Costa Rica and luckily it happens to be a fairly pretty bird. As you will see in the pictures I've taken it gets it name due to the rufus or rust colored feathers around its neck.

Rufus-collared Sparrow

Note the rust colored collar around his neck.

   A few weeks ago I had a post about the Hoffman's Woodpecker and I showed a few pictures of a yound woodpecker being fed buy its parents. Turns out I saw the same young woodpecker a few weeks later only this time the little guy was bigger and learning to find food for himself. I watched him for about half an hour as he pecked away at a dead branch and then he just chilled out for a while longer before flying off. It was really cool to see this little guy again. 

Get out in the outdoors and see Gods wounder full creation for yourself. :)

Doves

      Two of the most commonly seen doves in Costa Rica are the White-winged and Inca Doves. Consequently these are the two dove species that I have seen the most and taken pictures of. Wherever doves reside there are bound to be many because unlike many birds that nest when food for their young is abundant doves can nest anytime of year and as many times as they like because doves are one of the only types of birds that actually feed their young "milk". This so called "milk" is produced from a gland in the crop of the parent doves. I've counted at least nine dove nest on my school campus and they seem to be producing new broods at an astonishing rate. I enjoy having the doves around because I can always count on being able to find and take pictures of them if all other birds are hiding or shying away. The White-winged dove has a very simple hoo hoo hoo call. Inca doves are seen less than White winged doves but they are fairly common if you look for them. I cant say that I have heard or know what the Inca doves call sounds like. Anyways, here are a few pictures of both species.

Young White-winged Dove. Note the juvenile feathers on head and around eye.

Adult White-winged Dove. Note the color of head compared the the juvenile above.

Inca Dove

Inca Dove (~8in)

 For more information on these doves I have found the Cornell Lab of Ornithology Website very useful for learning about any type of bird. http://www.birds.cornell.edu/Page.aspx?pid=1478   

Hoffman's Woodpecker

     The other day I had a few hours to kill after school so I brought my camera and was hoping to maybe photograph a few birds. I set out hoping to see a few Yigüirros, better known as Clay Colored Robins. I saw quite a few of them and hope to share some pictures in a later post but I happened to see one particular bird that really stood out. This bird was the Hoffman's Woodpecker. The Hoffman Woodpecker is unique to Central America ranging from southern Honduras to Costa Rica. At first I spotted a bird that had the wings of a Woodpecker but looked small. Turns out that it was a baby and I was able to observe and watch the to parent Woodpeckers feed this youngster. I managed to get lucky and get a picture of the Male Woodpecker feeding the youngster.

Male Hoffman's Woodpecker feeding Youngster

Young Hoffman's Woodpecker

 ²⁰ And God said, “Let the water teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the vault of the sky.” ²¹ So God created the great creatures of the sea and every living thing with which the water teems and that moves about in it, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.  Genesis 1:20-21 

Backpacking Corcovado National Park

     On Friday March 9 my Dad and I left on a four day backpacking and camping trip to "Corcovado National Park", located on the Osa Peninsula which is the smaller and Southernmost peninsula on the Pacific Coast in Costa Rica. Along with us were my friends Josh and Caleb, and their dads Brian and Nathan. The Osa Peninsula is one of the most diverse ecosystems in the world, and that said, the amount of wildlife that we saw on the trip was incredible.

     Starting Friday afternoon when we arrived at the where we were going to park the car we geared up with our backpacks (weighing ~40lb) and set of towards "La Leona Ranger Station which was located 3km (1.86mi) into the park. The 3km hike was all on the beach and it was absolutely beautiful. That night Dad and I set up our tent but it was so stinkin hot that we ended up sleeping on top of a pick-nick table.

La Leona Ranger Station, Friday Afternoon

Sunset on the beach Friday Night

     The next morning we got up around 5am and packed camp and ate breakfast. We started hiking at 6am and began what would be an 18km (11.18mi) hike through jungle and down long hot beaches. On the kike a ton of monkeys, along with deer, pumas, tapiers, and all kinds of birds. The hike was very difficult but well worth it. We had to leave early that day because we had to make it to a river (Rio Claro) during low tide in order to cross it. We arrived to "Sirena Ranger Station" that afternoon and took it easy and rested the remainder of the day.

Trail in the Jungle along the coast.

     We stayed at "Sirena Ranger station " for Saturday and Sunday night. Sunday we did a few small hike
s but mostly messed around on the beach and caught crabs and tried to get coconuts down. Sunday night we managed to arrange a boat to come and pick us up Monday morning.

Sirena Ranger Station

White Faced Monkey

Squirrel Monkey

Spider Monkey

Small Jungle deer of some sort. Not sure what its called.

      Monday morning at 8:30am our boat named "Sea Crab" came and picked us up. The boat driver was named Mario and he was very nice. The boat ride was about half an hour and we were able to see how far we had actually hiked two days previous. Because of the waves the boat dropped us off on the beach about a fifteen minute walk down the beach from our car. We got off and hiked tho the car and drove the 7 hour ride home that evening, out of which 2 hours were bumpy dirt and gravel roads getting of the peninsula.

Our ride: The "Sea Crab"

Costa Rican Caterpillars

         Living in Costa Rica for as long as I have has given me the opportunity to see all kinds of beautiful animals and insects, caterpillars being among them. I'm not sure exactly what it is about caterpillars that catches my attention but I love finding strange and cool looking caterpillars. You can ask anyone that knows me well that I have an obsession with trying to spot caterpillars in nearby trees or plants. At various points in my life I have caught caterpillars and kept them in an old glass aquarium in my room. My little brother, Wyatt, and I would change the leafs when needed and wait with lots of excitement for the caterpillars to pupate (pupate is the word used to describe the process of a caterpillar turning into a cocoon or chrysalis) and then hatch as beautiful butterflies or moths. Wyatt and I would often go off in search of caterpillars. Over time we came up with our own terminology for different caterpillar signs that we would find. For example: Any eaten leafs that appeared to be nibbled on we called "nibblets". Another word that we would use was "frass" and it isn't our word but the proper word for the droppings of phytophagous or "plant-eating" insects. So "frass" and "nibblets" were what we looked for and by doing this we found many caterpillars.

       I regret not taking more pictures of the caterpillars that I have found but I have taken a few. Caterpillars are kinda hard to photograph due to their small size and details. Someday I hope to buy a get a better camera with a macro lens but until I do Ill have to make do with what I got. :) Here are a few pictures of a couple caterpillars that I managed to take pictures of. 

This is a caterpillar that I found living on a palm tree outside one of my classroom windows. In total I counted seven of these caterpillars on two palm tree bushes.

The following three pictures are of a caterpillar egg and the caterpillar that hatched from the egg. 

These eggs are a bit larger that the point of a ball point pen.   

This is the caterpillar the day that it hatched. After it hatched it ate the old egg shell in order to get all the nutrients it could as it started its new little life.

This is not the same caterpillar that hatched from the egg but it is one of the same kind that I found already full grown. It is about 3in long and 1/2in fat in the middle. I was lucky enough to see this guy pupate and hatch into a brown and orange butterfly with big yellow eye shapes on its wings.

This is a saddle back caterpillar. If you haven't figured out just by looking at it, it gets its name due to the brownish saddle shape on its back. Saddle backs are just one of the many stinging kinds of caterpillars in Costa Rica and trust me when I say that they don't feel good. I have been stung multiple times by these caterpillars and they usually cause a big splotchy welt around the sting and it stings for about an hour.

This Caterpillar I saw in a butterfly garden. It eventualy turns into a Blue Morpho Butterfly and the Morpho Butterfly is the national butterfly of Costa Rica.

This guy is just your common old black fuzzy caterpillar. I like this picture because sometimes you fail to notice the orange colors and spiny shapes on these guys.

Hope you have enjoyed these pictures of just a few caterpillars that I have found. Hopefully next time you come across a caterpillar while gardening or on a walk you wont squish or kill it, but take a moment to observe and admire the fine details and colors found on these amazing creatures.

Top 5 Bird Pictures of 2011

     During 2011 was the first time that I actually got real into bird watching. It all started during January 2011 when I bought a bird feeder and hung it outside my bedroom window. I have always been interested in birds and wildlife but having the birds at my window every day and every morning at 5:00am really got me into trying to learn about and identify them. During a snow storm during the beginning of February there were so many birds taking advantage of the plentiful food at my feeder that I sometimes had to refill it twice a day and there were always dozens of birds flocking around my back yard. I soon made it a habit to try to photograph as many different species of birds at my feeder. After a while I started to learn all the birds species in the area and found great satisfaction in identifying a new species. It got to be such an obsession that I soon started to go on walks just to look for birds. Hanging a bird feeder up close to a window or patio is a great way to get started in bird watching and a source of hours of entertainment while watching birds come investigate and use the feeder. The following photos are pictures of birds that I took through my window while they were at my feeder or pictures I took while walking around.

This first bird is a Purple Finch. Because my feeder was hung outside my bedroom window it was always the first thing that I saw when I walked out of my bathroom. I was used to seeing the usual Cardinal or Chickadee but when I saw this guy I got super excited.  I remember that I was still in my towel after taking a shower when the little Purple Finch landed and I managed to snap a few pictures and fortunately he stayed around for a good while and I saw him again the next day. He only stayed around for two days and then took off to wherever he was heading. 

This cute little guy is a Black Capped Chickadee. They are very small birds and often fly around in small flocks during winter months. They really liked the sunflower seeds in the bird seed mix and would always grab one and fly of to a branch and peck it open with their little chisel like beak and then proceed to grab another one and do the same with it.

This is a Red Winged Blackbird. I took this picture while walking around the woods.

Gold Finch 

Female Ruby Throated Hummingbird
This picture was taken through a window at my grandparents house in Illinois

Hope you enjoyed these pictures. I sure enjoy taking them and being able to share my passion for bird photography with others. Its amazing to see up close how truly amazing God's creation is. 

For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky. Through everything God made, they can clearly see his invisible qualities--his eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse for not knowing God.   Romans 1:20

Missouri Box Turtles

      Ever since I was little I have been fascinated by turtles. During May in 2011 I had the opportunity to photograph a few turtles that I found while walking in the woods. In Missouri we have two species of Box Turtles, the Three Toed box turtle and the Ornate box turtle. I was lucky enough to find both species. 


Three-toed box turtles, as their name implies, typically have three hind toes - but some individuals have four. They are a forest species, although they may also be found along forest edges and brushy fields. They consume earthworms and insects, but adult three-toed box turtles tend to be more vegetarian, eating a variety of plants, berries and mushrooms. This is the common box turtle of Ozark woodlands. (http://mdc.mo.gov/discover-nature/outdoor-recreation/nature-viewing/amphibians-and-reptiles/turtles/box-turtles)

The ornate box turtle prefers more open country: pastures, prairie and open woodland. Although ornate box turtles consume some plant matter (especially berries), 90 percent of their diet is insects - made up mostly of grasshoppers, beetles and caterpillars. (http://mdc.mo.gov/discover-nature/outdoor-recreation/nature-viewing/amphibians-and-reptiles/turtles/box-turtles)

  Ornate box turtles have the coolest designs and colors on their shells.

      If you find a box turtle the best thing you can do for it is to not take it from where you found it. If you ever find a box turtle pick it up and take a close look at it and observe the colors and designs on it, just don't take it from where you found it. Box turtles are truly beautiful animals and are always a surprise to find while walking around the woods.