Algarve, Portugal, part II

Our second destination was Tavira. Unfortunately the C.19 restrictions were tightened and we were not allowed to leave the Concelho (district) of our adress. So the main spot to look for Chameleons, was not in our district and since the police interviewed us twice before, we did't want to risk any trouble. The weather also became a bit more autumn-like, so my hope to find Chameleons... vanished.
After most of the very cloudy day (14°C) wasted with looking for nice locations in our district and flipping rocks and stuff (finding nothing special), we went to the salt pans to look for birds. Birdwatching is actually fun too and with the proper equipment, it would be even nicer.

Egretta garzetta - Little Egret

Platalea leucorodia - Eurasian Spoonbill

Phalacrocorax carbo - Great Cormorant

Himantopus himantopus - Black-winged Stilt

Too little light for a decent picture, so I took an experimental one

The weather forecast for Tavira area (and beyond) was super cloudy and rainy... so no chance to find reptiles. Sneaky Samira came up with a nice idea: we rent an additional apartment for one night to be legally allowed to move to another district. So we went to Monchique, since the rainy and quite cold weather is sh**ty for reptiles we were hoping to find close to the beach, but perfect for the Salamanders we would love to see in the mountains. Thanks to trip reports and google earth I was very confident I found a good spot. And when we came closer to the famous picnic site, I noticed some people with flashlights there. Fellow herpers? :-) ...No. Just some young guys doing something (?) in the dark drizzle. :-(
A little dissapointed we went past them and focused on our search for Amphibians. Very soon we found the first Fire Salamander (Salamandra s. crespoi), followed by some larvas in the stream and 13 adults. Also one Boscá's Newt was posing perfectly on a mossy stone and two Spiny Toads showed up. Almost all of the Salamanders were big mommies. After a cold night in the mountains, we went back to Tavira and made a short stop at the salamander spot for some last shots.

Fire Salamander - on the move

 

Salamandra s. crespoi - Fire Salamander

Bufo spinosus - Spiny Toad

Fire Salamander larva

Fire Salamander - with nice red pattern

Lissotriton boscai - Boscá's Newt

Salamandra s. crespoi - Fire Salamander

 
The afternoon in Tavira was rainy again so I convinced Samira to do some road herping with me. We found several Pygmy Marbled Newts and one Sharp-ribbed Newt. After saving them from the road, I took the oportunity for some more pictures. (Unfortunately also a few newts were found DOR).

Triturus pygmaeus - Pygmy Marbled Newt

Pygmy Marbled Newt - dorsal view

Pygmy Marbled Newt - portrait

Pleurodeles waltl - Sharp-ribbed Newt

Sharp-ribbed Newt - portrait

Almost the end of our Algarve trip, the sun showed up again and gave us one last chance to search for Chameleons. So we checked the dune areas. First we searched together. After quite a while Samira sat down at the beach, relaxing like a normal tourist - while  I was still staring in the bushes like an obsessed madman. Shortly after I picked up Samira and went with her towards the parking lot, I stopped walking and gasped: "I don't believe it... there is one!" A broad grin, that almost hurt my face was the result of this last minute observation. Pure joy!

Chamaeleo chamaeleon - Mediterranean Chameleon

Before our flight back, we had around 1.5 hours time to hike around close to the airport. We failed to find a second Chameleon, but we were able to take some pictures of Mediterranean Pond Turtles (Mauremys leprosa). 

Mauremys leprosa - Mediterranean Pond Turtle

Mauremys leprosa - Mediterranean Pond Turtles

Master of camouflage: Gallinago gallinago - Common snipe

All in all it was a really nice trip!
- We skipped a coulpe of cold days in Germany
- We enjoyed beautiful beaches
- We saw some amazing herps (including many lifers)
All the good stuff mentioned, two Horseshoe Whip Snakes, escaped without a picture in a stone wall,
several herp species not observed at all and some places missed due to the restrictions... many reasons to visit the Algarve again one day.

Costa Rica - Birds III

It's time to show some photos of birds again. I will always be focused on herpetofauna, but I have to admit that birding has also become a passion of mine. I don't have the best camera gear for bird photography, but with my 400 mm I can still get nice shots... these are some of my favorites: 

Pyrilia haematotis - Brown-hooded Parrot

Ramphastos sulfuratus - Keel-billed toucan

Crax rubra - Great Curassow

Sarcoramphus papa - King Vulture

Ceratopipra mentalis - Red-capped Manakin

King of the Cloud Forest

Cloud forests occur within tropical or subtropical mountainous environments, where the atmospheric conditions allow for a consistent cover of clouds. These forests are very rare and cover only approximately 1% of the world's forests. The rich variety of flora and fauna includes many rare and endemic species.

Probably the most famous representative of the Central American cloud forest is the Resplendent Quetzal (Pharomachrus mocinno). This beautiful bird is found in southern Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, northern Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and western Panama. The population has greatly decreased due to factors such as deforestation, hunting, and capture of these birds for trade. Luckily, in Costa Rica hunting is forbidden by law and national parks have been set up to protect this endangered bird.
My first observation of a male Quetzal during my trip to Monteverde was breathtaking and filled me with awe! Thanks to the 500mm lens, I was able to capture this unforgettable encounter. After cheking my pictures on the camera screen, I couldn't stop smiling for the rest of the day.

After I stumbled during the continuing hike, still distracted by the quetzal observation, I laughed and told my friend Andres, who accompanied me on this trip: "I could fall now and break my leg, it would still be a fantastic day".

It is our commitment to protect this amazing bird and its unique habitat. The mystical beauty of the cloud forest and its inhabitants is unprecedented.

https://neotropical.birds.cornell.edu
https://animaldiversity.org
https://www.monteverdeinfo.com

Costa Rica - Birds II

Last time I was in Costa Rica it took me about 2 and a half months, until i first posted something about our feathered friends: Birds. This time I decided to share the beauty of costa rican birds with you way earlier. So I created this video, showing 6 different species of birds. Enjoy one minute of tropical bird watching on your screen!

0:00 - Palm Tanager (Thraupis palmarum)
0:09 - Orange-chinned Parakeet (Brotogeris jugularis)
0:22 - Scaly-breasted Hummingbird (Phaeochroa cuvierii)
0:33 - Passerini's tanager (Ramphocelus passerinii) male
0:41 - Yellow-throated Toucan (Ramphastos ambiguus)
0:51 - Green Honeycreeper (Chlorophanes spiza) male

Costa Rica - Birds

I've been in Costa Rica since November 13th and have not shown a single picture of a bird yet. That is no longer acceptable... so I want to catch up here.   In this post I show some of the birds that I could photograph so far. Including migratory birds there are more than 900 species in Costa Rica... it's every birder's paradise!

The Summer Tanager (Piranga rubra) is one of those migratory birds. Living most of the year in the southern part of the USA, coming to visit Central America during the winter. This is a beautiful male. The females are less colorful, more brownish.

The very common Blue-gray Tanager (Thraupis episcopus) doesn't show a significant gender dimorphism.        

Definitely one of my favorite birds I've seen so far: Golden-hooded Tanager (Tangara larvata)

The Rufous Motmot (Baryphthengus martii) is 46 cm (18 in) long and weights 195 g (6.9 oz). This bird feeds on insects, lizards, frogs, fish, crabs, and many fruits.

With approximately 12.2 cm (4.8 in) length, the Red-legged Honeycreeper (Cyanerpes cyaneus) is a quite small bird. The green females are very pretty birds...

...but the shiny blue males are even prettier. These birds look like flying gems!

And finally the famous one! This is the largest species of toucan, living in Costa Rica: the Yellow-throated Toucan (Ramphastos ambiguus). It reaches a total length of 47–61 cm (19–24 in). It feeds mainly on fruits, but also on lizards, snakes, rodents, smaller birds and insects.