One’s response to data relies nearly completely on the data base that opinions are drawn from. Given this reality, reactions can simply differ if this data base is regularly rising. This has been made stark by evaluating how I felt after I first heard of the prospect of birding the slopes of Turrialba Volcano to as we speak, as I pen this text. Let me clarify.
I’ve a long-standing infatuation with mountains. Seen from a distance with distinct biodiversity and most significantly cool air, I stay for probably the most half blissfully blind to the cornucopia of risks that accompany this form of terrain. Sitting across the desk within the foyer of Rancho Naturalista with Nikky and Harry, we mentioned our plans for my time there. On the playing cards was a go to to Turrialba Volcano, and I drooled on the prospect of birding a pair thousand metres above sea stage. Gnarled and stunted branches laden with all manners of moss and lichen beckoned.
As a lot as I attempted to boring my expectations – my typical modus operandi is to erase them altogether – my thoughts stored me busy on the drive out of the lodge. Within the darkness of the pre-dawn I had a clean canvas upon which these excellent pictures started to materialise. Finally these visages vaporised as slivers of pink and orange started to course their means throughout the sky. Lastly, I knew the place east was. Stopping briefly for Meche to graciously seize me a cup of pure – and positively scrumptious – Costa Rican espresso, I obtained an opportunity to have a look at the resident Nice-tailed Grackles as they argued on the still-dark pavement. Then, we started the step by step intensifying ascent.
I’m no panorama photographer, however we completely needed to cease for this jaw-dropper of a vista.
Our subsequent cease was to seize a photograph of the signal that stated “Turrialba Volcano” with the precise volcano within the background – however we had been interrupted by a superb male Volcano Hummingbird that was perched close by.
Volcano Hummingbird
Birds had been aplenty from this preliminary cease, together with Sooty Thrush and Rufous-collared Sparrow. A number of others zoomed previous and though each skilled guides Harry and Meche knew what they had been, I couldn’t rely these as any notable sightings on my half.
Sooty Thrush is range-restricted and precipitated appreciable pleasure.
Rufous-collared Sparrow on a suitably adorned perch.
We made many stops as we continued our ascent into the clouds – there was completely little question that we had been within the cloud forest as many instances we had been utterly encased in dense mist. Regardless of the seemingly pleasant circumstances, we needed to regularly intentionally maintain hydrated as dehydration can simply creep up on the unaware. It was understandably tough to have breakfast comfortably, as there was at all times some hen that will momentarily materialise and trigger all events to resolve between shoving the rest of their sandwich again within the bag or down the throat. Whether or not it was a nesting Volcano Hummingbird cleverly hid (I don’t understand how Meche discovered this) or an uncommonly seen Ochraceous Pewee, I smiled with the understanding that it was precisely as I had hoped it could be.
The useful factor about flycatchers is that they usually make very brief flights looking for their most well-liked flying insect prey. The flutter of wings on the nook of my eye drew my consideration to a Darkish Pewee, a hen I might have been woefully incapable of figuring out with out the intervention of my guides.
Darkish Pewee
Boreal migrants had been additionally beginning to seem in larger numbers. We noticed Summer season Tanagers in lots of locations, however surprisingly solely females.
Wilson’s Warbler, one other customer from the north.
I added a number of Catharus thrushes to the life listing I don’t maintain together with two extra nightingale-thrushes – the primary of which was this Black-billed Nightingale-Thrush.
There have been a lot of soot-inspired birds within the highlands, I realised. A Sooty-capped Chlorospingus gave us good views. Whereas I used to be making an attempt to get a photograph of the Chlorospingus, a Slaty Flowerpiercer foraged inside a close-by thicket. I obtained a glimpse ultimately, however didn’t handle an inexpensive photograph till later within the day. There have been extra Sooty Thrushes on present as waves of clouds continued to carry and launch us, in addition to a number of Black-capped Flycatchers.
Sooty-capped Chlorospingus
Black-capped Flycatcher
A distant motion turned out to be the near-endemic costaricensis subspecies of Crimson-tailed Hawk, a a lot nearer motion was actually not a mouse however a feminine Slaty Flowerpiercer.
Slaty Flowerpiercer
Seeing a hen like this Blue-crowned Chlorophonia felt like selecting out a highlighter in a field of charcoal pencils.
A brief distance down the street led us to the place the Crimson-tailed Hawk had perched. Because it preened, a Fiery-throated Hummingbird buzzed it briefly. The hawk didn’t appear to be bothered by the hummingbird, the latter didn’t waste a lot time on it and moved off after a number of seconds. Or perhaps the hummingbird noticed an incoming cloud rolling in, because it quickly grew to become not possible to see the raptor on the perch from the place we had been.
Crimson-tailed Hawk
We made a quick cease simply after cresting the hill at simply over 2,600m above sea stage the place a hummingbird feeder attracted a number of species of those real-life fairies: from the tiny Volcano Hummingbird to the a lot bigger Lesser Violetear and Fiery-throated Hummingbird. Overseeing all of them was a pair of Talamanca Hummingbirds. Sadly, the climate circumstances meant that visibility was at finest just a few metres so we opted to curtail our keep right here in favour of heading down the mountain.
Lesser Violetear
Fiery-throated Hummingbird
Talamanca Hummingbird
We weren’t but out of earshot of this place when Harry noticed a roadside Ochraceous Pewee that precipitated our car to come back to a screeching halt. With good purpose, too, as our preliminary sighting earlier that morning had been of a distant hen on a wire.
Ochraceous Pewee
At one other cease, nonetheless looking forward to any sighting of a Resplendent Quetzal, we scanned the dense, moss-laden vegetation for any faint glint of emerald. We remained with out luck on this division, however because the optimist in me at all times says, should go away one thing for one more time. Nevertheless, I did handle a have a look at a pair of Black Guans that had been transferring by the cover. Once more, simply because the clouds had been rolling in.
I then caught a glimpse of the second of the day’s two nightingale-thrushes, this Ruddy-capped Nightingale-Thrush that ultimately popped out onto the street.
The descent was easy, a distinction to the fixed drone of the engine that was pushing us up the mountain earlier within the day. As we rolled on looking for cloudless forest (aka a spot to hen the place one can see into the timber) we scanned the vegetation for any signal of motion. Generally, we’d discover one thing and cease to have the clouds roll in after a number of seconds, however different instances we had been afforded extra time. Minutes, even. At one level whereas we had been having fun with some frenetic exercise in a thicket the clouds really parted and the solar confirmed itself for the primary time since the day before today. At that second I grew to become painfully conscious of the time. Judging from how a lot my pores and skin was out of the blue stinging, it was very near noon.
Nonetheless, the birds had been nonetheless unbelievable. This flurry of exercise was made obvious by the flitting round of a Collared Redstart, however upon nearer inspection there was additionally a bunch of Yellow-thighed Brushfinches transferring round throughout the vines. Add to this each Black-cheeked and Flame-throated Warblers, a Ruddy Treerunner, and a Purple-throated Mountain-gem and I used to be appropriately overwhelmed.
Collared Redstart
Yellow-thighed Brushfinch
Black-cheeked Warbler
Flame-throated Warbler
Ruddy Treerunner (it was each vibrant and darkish on the similar time, photographers will perceive)
Purple-throated Mountain-gem
I managed to catch one other Slaty Flowerpiercer within the combine as properly.
Additional down the street, we stumbled on one more pewee, and unsurprisingly one which I used to be uncertain of. This one turned out to be a Western Wooden-Pewee, as evidenced by its largely darkish invoice.
By this level, we had been made conscious of the time by one other issue – that of starvation. Steadily, human habitation started to be extra obvious as we descended. Driving by the clouds was an otherworldly expertise, as there was no indication by any means of what was past the white wall. Oftentimes, a lone large tree would out of the blue heave into view, a reminder of the dense forest that when populated the realm. Now, agriculture dominates the decrease slopes; these remoted timber had been someway spared the axe.
At the moment, as I started making ready this submit, I made a decision to seek for extra data on Turrialbla Volcano. The wikipedia web page commenced in dramatic style: “Turrialba Volcano is an lively volcano in central Costa Rica that has been explosively eruptive lately…“
Had I been conscious of this earlier than, maybe my response would have been a bit completely different. Would I’ve gone nonetheless? Completely.
