On the Road is a weekday feature spotlighting reader photo submissions.
From the exotic to the familiar, whether you’re traveling or in your own backyard, we would love to see the world through your eyes.
It’s Albatrossity Monday, and we get hummingbirds! We must have been very good to deserve this.
Costa Rica to California, California to Illinois, then Illinois to Arizona. I am not good with geography, but even I know that whoever planned the itinerary for this week did not plan the most efficient routes!
(click the image below for a bigger, non-blurry version of this week’s schedule)
Albatrossity
As WaterGirl mentioned, I recently spent 12 days in Costa Rica, and she gave me last Monday off. But I’m back, and it was a great trip, so I’m ready to share pictures.
I should mention that even though lots of people go to Costa Rica specifically to see the birds and other wildlife, I went with a group of undergraduate students from KSU as part of a Study Abroad excursion. There were 15 students and three instructors, including Elizabeth. The students were enrolled in either one or two of the three courses covered during this trip (English, Geography, or Biology). So the focus was not on birds and padding a life list; we visited places that would allow education to be the main focus. Nevertheless, in such a diverse and scenic country, you will always see some birds, and many of them will be new! Birds which were new to my life-list are tagged with an asterisk (*) in the captions below.
The first installment will be some hummingbirds. Costa Rica hosts around 50 species of hummingbirds, including a few which are endemic to Costa Rica, or found only in that country and neighboring Panama. There will be more hummingbirds in subsequent posts, but here’s a starter.
One of the most common is the *Rufous-tailed Hummingbird (Amazilia tzacatl), found in much of the country and well-adapted to gardens and other human alterations of the landscape. Unlike many hummingbirds, the sexes have similar plumages. As you can see, it is very aptly named. Click here for larger image.
Another species where the male and female have similar plumages is the Lesser Violetear (Colibri cyanotus). This one was not new to my life list, since I had seen them previously in Ecuador, but they are always a treat to see. Those purple ear patches can be flared out when the bird wants to impress or intimidate. This species, only recently split from the Mexican Violetear, is one of the many highland-loving hummingbirds, and is generally found at elevations from 1450-3000 m (4700-10000 ft in American). Click here for larger image.
Another highland species that I had previously seen in the Andes in Ecuador, the Green-crowned Brilliant (Heliodoxa jacula) is also aptly named. This is a female; the male (like the Andean one in the link above) would have a blue throat patch. Click here for larger image.
One of the sites we visited had several hummingbird feeders and LOTS of hummingbirds. The host also had some small hand-held feeders that (if the other feeders were taken down) attracted some of the less-cautious birds to your hand. Here’s a Green-crowned Brilliant perched on a student’s hand. Click here for larger image.
Another species that is the product of a recent taxonomic split is the *Talamanca Hummingbird (Eugenes spectabilis). The species formerly known as Magnificent Hummingbird (E. fulgens) was divided into a northern species that can be seen in southeastern Arizona (Rivoli’s Hummingbird, E. fulgens) and this southern species, which is endemic to mountain ranges in Costa Rica and western Panama. This is a male, showing off his blue, green, and purple colors even on an overcast day in the cloud forest. Click here for larger image.
The *White-throated Mountain-gem (Lampornis castaneoventris) has a very restricted range; it is found only in the mountains of southern Costa Rica and western Panama. Only the male has the eponymous white throat. Click here for larger image.
The female White-throated Mountain-gem has a buffy throat and underside, and is arguably prettier than the male. Click here for larger image.
Another violetear, this *Brown Violetear (Colibri delphinae) is more drab than the other violetears, but it still has those purple ear patches. Males and females are identical plumage-wise, and both of them have a bill that seems quite short for a hummingbird. Click here for larger image.
One of the largest hummingbirds, the *Violet Sabrewing (Campylopterus hemileucurus) is a spectacular sight in the mountains of Central America. This is a male, distinguished by the green rump and violet-purple underparts, coming in to dislodge a Brown Violetear who was hogging the feeder. Click here for larger image.
The hummingbirds known as hermits (subfamily Phaethornithinae) usually are more brown than other hummingbirds, and this *Bronzy Hermit (Glaucis aeneus) is no exception. It is also an extraordinarily fast and busy feeder, spending only a second or two at any individual flower. That means that I have lots of fuzzy out-of-focus shots of this one! Click here for larger image.
OzarkHillbilly
Good to have you back. Love that last photo of the Bronzy Hermit. Pure gold.
JPL
wonderful photos!
eclare
Such amazing colors! Except for the poor hermit.
NeenerNeener
Woo hoo, hummingbirds! We only have the ruby throats around here. They’ve finally found the feeder at my new house, so I get to see them several times in a day.
Albatrossity
@OzarkHillbilly: Thanks! And it was good to read that your wife is home and recovering!
stinger
Wonderful photos all!
SteveinPHX
Thank you for my Monday morning treat! Beautiful birds.
Geo Wilcox
About 10 years ago we had hundreds of ruby throated hummingbirds. I was filling 10 feeders, twice daily. Then they disappeared. I think in their winter range someone cut down their habitat and they moved to another one with birds who breed in a different area than ours. Our hummingbirds must have followed them to where ever they breed. Now we have maybe two or three breeding pairs and I no longer have to buy 100 pounds of sugar a year. I wish I still had to…
The Red Pen
Hummingbirds are so amazing and bizarre. Love these photos.
Mike S. (Now with a Democratic Congressperson!)
Thanks for the great pics that bring back good memories. Costa Rica and it’s hummingbirds are both great. I want to go back. (and sooner rather than later!)
Betty
It was interesting to see your comment about beak length. A study was done about Dominica’s hummingbirds that analyzed the difference in beaks between the males and females. Their theory is the females have longer more curved beaks because the males forced them to use harder to access nectar. They believe this development helps confirm Darwin’s theory of evolution.
J.
Love the expression on the face of the female White-throated Mountain-gem. Great photo. Welcome back!
Betty Cracker
Amazing! I’ve seen a rufous h-bird but had no idea there were rufous-tailed varieties! Your life list must be astounding.
mvr
These are all impressive but I’m for some reason liking the brown violetear best.
Thanks for taking us on your trip!
Betsy
@OzarkHillbilly: If a Carolina Wren went as a hummingbird for a day!
I hope you and Ms. OH are having a good day.
Yutsano
HUMMERBIRBS!!!
I agree that the female White-throated Mountain-gem is better looking than the male. And I’m sticking to that.
Miss Bianca
Oh, yay, you’re back and with photos of my favorite birb!
Now I feel like I *have* to go to Costa Rica, if only for the hummie-birding.
Madeleine
@eclare: I’m with OH about the Hermit. Lovely play of browns.
Dan B
It’s great to be reminded of places and hummers we saw in Costa Rica. San Isidro we found dull but the surrounding area with the Cerro de la Muerte climb to 11,000 feet, the only Altiplano (sp?) outside South America – bizarre plants, very cool visually and literally, plus the Quetzals at our hotel at 9,000 feet. And hummers, dozens at a couple feeders, at our B&B at the foot of the mountains on the Carribean side. There were about 20 birds and a dozen species. Amazing!
And did I mention Gunnera, Dinosaur Food – huge leaves, in the wild?
Citizen Dave
Fantastic as always! Much appreciated.