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Popular Things To Do | Other Things To Do Tips | All Tips (40) Hands down my favorite animal sighted in Costa Rica. I'm sure that a jaguar would top the frog--but it is nigh near impossible to catch sight of a jaguar. So I will gladly settle for the dart frog.
These frogs are extremely small--this one was no bigger than my thumbnail. And they are extremely toxic. The reason that they are called poison dart frogs is that the secretions from their bodies were used by indigenous peoples to coat their blow-darts which were then employed to bring down big game.
Some people have also licked frogs in the hopes of reaching a hallucinogenic state, but that is not recommended as it could be potentially lethal.
check out the Nashville Zoo site for info on blue poison dart frogs: http://www.nashvillezoo.org/blfrog.htm Leave a Comment
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My buddy, Mrclay, has been asking about the large predator reptiles. Unfortunately, we did not get to see the resident crocodile. But the croc's close cousin the caiman was seen in abundance.
The caiman can probably down a wading bird or your neighbor's poodle, but it is definitely not a man-eater. Still, the prehistoric look of these carniverous reptiles is awe-inspiring. Definitely one of the highlights of Tortuguero. Leave a Comment
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Bright orange iguanas--never expected to see that. But I have learned that it is common for the males to turn orange during mating season. It is their signal to the females that they are ready to go. I guess subtlety is lost on your average iguana.
For more on Central American reptiles look at: http://centralamerica.com/cr/moon/moreptile.htm Leave a Comment
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The anhinga is a diving bird. It will float along the river and then dive down underneath the surface to give chase to a tasty looking fish, It can swim underwater for several minutes at a time. When it returns to the surface it will find a place to roost and then unfold its wings so that they can dry out.
Also known as the snake-bird because its long curvy neck can resemble a snake when it is diving and swimming underwater. Leave a Comment
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The bare-throated tiger heron is a wading bird that does not grace U.S. shores. Like all wading birds it plies the brackish waters for fish and other aquatic creatures.
Check out this great birding resource to learn more about herons: http://montereybay.com/creagrus/herons.html Leave a Comment
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The ringed kingfisher is not often found in the U.S. (only in the extreme southeastern tip of Texas). But we saw plenty of kingfishers on the Tortuguero River. They are carniverous and hunt fish, frogs and water retiles. I desperately wanted to get a decnt photo of a diving kingfisher but they were way to fast--I was lucky to get this one perching on a limb overhanging the water. Leave a Comment
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The sungrebe has a special adaptation that is unique in the world of birds--the male can put its young into shallow pockets under his wings and transport them while swimming or flying. Young swans allow their young to hitch a ride on their back and other grebes also allow such hitching, but no other bird is known to fly with their chicks. Fascinating, no?
The sungrebe is exceedingly rare and shy, so we were most fortunate to get a glimpse of this wonderful bird. Leave a Comment
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We saw several members of the Trogon family in Costa Rica. All trogons are very colorful--none more so than the resplendent quetzal. Trogons are tropical arboreal birds (that means they live in jungle trees) who feed on insects and caterpillers. The elegant trogon is the only member of the trogon family that makes an appearance in the U.S., but only in the far southeastern corner of Arizona.
The bird shown in this photo is the slaty-tailed trogon. Leave a Comment
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We stopped at a grassy reef so that the members of our party could change out of their drenched ponchos (I had gone without). So I had some time to fool around with the macro settings on my zoom lense. Personally, I think this is one of the most incredible photos from the entire trip. The dragonfly was extremely tiny and it was nothing but dumb luck that I was able to snap a shot, in focus, as it paused on a thin reed. Leave a Comment
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The life of the sloth is devoted to hanging from tree limbs by means of its sturdy claws. The sloth eats tree leaves and it has a super-slow rate of metabolism. It will take days to digest its meal and therefore it takes meals only sporadically. The sloth moves about so little that its body is actually fertile ground for the growth of colonies of algae. The algae in turn provides a greenish camouflage for the slow-moving sloth. Leave a Comment
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on January 12, 2004
