Unfortunately this story doesn't have a good ending. Walking along the beach it was clear all the nests had been raided. The hope was that the eggs had been taken to be incubated in a safe place, but the reality was that they had been taken by locals, and probably to sell to bars and clubs as a luxury addition to night time drinks. Under Costa Rican law this is not illegal on beaches where no special protection is provided. Talking to the hotel staff this is the case in Tambor, but has not extended to here on the resort. The hope is that in the future the resort can get that legal protection, but for now the turtles efforts seem to be in vain, not only do they have to run the gauntlet of the many vultures that cruise up and down the beach, if they do manage to lay eggs then they are immediately dug up.
We were movingon once again today, but there was a problem with the ferry terminal at Pacquera, the terminal we had arrived at to get here. The loading ramp had broken, and we had to cross to Puntarenas from Playa Naranjo, a further 45 minute journey on from Pacquera. The Ferry crossing time though was about the same. Our pick up time was brought forward, and the main reason for this was to ensure we were first in line to board. We were at the terminal an hour and a half before the ferry was due to leave, but this did allow me to spend sometime to watch the birds around the beach. Not the best beach in the world, but the tide was high!
White Ibises constantly flew across from either side.
This particular ibis is a medium-sized bird with an overall
white plumage, bright red-orange down-curved bill and long legs, and black
wing tips that are usually only visible in flight.
A Spotted Sandpiper called and flew across the water and landed in front of us on an old tree stump. These were to be the commonest wader we saw on the trip.
On the overhead wires Northern Rough-winged Swallows gathered before all setting off to fly out low over the water hawking for insects.
They are a rather robust large swallow that, in flight resembles more a starling shape.
As well as the the Northern Rough-winged Swallows there were also a few Mangrove Swallows. A pair seemed to like sitting on one of the boats in the water.
These are a much smaller swallow with blue-green upper parts, and have a white rump that sets them apart from other swallows here in Costa Rica.
With the approaching ferry from Puntarenas, there was activity on the loading ramp. Looking at it though, it was no surprise that they had problems with the one in Pacquera. when you see the size and weight of some of the trucks and rigs that cross onto the boats, you have to wonder if they break more often.
As we stood in line to board, birds flew past us, first a Great Egret.
Then a smart adult Black-crowned Night Heron.
Once on board we headed upstairs to the top deck again. The Great-tailed Grackles were already waiting for us. The juveniles hunting in packs while the adults were calmer and quite happy to sit and wait.
These birds are very intelligent and have a manner about them that reminds me of small dinosaurs as represented in CGI for the movies.
The journey took us out into the Gulf of Nicoya once again, and as we were north of where we had crossed a few days ago we could see the various islands from the other side.
The conditions were very calm, and the sun was strong even through the hazy cloud cover. We could see many Brown Pelicans soaring over the mainland, but they kept their distance. What was welcoming though was a Magnificent Frigatebird that drifted over the ferry.
It came very close, almost as if it was curious, but probably looking for any chance of food.
Moving out into open water we came across the old logs and trunks once again. These were again a good resting place for the juvenile Black Terns that were about in good numbers today.
Then a surprise. I picked up two black birds a fair way off, and fortunately these came much closer crossing the ferry at the front of the ship. From a distance I could see that they were shearwaters, and as they came close I managed to get a good view.
The guide book I had had chosen to omit many seabirds, but following some research and discussion with local guides later on the trip I am convinced that they were Audubon's Shearwater.
As we came closer to the terminal, the amount of Black Terns increased, and they were joined by a Royal Tern that was fishing in the rough water caused by the combination of currents.
A successful attempt and a good catch.
Docking was quite swift, and we then had to endure the chaos that comes when the cars pull off the ferry and the passengers are reunited with their vehicles, but were finally on our way. I had asked the driver if we could stop briefly on the Tarcoles River Bridge. On our last trip we had stopped here, and it had been quite successful, the hope was it would be this trip too.
We left Puntarenas and headed south, our journey time was about 90 minutes. We joined route 34 that runs from San Jose to the beaches around Jaco, and after about an hour we arrived at the bridge, the driver let us out and we were able to walk over the bridge. The bridge spans the Rio Tarcoles, the main river that runs down to the Pacific Ocean from the central Costa Rica highlands
It is known as the Crocodile bridge, as below in the river are a sizeable collection of American Crocodiles. It was quite a sight when we stopped here in 2012, and as we looked down on the huge reptiles it was quite a sight in 2017. There were about two dozen crocodiles in the water and on the mud.
These are American Crocodiles, and some were as large as four metres in length. They have grow so large from feeding on the occasional cow that falls in or tries to cross the river, and have also been fed chickens by the locals all this is illegal.
In addition to the livestock providing food for the crocodiles there are also reports of men having jumped in to the river and been devoured. Looking at the beasts it would not be a very nice ending. The reports on the internet though do say attacks on humans are very rare, and come about by the individuals stupidity.
The American crocodile is a species of crocodile found in
the Neotropics. Populations occur from
the Atlantic and Pacific coasts of southern Mexico to South America as far as Peru
and Venezuela. The American is one of the larger crocodile species. Males
can reach lengths of 6.1 metres. On
average, mature males are more in the range of 4.1 metres to
4.8 metres in length.
This species has a more V-shaped snout, compared to other
large crocodiles, which usually have a slightly wider snout. Adults have a
uniform greyish-green coloration with white or yellow undersides, while
juveniles have dark cross-banding on the tail and back. Despite this large
size, American Crocodiles do not regularly attack large animals, as most large
crocodiles do. Fish, reptiles, birds and small mammals make up the majority
of their diet. On some occasions, large mammals such as deer and cattle are taken. Like any other
large crocodile species, the American Crocodile is potentially dangerous to humans,
though it tends not to be as aggressive as some other species.
On our previous visit there had been a open area of marsh that had a few shorebirds feeding in it. Today though there was no marsh, the land was covered in vegetation. The only birds close to the river were a Bare-throated Tiger Heron, and this Great Egret that was standing in amongst the crocodiles. It is not the crocodile that you can see that is the danger.
We had also seen Scarlet Macaw here, they flew over, a flock of eight birds. Today there was nothing, and I feared we had missed the chance.
Back on the road we headed for our one night stop over. It was to be a Marriott hotel located in the resort of Los Suenos, as we drove in we passed wonderful apartments with ocean views and a large golf course with small ponds and danger signs warning of crocodiles. One of those from the Tarcoles bridge would have struggled to fit in the ponds.
The Marriott was very much a resort, with a complex of swimming pools, and ground that led down to a beach. We spent the afternoon by the pool, but as the sun started to slip away things became interesting. Parakeets started to gather, and then there were loud squawking calls from the trees and two pairs of Scarlet Macaws flew across the pool to the hills on the far side of the resort. I raced back to the room to get the camera, but when I returned I couldn't find them, despite the help of one of the waiters. I waited back at the pool and very soon they returned. Flying in pairs back across the pool to the trees on the edge of the grounds.
It is always strange looking at the photographs of parrots after you have taken them, as I have to convince myself that they were wild. These were, and they were beautiful perched high in the trees.
they were continually calling to each other, with one in the tree.
while what I presume was its mate answered back from an open perch.
Getting the right exposure against the bright sky was a continual challenge.
then there was a crescendo of calls that ended with both birds flying off once again, their prehistoric calls ringing out as they flew away towards the far hills once again.
Failure to see them on the bridge was not a problem, they seem to be quite happy around the grounds here at the Marriott, something I did not expect.
The hotel here was nice, but I am glad we were here in the close season, I could imagine in the high season it would be intolerable. We had dinner, and retired, waking the next morning early. Our pick up to take us to our final location in Uvita did not arrive until 11.00 so we had plenty of time to walk around the grounds and maybe spend some time in the pool. It was a lovely morning, clear blue skies and very warm.
At breakfast we were visited by Great-tailed Grackles, mainly juveniles. One picked up a piece of bread that fell from the table, flew off with it and then returned with three other birds as if the former bird had told his mates!
After breakfast we set off around the grounds, heading first to the trees where I had seen the Scarlet Macaws last night. As we approached I could hear their calls once again, and as we got closer a pair flew up from the trees, circled around and settled back down.
The Scarlet Macaw is the only macaw found on the Pacific side of Costa Rica.
Commonly found living high in the trees of lowland deciduous or tropical
evergreen forests,
Scarlet Macaws have large territories and fly in pairs or
small families, reaching speeds up to 35mph. Locally known as Lapas, Scarlet
Macaws are monogamous and pair for life.
Macaws can live forty years or longer. When one member
of the pair dies, the remaining bird sometimes dies shortly after.
Their favourite food, at least in Costa Rica, is the
almost-ripe seed of the Indian Almond. Searching for the almond-sized
and-shaped seed hidden beneath the tough, fibrous nut, the macaw chips out big
chunks of the hard fruit using the sharp edge of its lower mandible; once it
hits the nut, it slices through the outer fruit and picks out its meal.
This pair spent a lot of the time chattering away, and squawking at each other, then suddenly stopped and engaged in grabbing each other's bill.
So maybe it was some form of pillow talk!
We moved away from the Macaws, and walked down to the beach. Movement in the nearby hedge belonged to a Variegated Squirrel, and as mentioned in the previous post at Tambor the coat colouring can vary considerably.
Walking around the pool, the short grass and sand was an attraction to the large lizards. They were looking to warm up in the morning sunshine. This is a mature Black Iguana, to get the whole animal in means standing back as the tail is very long.
Close in you can see the wonderful patterns in the skin.
This another Black Iguana, not yet a mature animal.
Another Iguana scurried across the lawn, this time a Green Iguana. I tried to get around it so the sun was in the best position to show off the amazing patterns in the skin.
Incredible markings around the head and neck.
We moved on, and I followed the calls of parakeets in the trees, finally locating a pair feeding along a horizontal bough.
These are Orange-chinned Parakeets, and they spent the whole time upside down
I was not sure what they were feeding on, but they were very intent of getting to it, but pausing every so often to look around for possible danger.
A small stream ran alongside the edge of the grounds, and here there were several Spotted Sandpipers by the edge of the water. I found a Jesus Christ Lizard on the bank.
Its proper name is the Common Basilisk, but is called the Jesus Christ Lizard because of its ability to run across the surface of the water where threatened. We tried to entice this lizard to do just that. It moved towards the water but rather than run across it, the lizard swam. Clearly it didn't feel very threatened.
It hauled out on the other side and paused to dry or warm up. The common basilisk is named for the creature of Greek
mythology made up of parts of a rooster, snake, and lion which could turn a man
to stone by its gaze: the Basilisk.
Our journey to Uvita would take two hours, and as the Kura Design Villas were only accessed by 4 x 4 vehicle up the side of the mountain we had a meeting time of 14.30 for a pick up and transfer. we had plenty of time so we stopped outside Quepos for lunch in a marina.
The journey took us past endless Palm Oil plantations, the sunshine of the morning gave way to more overcast conditions but as we were at sea level it was hot and humid. The journey up to Kura was steep and took us into cloud, and then out of it. On arriving we were given a very warm welcome, and shown to our villa. It was amazing, set in the side of the mountain overlooking the Pacific and the Uvita's Marino Ballena National Park, there was a balcony surrounded by trees and plants.
The Kura Design Villas is an adults only location with six beautiful villas. Forbes calls it the "Most glamorous romantic resort in Costa vRica", and I could well believe that. This was to be our home for the next five days, and already it looked to be a wonderful decision. After settling in we witnessed a heavy rain storm as we sat reading on the balcony. That evening over dinner we contemplated the next few days here, what would they bring.
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