People complain when all I have from my travels are insect photos. Hey, I watch birds, I photograph insects. In fact, although I carry a point-and-shoot, I only have a macro lens on my good camera. It was so windy most days here, I didn’t get to photo many bugs. So I attempted to photograph a few birds.

How about this this Pauraque (Nyctidromus albicollis) at the Quinta Matzalan World Birding Center in McAllen, Texas. It was breathtaking through a scope. We also heard many and saw one during a long evening walk at Bentsen.

I think Least Grebes are very cute, and small enough to hold in your hand. Even cuter, their fluffy butts. This was one of a half dozen or so at Sabal Palm Audubon Center in Brownsville.

Every catch basin should have its own Burrowing Owl. Unfortunately, when this development in Mission is finished, out go the owls. I have been coming to the Valley for 10 years, and I cannot believe how much development has accelerated here.

One bug pic. This is a Sickle-winged Skipper, also at Sabal Palm.

"All this birding is making me hungry."

"You’re not kidding. I’m so hungry, I could eat a small goat."

It’s been a long while since I’ve reviewed a book here. In fact, it’s been a long while since I’ve read an entire book, especially a novel. I received The Conjurer’s Bird as a gift, and found it great bedtime reading.

A British academic, a former expert on extinct birds, is contacted by a former colleague. This colleague has hooked up with a modern-day treasure hunter of sorts who is interested in finding the Mysterious Bird of Ulieta. The bird was originally discovered by Captain James Cook’s second South Seas expedition in 1772, and known only from a painting, as the specimen is presumed lost. The story develops as several people believe the specimen can be relocated.

Concurrently, in alternating chapters, author Martin Davies tells the story of the naturalist Joseph Banks, who once possessed the Ulieta bird in his collections. Usually, I find back-and-forth narratives tedious, particularly if they leap from one era to another. Davies handled this well, however, and of course we await for clues to fall into place in history to solve the mystery of the present. As I read, I thought the story of Banks and his young mistress fairly improbable. I have a bad habit of reading all the author’s notes and acknowledgments before I finish a book. I happened not to do that this time, and when I finished the book and read the section on the historical background for the book, I learned that there is indeed a Mysterious Bird of Ulieta, and that Davies firmly rooted this book in fact — including the story of Banks and his mistress. His weaving of fiction around these facts was actually a great and plausible explanation for historical events. I enjoyed the book on its own, but once I learned how it meshed with actual events, I found myself delighted and impressed. It prompted me to crack open my copy of Errol Fuller’s excellent volume Extinct Birds and read up on this and other birds we have lost to time…or just plain lost!

The Conjurer’s Bird will appeal to mystery lovers, natural history buffs, and fans of historical fiction (I am all of the above). It’s also currently bargain priced at Amazon: a can’t miss buy.

Ever since I began drinking coffee, I have been a strong and vocal advocate of what is known as “shade-grown” coffee, but what I like to call “sustainable coffee.” If there is one thing coffee-drinking birders can do to help preserve biodiversity, it is to carefully choose their coffee. Unfortunately, this isn’t quite as easy as picking a coffee with a seal on the bag. Many eco-friendly coffee farms cannot afford certification. Different certifications have various environmental criteria. As there is no legal definition of “shade-grown,” many producers and suppliers play fast and loose with this labelling. The best first step is to stop buying cheap supermarket coffee, responsible for an incredible amount of environmental damage. I get really pissed off when people who profess to being green consumers and nature lovers tell me that they know they shouldn’t drink Folger’s, but… But what? Too lazy to give up the convenience and do a little research, too cheap to spend the same amount on a cup of coffee as they would a can of Coke. If you’d like to know more about this topic, head on over to Coffee & Conservation for these posts:

• What is shade-grown coffee?
• Problems with sun coffee.
• Birds and coffee plantations.
• Top 5 indicators of sustainable coffee.
• The coffee crisis (economics of cheap supermarket coffee and impacts)

So in Panama, I wanted to see for myself how coffee was grown and the differences in biodiversity with different management types. On two days, we visited Finca Hartmann, a coffee farm near Santa Clara, Panama. We also spent a morning hiking through a farm that at one time supplied Starbucks, and because coffee was everywhere, we also had an opportunity to take a look at many other farms.

Finca Hartmann (aside from housing and other human infastructure) is a
mix of remnant and regenerating forest, pasture, and coffee. One thing we discovered was that coffee farms are far from homogenous. At Finca Hartmann, coffee occurs in plots ranging from 1 to 15 ha, and itself grows intermixed with native vegetation and/or crops such as citrus and bananas. The higher elevation part of the farm is directly adjacent to the La Amistad International Park, and we could have walked to Costa Rica through the forest trails. Some of these trails were made by Smithsonian researchers; the Hartmann’s welcome ecologists and students.

Here I am in the forested area of the upper part of the farm.

And standing (not sitting!) among the streamside forest on the lower portion.

Nearly 300 species of birds have been recorded at Finca Hartmann. Although we really only explored for 6 or 7 hours over the two days, were working without a guide, and spent equal amounts of time looking at insects, we observed around 80 species of birds at Finca Hartmann.

The most common North American migrant species we saw in coffee farms were Wilson’s Warblers (right), Tennessee Warblers, and Summer Tanagers. These were also common in the lower part of Finca Hartmann, along with Golden-winged, Blackburnian, Chestnut-sided, Black-and-White, and Mourning Warblers, and American Redstart.

Because coffee at Finca Hartmann is grown in small plots amongst remnant vegetation and under various types of shade trees, birds that were more forest-dependent were also found even in the mixed forest-coffee habitats –White-ruffed Manakin, Blue-crowned Motmot, and Mountain Robin, for example. At the higher elevation portion, we had many species of forest birds, such as White-throated Spadebill, Red-headed Barbet (left), Eye-ringed Flatbill, Lesser Greenlet, and Wedge-billed Woodcreeper.

In contrast, in the farms that had larger patches of coffee under fewer shade trees and/or less frequently intermixed with remnant forest, we had much less diversity. Our hike was about 3 hours, and we had 29 species. Most common birds were those that preferred more open or edge habitats: lots of Rufous-crowned Sparrows, Silver-throated Tanagers, (right) and Clay-colored Robins. Where there was adjacent forest, we did see species like Emerald Toucanet. This farm was not really a “sun coffee” farm, but it was more intensively managed than Finca Hartmann. Even so, our experience underscored the importance of having forest on the farm, and a variety of vegetation in, around, or near the coffee.

Our visit to Finca Hartmann was one of the most enjoyable experiences I’ve had — the birds, the coffee education (not just birding in the coffee, but a great tour of their small mill as they processed this year’s crop), and the hospitality of the Hartmann family.  We will certainly return there. It’s one of many small producers that deserve our support. Finca Hartmann coffee is often available from specialty roasters. Part of last year’s crop won 8th place in the 2007 Best of Panama coffee competition. I can recommend a great roaster that carries Finca Hartmann coffee: Novo Coffee.

Wilson’s Warbler photo by my friend Gavan Watson, Red-headed Barbet by PrincessRuffian, Silver-throated Tanager by Mitchmcc. Thanks to all for publishing under a Creative Common license.

Just a few odds and ends from the latter portion of our Panama trip…

When I first saw this bridge near our place in Paso Ancho, I was not enthusiastic about crossing it. Not only do I have a crappy sense of balance, I have a thing about being on elevated objects that have no sides. I did not feel there was anything compelling enough on the other side of this bridge for me to go across it.

On our last day in the highlands, we decided to walk a two-mile loop through some coffee fincas. While I’m confessing my shortcomings, I’ll admit that I find no joy in physically challenging activities. This hike was yet another up a steep, rocky road in the sun, which I found tedious at that altitude. The trail down was narrow, rocky, and slippery — equally (or even more) un-fun. The nail of one of my big toes is purple from being rammed into the front of my shoe on the downhill trek. We weren’t even sure we were going in the right direction. Needless to say, I was never so happy to see this stinking, swinging bridge, and I scampered right across.

The long drive back to Panama City was as uneventful as the trip up had been. Almost. Nothing like zooming down the highway and suddenly being confronted with a herd of cattle.

In my bird post, I showed you the Orange-chinned Parakeets on the bananas outside our porch at our B&B on Ancon Hill. We also had a family of six Geoffroy’s Tamarins that would visit a couple times a day. Frankly, I don’t like monkeys, but these were sort of cute, even if they ate with their mouths open.

Although they are common birds in the tropics, I really like Blue-gray Tanagers. This one is wondering what happened to the banana we put on the fence for it (it fell off and an Agouti stole it).

We only had issues with chiggers and ticks. Still, it was nice to know that the local pest control company could handle bigger and nastier things. Adios, cucarachas!

I was going to relate a long story about trying to get a taxi driver to understand that we wanted to go to a popular restaurant called Crepes and Waffles (a Latin American chain with only an English name), but it was a you-had-to-be-there moment.  We did make it there, and it was muy delicioso.

We are back home from Panama. The day before we left was stifling, about 85F but with nearly 90% humidity. Tonight here at home we are to have wind chills below zero. Yuck.

We ended up with 227 bird species. We spent a lot of time looking at insects, and didn’t over-extend ourselves to identify every bird. Although I have truly enjoyed my time with several of the excellent human bird guides in Panama, seeing and figuring out birds using only a paper field guide is so much more rich. Having to really examine birds such as woodcreepers gives you a real appreciation for their subtle differences. Some birds were, um, a bit easier to see than others, like the Orange-chinned Parakeets above. They came to bananas hung a few feet from our porch at the B&B we stayed at in Panama City before our flight out.

Although we did not see quetzals, I saw the other target birds I mentioned in my 2007 year-end bird post. The Red-headed Barbet and Long-tailed Silky-flycatcher were as gorgeous as I had hoped. We saw the barbet in a little flock that also included a White-throated Spadebill, a tiny and curious-looking little bird that I had seen before but not this well.

These birds — as well as six species of gaudy tanagers, White-ruffed Manakin, the knock-out Violet Sabrewing, and many others — were seen at Finca Hartmann an eco-friendly coffee farm that welcomes birders and researchers. This was a fantastic place that I cannot recommend enough. Most people just bird the lower section, called Palo Verde. We asked if we might be able to visit the higher section, Ojo de Agua, which includes a lot of tall montane forest and borders La Amistad International Park. The next day they provided us with transportion to Ojo de Agua and we walked down after our explorations. It was one of the most enjoyable experiences I’ve ever had. We had a lot of interesting insects at Finca Hartmann as well, many more than in another, larger coffee fincas that grew much of the coffee in larger patches in the sun (I’ll be writing more about coffee and habitat later). One damselfy was especially noteworthy — according to expert Dennis Paulson, our photographs are likely the first obtained of that species. If you ever find yourself in the western highlands of Panama, make time for a visit to the farm.

I think the most unexpectedly cool bird we saw was the Slaty Flowerpiercer. They are plain olive or gray birds with distinctively hooked bills, which they use to pierce the base of flowers in order to feed on the nectar. They do this very rapidly and efficiently. We saw a pair working the flowering shrubs at Los Quetzales, a popular birding lodge and restaurant. Really, I found the cafe there and the stuff they sold wildly overpriced and the service uninspired. I was really happy with our great house at Las Plumas, which has to be the best place to stay on the western side of Volcan Baru. Hard to imagine where else you can eat breakfast on a private deck and watch Emerald Toucanets and Golden-browned Chlorophonias flitting around your yard.

I’ll do a final summary of odds and ends next.

Did you really think (did I really think?) I would post every day on vacation?  The days got too long and the photos and experiences too many. We are back in Panama City after a great time in the western highlands, and I will post more about that later. We have one more day here before our return home.

Meanwhile, I’d like to announce that The Open Laboratory 2007 has now been published. This is the second annual anthology of the best science blogging of the year. I’m pleased to say that out of over 450 submissions one of my posts, “Shrew Party,” was included in this edition. I also had a post (The Little Farter“) in the inaugural publication last year. Now the pressure is on to produce at least one decent natural history post a year.

You can read more about The Open Lab over at A Blog Around the Clock. It was Bora’s brainchild, and this year’s edition was speedily edited by Reed Cartright. Many kudos to them and all my fellow authors.

Our first big bizarre caterpillar, shown to us by a worker pruning a tree along the road.

Our main bird walk this day was the beginning of the Los Quetzales trail in Volcan Baru National Park. We saw many new birds, including some favorite warblers such as Black-cheeked and Flame-throated, and birds with very cool names, such as Ruddy Treerunner and Yellow-thighed Finch.

We saw very few butterflies to photograph. This area does have a lot of small-scale agriculture, with nearly everyone working plots of a few hectares growing mostly vegetables, especially cabbage, lettuce, onions, and potatoes. People were spraying noxious crap from backpack sprayers everywhere we went. Seeing the living conditions and general lifestyle, though, makes me understand these people are just trying to earn a living. I can imagine that every last head of cabbage makes a difference. It’s unfortunate, to say the least, that the health of people and ecosystems is compromised by the realities of limited economic opportunities and, probably, agricultural education outreach, but it’s hard to "blame" these farmers.

In contrast, what excuse does an American gardener have for pouring chemicals on a sterile lawn or ornamental flowers? When I visit Latin America, even countries as stable and mature as Mexico and Panama, I still see a lot of trash, poor air and/or sanitary conditions, and environmental abuse. Despite many shortcomings, it’s easy to see how fortunate we are in the U.S. in terms of environmental protection. When I think about the waste and disregard most Americans have for their own backyards, including unnecessary chemical assault, it makes me sick.

On that note, our next excursion is to a coffee farm; this area is Panama’s major coffee-growing region and one of the most important coffee areas in the world (we have coffee growing in our yard here, too).

Normally, I don’t like spending much time in a car, but it is a good way to see the land. However, the six-hour trip between Panama City and Volcan was a dud. Lots of cows.

We’re now at about 5600 feet. The house we are renting was recommended by a friend, who has also purchased property in the area. This place is twice as big as our house at home, and cheaper than our mediocre hotel in Panama City. Check it out:

This is our house; we have 2 of the 6 acres of the property to ourselves. Just off to the right out of the frame is the Rio Chiriqui Viejo:

There are Torrent Tyrnanulets feeding on the rocks — super cool! The yellow flowers had about 15 hummingbirds of 6 species hanging around. Here’s a view of the house from the river:

The front yard had Blue-crowned Motmot, Flame-colored Tanager, and Orange-billed Nightingale-thrush, to name a few. The name of this property is Las Plumas. We can already highly recommend it! Off to sit on the porch…

Another (not quite as long) day on Pipeline Road brought us fewer birds as we concentrated on insects. We decided to focus on the Juan Grande stream crossing at 2 km and a few feeder creeks above it. We were rewarded with several new dragonfly species and some interesting butterflies, too. We were able to catch one of the super-cool helicopter damselflies by hand to show some scale. I don’t have all my reference material with me, but I am pretty sure this species is Mecistogaster linearis, a female.

As bonus, I acquired dozens of small bug bites that thankfully don’t itch too much. That’s the price you pay for sitting on logs to take notes and especially crawling around to get good looks or photos of less-annoying invertebrates. Kingfisher had fewer bites, but I did get to pull a tick off him that had found a spot nobody has seen since his mother retired from diaper duty 40 years ago.

A number of mammal species have their mating seasons in the dry season, and we’ve seen frisky Agoutis, some spirited Red-tailed Squirrels (Sciurus granatensis), and wandering coatis. If there is any discernable increase in activity in love-ready sloths, we’ve yet to see it. Kingfisher also had a glimpse of a Tayra (Eira barbara), a large cat-like weasel that I had a peek at last time we were down here. I was also intrigued by watching the fish in some of the larger stream pools. There were several species of cichlids and a couple of tetras, fish that are found in the aquarium trade. Way back in the day, I did a lot of freelance work for tropical fish hobbyist magazines, so I thought this was very cool.

After our look at Little Tinamou yesterday, on this outing we got good looks at Great Tinamou. Also terrific views of a male Golden-collared Manakin, which was a life bird for me. I think I’ve had about 11 lifers so far, but am really enjoying seeing some of my favorite birds again and again. I could look at female Dot-winged Antwrens every hour and not get tired of seeing them.

Today is a travel day, as we leave the Panama City area and head to our rented house in the highlands near the Costa Rican border, on the western flank of Volcan Baru. There will be many new birds there, as this is a new location for us. And I’m sure on the way we’ll see more of these curious street signs. Not all the pedestrian crossing signs here have bubble-butts, which makes them even odder.  Stay tuned.