T & T Part 3: The Hummingbirds!!!

Back in January, soon after we signed up for our trip; I purchased a guide to the birds of Trinidad and Tobago.  When it came, I started studying it and dreaming of the birds we might see.  If you had asked me which birds I was most hoping to see, my answer would have been "Hummingbirds".  I was NOT disappointed!

The "Species Checklist" that Caligo Ventures sent us before our trip lists 18 kinds of hummingbirds.  Of those 18, we were lucky enough to see 12.  I have so many hummingbird photos that I've been having a tough time narrowing down which ones to post.  (A post on hummers taking a bath? Hummingbirds on nests? Hummers preening?  You get the idea!)  I finally decided to just post my favorites-- while also showing you many of the different species we saw.

One that we saw a lot of because they were coming to the feeders at the Asa Wright veranda were White-necked Jacobins.

In that photo you can see why they got the name "White-necked".  I don't have any idea where the "Jacobin" part came from!  I tried to research the history of hummingbird names but didn't come up with much, other than, "some of the names are poetic or historical epithets".

Actually, besides their white necks, they also have beautiful white tails, which you can see in the photo of the one above taking a 'shower' in the rain.

This one was sitting and preening.  I like the photo because you can see its beak and tiny feet.  The size and shape of their beaks can be one helpful detail to tell hummingbird species apart.

This photo shows a mature and an immature White-necked Jacobin (with the rusty patches on the head).  In flight, their white tails set them apart from the other hummers we saw at Asa Wright.

One of the favorites of the photographers on the veranda were a species that didn't come to the feeders, but instead sought out the flowers nearby.

The unique-looking Tufted Coquettes were challenging to get good photos of, to say the least!  One strategy was to focus on a nice flower and hope that when the bird was making its rounds, it would make a brief stop at that flower.  It worked for me once with this female...

and then I just got lucky with this one of a male.

The best shot I got of him was when he perched during a rain shower.

I love how you can see the tiny beads of water on his forehead!

Next we have a Black-throated Mango.  In my field guide in the written description it says, "outer tail chestnut glossed purple".  Sure enough, you can see that in the following photo!

I like to try to catch birds doing something besides just sitting.... so I snapped this photo while one was 'scratching an itch'.

The female Black-throated Mango looks a little different, but I think she is beautiful as well.  This is the best photo I got of a female. 

And, I think the next photo is also a Black-throated Mango, but it's got some interesting colors showing up due to the way the light is hitting it.  That seems to happen a lot with hummers.

For instance, the Ruby-topaz Hummingbirds that we saw on Tobago--  depending on the way the light was hitting them, they looked black... or fiery red and gold.

The next view even shows a little green in the throat.

In this last Ruby-topaz shot, I'm not sure what the bird is doing!  

One of the more common hummers were the Copper-rumped Hummingbirds.  That doesn't seem like a very nice name for a beautiful little hummer, but keep in mind that there are somewhere around 330 species of hummingbirds in the world (the exact number is debated due to some subspecies or closely-related ones).  It must have been hard to come up with different names for each of them!

They have emerald green chests, copper rumps (of course!) and little white pantaloons, which you can see in the photo above.

Quite the territorial birds, like most hummingbirds, we soon learned where we would see them sitting.

Even though I had studied my book and tried to have an idea of what hummers we would be likely to see, it still wasn't easy to identify them.  A drawing of a side view of a hummingbird in a book is very different from a buzzing, high-speed live version!  So I was glad to be able to capture in photos and figure out what the next ones were (at least, I think I have them right!)

Above and below are White-chested Emeralds (which also happens to have a copper rump!).

The next photo is a terrible photo, but it's the only Green-throated Mango we saw (and it was identified by our guide for us!).   At least it's a record that we saw it. Too bad it wasn't sitting in better light.

I also prefer photos of hummers not on feeders, but the next one is the best (and one of the few I got) of a Blue-chinned Sapphire.

Finally, the one and only shot I have of a Rufous-breasted Hermit.  (Well... I do have a few shots of a nest with one sitting in it, but you can only see the tip of its tail!). Notice its very long, curved bill.

So, I wished for hummingbirds on our trip, and I was blessed to see many!  But, I also saw lots and lots of other beautiful and interesting birds.  In posts to come, I'll share some of those with you!

T & T Part 2: Asa Wright - The Place and the People

Shortly after we arrived at Asa Wright Nature Centre in Trinidad, my husband sent a text to our daughters to let them know we arrived.  It said something like "We arrived safely... and Mom is in heaven".  Actually, I was sitting on the veranda at Asa Wright-- watching oodles of hummingbirds, honeycreepers, bananaquits, and other birds-- it just seemed like 'heaven'! 

Two male and one female purple honeycreepers, and a bananaquit.

 I was definitely delighted with Trinidad, and my delight didn't diminish over the course of our 6 days there.  Asa Wright was right to want to preserve her home as a nature center! (You can read an interesting brief history by clicking here).

Let me take you on a tour of the buildings and grounds. 

The Main Estate House doesn't look like much when you pull in the driveway, because it's hidden behind quite a lot of shrubbery.  But it's a hidden treasure!

This is the back of the house... the reception area is to the left and the entrance to the dining area is to the right.

But the most important place is thru this hallway.  (You can enjoy the bird photographs and painting as you pass thru it).

Before we step out onto the veranda, we'll take a moment to look at the tribute to Asa Wright, who lived in the house on Spring Hill Estate until she passed away in 1971.

Now, we'll step out onto the world-famous veranda!  In ads for trips to the Asa Wright Nature Centre, they claim: "Spot 40 species of birds before breakfast".  I just counted up from my checklist and sure enough, I had 42 birds listed that I saw from the veranda.  That's truth in advertising! (And you can sip a delicious cup of coffee while you watch).

There is always a guide on hand to greet you and help you identify unknown birds or show you a distant one in their spotting scope.  Like the channel-billed toucan in the next photo.

Be sure to bring your camera... and although you might need a long lens for the toucans, you won't need it for the hummingbirds!  Many of them will only be a couple feet away.

Three White-necked Jacobins

Perhaps you are hungry for lunch?  No problem!  The kitchen staff will ring a gong when the buffet is ready.  You can see the dining room from the veranda.

The menu is usually posted outside the dining room doorway.

You can watch for more birds while you eat... maybe a tufted coquette will appear on the white-flowered bush, which is one of their favorite spots.

The food was delicious and plentiful, and we especially enjoyed the fresh fruit.  What we didn't eat wouldn't go to waste either... the birds had their own dining tables.

A female purple honeycreeper and 3 bananaquits

You can work off the calories walking to and from your room or on the trails... the centre is on a hillside so there are lots of steps.

You can have a peaceful night's rest there, too.  Here is our little cottage.  Well, you can rest until the spectacled thrush starts singing at about 5:30 a.m.  Don't worry, it's a pretty song to wake up to though, very much like the American robin's song.

Now let's talk about the people you might meet at Asa Wright.  From the staff on the veranda and in the dining room... Trinidadians - all of which were pleasant, helpful, and friendly...

One of the staff putting out more fruit for the birds in front of the veranda

... to people from around the world who come here to see the birds (we met Brits, Scots, and Americans from California to Florida).

One person who really made our time at Asa Wright extra special was our guide, Mukesh Ramdass. (Tours by Mukesh)
Extremely knowledgeable about the birds, flora, and fauna of Trinidad (he's been guiding folks for 25+ years now) Mukesh still made it exciting and fun for us first-timers.  I think he got as excited as I did when we found a tufted coquette nest - and later, a pair of collared trogans excavating a nest cavity!

Mukesh looking at the tufted coquette nest.

He was also our driver, and he made me feel safe on the twisty roads of Trinidad.  Besides that, he cared enough to arrive with his car freshly-cleaned each morning.  (Not an easy task as we were getting in and out of it numerous times each day in our hiking shoes!).

That's Mukesh doing what he was doing most of the time - finding birds for us!  That's his nice, clean car in the distance.

Mukesh and Forrest

I can't talk about the people of our trip without saying a big 'thank you' to my husband.  (Thanks for taking me on a birding trip... I know that going birding all day long for 10 days is not your 'thing' and I appreciate that you were willing to go with me!)

This sign posted at Asa Wright Nature Centre has some very good things to remember, but I would add, "Depart with pleasant memories".   I certainly did!

If you are interested in a tour to Trinidad and Tobago, click here for the Caligo Ventures website and then talk to Susanne... another person to whom I say 'thank you'.  Susanne will help you make some memories, too! 

Did you miss Part 1 (Ten Days in Trinidad and Tobago)? You can click on this link to read it.

Ten Days in Trinidad and Tobago

The islands of Trinidad and Tobago are a birder's paradise located off the northern coast of South America .  Recently, my husband and I were very blessed to spend 10 days there.  Whether the sun was shining or rain was falling, we enjoyed all the amazing and beautiful things we saw.  While I usually write about the beauty of nature here at home, I have too many photos from Trinidad and Tobago not to share some of them with you! So, once again "This Is My Father's World" is going on a 'field trip'. (Other trips have included Colombia, Florida, and Texas).

For this post, at first I thought I'd only pick a few photos... to let you know why I haven't posted in the last 2 weeks-- but I couldn't choose just a couple!  Instead, I'm going to share a number of my favorites to get us started on our 'trip', then I'll post more about the birds, flowers, turtles, monkeys, and scenery as I have time.  I hope you enjoy the 'trip', and 'stay tuned' for more.

A male Tufted Coquette perched during a rain shower.  He's only 2  3/4" long!

A male Black-throated Mango in the sunshine

A White-necked Jacobin taking a bath in the rain

A Ruby-topaz Hummingbird fluffing his feathers in the sun

Those are 4 of the 12 kinds of hummingbirds we saw in Trinidad and Tobago!  There are 18 kinds listed in my T & T species checklist.

A BUNCH of Bananaquits (also known locally as Sugar Bird) at a feeder at Asa Wright Nature Centre!

A Bay-headed Tanager eating a berry in the pouring rain.  (Luckily, we were on the veranda!)

This Hibiscus flower looked especially beautiful when the sun came out after a brief shower.

While we went mainly for birds, it sure was fun to watch a family of White-fronted Capuchins in the rain forest.

The hanging Crested Oropendola nests add an intriguing touch to the silhouette of this tree.

In the opposite extreme of nest types, a Laughing Gull hatches from a very basic one on the ground. 

We also had the amazing experience of watching this 600+ pound Leatherback Turtle lay her eggs on the beach one night.

We didn't have to go out at night to see this Ferruginous Pygmy Owl.  While they are more active at night, they can also be seen and heard during the day.

A juvenile Masked Cardinal was pecking the top of a shiny car mirror.  He put on quite a show, though I felt a little sorry for all the energy he was expending trying to chase away the 'other' cardinal. 

A 'famous' Trinidad Motmot.... on the island of Tobago, where they are actually more common than on Trinidad.

And, finally (for now) two wild Flamingos we saw while watching Scarlet Ibis come in to roost at Caroni Swamp.  Seeing them seemed almost surreal!  I mean, we're used to seeing plastic ones in yards or live ones at the zoo, but out in an actual swamp? Incredible!