T & T Part 9: The Critters

Are you enjoying our virtual field trip to Trinidad and Tobago?  It's taking a bit longer than I expected to write about our trip-- mostly because it's a busy time of year for me at home... taking care of the gardens and such.  I still have a few more things I want to show you, so I hope you will hang in there with me.  

Today's post is one I've been thinking about for awhile, mainly because I've been trying to come up with what to write.  Finally, I decided I don't need to write much, just let the photos speak for themselves.  As we all know, a picture is worth a thousands words!

Another dilemma I had was in choosing a title.  I decided on 'The Critters' instead of 'The Cute Critters'.  "Cuteness is in the eye of the beholder", to slightly modify an old expression.  You can decide for yourself which of the following animals you think fit the description of cute: adorable, sweet, lovable, delightful, or darling.

I'm pretty sure most of my readers will agree that this White-fronted Capuchin is cute.  He and his twin brother or sister were playing and eating up in the trees in the Bush Bush on Trinidad.

The little ones were adorable as far as I am concerned and the older one we watched for awhile was, too.

It was fun to watch him use his tail for balance as he went swinging thru the trees.

He was not too mannerly of an eater though, as you can see in the next video.  The first part is the twins (don't miss the part where one of them shows how bold he is and tries to scare me away!) and the second half shows the older monkey eating his nut.

The next guy might be considered cute.  It's a Red-rumped Agouti.  They are in the Rodentia order and at Asa Wright Nature Centre where we saw them, they were mostly looked upon as 'rats'. 

No one paid them too much attention after the first one they saw.  (Seriously, why would you when there are oodles of hummingbirds to watch?)

An agouti in the distance at the feeders in front of the veranda.

They are attracted to the area below the veranda for the same reason as the other creatures... the food.

Look carefully in the above photo for the Golden Tegu.

Do you think he's cute?

Maybe a little bit?  Would it help if I tell you they only grow to about 2 - 3 feet long and weigh up to 8 pounds (4 kg)?

We saw the next lizards at the Cuffie River Nature Retreat on Tobago.  They were scurrying around in the driveway beneath our balcony.  I don't know what they are called... but probably not "cute"!  What do you think?  I do like how one has blue markings and the other one has green.  Also, the Allamanda flower adds a nice touch to the scene.

The next cuties are domestic animals.  But I'm a farm girl from way back so I love cows.

This calf and a few goats were in a field along a road we were birding.  I couldn't resist photographing them, especially with the beautiful mountains in the background.  I don't know if the calf is a Guernsey (my favorite) but it sure looks like it might be.

These cows are also kind of cute, I think.  They might be stretching the definition a little, but just look at those faces.

Speaking of faces, here's looking at you, Mr. Crab.

This photo is just begging for a cute caption... if you have one, please leave it in the 'comments'.

He was one of the biggest ground crabs we saw in Trinidad, and we saw quite a few!  He doesn't look as big when you have something to compare him to though.

See the crab right along the wall?

Okay, we are going from critters that are definitely cute, to possibly cute, to.... well, I'm sure there is someone reading this who would say this last guy IS adorable, sweet, lovable, delightful, or darling!

While there is nothing in the photo to compare his size to, I will tell you he is about the size of a dinner plate.  In other words, BIG!  He's a tarantula we saw on a guided 'Night Hike' at Asa Wright Nature Center.  Our guide knew where to look for him (he lives in a certain patch of bamboo).   He was pretty neat to see-- from the distance of several yards away.  But, cute?  No!

I vote for the monkeys as the cutest, how about 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!