A Very Human Dedication

Once there was a time when I gazed over the waters like this boy in the photo above. For me, water was the gateway to inspiration and my imagination. I felt safe watching the waves crash over the cement sidewalk leading up to our local lighthouse. The cold spray would stab my face like tiny ice needles.  In my mind, the waters of Lake Michigan went on forever but I knew they touched another shore on the opposite side. Was it so different?  What would I find?

Mississippi Kite-discovering new things is amazing

Every night, the car ferry would leave the port of Manitowoc and cross over to Ludington, Michigan. The lighthouse of the lake would spy upon the large ferry silently sliding out of port.  From there, it would navigate across the black expanse lit only by the stars and moon.  A mammoth thing this ship was.  I would run out to the lighthouse at midnight along the pier.  There I'd watch this mechanical beast pass into the night sky.  Her cabin lights sparkled like the stars above and served as camouflage in the distant horizon. 

"3rd Star to the right, straight on til morning".  And in the morning the vessel would reach the shores of Michigan. I sat on my Wisconsin pier wondering what was out there.  Some day I would reach that Michigan shore.  Some day. How it would happen was still a mystery......that was the future and too far away to waste thought on.  I was about to leave for college. I had to get out of my small town quick or I'd fear I'd get "stuck".  

Our journeys were only beginning.  Today we are what we set out to be....explorers. Kristen is a park ranger in Michigan.  Our mission?  The Kirtland's Warbler.  Heidi(to my right) is a Doctor of plants.  She experiments on humans trying to create the first human/plant creature in New Zealand.  Our mission?  The Kiwi and other birds...all while finding a hobbit or two:) 

Today when I return home, I don't see it that way at all.  It was just me being impatient.  Today that trip to the other side will happen on that same ferry.  There I will meet my park ranger/college friend Kristen and we'll discover the Kirtland's Warbler together. We took so many epic road trips together before life got in the way.  Now tell me birding isn't exciting??!!! Friends, magic trips and BIRDS!  

My parent's place perfectly captures the essence of comfort....home.

One year later, I would begin my journeys into college life and my travels around the world began.  It was a strange and powerful emotion. I was willing to risk everything to find my "voice".  Little did I know but that strange and powerful emotion would return two decades later. And this time, I knew what it was called. Passion. 

Just beyond the rocks, what will Kathie find?

I work.  I sleep. I burn myself out. And when I'm not birding, I write.  But my life has changed.  How could it not?  After all that we've done this year across America, it's not easy shifting between two lives.  During the day, I play the instructor.  In the afternoon, I search for the Holy Grail.  I am in it deep.  When one thing reveals itself, another comes into question.  I am both certain and lost.  Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. 

Gaelyn exposes us to magnificence of the Grand Canyon around the North Rim. I love her stories and I am very grateful for her friendship even though we are far apart.

My paths have led me to some of the most amazing people.  I had been around teenagers for so long that I forgot what it is like to be an adult.  It is true that the young keep me young, but it is also true that there is nothing quite like an adult conversation. 

On this day, I got to put down my camera and have fun with my siblings.  Here we are on a beautiful fall day in Wisconsin.  That is real....not some fake background.  All of us are connected to the great outdoors.  And it all began with our parent's taking us out on camping trips when we were younger. 

These people are some of the most exciting and fun adventurers I know.  I genuinely smile and love listening to their stories for they are my inspiration.  Yes.  I found inspiration again.  Stand on the pier.  Wonder.  Or wonder no more. Just do something about it!

Birders who make me smile....Barb and Melanie=love!

We meet for a beer.  We marvel at a blooming cactus.  We suffer bug bites together.  We stand together and ponder the great and wild dynamics of Mother Nature. 

Intense birders?  Yes.  We four often go rogue or will pair up with others.  These three birders are known as Gordon, Magill and Tommy.  Passion or an addiction?  Hard to tell with this crew:)  Pic courtesy of Tommy D

While people shop in malls and plan birthday parties, we escape into the woods for a little silence and beauty. That's our purchase.  That's our birthday gift. Simple. Not complicated.

Barrel Cactus blooming

Stand in a canyon.  

Nectar feeding bats

Watch day turn into night.  Hummingbirds into Lesser long-nosed bats.   

Buenos Aires Wildlife Refuge, AZ

Sit in a rocker and watch the world. I am discovering a new emerging friendship with all of these other birders/outdoor lovers.  I wish I could spend more time with them all.  I wish sometimes I were that kid again with all the time in the world.  

Sydney and Annie

This year has been one adventure after another.  So many happy people.  So many wonderful discoveries.

The team from Tucson Audubon...Jennie, Sara, Matt, Tim and Corey

Recently I looked over some of my older work and was shocked by how much I have changed since I began this blog and birding quest several years ago. It has been quite a revelation.  

The Celeste.  We walk up a beautiful trail on Mt. Lemmon looking at all kinds of wonderful things

Without their guidance, I would still be wondering what's on the other side.  But they've given me the tools and knowledge to prepare for the crossing.  It wasn't overnight. 

Janet visits Tucson from New Mexico and helps us keep track of our grassland sparrows!

There is no going back. Just forward. Together we make it possible. Young or old, we are united together by one thing.  Birds. 

Jason educates the crowd and how sparrows track predators from the grasses and avoid becoming lunch

It's not easy growing as a person.  I cannot make crazy changes like I once did.  There are expectations.  There are adult commitments. 

Over the course of this year, I've met up with Jarrod several times around the state. He reminds me to live in the moment and look around. 

When I began this blogger journey about gardening, I had NO idea what it would do to me. I still love plants but it all got me involved with something bigger than photography and gardening....new friendships and discovery.  This thing called blogging slowly connected me to the web of people around it.  Then I met their friends.  So what's it like being around my "own" again after so many years solo? 

This is a fun crew!  Kathie, Donna and Dawn pose for Birders Who Blog, Tweet and Chirp

A whole lot of fun. It's like being in college again.  Road tripping for no reason other than to explore.  Hiking up to our necks in mud.  And it all feels so....young.  The body may now protest once and awhile but there's nothing quite like the feeling of this new found euphoria. 

Our North Rim trek to the canyon introduces us to the extended birding AZ crew.  Amazing people just living life and helping out our feathered friends

The cause of this euphoria?  The great outdoors.  It's the most natural way to learn. This idea of getting a degree from a university doesn't make much sense to me these days. While I appreciate my college days, I don't think I truly learned the "real" stuff from any of it. And I'm still paying back my loans.  When they are paid in full, there will be a shout heard across the world. I speak Spanish.....not because of college but because I lived in Mexico.  I teach.  Not because of any book or ridiculous theory but because I worked with special needs kids living in group homes.  They taught me classroom management.  They taught me that I enjoy working with people. 

Rich Hoyer gets help from another type of birder.  Together we scour our midtown neighborhood searching for rarities while counting birds for the CBC(Christmas Bird Count)

I spend hours every night reading about birds.  Now I dream of birds in Spanish! I am the cat chasing the winged shadows. Over time, I discovered that my former students would combine their love of Spanish with their medical or business degrees.  As for me? How could I have taught them to use their language skills with something else when I didn't even know how to do it myself?  And so I waited for many years to figure it all out. Today I know.  It's crystal clear. My classroom isn't limited to one room. The cost of this education?  Entrance fees to incredible places around the world. 

Linda(far right with that awesome birdy sweater) whips up some delish Pisco Sours.  I hadn't had one of those in years!!!  

Who are these people?  These mentors?  These teachers? These new friends?  Each an expert in their own area.  Each more than just their jobs.  Each an adventurer willing to take a risk. 

My bud Gordon.  What can I say about him?  I love when we get the opportunity to bird.  Together we explored Ruby Road to test camping equipment.  We love the outdoors and we were trying to figure out ways to make these birding treks more affordable while still finding a way to sleep the full night comfortably.  After testing tents, pads, etc, we discovered air mattresses!!!!  Forget the Hilton!  Camping in our own tents is AWESOME....as long as there is an outhouse nearby:)

Old advice rings in my older ears.  It wasn't meant to be forever.  You just made it that way. You have become set in your ways.  Playing it safe.  My mother even said it to me once.  "You're just like your father.  Afraid to take risks."  And she was right. 

Quite often I go alone or with Micheal.  I love those kinds of treks a lot. 

  But there is such a thing called responsibility. Another friend taught me that as well:)

My friend Sydney in Florida this year treks along on these major hikes.  I'd never reveal a ladies age, but she puts me to shame:)  A beautiful smile and a healthy dose of positive is what makes her so special.  I hope she's ready for the Everglades next time as we hope to find a Limpkin, Purple Swamphen and American Flamingos!  Florida was too quick!

How can something like this happen?  Something so incredible. Something so amazing. It's such a big feeling. I often feel stuck.....no stranded....in the details.  An indentured servant to my old self.  My own fault. Thanks to these birders/trackers/herpers/wildlife lovers, they've reminded me to live again and celebrate this journey.

This pic courtesy of Tommy D.   I like this one of us.  We had such a fun time on this trek. 

For years it was my job to inspire the younger generations.  Today I find myself inspired by them.  And by my most excellent friends.  

And it all started with this lady.  We met via Gaelyn.  Then through blogger.  Then at a place called Agua Caliente.  I thought it was so much fun.  And then I got hooked.  Kathie introduced me to so many people.  And we met more people and our worlds grew bigger. 

Years later, I am back at the pier watching the ferry cross again.  I find myself not wondering what I'll discover on the other side but how I'm going to get there because I missed the first departure!

A special thank you goes out to all the birders this year who have shared in the grand adventure.  As birder friend Linda pointed out last weekend, if we hadn't been birding together, we may have missed the Pectoral Sandpiper.  Instead we pushed each other to wade through all the sandpipers on the lake.  And it's like that.  A birder encourages the other to do better.  Together we can accomplish anything.

This is another great crew!  Photographers, birders, wildlife trackers and people who care about protecting our environment in the US and Mexico! L to R Mary Ann, Linda, Michael, and Kathy

And to Kelly R, Larry, Kathleen R. and Pam B., thank you for some great road treks and visits this year at the various places. Pam and I had a little extra adventure when her tire blew out on the interstate this summer in the hellish Phoenix heat.  Luckily we survived it all!  But why don't we have any pics??!!!

Someone once said, "Life is meant to be experienced. Put yourself out there.  Do things you've never done.  Live a life where at the end, you will have no regrets." I have always lived my life this way, and it would be void of meaning without all the wonderful people in the picture.  Some people cross paths once.  Others, over and over again.  And just like the birds we hope to discover, we also realize our own inherent uniqueness in this great big complex world.   Also a special thank you to my readers who follow, read or comment on Las Aventuras.  You, whether you know it or not, also push me to do better with my writing and photography.  Thank you!  Perhaps one day we'll meet?:)

  There's still so much work to be done:)  To meet others who love birds just as much as we do, check out Wild Bird Wednesday.

Ivan's Bed and Breakfast

When I look at this pic, I appear a giant.

Today, I thought I'd share with you a great place to stay near Pipeline Road in the lovely town of Gamboa.  There's this guy.  His name is Ivan and he's one of THE best hosts we had on our trip to Panama.  We loved him so much that we had to change our itinerary to go back one last time before we returned to the United States.  Both he and his wife Gladys run a wonderful bed and breakfast in an old canal home.  The best part is that the whole family lives there so it feels like a home away from home.  Ivan is knowledgeable about birds and helped me identify a lot of my pics.  There is a lot to mention about his place and I consider it one of the hidden gems of Gamboa.  Most of you who read my blog are gardeners, birders, or nature enthusiasts, but some of you are also anonymous readers perhaps planning your vacation in Panama.  For my readers, you'll definitely love this place. For the anonymous reader, I wouldn't recommend this place for college kids who like to drink and party or for families with little kids.  This place is definitely for birders, nature lovers, and people looking to relax.  It draws a larger older crowd who are looking for some creature comforts away from home after their day's excursion into the rain forest.  If you have a family with older kids, this is a great place to explore together.   I loved it here and didn't want to leave.  It was like going back in time to the early 1900's.   

Breakfast, evening meals, and relaxation are found in this general area. 

Top ten reasons to stay at Ivan's Bed and Breakfast.

1.  Ivan.  He's a great guy.  Genuine, fun, and knowedgeable about birds and the Gamboa area.  He cares about his family, home, and guests.  Ivan's a great host who will make sure your stay is fun and memorable.  If you need recommendations for things to do, he's got them.

2.  Gladys.  For a little bit more money, you can add on the dinner option.  We were glad we did because Gladys makes a delicious meal. After a busy day, the last thing you want to think about is how you're going to fix up dinner.   Candlelight dinners are usually served at 7 PM. Many times we would chat with Ivan or guests about our day. 

3.  You are physically minutes away from the famous Pipeline Road and Soberania National Park.  Birders, this is an absolute must see!!  Ivan's is perfect for the bird enthusiast.  He knows his birds.  The place has books with information on birds.  And of course, it's near one of the world's premiere birding places.

4.  It's an old historical canal home with a lots of personality. It's quite large and spacious with 3 floors.

5.  If you arrange it ahead of time with Ivan, you can have transportation arranged to and from the airport. Make sure you talk about the price.  No need to get stuck in Panama City.

6.  Speaking of avoiding Panama City, you can grab a cheap bus from Gamboa and head over to the Miraflores locks on the Panama Canal.  You can catch the bus one block away from his house.

7. You can organize trips, like Monkey Island, with Ivan ahead of time. Or several blocks away, the expensive yet beautiful Gamboa resort offers kayaking or canopy tours.

8.  A/C and hot water!!  Panama's weather is oppressively hot and sticky.  Each of the rooms offers an a/c unit with fans.  While my body eventually adapted to the humidity, I found the a/c a great way to sleep and relax a bit from the onslaught of nasty temps.

9.  Breakfast and coffee included. Ivan is flexible and will organize a time with you the night before as to when you'd like to have breakfast.

10.  Wildlife is all around you.  Just steps away from the house, you'll see the real residents of Gamboa....the agouti.  You don't have to go far to see bats, birds, reptiles, insects, or mammals.  Without even stepping into the national park or Pipeline road, we saw a green iguana, a toucan, bats, agouti, fireflies, tanagers, parrokeets, tons of butterflies, turtles, frogs and capybara.....all within a several minute walk from Ivan's place.

Outside my bedroom window

We had a great stay at Ivan's Bed and Breakfast.  It was difficult to say good-bye.  One of the most enjoyable things that we did on our last day at Ivan's was absolutely nothing.  The town is virtually empty and oh so quiet.  We took a walk to the lighthouse and Los Lagartos along the bamboo forest next to the Chagres river for one last mojito.  Traveler tip.  Sometimes the best plans are not to have any at all.   Until tomorrow.....

http://www.gamboaecotours.com/

The Closeted Birder

Yesterday's post was a huevo buster so I'm hoping today's isn't bad. Do you ever get caught up with identification issues? I'm OCD about this stuff and if you find an error or disagree with an identification, please email me and let me know. In my field notes and birding book from Panama, I found some challenges. I had even shown my pics to a couple birders who had a difficult time telling the difference between some of my bird and butterfly pics!!! Well, as you can imagine from the title, today's post is about a bird's-eye view on both our feathered friends and their eagle eyed followers from around the world. We'll explore birding in Panama as far as the crow flies on this cool and often expensive hobby. So as the saying goes, "Birds of a feather flock together!"  Join me for this special Las Aventuras photo shoot.

Kiskadee

 It started earlier this year when a young student teacher walked in through my friend's doors.  As a former Amazon guide, he could speak with birds and identify them! I remember him as very literal, intelligent, and a kind hearted person who was passionate about birds.  His eyes lit up everytime a bird crossed his path. My grandparents were into birds, but this guy was an addict! Anyone could see that birds were his true love. And to top it off, he married a fellow birder as well!  We had fun discussions because I love plants and he loved birds which always revolved around nature. In fact, he had told me about this place known as Gamboa.  While working at the butterfly garden, I also came across many birders(who also love butterflies) and they spoke of this holy place known as the Pipeline Road!!  If you believe in Jesus, you go to Israel to visit the sites of his life.  If you believe in Santa, you head to the North Pole(although I think he's hanging out in Germany for a bit:). Global warming.  And if you believe in birds, you head to Panama:) 

The Brown Pelican

The fact at hand is that I have slowly been entering the world of birding.  When you plant something, birds come to nest or visit your gardens.  When I head up to Mt. Lemmon, my friends open up their birdfeeders at the cabin.  I go to Madera Canyon and see even more birds!  Even more curious, I'll be identifying some plant or taking a shot of something and a bird will enter the pic. Once I've snapped the pic, I'll feel suddenly strange like someone is creeping on me.  Turns out the silent stalker wasn't creeping on me but on the bird who flew into my shot.   The birding society is an interesting one.  Sometimes I think they wish they were birds. Secret. Quiet. Whisperers. These odd birds are always somewhere nearby watching everything like a hawk.

Blue Chested Hummingbird

Wise as an owl. I've come to respect the birder because s/he brings a quiet intelligence to Mother Nature. Always with a keen eye, they have their binoculars and expensive cameras ready to snap amazing shots of birds in their natural environment.  There isn't any noise pollution from them nor is there any trash left behind.  In fact, when a birder disappears, very little evidence remains that they were actually there.  So on this trip to Panama, I discovered how open people were about being birders.  Birders don't actually talk about birding freely here in Tucson because the general public doesn't really give a hoot about our amazing Sonoran desert which I think has the potential to kill the goose that lays the golden egg. In fact, it's a feather in our cap for Southern Arizona because people from all over the world come to see our diverse bird populations and they bring lots of money.  Back in Panama, people freely talked about the beautiful birds flying around their cities and parks.  It seemed like everyone knew something about birds.  If you didn't bring it up, they would!

Wattled Jacana

In Panama, there are so many birds EVERYWHERE!  You can't help but notice the amazing colors of feathers, the sounds, and flight patterns of these beautiful creatures.  I thought my birding friend, at first, was a bit cuckoo, when he would make bird sounds. He'd ask me, "Does it sound like this?" And I was floored.  It was like he was speaking Klingon to me....which I can't understand by the way.  I may be a sci fi nerd, but I'm not that extreme.  Just saying:)  Not many people have the ability to speak bird.  However once I arrived in Panama, I discovered that many people were bird whisperers.  Each person had their own call and with their "tweet, pop, or click" of some kind, a bird would come our way.  I was in shock.  They don't teach this stuff at school.  Where and when did they learn how to become songbirds?

Snail Kite

So I did what the birders did.  I looked up, around, below, on the shore, in the water and I brought my camera.  Last night while identifying pictures, a wonderful accident happened.  I was getting madder than a wet hen with the identification of a longwing butterfly.  The spots were all wrong and it was driving me crazy.  Finally I typed in the latin name for this butterfly and  discovered a man by the name of Bill Hubick who had been to Gamboa and the Pipeline road.  So instead of writing my blog, I lost myself in his incredible work as a photographer and bird specialist.  He also has pics of other animals and insects which are all in my  opinion, amazing shots.  Anyhow, his labels on birds, mammals, insects, reptiles and amphibians were detailed and accurate.  I wonder how much time it took him to label his endless photo galleries?  Here's his website.  It's pretty incredible stuff.....   http://www.billhubick.com/index.php

Crimson Backed Tanager

Birds are everywhere.  Sometimes they'll pose like a sitting duck while at other times, they'll move so fast that my camera just catches a blur. Beep Beep!  That was the challenge of this trip, but it was also part of the fun.  One of the trickiest things for me was keeping my hand steady with the camera.  My hands tend to shake which I believe lends itself to the style of my filming technique.  Video is at the end of this post.

Purple Gallinule

While I haven't stepped fully out of the closet as a birder, I do have a greater appreciation for the society of people who worship the feather. What do they look like? Most are sophisticated types who stay at expensive hotels or bed and breakfast places.  They'll spend thousands of dollars for those precious early morning hours and canopy tours. There are a lot of skinny bird(er)s(because they walk a lot or just eat like birds?), but I've seen a couple fuller ones here and there(my kind of people).  A lot of them look like they watch Harry Potter movies.  I find many of them to be middle aged or older(like retired), but I saw several little hatchlings being trained on Pipeline which I thought was really cool. A lot of this stuff I just described about birders also applies to me in some ways...except the eat like a bird bit.  Some speak bird while others are imposters.  Apparently, a little bird told me that there is this birding "checklist".  Some will enjoy the full experience of the bird "checklist" by visiting the country and do more than just bird. Some are even clever enough to go on family vacations and plan activities in high birding areas...any free time that's available is spent birding.  I think that is a cool compromise.   But some mockingbirds imitate the real birders by pretending to care about the "checklist". They'll go to the places just to say they went and mark it off on their "checklist".  Apparently the "checklist" is like cock fighting and I'm pretty sure that's illegal.  I thought that was an interesting tidbit. Birders who foul their own nests.  Why go some place just to say you've been there?  That doesn't make sense! So as far as I'm concerned, you people get the biggest insult of all.....you get the bird!

Birders will sometimes deny that they are birders because they don't want people to think of them differently.  I met a man who said he liked birds "alright"....and yet he had bird guides and knew most of the birds in my pics! Suspicious. Why doesn't he come out already and just admit it? What a lame duck!  It's easy......"My name is John and I'm.....a birder." What a silly goose! I've discovered that from this trip, my camera shots focused on the wildlife instead of the places and people.  Why?  Look at the pic above and notice the grace and beauty that Mother Nature provides . She makes you stop often and marvel at her creations.

Black Vulture at Coiba Island

My personal favorites on this trip were the Kiskadees and Black Vultures.  The vultures were clumsy landers and they made me laugh. There always seemed to be concentrations of them on something interesting, but when I would go to look for a carcass or dead tourist, I wouldn't find anything. But whatever it was, it sure was dead as a duck before they got to it.

The Magnificent Frigatebird over the Pacific Ocean

My neck would cramp from looking up so much.  My hand would hurt from trying to keep the camera steady.  My eyes would ache from staring into the muted greens of the rain forest. My batteries would die right when I had needed them most....thankfully I had a bunch of fresh ones ready to use.  Traveller tip.  I already have written that it's important to buy a lot of batteries before arriving in the country of your destination.  Make sure you put them in a ziploc bag to prevent moisture from corroding them and you'll be as happy as a lark that you did!

American Oystercatcher on Isla Granitos de Oro

Sand flies bit me left and right as I sat on the beach staring at birds. But some shoots were comfortable.  We sat at a bar and drank mojitos near a river and saw lots of birds from our table. Drinking mojitos is like ducks to water for me. Photographer note.  Never hesitate to make that shot.  You never know if you'll be back in that same spot again or if you'll see your subject again.  When in doubt, make the shot.

Inmature Lance Tailed Manakin

My most precious and satisfying moment was from this pic above.  We were in drippy moist rain forest on Coiba island when our guide Javier spoke his bird magic.  They came to him.  It was a Snow White and the 7 Manakins moment. It helps to have the voice of a nightingale.

A baby Caracara on Coibita Island

I also found that birds were difficult to identify because there were 3 categories for some of the them.  There were the colorful males that contrasted, sometimes vastly, with their female counterparts.  And then there was a 3rd category....Inmature Males.  We knew they were out there, but in the bird community there is an actual category for them!!  Why don't we do this with people?:)  You can see that difference between my two lucky shots of the Lance Tailed Manakin.  The "mature" one is blue while the inmature is green. Both have a red cap however.

Inmature Bare Throated Tiger Heron

Another favorite shot for me.  This bird was my friend while we were on Coiba island.  He hopped for me in circles and it was quite comical.  I was thinking I should make a movie, "Dances With Herons."  A birder is probably reading this post right now thinking me a complete bird brain.  Well it's probably too late for that:)  I think this inmature Bare Throated Tiger Heron was trying to get its lunch to come out.  Warning! Some birders are known to be very literal and don't have a sense of humor.  Most of my jokes are lost on them and if they aren't, they sure don't know how to laugh at them. Of course this post is in fine feather, and I certainly don't mean to ruffle anyone's feathers:)

Yeah, Coiba was awesome.  I have a post coming up on this island.  I'm having difficulty with it right now because there are so many pics from this place. I'll have to get all my ducks in a row for this one.  Otherwise, I'll be facing an issue that we bloggers have and that is putting too many pics on one post which gives our readers a picture overload.  Not me.  I just put 5000 bird pics up on this post today.  Call me a hypocrite:)  Seriously,  I have so many DIFFERENT shots that require special writing.....and specifically for the garden and plant portion of my blog.  Coiba was a feast for the mind and body. Most of these bird pics come from either our Coiba or Gamboa visits.

Lance tailed Manakin on Coiba

If you've ever been in a rain forest, you've probably heard strange "space" like sounds.  These come from the bird known as the Oropendula.  It's also a strange looking bird....but I wouldn't call this bird an odd duck.

Montezuma Oropendula

Well since birders love having their birding "checklist" nearby, I'll mention several that I saw which I snapped pics of but didn't post because I thought  that those shots were "for the birds"....The Ringed Kingfisher, the Amazon Kingfisher, a Lineated Woodpecker, a Scarlet Macaw(can mostly be found on Coiba Island and in the Darien Gap), and a Common Blackhawk.

Snowy-bellied Hummingbird

So many birds and not enough time. It's absolutely incredible how many different kinds of birds are out there!

Keel Billed Toucan

This above pic is what I call cheating.  We were at a refuge center in Boquete and I snapped this pic.  Did I see one in the wild?  Yes.  I even snapped a pretty decent pic of the big guy near the Chagres River near Gamboa, but I like this above pic better.  The one I took in the wild can be seen on my video below.

Fiery Billed Aracari

I'd like to thank all the birders who took me under their wings and helped me put this post together.  A special thanks to Ivan and Javier from Panama for not only their insights but their incredible knowledge of birds.  You couldn't find a better guide than Javier for Coibas Island and better birding place to stay than Ivan's Bed and Breakfast in Gamboa.  Ivan has a lot of useful tips that will get you around the Gamboa, Pipeline Road and surrounding areas.  For you birders, a new edition has been published for birding in Panama.  The older one has better descriptions while this newer edition, The Birds of Panama, has a quicker and faster page turn while you're out in the field.  The pics are A LOT better than the old guide plus you have a map next to the pictures showing you where the birds are located.

The Yellow Headed Caracara in Gamboa

It's time for this bird to fly the coop!