From SVBC member Judy Richardson.

So fall is here in Connecticut, and I went to fill the bird feeder. The seed is in a plastic container with a lid to keep it fresh. When I opened the lid, to my surprise, there were four, baby mice huddled in a corner! Yikes, how did they get in there?
I scooped them up in the seed scoop and dashed outside to free them. Some seeds went with them for a snack.  They were so cute, and didn’t seem the least bit scared of me. Clearly there was a party that I was wasn’t invited to!

From SVBC member and former Detectives de Aves instructor Roni Chernin.

For years I had heard about how Yellow-throated Toucans rob other birds nests and eat the eggs; but I had never seen it personally. Until now.

The other morning I heard some scuffing in a tree and looked up. A Toucan was in there along with a few other birds on nearby branches.

I watched him take off for a nearby tree, carefully balancing an entire nest in his beak. He perched in a fairly open tree so I could plainly see him working his beak and claw with the nest. Though I could not see the outcome I hoped the meal was eggs and not chicks

When he was finished, the empty nest fell to the ground, not unlike a discarded sandwich wrapper.

Some may call the Toucan’s behavior nasty or rude. But nature makes no such judgements.

From SVBC member Nancy Warshawer.

A couple weeks ago I was checking in on my epiphyte-filled trees (as one does), and I was just about to brush aside some thready dead fern leaves when they began to vibrate. There was no breeze and nothing else was moving, so it got my attention. It took a second to figure out I was looking at a…praying mantis.

I suppose her defense mechanism of vibrating didn’t evolve to defend against humans! Ironically, it may have saved her from an accidental death at my hands. I have been checking in on her regularly and she’s remained within 6 inches of where I found her. It’s always fun (for me, anyway) to follow some individual creature going about its life.

From SVBC member Helen LeVasseur.

Yesterday, as nightfall approached we heard the familiar call of our neighbor from the forest, the Gray-cowled Wood-rail.   This bird frequently calls while walking the perimeter of our cabin.  The call is very loud and although short-lived, less than 30 seconds, it has a cadence and frequency that denotes urgency.   This is evident and most dramatic at dawn, just before sunrise, as two voices echo beneath our windows, announcing the beginning of the day.  In effect, the Gray-cowled Wood-rail is our alarm clock.

I am very fond of these neighbors. Do any of you use the same alarm clock?

Last week I had the opportunity to do some birding on the property of a friend who lives in Campo Dos (down the hill from San Vito). Wonderful secondary and some primary forests; valleys, quebradas, waterfalls and hillsides.

As we hiked on the trail I commented;

‘This sure is a beautiful spot.’

The owner replied;

‘Yup…screensavers everywhere.’

Now normally I’m pretty quick on the uptake; but it took me about 3 1/2 seconds to get his meaning. At that point I gave out with genuine and prolonged laughter.

From SVBC member Nic Korte

We were renting a small house near the “Garden” and were sitting on the north-facing porch as the sun was setting.  Suddenly, a few Crimson-fronted Parakeets dashed past the yard.  Then came a few more. Soon, we had hundreds.  The calls were deafening but what made the moment memorable was that the angle of the setting sun illuminated each irridescent feather.  The emerald bodies seemed to be carrying fire on their foreheads and underwings.  These parakeets are trivially-common and sometimes a pest, but those brief moments were breath-taking.  (We were less delighted when they left the nearby roost at 5AM, the next morning!)

Last weekend longtime SVBC member Joe Ippolito hosted a very special memorial, in conjunction with Rodrigo de Sousa and the Osa Conservation project.

Perched on a perfect hillside setting on the Ippolito property, a tree was planted in memory of the passing of Joe’s dear wife Judith Ippolito. Judith passed away in January of this year. She was a dedicated rainforest devotee and a great lover of nature in general.

The Osa Conservation crew recently planted over 2,000 trees on the Ippolito property, with one very special tree planted to oversee all the rest. A memorial plaque to Judith sits next to that tree.

From SVBC member Harry Hull.

Not too long after moving from San Vito to Santa Fe, New Mexico in 2019, I started hiking with a few other spry 70-year olds almost every Friday. Our preferred outing was to start at the Santa Fe Ski Basini n the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, just 30-minutes from town, and climb Deception Peak, a gentle mountaintop that, at 12,320 feet elevation is in the tundra above tree line. In the summer months, especially, we usually encounter the highly curious, intrepid Canada Jay, which I assume from years of sharing their forest habitat with skiers and hikers, have become quite bold in approaching us as we’re having a snack or lunch, looking for a handout. Now I know many people think indulging such bird behavior is inappropriate; and as I understand it, feeding wild birds is now illegal in Costa Rica. But after having had the magical experience of holding a bird in my hand during mist-netting sessions at Finca Cantaros, I find it impossible not to offer these Jays a few nuts or a crust from a sandwich.