We will wait for you at the Las Cruces Biological Station Reception Building at 7:00 am.
As usual, we’ll have binoculars to lend plus birds to see and hear.
After the walk — about an hour — we’ll have coffee and a social hour in the Dining Room.
Cake may appear — you never know!
If you would like to join the Bird Club for 2025, please bring $40 or C 20,000 for an individual or $50 (C 25,000) for a family. Thank you in advance for your support!
Well, well, it has been some time since we have put up a Quiz Bird for you!
It is hard to resist this one as it is: 1) too far away, 2) unlikely positioning and 3) a terrible view. Nonetheless, please send your guesses to: alison.w.olivieri@gmail.com — you might win something!
Here’s a hint: these birds were found on the grounds of the Colegio CTP Umberto Melloni in San Vito about two weeks ago.
Watch this spot for a Bird Walk announcement later this week. It will be Sunday morning, as usual, and we hope to see you there.
Take advantage of the morning sun and join us for a guided Bird Walk this Sunday, May 11, at Las Cruces/Wilson Botanical Garden.
We will meet at the Reception Building at 7:00 am and have binoculars to share.
This walk is free and open to the public, so please bring your friends, neighbors and family.
We have an excellent chance to see AND hear the beautiful Streak-headed Woodcreeper while we are there.
This photo was taken by Helen LeVasseur.
Coffee and social hour follow the Bird Walk — come one, come all!
On our last Bird Walk (Sunday, January 12) we were surprised and delighted to have seen a White-winged Tanager. These beautiful birds stay high in the canopy and are easy to miss, but this one was lower than usual and gave us a thrill.
Photo by Charlie Gomez
This Sunday (January 26), we will have another Bird Walk at the Wilson Botanical Garden/OTS Las Cruces Biological Research Station, at 7:00 am. As usual, we’ll meet at the Reception building and have binoculars to lend. Who knows what wonder awaits — this is why we go!
Dinner to Support the Arts
From natural beauty and art to created beauty and art, please make a reservation for a fundraising dinner at Cascata del Bosco on Saturday, January 25 to support the forthcoming Arts Fest Coto Brus 2025. Go to the website: http://www.artsfestcotobrus.com or use WhatsApp +1 (970) 759-9262 to reserve your dinner choice. In addition, music to dine by will be provided by Roger Madison — a wonderful evening is in store
And here is the White-winger Tanager again, from a different angle (because we just can’t get enough of this bird…..):
Another photo from Charlie Gomez
Take Two: we will try again this Sunday for a Bird Walk — wish us luck!
Our last attempt was two weeks ago and we were chased away by rain (continuing to fall as I write . . .).
In between drops, however, birds and butterflies are still about so please meet us at the Las Cruces Reception Building at 7:00 am.
We’ll be there for the usual free, open-to-the-public Bird/Nature Walk — your friends and family are invited.
We will have binoulars to lend and, as always, beautiful sights to see.
Crimson-fronted Parakeet, a Wilson Botanical Garden/Las Cruces regular.
Please join us this Sunday, November 3 at 7 am in the Wilson Botanical Garden at the Tropical Studies Las Cruces Biological Station.
We meet at the Reception Building and have binoculars to share.
On our last Bird Walk, we saw two of these beautiful birds and one of them was carrying nesting material. Let’s go look for a glimpse of one, sitting on the nest!
After walking for about an hour, we will have coffee and social time in the dining room. These Nature Walks are free and open to the public. Please bring your friends, neighbors and families.
Hope to see you there.
Crested Caracaras. Photo by Helen LeVasseur
Please join us for Bird and Nature Walk at the Wilson Botanical Garden this Sunday, October 20.
We will meet at the Reception Building at 7:00 am.
Binoculars will be available, as always. These Walks are free and open to the public so please invite your friends and families.
After the Walk, we will repair to the dining room for coffee and chatting. And maybe we will spot these beauties along the way!
Please join us for a Nature/Bird Walk this weekend at the beautiful Wilson Botanical Garden (also known as ‘Las Cruces’). We will meet at 7:00 am at the Reception Center and, as always, we’ll have binoculars to lend and a guide to lead.
The walk usually takes about an hour; after that we have a sociable Coffee Hour in the dining room. If you feel expansive, bring a few colones to leave for the kitchen ladies who have to wash our cups and saucers.
Common Tody-Flycatcher, photographer unknown.
It’s a fun way to spend the morning! We look forward to seeing you there!
We had a great time Sunday, February 25 at Cascata Del Bosco and wish you could have been there. This year we had two themes: Celebrating 20 Years of Birding in San Vito and the incomparable Resplendent Quetzal.
Our three main speakers — Dr. Lilly Briggs, Alan Poole and Henry Barrantes — were excellent. So that you don’t miss a thing, their talks will be summarized in forthcoming posts.
For now, we begin with a short history outlining our three major achievements. (Eventually, we will add a ‘page’ to this website citing the Club’s accomplishments, small and large.)
In 2004, we began a 10-year Avian Monitoring Study with Principal Investigator Dr. Steve Latta of the National Aviary and Judy Richardson, Master Bander from the Connecticut Audubon Society. The core group included Julie Girard Woolley, Cecilia Sansonetti, Lydia Vogt, Kate Allen Desvenain, Daniel Martinez, Juan Pablo ‘Chespi’ Elizondo and many other local and international volunteers. It was a lot of work and resulted in a published paper and an article in the bulletin of the Asociación Ornitológica de Costa Rica.
In 2011, we cut the ribbon on a Canopy Tower that had taken three years of fundraising to complete. We’re happy to report it is still standing — at the Organization for Tropical Studies Las Cruces Biological Research Station — and attracting visitors from all over the world.
Finally, in 2012-13, we began presenting an environmental education program from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, ‘Detectives de Aves’ (in English: BirdSleuth International), in local elementary schools. This program continues to this day and much more about that will be forthcoming in another post.
From left to right, 20 years ago, Alison Olivieri, Terrie Moss (formerly of Linda Vista, now of St. Louis, MO), Daniel Martinez (former Biologist at Las Cruces, now of the Ornithological Council of Costa Rica) and Julie Girard Woolley (who needs no introduction).
Please join us on Sunday, February 18 at the OTS Las Cruces reception building at 7 am for a Bird Walk lasting about an hour. We will have binoculars to share and guides to help with bird IDs. After the walk, we’ll have a social coffee in the Las Cruces dining room.
Reminder: to qualify for the Bird List Competition at our forthcoming Annual Meeting (on Sunday, February 25 at Cascatas del Bosco, starting at 8:00 am), you must send your list of all birds seen or heard from Feb. 14-16 to Julie Girard Woolley @ julgirar@gmail.com. Hopefully tonight, you will hear an owl or a potoo!
See you Sunday! Please bring friends and family; the Walk is free and open to the public.
Fiery-billed Aracari: we will see one or hear one (with any luck at all).
San Vito Bird Club 
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