Bienvenidos a Peru

The day has finally arrived! I am in Peru for 2 weeks! Wow! This is a huge adventure for me. In preparation for this first trip to South America, I purchased a couple of heavy bird books to bring on the trip. Despite the added weight, I knew I would need them plus ebird to try to identify species of birds that I have never seen in my life! There are a handful of birds I know I hope to see on this trip - Inca Terns, Paradise Tanager, Toucans, Trogons, Hummingbirds, etc...

Hotel Castellana has been our home for 2 nights. It is an affordable, extremely quaint hotel. Highly recommend it if you find yourself in Lima, Peru!

I got my souvenir shopping done at the really colorful Inca Market. Be forewarned, it is full of great items for sale!

Shopping was great but I came to see new birds. While eating lunch at a restaurant overlooking this park, I noticed that birds were busily flying back and forth between the trees. Time to start birding!

I don't know the name of this tree but it reminded me of the Bottlebrush flower I have seen in the south. After checking out the park, I parked myself at this one tree for over an hour trying to get photos of 2 birds.

This Amazalia Hummingbird is like all dominant hummers. He spent 90% of his time chasing off the other hummers. Look at that red beak and rufous belly. His tail is rufous as well.

The Bananaquit, another nectarivorous bird, was chased off by the hummer as well.

Luckily, I got the photos just before a flock of these Red-masked Parakeets landed in a tree on the other side of the park. I dashed over to get a photo before they flew off. Yeah!

Santa Rosa Nautica is an absolutely beautiful restaurant located in Lima. It jets out in the Pacific Ocean. Surfers are trying to catch waves; brave people are flying overhead in wind kites; colorful crabs are crawling all over the rocks.....

...and the Inca Terns are hanging out!!!!! Wow! If you remember, that was one of the birds on my list that I wanted to see when I arrived!!!

No more wining, dining or shopping...birding will continue tomorrow in the Amazon.

Buenos Noches!

Happy Birding!

Click on photos to enlarge.

Photos and content by Robin Roberts.

From the Dazzling to the Feisty - Backyard Glimpses

The change of seasons from Winter to Spring has arrived. Recent snowfalls with traces of the secretive mountain lion have melted away. They've been replaced with daffodils and plum tree blooms. I love the changing of the seasons especially when I get to observe what's going on outdoors!

Yesterday, we had a visit from a mighty tough hummingbird. The Rufous Hummingbird winters as far south as southern Mexico and breeds as far north as Southern Alaska. That's quite a journey for this brightly orange colored bird!

Our resident Anna's Hummers aren't the best hosts. They are notorious for guarding their nectar source whether from a flower patch or a sugar filled feeder.

I'm sure some of our resident birds like the Band-tailed Pigeon, Mountain Chickadee and Western Bluebird will be relieved when the "bird snatcher" travels north.

Word got out to this "Sharpie" that our backyard is a popular place for birds to congregate in the morning. He/she should be leaving soon as well.

Now for the feisty misnamed Jerusalem Cricket. If you live east of the Rockies, this is an unfamiliar insect. In fact, it may be unknown to those west of the Rockies as well since it burrows underground eating decaying material and an occasional insect. This nocturnal critter had a mighty battle with a Steller's Jay this week. The Jay must have thought it would be tasty but the cricket rolled onto its back and did a good job scaring it off with its flailing limbs and strong mandibles that look like fangs. Wow! That was a first for me!

Another recent visitor that we rarely see since it lives underground was the Pocket Gopher. He managed to snatch a few stalks of Lavender before disappearing underground. What a rascal! All of our plants have to be in "gopher" cages to prevent total destruction by these hungry backyard critters.

 Every day, we hear the calling Northern Flickers. This one picked the tallest snag to announce his presence.

The seasons are changing...birds will be departing while others will either be passing through on their way up north or arriving here for the Summer. It's an exciting time! Stay tuned....

Be sure to enjoy your own "patch" in the world! Neat things happen every day!

Click on photos to enlarge.
Photos and content by Robin Roberts.

A Snowy Week

This past week, we finally had a decent snowfall of 4-6 inches in town and more in the high country.

It was beautiful while it lasted! The snow is disappearing quickly now that rain has arrived.

House Finches

Pine Siskin

Oregon Junco

Since we keep our bird feeders and water dish filled, our yard is a popular destination for the birds, squirrels and chipmunks on winter days.

Lots of movement in our yard has attracted the Red-shouldered Hawks once again. It's hard not to glue myself to the window when a hawk soars by and lands on a prominent boulder in the backyard. How often does that happen? Almost never! Interestingly, two hawks were in our yard for about 30 minutes. The male was intently scanning the yard for prey from his perch while the female was in the snag calling every few minutes. She seemed to be cheering him on.

After an unsuccessful hunt, he returned to the snag for another brief encounter before they both moved on to new hunting grounds. Nesting is definitely among their priorities!

The birds, chipmunks and squirrels in our yard survived another week of snow and hungry hawks.

Steller's Jay

By the way, if you hear a mob of Jays squawking, look in the vicinity of the ruckus. You may find a sleeping owl, snake or in our case, a hawk. They definitely are the neighborhood "watchdogs".

Happy Birding!

Click on photos to enlarge.

Photos and content by Robin Roberts.