Trinidad & Tobago - Part 1

The first day of our adventure was simply a travel day. We set out mid-morning on Sunday February 1st, flying out of Logan Int'l Airport via American Airlines to our destination of Piarco International Airport in Port O Spain, Trinidad with a 2 hour layover in Miami. The travelling was pretty uneventful, with no problems at customs other than the long lines. We met our driver, Charan (whom we would encounter again), at about 11pm, put our luggage in the trunk of his car and headed up to the Asa Wright Nature Center. A friendly and knowledgeable guy, Charan told us about some of the birds he'd recently encountered in some of the areas. He had worked for Asa Wright for many years in several capacities, driver, guide, administrative, etc. and we were to find that many of the employees there had similar stories. We drove through Arima, where there was still quite a bit of activity for a Sunday night past 11pm, then eventually made our way to Blanchisseuse Road. Of course, in the dark, we really were not able to see much until we reached the lodge. Security met us and supplied us with a key to our room, (where hot water for tea and a few sandwiches awaited us should we be hungry) and at a little past midnight, we were ready to get to sleep and begin bright and early the next morning. Not wanting to miss a thing,before I let Pamela go to sleep, I make her prepare her clothes for the next morning, so we can wake up, put on our clothes and head straight for the famous veranda. I don't set any alarms - I know I will be awake.

Day 2: I wake up before dawn, and before waking Pamela, I listen for a few minutes to see if I can hear my first birds, but I'm too early for the dawn chorus, and I do not hear any Ferruginous Pygmy Owls - something I've been listening to and practicing for this trip. I wake up Pam, we get dressed and we head to the main building and the veranda (and fresh tea and coffee) at 6am.
And here begins the Disney-esque roller-coaster ride that is a birder's first morning in the neo-tropics. You know those moments of anticipation and the building excitement that is the slow climb of the ride. You may have prepared, looked at (studied) field guides, listened to recordings, etc but none of that really can prepare you for it. The apex, that highest point is when there is just enough light and you see your first bird, there is a pause, then suddenly the world is rushing towards you and past you. You are giddy with excitement and you don't want it to stop. If it's a good ride - it doesn't stop right away, but just keeps whipping you around, looping, and planting you firmly into the back of your seat. Asa Wright is a good ride.



To my recollection, the first bird I laid eyes on (and this is not an easy thing to determine) was a Green Honeycreeper - bluish green body with black hood and brilliant red eyes. The female is no less beautiful, with her apple green body. One could easily be forgiven for believing she was a completely different species.
Immediately, there were dozens of birds to look at, an embarrassment of riches. I could not look fast enough or long enough to catch everything, but I didn't mind - it was wonderful.

Soon enough, one of my favorite birds of the trip showed up at the feeders: a Blue-crowned Motmot. Not exactly a rare bird, but truly beautiful:



Other birds that were seen right away (and were to become regulars for the trip) included:

Bananaquits




Palm Tanagers




Blue-grey Tanagers




White-lined Tanagers (whose white lines are in the axillaries can usually only be seen in flight or if the wings are raised as seen here)



Copper-rumped Hummingbird




Bare-eyed Thrush




Grey-fronted Dove

And, of course, the male and female Purple Honeycreepers - both stunningly beautiful in their own right:

Another bird that we see, although certainly not as common (and does cause something of a rush when somebody calls one out) is the male Silver-beaked Tanager, with is crushed red velvet body and impossibly bright (and somewhat enlarged) lower mandible, that seems to be internally lit.

Looking out from the veranda across the Arima Valley you see:

See those large pendulous nests on the tree to the right? Those are nests of the Crested Oropendolas. Looking closer,they look like:



The oropendolas were constantly flying back and forth from the nests to the surrounding trees and shrubs, bringing back additional material to weave into the nests:
If I can figure out how to, I am going to try to post a wav file of the sounds that these birds make - it is crazy!

UPDATE: I forgot about a site I'd heard about earlier called Xeno-canto that has a wonderful collection of bird recordings. Check out this link to hear the oropendolas here.

At 7am the breakfast bell rings, and we all head into the dining room, as the first rain begins to fall.

This seems like a good spot to break. More (much, much more)to follow...