The following pics were from the area around our hotel which was a gaudy resort with all you can eat buffets and free drinks. Although it is not my kind of scene, it was nice to pamper ourselves with food choices and free drinks.
I will miss Loggerhead Kingbirds.
I can rest assured that I will see many more La Sagra's Flycatchers as they do hang out in Eleuthera.
Western Spindalis females can be appreciated despite looking homely next to the males.
Cape May Warbler
The northern sub-species of Zapata Sparrow. This water feature was part of our guide's effort to create some good geri-birding spots.
Key West Quail-Dove - these guys have given me such a hard time in Eleuthera. I have seen a couple in the years I have been birding there but each look was horrible and fleeting. Little did I know, all I needed to do was put some rice out.
Black-throated Blue Warbler.
The big male was puffing himself up to impress the ladies and warn the other males to stay out of his way.
Oriente Warbler - I was a little miffed that this was the only shot I had of the Oriente which is an endemic and in the same family as the Yellow-headed Warbler.
Ovenbird
Cuban Vireo
West Indian Whistling-Duck - his face was a little off color, probably due to a muddy breakfast.
Next we moved to the eastern island and Faro Paredon Grande. Faro means lighthouse. The birds we picked up there are very restricted in range and our guide told us the government was building several new resorts there which would imperil these species. All morning we saw huge trucks going back and forth.
Thick-billed Vireo - this subspecies might be split in the near future. The ones on Eleuthera definitely look different.
Cuban Green Woodpecker
Cuban Gnatcatcher - this bird is in big trouble. Hopefully it can adapt and spread to other places in Cuba.
We saw many Cuban Bullfinches but for some reason this is the only decent shot I got.
Bahama Mockingbird
Magnificent Frigatebird
A true pirate of the high seas, the Frigatebird makes life a living hell for a Royal Tern. The Frigatebird chases other birds for their hard-earned lunches and then makes them give it up. Not just undigested lunches either.
They kind of look like Wraiths from Lord of the Rings.
Cuban Blackhawk
Thick-billed Vireo
Cuban Pewee
Roseate Spoonbill
La Sagra's Flycatcher
Cuban "Golden" race of Yellow Warbler.
Reddish Egret white morph.
The Faro
Cuban Blackhawk
The Cuban Blackhawk kills it's prey by emitting a sonic sound wave strong enough to knock down a cow. It is the leading cause of death in Cuba and we had to equip ourselves with special shields that blocked the sound wave. Unfortunately one person in the party was not believing the guide and refused to use the shield. We ended the trip with one less birder than when we arrived.
The Caribbean race of Osprey - much lighter than the North American race.
Clapper Rail - possible future split?
Palm Warbler
Yellow-throated Warbler
Yellow-throated Vireo
Yellow-throated Warblers have two different sub-species with the lores having different colors. This is the yellow lored one. I think I saw both in Cuba. The habitat they prefer on breeding grounds is another differentiator. The ones we have in North Carolina primarily favor Long-leaf Pine habitat.
Western Spindalis
Cape May Warbler
This big boy is a feral pig and was seen in the woods next to our hotel. He had to be close to 300 pounds.
GLC - looks to be a juvenile.
Cuban Emerald
American Flamingo - my camera sensor was having a really hard time with these birds. I toned down the saturation for this photo because the color was off the charts. I took about 100 photos and they all sucked.
Western Spindalis
In the evening we headed to a super high end hotel for a couple night birds. West Indian Whistling-ducks were known to roost in the mangroves bordering the hotel grounds. Our guide eventually found them.
Next up was Barn Owl. We got some awesome looks at a Barn Owl dive bombing us but then when we found him roosting in the mangroves I had some of the group shine flashlights on him while I took some photos. I was very happy how they came out. This is kind of my nemesis bird in terms of photography.
We were shooting from the porch of one of the hotel rooms and had no idea that someone was in there because all the lights were off. The dude came out and was pretty pissed so we left.
Next morning I did some birding around the hotel before our looooonnnnnngggg drive back to Havana (8 hours).
Zenaida Dove
This reminded me of the Abby Road cover.
After we heard that our Bufflehead from the previous day at the water treatment plan was potentially only the 3rd or 4th record for Cuba, we decided to go there and photograph it before we left. The day before no one bothered to take a photo because we had no idea Bufflehead was rare in Cuba.
Mangrove Skipper
The West Indian Whistling-duck was still there but the Bufflehead was gone.
On arrival in Havana we had a nice evening walking around despite a cold front and some rain.
Our hotel on the main drag and square in downtown Havana.
The Capitol building actually looks a bit like ours. The Chinese are paying for renovations.
We ate dinner at a nice restaurant with great service (3 dudes in fancy suits). I was shocked to see a full Filet Mignon dinner with sides was $8.50!!!
La Catedral.
We (Derb, John, Kent and I) went to the famous La Bodeguita where Hemingway had allegedly enjoyed his mojitos. Here is a picture of his famous quote on the wall.
I did some research online and apparently this might be a hoax and maybe Hemingway did not even drink Mojitos. Never the less, the mojito was good and the live music off the charts.
A couple last hours in the morning were spent walking around and also Linda and I took a moto tour. Most of the following pictures were taken while half hanging out of the moto which is why they are blurry.
See that yellow moto thing in the bottom of this photo? That was the ride Linda and I had.
The entrance to the harbor was pretty dramatic with large waves crashing on the break wall.
What a trip!!
But there was one more surprise....
Shiny Cowbirds in the airport terminal!! I managed to snap some pics and buy a bunch of Habana Club rum bottles to take home.
All in all, a very successful trip with all expected endemics in the bag and no major snafus.
The flight home was uneventful despite bad weather back home. My truck had several inches of snow and ice caked on in Charlotte but I was able to defrost it and start the long drive home.
In Keith's neighborhood in CLT I noticed this sign. Titman? Whoever Titman was, I would think he had a hard time in elementary school but probably a good time in high school.
Sorry, didn't intend to end this post with a sophomoric joke. Viva la Revolucion!
I almost feel I was there with you - great photos, commentary and even the juvenile joke amused.
ReplyDeleteGreat series (all 4 installments). Enjoyed reading them and reliving the trip through your great photos.
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