In massive contrast to the Agami Heron with its long pointed bill, was the Boat-billed Heron with its large boat-shaped bill.

Boat-billed Heron (c) Richard Brown

We found this fantastic looking heron roosting in a tree, with five others, along a trail at Carara National Park. They are inactive during the day and difficult to see. This is because this species is largely nocturnal, searching for prey along waterways at night. 

They have a diverse diet, feeding on fish, mice, water snakes, eggs, crustaceans, insects and small amphibians. 

Check out the size of its massive eye, which must be an adaptation to help it see at night. The massive eye, in conjunction with a massive scoop-like bill, helps this species to catch prey in lower light levels when precise spearing with a long pointed bill (like that of the Agami Heron) would be difficult.

We managed to locate eleven species of heron during our visit, the majority of which were found in open areas of swamp and marsh. But one species was very different. The Agami Heron, a stunning species which gets a genus to itself, was found creeping along a shaded stream deep in Caribbean forest.

An Agami Heron at La Selva. This bird managed to catch two small fish in the ten minutes or so we watched it. The bill is even longer than it looks in this photo! Sadly the Agami loves dark banks under overhanging vegetation which makes photography very hard; this was taken at 1/60sec (c) Richard Brown

The best toilet in Costa Rica was this one...

Short-Tailed Bat (c) Richard Brown

We've managed to narrow it down to under the broad umbrella of American Leaf-Nosed Bats, in the sub-family Short-Tailed Bats. In that family it can be one of four species...If anyone knows which one it is I'd sleep better tonight. The presence of warts on its chin (a row of small warts surrounding a large central wart), separates this bat from other sub-families in the Leaf-Nosed Bat family, which incidentally is the largest family of Bats in Costa Rica.

Short-tailed Bats are frugivores, and tend to be specialists of plants of the genus Piper. Pipers are the Pepper Plants, or Pepper Vines. This plant genus also contains a species of pepper that was used by the Aztecs to spice the first Cocoa drinks in Mexico. Its funny to think that the Short-Tailed Bat was partially responsible for the bed-time beverages of the Aztecs.

Because of this, Short-Tailed Bats are also known as Piper-Eating Bats. They play a mega vital role of seed dispersal in the rainforest. This one, however, was dispersing seeds in the ladies washroom at Palo Verde National Park.

On Bardsey it is the birds, and sometimes the Grey Seals, which provide the soundtrack to our birding. In Costa Rica it was rather different. The constant buzz of Cicadas (see Leaf-cutter Ant video below), provided the background noise but this was regularly interrupted, particularly in the morning and evening, by a piercing chorus of roars. As with most first-time visitors to Central America we were at first puzzled by the source. They turned out to be from the endangered, CITES I listed, Mantled Howler Monkeys.

Adult Mantled Howler Monkey with baby (c) Richard Brown

Leaves provide the majority of the diet and are supplemented with flowers and fruit. Because they use leaves it means that their territories can be relatively small and troops of up to about 20 individuals were encountered relatively often. The calls can be heard at over 3km through the forest, and across water (this troop was photographed from a boat) can be heard at up to 5km.

Central American Spider Monkeys take a much higher percentage of fruit in their diet. Thus they generally move further and faster in order to find enough food. They were usually hard to observe, right up in the canopy of the jungle (c) Richard Brown

The Best Roof in Costa Rica (c) Richard Brown

The best roof in Costa Rica was this one...
It was some sort of batty experiment. We didn't ask, because we were trespassing to see them. But we think it was some sort of hierarchy experiment. Each bat was individually colour coded on its fore-arm. These bats were of the same Sac-Wing family as the ones we saw on the tree, but have the fantastic title of 'Brazilian Long-Nosed Bat, Proboscis Bat or Sharp-Nosed Bat'.
The reason being, they have a long nose.
They too had the parallel lines on their backs, but it was much fainter than the Greater White-Lined Bat. Still, their multicoloured bangles made up for it.

Brazilian Long-Nosed Bat (c) Richard Brown

So who could live in a house like this?

It's about the size of an eggcup but contained two tiny eggs. It was made of cobweb, moss and lichen (c) Richard Brown

The Rufous-tailed Hummingbird which was nesting in a potted plant outside our room near Arenal Volcano (c) Richard Brown

This was the first trip we've had together where we could get to grips with some hummingbirds. And away from reliable food sources, particularly hummingbird feeders, they proved very difficult indeed because of their amazingly rapid speed. The abundant Rufous-tailed Hummingbirds did their best to make matters worse by aggressively defending any food and chasing off other species of hummingbird. But they were stunning so we'll let them off.

A tree next to a swing bridge at La Selva was probably the best tree of the holiday. That's because, in the brief periods in which no-one was walking across it (causing it to bounce and swing from side to side), six bats could be seen clung to the bark in the shade. They were exceptionally well camouflaged, and you had to know where they were to see them.

 The Best Tree in Costa Rica (c) Richard Brown

Greater White-Lined Bats (c) Richard Brown

Again I (Giselle) was very excited by these bats. Reason the first; in England I have never observed bats hanging on the outside of trees in the daytime. Reason the second; in England, bats do not have crazy white parallel lines running down their backs.

So what are they? Out of 110 species of bat officially recorded in Costa Rica, we whittled these critters down to the title of Greater White-Lined Bat. It wasn't too difficult, as our guide told us what they were.

They belong to a family called 'Sac-Winged Bats' and are insectivores with wing-sacs. Whats the point in having a sac on your wing? Well, the sacs are used socially as scent marking organs.

During the breeding season, individual colonies are defended by one male. To attract a female the male emits a scent from his wing sacs. This is accompanied by a complex song which he performs whilst hovering in front of her. Awesome.

The remnants of a stunning Blue Morpho butterfly. Who could have done such a thing? (c) Richard Brown

A guilty looking Rufous-tailed Jacamar. He done it. (c) Richard Brown

Working through our Costa Rica photos is providing an excellent distraction from report writing. Despite only returning home on the 9th it seems an age ago that we were standing on a boardwalk stretching out into the marshes of Palo Verde, part of the largest wetland in Central America.

Sunset at Palo Verde and the end of a fantastic days birding (c) Richard Brown

Waterbirds were everywhere. Black-bellied Whistling-ducks provided the bulk of the numbers but a huge variety of birds were feeding with them. Northern Jacanas (pictured below) were walking among the vegetation, occasionally flapping their yellow-green wings to escape the attentions of prowling American Crocodiles (and making plenty of noise to alert any other birds in the vicinity). 

Black-bellied Whistling-ducks (with Black-necked Stilts and Blue-winged Teal) (c) Richard Brown

A very conspicuous feature of the jungle were the ant trails. Brilliant for birding as they attract insectivorous birds and amazing wildlife events in their own right. The Leafcutter Ants were amazing! They form the largest and most complex societies on earth (after us, and to be honest they seemed much more organised than the Costa Rican road system). Nests can be up to 800 square metres and contain 8 million ants!

Leafcutter Ants in action. We particularly like the one that's bit off a bit more than it can carry (c) Richard Brown

The trails disappeared into the treetops where the ants were harvesting the juiciest of leaves and little flowers. They then traveled along cleared pathways and took their harvest back to their nests. But the vegetation was not to eat! They grind it down and use it as a fertiliser in their own Fungus Gardens. They then feed the fungus to their larvae. The fungus is specific to the species of ant and needs the ant to tend to its needs if it is to survive.

But how do new colonies form if they need the fungus? The queen setting off to start a new colony takes some in a pocket. In her mouth!

Large reptiles were conspicuous at most of the good birding sites. And whereas the American Crocodiles kept their distance in the rivers and swamps, the Ctenosaur spent a lot of time around our ankles whilst we were birding. At up to four foot long it would be a lie to say this isn't quite intimidating.

The totally harmless Ctenosaur (unless you're a flower or a piece of fruit) (c) Richard Brown

The Ctenosaur has a nifty trick to help manage their temperature. Pigment granules can move within individual skin cells to change their colour. So they can be dark on a morning to warm up and more reflective during the hot midday period. Smaller Ctenosaurs may also use changes in skin colour to help with camouflage as there are plenty of Snakes and Hawks which would make a meal of them. 

Another of our favourite non-avian highlights, was a frog. Not just any frog. A Strawberry Poison-dart Frog, Flaming Poison-dart Frog, or, Blue-Jeans Frog! They're all the same frog, except the two former names suggests something a bit more menacing than the latter.

Strawberry-Poison Dart Frog (c) Richard Brown

While I'd like to say he was menacing, he was about the size of a large grape, and hopped away as soon as we got close. He probably got a bit bored of our pursuit, because he launched himself at Rich's hand (that was poised with the camera a few inches away from his big red face). He clipped Rich's thumb before landing on my boot. On my boot, he was one hop away from entering what he thought was a tunnel of safety, but in reality was my trouser leg. Luckily he chose to hop off into some dead leaves by the side of the trail.

Strawberry-Poison Dart Frogs have some of the most fascinating ecology in the rainforest. When the female picks her mate, based on the best song, she lays her eggs on the ground under a leaf, and the male proceeds to fertilise them. They take turns to guard the eggs. When they hatch into tadpoles, both the male and female frogs put a couple on their back, and climb up a tree in search of a bromeliad. The bromeliad is essential to the survival of the tadpoles, as they contain miniature 'ponds' of water. Every day or two, the female climbs up to the bromeliad and lays a couple of unfertilised eggs for the growing tadpole to feed on. Nom nom nom.

And the highlight for me (Giselle) was the Honduran White Bat. Three to be precise. They roost under large leaves, which they perforate along both sides of the stalk in order to make a tent, and therefore be hidden from predators.

 Honduran White Bat (c) Giselle Eagle

Leaf adapted into a tent, under which the three bats were clinging. (c) Richard Brown

The Honduran White Bat only roosts in leaf-tents, and is one of the few species of bat to adapt its surroundings in order to roost. They are frugivorous, and their white fur is cryptic under the folded leaf, reflecting the green light passing through the leaf, and rendering them virtually invisible to predators. To make matters even cuter, they are about the size of a cotton wool ball, and have yellow-ish ears and nose. 

There are approximately 110 known species of bat in Costa Rica, of which we only saw (or were able to identify) 4 species. For such a small country, this is a mega number and they have a fantastic inextricable relationship with the forest ecosystem, being the sole pollinators of many flower and tree species, and of course acting as a natural insect control!

And the highlight of the holiday? For me (Rich) it had to be a White-collared Manakin lek, at least six males in dappled sunshine, bouncing around and wing clapping. Real Life of Birds stuff.

White-collared Manakin (c) Richard Brown

Having the freedom to drive where we wanted meant that we could experience the huge diversity of Costa Rican wildlife. The morning could be spent in Central America's largest wetland, the afternoon in montane cloud-forest. A morning birding volcano top endemics was followed by an afternoon in Caribbean lowland forest. I think its this huge diversity that made Costa Rica such an amazing place to visit.

Collared Aracari (c) Richard Brown

It was fantastic to be surrounded by birds so different to those we see at home. Aracari, Toucans, Hummingbirds, Tanagers, Antshrikes, Trogons, Parrots and Guans were always on hand to provide a touch of the spectacular. Families that we were more familiar with were represented by birds hugely different to our own.

A Squirrel Cuckoo. At first glance this large cuckoo could be mistaken for a squirrel as it leaps between trees and scurries along the branches. This one had taken an Anole Lizard which seemed to be making a failed attempt to startle its captor with its dewlap (c) Richard Brown

And the birds were not the only stars of the show. The forest contained Capuchins, Howler Monkeys, Spider Monkeys, Peccaries, Sloths, all manner of rodents, bats, lizards and a mass of invertebrate life was on constant display.

A Hoffman's Two-toed Sloth. Apparently the leafs these guys munch are rather similar to a very potent cannabis. Perhaps this goes someway to explain their rather sluggish behaviour. The energetic highpoint of the week will be a visit to the forest floor for a crap (c) Richard Brown

A Basilisk or Jesus Christ Lizard. The youngsters are capable of running along the surface of water to escape predators. Bigger ones such as this tend to swim (c) Richard Brown

We've just got back from Costa Rica. Some might say it was a Bus-man's holiday,  but I don't think Bus-men are as excited by buses as we are by birds, bats and other wildlife*. I (Giselle) doubled my life list of birds in just two weeks. And it was the first time Rich birded abroad with his big camera.

We hired a 4x4 and chanced the earthquake displaced roads and unnerving over-taking opportunities to visit as many different amazing habitats as we could fit in. I was the navigator. Costa Rica has no road signs. And, furthermore, they've built new roads and not put them on maps. But I only got us lost twice, and we (Rich) figured it out both times. The roads shouldn't dissuade you from visiting Costa Rica though, and since I was only a passenger, I quite enjoyed them.

*Based on my sole experience of the angry  bus driver on the X25 from Blyth-Newcastle during the years 2003-2006 inclusive.

Violet-headed Hummingbird (c) Richard Brown

The hummingbirds were mental, and the ultimate ID Challenge, since they were so fast, and appeared a different colour at every angle.

Northern Jacana (c) Richard Brown

Since I've never birded abroad before, the species which I most wanted to see weren't necessarily Costa Rican endemics. Since buying my first guide to Waders of Europe and North America, I've desperately wanted to see a Northern Jacana and marvel at his lime green underwings. We visited a place called Palo Verde, which hosts the most extensive wetlands in Central America. And, a quick walk along a dubius boardwalk into a marsh where water hyacinth grew sensibly, we found hundreds of Jacanas! Contesting males, females and juveniles were all plodding around in the shallow marsh amongst Black-bellied Whistling Duck, Black-necked Stilt, Limpkin, Green Heron, Little Blue Heron, Great Blue Heron, Snowy Egret, Great Egret, Tri-coloured Heron, Glossy Ibis, White Ibis, Blue-winged Teal, Fulvous Whistling Ducks, Bare-throated Tiger Heron, Muscovy Duck, Purple Gallinule, Anhinga, American Coot and Roseate Spoonbill. And that was all in the same binocular view. And to top it all off, soaring close to the water's surface was a Snail Kite! Fantastic!

Bats. I think bats are AMAZING creatures. I've been fascinated by them for a long time, and over the past few years I've worked as a bat ecologist, surveying buildings and woodlands for evidence of bat activity. While standing at dusk for hours staring at one crack in a two-hundred year old oak tree may not appeal to everyone - it appeals to me. And as a bi-product I've had many a close encounter with unsuspecting avians. Namely Woodcock, Barn Owl and Tawny Owl. I once had a stare-off with a Barn Owl in a woodland in County Durham. The Barn Owl won.

Anyway, it has been long accepted that bats neither breed nor hibernate on Bardsey Island. But, it's full of fantastic bat sized crevices, caves, and bat food which Rich has previously posted photos of. There are ad-hoc records of bats every year on Bardsey. Last year, the best record was of a Lesser Horseshoe Bat, which rocked up on the staircase of one of the cottages on the Island. Lesser Horseshoe Bats are the craziest of all of the UK bat species, and since I've done all of my 'batting' in Northern England, and Lesser Horse-shoe bats are strictly a South/South-West species this was a very exciting event for me. Unfortunately, I was in a beer garden in Norwich when Rich rang me to inform me of his find.

Lesser Horseshoe Bat (c) Richard Brown

Unfortunately the bat was severely dehydrated and attempts by Rich to rehydrate it were in vain. Check out his unique horseshoe shaped face, which is an important part of this species echo-location equipment, and acts similarly to the facial disks of Barn Owls by helping it locate its prey.
This year, I will be spending time armed with my bat detector at dusk to find out which species of bat are around, and potentially tracing them back to their roost sites (they have to sleep somewhere!). I'll report what I find from mid April onwards.

We will be spending a lot of the summer monitoring breeding birds on Bardsey. 

An Oystercatcher nest. Roughly 90 pairs breed on Bardsey. Every year we monitor a random sample of nests to see how the population is doing (c) Richard Brown

In 2010 the number of seabirds returning to the breeding colonies was similar to 2009 but with an increase in the number of Razorbill, Lesser Black-backed Gull and Herring Gull, fewer Fulmar, and significantly fewer Kittiwake. Productivity was disappointing for most species with Kittiwakes suffering a bad year but Razorbills doing well. We'll be hoping for better in 2011. 

Young Kittiwakes were in very short supply in 2010 (c) Richard brown

Ringed Plover bred for the first time since 2004. Numbers of Shelduck and Mallard increased slightly but both species failed to fledge any young. The number of breeding Peregrine remained the same but productivity was the worst since 2000.

Two pairs of Ringed Plover, an irregular breeder on Bardsey, bred in 2010 (c) Richard Brown

We are specially licenced to access the nests of breeding Peregrine on the island. We use ropes to reach their nest ledges high on the east side cliffs (c) Richard Brown

The breeding passerines generally had a good year, both in terms of the number of pairs and productivity. The numbers of breeding Skylark, Meadow Pipit, Wren, Dunnock, Robin, Blackbird, Sedge Warbler, Chiffchaff and Chaffinch were all improved and House Martin and Whitethroat bred successfully for the first time in recent years. Sadly Stonechat numbers crashed in 2010 but the single pair was very productive. Linnet continued their long-term decline. Chough suffered their lowest productivity on record for a second successive year.  

Young Skylark aren't the prettiest but they're incredibly well camouflaged (c) Richard Brown

We are planning to return to Bardsey at the end of February after a holiday in Costa Rica. But before then we thought we'd highlight some of the things we're looking forward to this coming season.

We're both qualified bird ringers and Bardsey is a perfect place for encountering a wide range of species.

There are few places in the country where Jack Snipe (top), Subalpine Warbler (middle) and Icterine Warbler (bottom) are all likely to be caught in a single season. In the past three years five Jack Snipe, three Subalps and three Ickies have been trapped and ringed (c) Richard Brown

We are also really interested in moths and will blog the highlights of the previous night's catch.

Small Elephant Hawkmoth (top) and Peach Blossom (bottom). Two of the 150 or so macro-moth species likely to be recorded (c) Richard Brown

Over 180 bird species are likely to be recorded next year. Rich will be spending a lot of time trying to take their photos.

Migrant Dunlin refueling on Solfach (c) Richard Brown

Bardsey is one of the best places to see Grasshopper warblers. After a lighthouse attraction there can be more than 200 skulking on the island with many singing in the spring (c) Richard Brown

Enigmatic migrants such as Whinchats can be encountered in good numbers (c) Richard Brown

Bardsey is probably the best place in Wales to encounter Turtle Doves (c) Richard Brown

Giselle will be on the island for a full season and will be making the most of Bardsey's amazing scenery.

Massive skies and Bardsey Lighthouse, beneath which we will be spending the year (c) Richard Brown

We will also be keeping an eye out for lots of other wildlife, island residents and migrants alike.

Red-veined Darter behind the LSA hut. A rare migrant to Bardsey (c) Richard Brown

The cave spider Meta menardi is common in the island's caves. Here the female protects her golf ball-sized egg sack (c) Richard Brown

Risso's Dolphin are regular in the waters around Bardsey. Photos of the unique scar patterns on the dorsal fins are catalogued and used to understand how big the population is. This is a mother and calf (c) Richard Brown

Rich's favourite bird of October 2010 was probably his self-found Pallas's Warbler which was later caught at Nant. Having spent two autumns on Bardsey without one, it was no surprise when two came along within a couple of weeks of each other.

A good find in the apple tree next to Emyr's house. This species breeds in Asia and usually heads to South-east Asia to overwinter (c) Richard Brown

Giselle's favourite bird of November 2010 was probably her self-found Common Rosefinch, a first-year bird which took to using the feeders in the obs garden.

Common Rosefinch in Cristin garden (c) Richard Brown

We live in the LSA hut below Bardsey Lighthouse. The lighthouse was built by Trinity House in 1821. They splashed out £5470 12s 6d on the buildings and £2950 16s 7d for the lantern on top. 

The lantern on top is constantly moving on a bed of mercury. If it stopped it would probably start a fire (c) Richard Brown

The light character is five white flashes every 15 seconds. The light is 39m above the sea so it can be seen up to 26 nautical miles away.