Random Walks Around Lima

A few of the birds to be found when walking around the parks of Lima :)

Black-crowned Night Heron

^^ Nycticorax nycticorax High in a tree, probably cursing humans for being around when fish were swimming nearby...

Vermilion Flycatcher (female)

^^ Pyrocephalus rubinus We still see a female in the garden most days, but she's more camera-shy than those found in the parks.

Sooty morph Vermilion Flycatcher

^^ Possibly the cutest flycatcher in Lima!

Blue-black Grassquit

^^ Volatinia jacarina Usually seen jumping about 1-2 feet in the air along with a short, loud call. Always nice to see atop a post or wall :)

Pacific Parrotlet (male)

^^ Forpus coelestis Saw two couples of these searching for food, unfortunately the female pics didn't come out very well. Maybe I'd have got the shot if locals walking their dogs hadn't unwittingly scared them off!

Where would a walk here be without one of these..?

Amazilia Hummingbird

^^ Amazilia amazilia Hummingbirds are head-turners every time for me, especially when they have their little territorial spats and chase each other in acrobatic madness!

Two Birds, One Future...

Something is going to happen soon...

Thanks to our cousin Malú for the great drawing!!

I've been doing some research into this marriage thing. Apparently, a man is incomplete until he is married - then he's really finished...

Just kidding Mel ;)

Punk Attitude

Southern Beardless-Tyrannulet (Camptostoma obsoletum).

A personal favourite, this little one (about 9.5-10 cm). Never been there when we looked for them, but this April we came across them many times - great!

NSFW... (Not Safe For Work)

Warning - This post may contain nudity and sexuality and is intended for 'mature' persons only. It must not be accessed by anyone that does not possess a sense of humour ;)

Relax and let it all hang out...

Have some 'play-time'...

Invite a friend..?

Pick a number, any number...

Your captions too please :)

Parque Zoológico Huachipa

Mono Capuchino?

Mel and I visited Huachipa Zoo almost two weeks ago now, but as Mel was on vacations last week, I didn't post anything from the day until now.

Although we had a great day, certain aspects of the place leave you a little sad. Many of the enclosures - cages - are not adequate for their inhabitants. I don't know the cause of what you see in the following photo, but whether a result of living in captivity or not, it's not nice to see...

Black-mandibled Toucan

However, what a zoo always offers someone like me, is the opportunity to practice some photography!

"You talkin' to me?"
Red-capped Cardinal

The two shots above were taken through cages.

Military Macaw

The highlight of the place has to be "Bosque de las aves" (Forest of the birds), a huge enclosed area to view 20 or more species (according to park signs, which were not clear in saying which were which though...). It has a tower in the middle to view from, and a small waterfall to walk behind.

Some pics from inside here:

Majestic...erm...beauty
King Vulture

I think this is a Spix's Guan,
looks like Crested Guan too though

Surprised to see this here!
Black Swan

I can't find what the next one is, annoying as it looks so familiar. Also, lower mandible is larger than upper??

Give me a name please!

Standard Reading??

After having 'THAT' happen to me twice last year, I'm beginning to think so...

Seen in a town near you!

It's not new, but the old ones are the best!

Fotos de La Arenilla

Day trip write-up and birding list to be found on Mel's post. Yes, I'm being lazy...

Franklin's Gull (Larus pipixcan)

Eared Dove (Zenaida auriculata)

Peruvian Pelican (Pelecanus thagus)

"Aah... that's better..."
Spotted Sandpiper (Actitis macularius)

Plover-pirouettes wowed the judges.
Semipalmated Plover (Charadrius semipalmatus)

I'm not going to pretend I have any idea about what these next two are (species I mean - yes I know there's a butterfly and a crab...). Answers on a postcard please...

Exhibit 'A'

Exhibit 'B'

Pachacamac

I went to Pachacamac with Mel's mother and two aunts that were visiting from Argentina. The earliest parts of this archaeological site are believed to hail from between 1400 and 1800 years ago. The main construction followed with the Huari culture, and post-Huari it became a place of religious significance before becoming incorporated into the Incan Empire.

The highest point of the site,
with vast areas still to be discovered...

Unfortunately, lack of funding means that most of the site remains under sand, and it doesn't look as though that will change any time soon...

With some funding, this could be one
of Lima's greatest attractions

With the area being mostly desert, wildlife was minimal. At the entrance to the site they keep a llama. It seems this one didn't want to pose for a photo, so to save you from looking at said llama's rear-end, I found a 'gorgeous' canine instead - this is the breed that was offered to Barack Obama because of his dog allergies. I give you the Peruvian Hairless Dog...

Perro peruano sin pelo, ranked in the top five
in Tommy's Ugliest Dog Breeds '09

Hopefully that didn't put off anyone from visiting Lima... Just in case, here's the only birds I saw at Pachacamac...

Croaking Ground-Dove (Columbina cruziana)

Long-tailed Mockingbird (Mimus longicaudatus)

Time to go. Don't have nightmares about ugly dogs - I mean, it's not as if I posted this one!

Not Moving So Fast Now...

The last time I was here, there was one bird that tortmented me endlessly, darting and diving day after day around 'La Laguna' (the local lake). These Blue-and-White Swallows (Pygochelidon cyanoleuca) moved so fast I found it almost impossible to focus with my eyes, never mind about with a camera!

So, within a week of returning to these shores, I was extremely pleased to find around 20 of them sat on a wire right outside the front door! Obviously, I raced back to get the camera and took a few shots...

Adult

A spot of grooming...

Juveniles?

I've now made it my [impossible?] mission to get some in flight - wish me luck!

Tommy

Tommy's Back!

I have returned to Sudamérica once more! (With a new address for the blog too...)

And what better way to announce my return than with a Vermilion Flycatcher (Pyrocephalus rubinus)?? Here's a beautiful female sat out the front of the house :)


Got to go, time to turn everything off for Earth Hour :)

Tommy

Perfect place to raise the family?

Bird's nest in San Miguel, Lima.
27th July, 2008

Imagine you're a bird...

...looking to raise a family, you need to find a safe place for you and your partner to bring up the little ones...

...but where?

In these towns and cities an elevated position is essential - to keep out of the reaches of those whose taste-buds are a touch partial to poor winged creatures.

They'll never find us here...

"Sleeping with the enemy"

Any other ideas for captions?

Random Picture Time

Thought I'd share some of the more interesting photos I've taken this year - although that could be read as 'the ones I took that didn't make it to Mel's blog'! That said, there's some lovely 'hummingbirds' (you'll understand the quotations when you see them) that I think she should have posted.

I'll start with the flowers:




They are all flowers of the Asteraceae family, and although the daisy of the last picture dwarfs the others above (shown in background of photo), it is truly a giant compared to those that I grew up seeing in the UK. If my memory serves correctly, height of 1 to 1.5 centimetres compared to this one of about 1.5 feet! [tommydisclaimer]I may be wrong of course, I've not spent any real amount of time in the UK for nearly three years now.[/endtommydisclaimer]

Now for a few birdies :)

Rufous-collared Sparrow (Zonotrichia capensis)
Tacna, Perú

Turkey Vulture (Cathartes aura)
Arica, Chile

Incidentally, this picture wasn't a split-second capture of the bird spreading it's wings. It actually sat there in that exact position, wings held wide, for at least a few minutes! I don't know the reason for this, unless it was just catching some of the sun's rays! (It was very hot that day) Maybe somebody else could offer a better theory though?

Harris's Hawk (Parabuteo unicinctus)
Lima, Perú

We saw this hawk stalking a group of around fifteen smaller birds (I think they were finches), though I'm not sure if it was for food or just for it's own amusement. Don't think the smaller ones enjoyed it either way :s

Now, the bugs... What?! No hummingbirds?! Not yet...

A random red spider found in the street
Tacna, Perú

This creature (is it a cricket or related?) decided to sneak up and 'tickle' my arm with it's antennae while I was playing around on my laptop. Yes, I jumped rather quickly, as although I don't mind insects, I don't particularly like them if they're around the size of half of my hand or more. Or if they look intent on feeding on any part of me.

Finally, these little beauties:

At first we thought this was a type of hummingbird - it's behaviour is very similar, fast wings, hovering and darting around the flowers - but it's not. It is a moth called the White-Lined Sphinx, also known as Striped Morning Sphinx, and it seems some do know it as the hummingbird moth! The main difference I realise now but didn't know then, is that while hummingbirds fly away when you approach them, these moths didn't seem to mind me standing mere inches away from them. The third picture is a little blurred, but really shows it feeding perfectly!

Well, that's about it. Maybe it's time now for a BIG sandwi's'ch from this place we found in Tacna:


All pics copyright of Tommy (jajaja)
Byeeeeeeee
Tommy