Nicoya Peninsula Avian Research
Coconut palms fringe the white sandy beach. The Pacific Ocean is almost the same deep blue as the sky overhead. Only a few hundred feet inland from this postcard-perfect tropical beach scene the tidal mud is knee-deep and smells like rotten eggs. If the mud wasn’t enough of a challenge, a dense labyrinth of mangrove stilt roots makes it near impossible to walk. Many thousands of people visit the Nicoya Peninsula in Costa Rica each year to enjoy the former scene. RTPI Affiliate Sean Graesser and fellow researcher Tyler Christensen make the trip down each winter to spend several weeks in the...
Read MoreCosta Rica banding video discussion
As you may have seen in our media bar this new HD video features RTPI Affiliate Sean Graesser discussing banding in Costa Rica’s Curu Wildlife Reserve on the Nicoya Peninsula (update – the second video can be seen here and the third video can be seen here). You can listen to Sean detailing why it is important while putting a Northern Waterthrush (Parkesia noveboracensis) through the process. This is the first of a series of videos from Costa Rica that you should look for in the media bar or our media section as well as our blog. Sean also discusses research and conservation...
Read MoreSean Graesser: banding at Curu Wildlife Reserve, Costa Rica
RTPI Affiliate Sean Graesser discusses banding in Costa Rica’s Curu Wildlife Reserve on the Nicoya Peninsula while putting a Northern Waterthrush (Parkesia noveboracensis) through the process. Sean also discusses research and conservation efforts underway there, why it is important and how our backyard birds need our help at their winter homes. Video by RTPI President Twan Leenders in December 2013.
Read MoreLong-billed Starthroat (Heliomaster longirostris) by Sean Graesser
This is a Long-billed Starthroat (Heliomaster longirostris), another out of range species that Sean has been finding on the Nicoya peninsula. What he wanted to highlight here were the gorget feathers. These are the feathers located on the throat of this hummingbird and where males typically have their most colorful plumage. In most hummingbird species males develop these feathers as they age to be used for breeding displays with females. The gorget feathers actually reflect light due to their shape and the colors are not due to keratin based pigmentation. At different angles the light...
Read More
