| A nest of recently hatched spiderlings disperesed from a small, stream-side plant in Rio Camarone, Sirena. |  |
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Monthly Archives: April 2010
Common snapping turtle
I caught him behind my parents house while wading in a vernal pool in search of frogs. The pool was too shallow for the turtle to submerse completely, and, as it began digging into the sediment to disguise itself, it grabbed my attention.
Orb weaver wraps up a fly
While sampling Rio Camarone near the Sirena field station, I wandered upstream and noticed an orb weaver’s web. As I moved passed it, I bumped a leaf with a perched fly and the fly flew right into the spider’s web. Thus, it’s psuedo-unnatural, but from the look of the third picture, similar prey items are usually encountered by this spider species anyway. I had seen a number of flies from this family perched on leaves adjacent to streams many times in the past, and I hope one that I’ve collected for Dr. Foote will provide an identification.
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Another Spring Flower
Bloodroot – Sanguinaria canadensis
Foraging Brown Pelicans
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On the hike back from Rio Claro, Helena and I stopped to watch several Brown Pelicans feed on fish as the waves crashed into a small cove.
A Spring Flower
Coltsfoot – Tussilago farfara
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Crossing Rio Abuela
Helena Molina, a professor at the Biology Department at University of Costa Rica, is carried across a small stream on the Osa as we hiked to Rio Claro to sample Characids. A recommendation to future biologists: Think twice about doing graduate work with Helena… unless you’re looking for a workout too.
Playa San Josecito
Casa Abuela
Lower Falls
The Lower Falls at Letchworth State Park