Week 4 -- January 29

January 29:
Through Hamanasi we were able to arrange a private guided tour of the Cockscomb Jaguar Preserve, located about 14 miles from Hopkins. Hartfield, our guide, became a little nervous when he discovered we were birders, but he proved himself to be more than a little familiar with the wildlife. On the drive to the preserve we stopped at Maya Centre, which is primarily a tourist stop to pick up Mayan inspired crafts (beaded jewelry, masks, and black stone carved into Mayan motifs) created by local women. We made a brief visit to the small museum which shares details about basic jaguar biology, the local population, and research done there by Alan Rabinowitz. We spent the morning on the Wari Trail, a relatively flat loop which passed through dense jungle and towering trees. Birding was not spectacular, but we did see a white collared manakin, golden hooded tanager, stripe throated hermit, scarlet rumped tanager, variable seedeater, cinnamon hummingbird, another white necked jacobin, jaguarondi prints, and a crocodile on the drive over. The day was particularly warm and humid, and the mosquitoes were voracious! At lunch we enjoyed the shade under a sheltered picnic area, and while Mom relaxed in the van, Dad and I trekked to the falls with Hartfield. This stretch included much more elevation, but Dad was a trooper! Along the way, we met a large group of high school kids who betrayed their British colonial heritage by saying, “Good afternoon” as they each passed us. Happily, it was just the three of us at the falls, and we waded in the cool, refreshing water. Again, the yellow tailed freshwater sardines seemed pleased to have the company. Back at Hamanasi, we joined the happy hour crowd and then returned to Parrot Cove for dinner.