Tropical Hummingbirds feeding

The last time we were at the visitor centre at Pipeline Road, Gamboa I managed to get a pretty nice video of some lovely hummingbirds at the feeder.

If you stay watching till the end, you will see a hummingbird with a white fanned-out tail come in from the left and just dance in mid-air!

Every time we go to this visitor centre, we see at least twenty hummingbirds of all different varieties. Although they look super beautiful, there are continual territorial battles over the feeders, so I actually think they are pretty stressed out!

For me, seeing birds like this on my doorstep is one of the major highlights of living in this tropical paradise.

Coati Quartet

This morning I had plenty of ‘Gatos Solos’, known in English as Coati Mundis (remember Kid Creole and the Coconuts?), to keep me company. While walking uphill in 30 degree heat, 90% humidity (not bad for the 15th of November!), getting an outdoor exercise fix, I stopped awhile to watch them rummage for ants.

Coati Quartet from Panamajama on Vimeo.

A family of four ambled by with their tails held high and waving. Living here in Panama as a nature lover is truly awe-inspiring. I do not even have to look for these creatures, they just step out in front of me, making every walk a real jungle adventure!

When the boat comes in

We were so lucky to be at the beach on the Pacific side of this beautiful country when the fishermen unloaded their, thankfully for us, small catch. A lot of effort was expended by ten or so men hauling a largeish net onto land. I was worried that it might be a gruesome experience for us nature lovers, as I was expecting a lot of exotic species such as squid, sharks, snappers etc. The catch that morning was only a few sprats however. But that didn’t stop the huge flock of enormous (I would guess 6 foot wing span) frigate birds getting tremendously excited!

If you go down to the woods today….

Today was a very special day for me indeed. Today I saw an anteater in the wild for the very first time! I watched it for a good long time and managed to get a pretty reasonable video of it.

Anteater in the Wild, Plantation Road, Panama from Panamajama on Vimeo.

So that was one first for me this morning, and more than enough to keep me happy. But the rainforest had other ideas, and half an hour after seeing this beautiful anteater I was being watched by a curious capuchin. I then had the privilege of watching a troop of capuchins make their way, surprisingly clumsily I may add, through the huge palm leaves near the top of the canopy. Video too fuzzy to show here, sorry!

Here is a super-short clip of a coati mundi, also from this morning’s walk, by way of compensation.

Panama: The Most Biodiverse Place on Earth

As Panama has the richest biodiversity of any place on our planet, even including the wonder that is the Amazon, I thought I would do a picture post to celebrate some of the fabulous flora and fauna of this precious country. I hope you enjoy looking at these photos as much as I enjoyed taking them!

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