Little Hermit - Phaethornis longuemareus

This is not a great photo that I have taken this afternoon, but I was so pleased to even get this hummingbird, or Colibre, in the picture. (I plan to keep trying for a better shot, though!) It's Phaethornis longuemareus, the Little Hermit, or Ermitaño enano. It's feeding from Calathea lutea, which is proving a popular plant with both hummingbirds and butterflies. A mere 9cm, this miniature bird weighs in at just 2.6g. It's distribution is from Costa Rica to western Venezuela, Peru and Bolivia.

Mangrove Cuckoo - Cuclillo de Manglar

Yesterday, I spotted a Mangrove Cuckoo, or, Cuclillo de Manglar (Coccyzus minor) in the garden. It was the first time that I had seen this bird, although ornithologist Mary Noyes (of the UK) included it on her list of some 60 species, which she saw or heard during her 3 day visit to Los Charcos in mid February 2008. She was here with her husband (NHM entomologist) John. Unfortunately I was in hospital during their visit. We are working to make available on our official website a series of on-site species lists, hoping to start with the list of LCO birds.