I noticed the odd Satyr among the vegetation in the shadier spots and I assumed they were Hermes Satyrs, like I had seen at the hotel a few metres away. However, when I was looking at my photographs I noticed that they were a bit different and they turned out to be One-pupil Satyrs, Cissia similis.
A couple of days later I discovered that some of them were Two-pupil Satyrs, Cissia themis! It just showed the value of taking pictures of every butterfly I saw.
One day when I was walking along the track I heard a crashing in the trees above me and I was thrilled to see a troop of Spider Monkeys proving that it is less easy to spot wildlife when the trees are in leaf!
We saw much better views of Spider Monkeys on our day trip to Nicaragua.
Back to the track where there was a bush with red flowers, possibly Aphelandra, which proved to be a real magnet for hummingbirds and butterflies.
It seemed particularly attractive to yellow butterflies, such as the Cloudless Sulphur, Phoebis marcellina,
the Orange-barred Sulphur, Phoebis philea,
and the Large Orange Sulphur, Phoebis agarithe.
All along the track I saw Banded Peacocks, Anartia fatima, the most common butterfly in Costa Rica and Central America. It is found in open areas and roadsides and is said to benefit from the weeds that grow in areas disturbed by humans.
I am not sure what this bird is that I saw in a grass field near the hotel. (Thank you David for identifying it as a Double-striped Thick-knee, Burhinus bistriatus)
Continued on my next post.
