My Life In Costa Rica *LOTS OF PICS*

editing... pics were too big

Three-Toed Sloths >>>> Two Toed. I've had a soft spot for Three-Toed Sloths since I was in the 6th grade. Don't know why...

About sloths...

In two hours I saw two sloths fall out of a tree. With one of them the vine broke, and the other one went down to poop (very rare to see, happens like every week), and on his way back up he fell down. I was literally less than 10 feet away.

Thanks god both were unharmed.

I've seen a few cross the road. I lived there for 9 months with a Tico family.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...opytour030.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...opytour032.jpg

here is only a very very very small portion of the pics I have. Don't have time to upload them all at once.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v441/zackw419/2-8.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...9/IMG_2662.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...9/enhanced.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...19/poster3.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...9/100_9877.jpg


Baby Boa, wandered up to our front door:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v441/zackw419/me.jpg

Oh man...

I think my amount of jealousy of you rose by about... yeah I think 288531 times?

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Originally Posted by DutchHerp

Oh man...

I think my amount of jealousy of you rose by about... yeah I think 288531 times?

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lol, yea it was definently a blessing :).

MORE PICS TO COME

very cool! Thanks for posting. I love the sloth pictures. I was leaving the MN Zoo just as their's was coming out of quarantine.... I've always been sad that I didn't get to work with it!

NO!!

You have no idea how jealous I am... not even a clue...

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Originally Posted by DutchHerp

NO!!

You have no idea how jealous I am... not even a clue...

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:D sorry. But, from what i've seen in your other thread you ran into quite a few animals that aren't easy to find. Boas are like ghosts in the rainforest. Pitvipers aswell. How long were you in Costa Rica for? I saw you've been to some of the hotspots, like tarcoles and arenal.

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Originally Posted by zackw419

:D sorry. But, from what i've seen in your other thread you ran into quite a few animals that aren't easy to find. Boas are like ghosts in the rainforest. Pitvipers aswell. How long were you in Costa Rica for? I saw you've been to some of the hotspots, like tarcoles and arenal.

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I was there for 15 days. The boa was in a burrow next to the path (pointed out a by a guide) but the viper was on Cerro Chato (a hike right by Arenal).

It was amazing... I want to go to La Selva for research later on in life.

Beautiful pics! Post more when you can!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by DutchHerp

I was there for 15 days. The boa was in a burrow next to the path (pointed out a by a guide) but the viper was on Cerro Chato (a hike right by Arenal).

It was amazing... I want to go to La Selva for research later on in life.

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Yeah, I've been there. Its pretty cool. They cemented the paths so scientists can ride bikes through the forest. Some of my pics are from there.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...9/100_0231.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...9/100_0324.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...9/100_0582.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...9/100_0653.jpg
Spectacled cayman
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...9/100_1140.jpg
two toed in a tree
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...9/100_1144.jpg

Two toed crossing the road:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...100_1179-1.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...100_1177-1.jpg
Capachun Monkey
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...100_1194-1.jpg
Orchid
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...100_1304-2.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...100_1304-2.jpg
Turn-up tailed gecko
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...9/100_0404.jpg
Capachun Monkey
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...9/100_1203.jpg
Parrot
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...9/100_1216.jpg

Sloth mama with her baby on her tummy:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...9/100_1225.jpg

MORE COMING..Bear with me ;)

WOW!!!!! Gotta go to Costa rica one day.

Wa Wa WoW

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Originally Posted by DutchHerp

NO!!

You have no idea how jealous I am... not even a clue...

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Please, please let the rest of us get a little green around the gills too!!....heh, did you notice how "slick and calm" he is in the pics??....my eyes would be huge, like "Get a load of this!" the steve irwin would come out...and I am from Massachusetts! LOL

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Originally Posted by OhBalls

Please, please let the rest of us get a little green around the gills too!!....heh, did you notice how "slick and calm" he is in the pics??....my eyes would be huge, like "Get a load of this!" the steve irwin would come out...and I am from Massachusetts! LOL

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lol the pics were taken after the freak out :O

Zack... amazing pictures.. really awesome. Where did you find that croc? I looked for those geckos, but couldn't find any.

Awesome finds, love the bird photos too!

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Originally Posted by DutchHerp

Zack... amazing pictures.. really awesome. Where did you find that croc? I looked for those geckos, but couldn't find any.

Awesome finds, love the bird photos too!

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When my mom came down to visit me we went on a private river-ride, I'm embarrassed I can't remember the exact location. It was around the La Selva area though. Seing the turnup tail was cool for me, hes bigger than he looks in that pic. Some of my friends said they've seen him around the house a few times. I'm just glad I had a chance to look at him.

If you ever go to La Selva I wouldn't be surprised if you see the same parrot. Him and a few others live in a dead tree on the campus. Its funny because when you knock on the hollow tree his head comes poking out like, "Who's there?"

Glad you like them :)

Yeah La Selva was amazing. We saw a Great Potoo, a pretty rare owl-like bird, which had been residing the same tree for a few weeks. It took me about 10 mins to find it with the guide telling me where it was... I wonder how the person saw it the first time! :weirdface:

Quote:

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Originally Posted by DutchHerp

Yeah La Selva was amazing. We saw a Great Potoo, a pretty rare owl-like bird, which had been residing the same tree for a few weeks. It took me about 10 mins to find it with the guide telling me where it was... I wonder how the person saw it the first time! :weirdface:

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Yeah, man that's cool. Owls are HARD to see day and night.

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Originally Posted by zackw419

Yeah, man that's cool. Owls are HARD to see day and night.

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Tell me about it. I'm a birder myself and I've only seen one owl in the sun.

Some of my friends Pictures:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...9/IMG_1671.jpg
Look Closely
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...9/IMG_1692.jpg
Bushmaster, the largest Viper in the world. Very, very rare to see one in the wild sadly I was not present when this pic was taken :(
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...9/IMG_1702.jpg
GREAT picture, one of my favs. Its vine snake.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...9/IMG_1846.jpg
Rio Penas Blanca My favorite river in Costa Rica, Has the highest diversity of different species of frogs in all of Costa Rica. Still many undiscovered.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...9/IMG_1919.jpg
Mal Pais
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...9/IMG_2679.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...9/IMG_4667.jpg
Almost stepped on this guy
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...9/IMG_4739.jpg
Look closely
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...9/IMG_4859.jpg
Cloudy Slug Eater
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...9/IMG_4950.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...9/IMG_4954.jpg
Me after falling off a bike trail, LOL. I got lucky, I fell UNDER the barbed wire.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...9/IMG_5304.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...9/IMG_5308.jpg
Our dog woody, he's a little drouble maker. He busted his paw open, we lacked veterinary care, poor wood.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...9/IMG_5391.jpg
The baby boa I was holding in the previous pic, very lax little guy. He lived in our garden.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...9/IMG_5418.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...9/IMG_5422.jpg
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My Pics:

Beach sunset (Boca Baranca) Did some good surfing here, This beach has the 2nd longest Left in the world!
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...9/100_0727.jpg
Oropendola nests. Extremely well made, Ive held one, their so strong they could be used as a purse! Im sure you saw these magnificent birds DutchHerp, they have the most beautiful call, when they do it they swing upside down on the branch, then back up.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...100_1219-1.jpg
San Carlos Tree frog. I can't believe I found this guy, his call is sooo quiet. Beautiful little guy huh? (frogs were my specialty when I lived their) ;)
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...9/100_1579.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...9/100_1583.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...100_1273-3.jpg
Baby basalisk basiliscus basiliscus (these are the guys that run on water when they are younger)
Random Litter Frog
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...9/100_0252.jpg
This hawk would perch over our fish pond ever day and catch our fish, until Freddy (my host dad) cut it down, lol. Then the hawk just moved to the nearby tree :rofl:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...100_0527-1.jpg
Had to leave the country (to Nicaragua) every 3 months for 75 hrs. Pic is of a Nicaraguan sunset on the river, Most Nicaraguans get around by boat because the country has huge rivers running through it.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...9/100_0792.jpg
Random moon pics :)
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...100_0997-1.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...9/100_0995.jpg
Volcan Arenal
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...100_1273-3.jpg

More Coming...

Damn bro, those are some sick pictures!! You weren't there when you saw that BUSHMASTER?!

I read that Mark O'Shea spent nine months in Costa Rica looking for one, but he never saw one! Also, great hoggie picture. ;)

And that vine snake, what's the scientific name? Looks like cat-eyed to me... not Oxybelis or Ahaetulla, or is it?

Thanks!!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by DutchHerp

Damn bro, those are some sick pictures!! You weren't there when you saw that BUSHMASTER?!

I read that Mark O'Shea spent nine months in Costa Rica looking for one, but he never saw one! Also, great hoggie picture. ;)

And that vine snake, what's the scientific name? Looks like cat-eyed to me... not Oxybelis or Ahaetulla, or is it?

Thanks!!

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No, sadly I was not there for the bushmaster. *cries*

Im not sure on the vine snake. I'm not very good with scientific names, I've just memorized some.

Here's the baby basilisk that I, somehow, left out. We have a BUNCH of these in our garden and in our neighbors gardens. Its fun watching them grow.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...100_1560-1.jpg

Well please keep posting. I have a passion for Costa Rica. ;)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by DutchHerp

Well please keep posting. I have a passion for Costa Rica. ;)

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I will, Its a great place. Who knows what it will be like a a few years though : /

All that tourism is destroying the countries beauty.

They just passed a bill their that allows American businessmen to build franchises like McDonalds and all that. If you've seen NO TLC spray painted on stuff, that's what its about.

were you there on foreign exchange?

mmmm...kind of.

I was having problems at home so my mom thought it would be best if I was away. So I went to a boarding school that is located in Idaho but had roots in Costa Rica. The owners son married the daughter of a tico friend so their like family. So part of the school is in Costa Rica. In a small town called La Tigra, far from tourism. Their are only like 20 kids in the whole school and no more than 8 can be in Costa Rica at a time. I was lucky :)

thats cool.
im going on foreign exchange there for the summer.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by DutchHerp

Damn bro, those are some sick pictures!! You weren't there when you saw that BUSHMASTER?!

I read that Mark O'Shea spent nine months in Costa Rica looking for one, but he never saw one! Also, great hoggie picture. ;)

And that vine snake, what's the scientific name? Looks like cat-eyed to me... not Oxybelis or Ahaetulla, or is it?

Thanks!!

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Sorry, brainfart... No Ahaetulla in the New World.

:weirdface

The snake in question appears to be some species of Imantodes.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by wmanning

thats cool.
im going on foreign exchange there for the summer.

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cool, im sure you'll love it.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by DutchHerp

About sloths...

In two hours I saw two sloths fall out of a tree. With one of them the vine broke, and the other one went down to poop (very rare to see, happens like every week), and on his way back up he fell down. I was literally less than 10 feet away.

Thanks god both were unharmed.

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I saw the same thing! (Pooping one that fell.. about 6ft away) It was this year on about.. March 22nd? 23rd? Were you in Manuel Antonio National Park?

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Originally Posted by JohnMcD

I saw the same thing! (Pooping one that fell.. about 6ft away) It was this year on about.. March 22nd? 23rd? Were you in Manuel Antonio National Park?

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It was Manuel Antonio, but it was somewhere near the end of July/beginning of August. Still funny though ;)

Forgot about this thread :oops:. Will post more up soon, hopefully.

OMG keep them coming!!!! :gj::gj::gj::gj::gj:

Costa Rica is a Very Dangerous place with all the reptiles running around. You should trade out with me. Ill go live there and you can come live here in Nebraska where its safe.

ahhhhhh my favorite lazy animal!!! has anyone seen the video of the baby sloth falling asleep in the box?

Those pics made my day. honestly. I've always dreamed of seeing some of those very animals in the wild... especially the bushmaster. ;)

Justin

Zach... it's time for more photos!