June and July 2026

 Dear everyone!! it’s been a while, so time for an update. Busy with all sorts of things; it is low season, of course, so we are doing some work around our house and cottages. And enjoying working in the garden, giving some extra attention to the horse, dogs, and husband :) 

But naturally, birds and nature have also been on the agenda. The highlights in that regard were seeing some new birds. 

One thing I don't really aspire to is going out to sea on a boat. Were it not for the fact that a Waved Albatross had been spotted in the Gulf of Chiriqui, and besides that, there were also Inca terns, my heart started beating faster. And 7th of July, we hired a boat with a boatman and set off with Patricia and Bernie. We sailed off from Boca Chica harbor. 

We couldn't find the Waved Albatross; the boatman was very helpful and we took extra time. We saw the Blue-footed Boobies, not a new bird for me, having seen them before in Peru, but certainly a new one for Panama.

The sooty Tern and the bridled Tern...new to me...and of course some other seabirds.

                               The sooty Tern is in flight and the bridled Tern on the rock(above)

                                                Down below a nice bridled Tern:

And then the Inca Tern, super happy to see this bird!!

The weather was beautiful, not too many waves, but around the rocks it did get a bit more "up and down" as the day progressed. I held up well, but I was borderline seasick. The other girls were steady, and Bernie in particular is used to boats; she comes from the Dutch Antilles. I didn't mind having both feet back on dry land. But it was a beautiful day! 

Another thing....A Kelp Gull had been spotted on Barqueta beach in David; well, that was a new bird for me. So the next day, Patricia and I went to the beach.

When we arrived, there weren't many birds. But in David, there is often a beautiful sunset and people come to watch. Usually Panamanian families. And then when the people came... (around 5 pm) the seagulls came (just like in the Netherlands). People eat and spil and they know that :) And I did see a big seagull flying in, so I looked through my binoculars and sure enough, he came straight at me and      looked at me intently; he seemed to be saying, "You need me." The Kelp Gull!  And so, a new bird for     me. Patricia had already seen it that week, but she was just as happy as I was. It is always nice to share a "lifer" experience together.

June and part of July is naturally immature time, lots of young birds, always quite an event. Also on the farm this year, many different seed-eaters in the meadows and for 3 weeks now, 2 orange-billed sparrows have been singing their hearts out from the edge of the woods.

Also on the Quetzal trail Hans and I did see a nice nest with an immature of the ornate Hawk Eagle.On the left is the immature(white) :

With Ann, we went birdwatching in Dolega, between Boquete and David. Great weather and a good list of nice birds.

With Ian Sanchez, I went to a farm belonging to acquaintances. Ian is the son of friends of ours. He lives in Panama City and when he is with his parents here in Boquete, we try to head out. Ian is working  in tourisme ...nature, rafting, and much more guide for years and he is my kind of birder. Saw some good birds and enjoyed it.

And the day before yesterday, I spent a day birdwatching with Matthew... he is married to a Panamanian lady and we hiked the Quetzal Trail with them a very long time ago. We have actually kept in touch(they live in the states) and whenever they are here in Boquete to visit the family (with their two children), we see each other at least twice, preferably more. It is so nice. And birdwatching with Matthew is fun... but his passion is insects and butterflies. So I went with him to a farm where there was all sorts of... birds, butterflies and crazy insects and very colorful ones too. He takes macro photos and I learned a lot again. And birds, of course. But I must say, that is almost impossible to combine; it is, of course, more staring into bushes and at and under leaves. But we did have a pretty good bird list, too. 

Proud of my pictures of the Wheelbug(Arilus carinatus)

and long-tailed Skipper:

All in all, we've had quite busy weeks, fun busy... with the World Cup and the Tour de France, of course also and nice guests in the cottages.

Oh  a fun thing was also that I was attacked by these southern Lapwings. I did run away..after taking this quick picture, because  one of them really touched me. Probably close to immatures or nest.

Well, that's about it...here as dessert a cute picture of thick billed Euphonia female with  her immatures on our balcony... they flew out half July. 

Until next time and best regards from Terry😊😊

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