West Indies Cruise - 01 Mar 2010
Luckily for me we had not booked a tour in port for today. I was feeling the effects of a good sun burn and didn’t feel like being out in the sun for long periods of time. Sunrise was kind of lovely this morning, with the sun trying to break through the heavy clouds over the distant island mountains.
A few Magnificent Frigatebirds greeted us as we pulled into port, but none so close as to offer photographic opportunities. It was hot and humid this morning, and lenses fogged up as soon as folks left the confines of the air-conditioned ship. Robin and I were going to go for a short walk into town, so I lathered up the sunscreen and aloe, and headed off the ship.
As we reached the end of the pier and the short walk into town I found a Gray Kingbird perched on an overhead light post. It allowed fairly-close advances before flying off, but the backlighting made for some challenging ID. It wasn’t until I played w/ curves in Photoshop could I make out the dark mask below the gray head to verify that it wasn’t a Loggerhead or Giant Kingbird (both of which are also rare in these parts…).
Red Junglefowl were a’plenty, with bright red roosters chasing the less-brightly-colored females in and out of the thickets lining both sides of the streets of RoadTown.
Up ahead I noticed a Banaquit flitting from branch to branch, and managed to grab several frames of the bird from a few feet away. These two birds would make up 90% of the birds I’d see for the next several miles of walking.
I stopped in a small shopping center and watched another Red-tailed Hawk soar overhead. Magnificent Frigatebirds were everywhere, and took advantage of the hot, rising thermals to soar overhead, as well.
I was sweating, but kept going, hoping to get a few more photos of the ubiquitous P-E Thrashers.
I came upon a dolphin sanctuary, and found a juvenile Brown Booby roosting atop a light pole. A Little Blue Heron and Brown Pelican were nearby, as well as a Great Egret. The dolphins weren’t swimming, yet, but would when I returned back this way. It was a good time to stop and photograph some of the soaring Magnificent Frigatebirds. A fly-by Osprey and Broad-winged Hawk were the only other birds in the sky.
I came upon a bend in the road where the hillside opened up a bit. Cactus were growing everywhere, and Banaquits were singing somewhere nearby. As I rested in the shade and attempted to eat a Power Bar, a Smooth-billed Ani flew in and landed atop a bush. Dropping my water and candy bar on the ground at my feet I approached slowly and got several keeper shots of the bird before it flew off into thicker undergrowth.
I came upon a bend in the road where the hillside opened up a bit. Cactus were growing everywhere, and Banaquits were singing somewhere nearby. As I rested in the shade and attempted to eat a Power Bar, a Smooth-billed Ani flew in and landed atop a bush. Dropping my water and candy bar on the ground at my feet I approached slowly and got several keeper shots of the bird before it flew off into thicker undergrowth.
A Scaley-naped Pigeon rested momentarily on an overhead powerline, the flew like a bullet past me and into the trees across the street.
I returned to my Power Bar and water and slammed them down before heading back. I’d need the energy for the long walk back. Stopping by the dolphin sanctuary I managed some keeper shots of them as they jumped out of the water to the delight of the tourists.
I returned to my Power Bar and water and slammed them down before heading back. I’d need the energy for the long walk back. Stopping by the dolphin sanctuary I managed some keeper shots of them as they jumped out of the water to the delight of the tourists.
Returning to town I found White-winged Dove and Zenaida Dove feeding on the walk ahead of me. Both birds were cooperative and provided macro-types photos from 18” inches away.
Before returning to the ship I stopped for a Killdeer and another Gray Kingbird. I was hot, soaked and exhausted, and ready for a shower and nap. Temps outside were in the low 90’s and humidity was near 100%.
Tortola Pier Park, BVI, Virgin Islands (British), VG
Mar 1, 2010 7:00 AM
Protocol: Incidental
Checklist Comments: NCL Cruise - port stop
16 species
Red Junglefowl (Domestic type) (Gallus gallus (Domestic type)) 1
Scaly-naped Pigeon (Patagioenas squamosa) 1
White-winged Dove (Zenaida asiatica) 1
Zenaida Dove (Zenaida aurita) 1
Smooth-billed Ani (Crotophaga ani) 1
Killdeer (Charadrius vociferus) 1
Magnificent Frigatebird (Fregata magnificens) 6
Brown Booby (Sula leucogaster) 1
Brown Pelican (Pelecanus occidentalis) 1
Little Blue Heron (Egretta caerulea) 1
Great Egret (Ardea alba) 1
Osprey (Pandion haliaetus) 1
Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis) 1
Gray Kingbird (Tyrannus dominicensis) 3
Pearly-eyed Thrasher (Margarops fuscatus) 1
Bananaquit (Coereba flaveola) 1
View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S4
This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (https://ebird.org/home)
Mar 1, 2010 7:00 AM
Protocol: Incidental
Checklist Comments: NCL Cruise - port stop
16 species
Red Junglefowl (Domestic type) (Gallus gallus (Domestic type)) 1
Scaly-naped Pigeon (Patagioenas squamosa) 1
White-winged Dove (Zenaida asiatica) 1
Zenaida Dove (Zenaida aurita) 1
Smooth-billed Ani (Crotophaga ani) 1
Killdeer (Charadrius vociferus) 1
Magnificent Frigatebird (Fregata magnificens) 6
Brown Booby (Sula leucogaster) 1
Brown Pelican (Pelecanus occidentalis) 1
Little Blue Heron (Egretta caerulea) 1
Great Egret (Ardea alba) 1
Osprey (Pandion haliaetus) 1
Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis) 1
Gray Kingbird (Tyrannus dominicensis) 3
Pearly-eyed Thrasher (Margarops fuscatus) 1
Bananaquit (Coereba flaveola) 1
View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S4
This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (https://ebird.org/home)
