The last time I saw Dr. Skutch was on 18 April 2004, when I had the opportunity to participate in a bird count organized by the Tropical Science Center. The activity was one of the events designed around the celebration of his 100th birthday and the results of the census were to be presented to him on 20 May, during the festivity.

Five sites were censused in the area, spanning an altitude range of 700 to 1400 meters above sea level. Together with my wife, Maricia, and three of my children, I was assigned to Los Cusingos. By the end of a very enjoyable day of birding we had seen 103 species and 471 individuals. The combined group effort resulted in a grand total of 224 species and 2723 individuals.

Late in the afternoon, we were invited in to the room where Dr. Skutch was sitting in his hospital bed. We told him of the birds we'd seen and how quite a number of migrants were passing through. In parting, I said I was looking forward to seeing him again in another month at his 100th birthday party.

"Wágner López and I had compiled the results from the count and with a few more details the report would be ready to be printed for Dr. Skutch. So after the sad news, we got in contact and overnight we finished the work. We wanted to give him the results anyway, as he had alreay shown a lot of interest in seeing them and was very excited about his birthday. Every morning he would ask: "When is my birthday?"

"The night before the funeral, I went to the Calvario Chapel, where many friends of Don Alexander came to spend a few more moments with him. As I was coming in, I heard the scratchy voice of a Common Barn-Owl (Tyto alba), not a rare bird in this area, but definitely a new location for their night concert, as they used to be in the towers of the Cathedral in San Isidro for many years, and now they were in the towers of El Calvario. Their presence really made me think of something more spiritual than just a coincidence: a way for his closest friends, the birds, to say Good-bye!

"Early in the morning, I was finalizing the report in my computer at home, and as I was doing so, I thought of how nice it would be to have many birds come and say farewell to Don Alexander during his funeral. Then my favorite bird came to mind: Ornate Hawk-Eagle (Spizaetus ornatus). I knew this was not likely to happen because of the type of habitat in Los Cusingos, but at least I was hoping some birds would come to say adiós, just like the Common Barn-Owls the night before.

Few, if any, birders had the opportunity to spend as much time with Dr. Skutch in the past several decades as did Dana Gardner, who has kindly permitted me to include here a most eloquent message he sent following Dr. Skutch's death:

Although Alexander had been deteriorating physically for the last couple of years, was confined to a wheel chair, and had become hard of hearing, he remained mentally alert and in very high spirits. Last year when I arrived for a visit I found him reading a book on planetary physics. (He asked me what I thought of the Big Bang Theory.) This year he was rereading many of his own books that he had written years earlier. He told me he was refreshing his memory. He still received occasional visitors, and graciously welcomed them, apologizing for not being able to rise to greet them. He wished them a pleasant walk in his forest, something he had been unable to do for several years, but he enjoyed hearing about what birds they saw.

Only on the next to the last day of my stay did a nagging cough rapidly escalate to the point where he could barely talk and his breathing became erratic and labored. I sat with him that night and held his hand; I was sure he was about to die. He half opened his eyes, saw me, and struggled to tell me something. I thought I was to hear the last words of this wise old naturalist, and they turned out to be a request to have a dentist appointment made for him the next week!!! His tired old decrepit body was sending him a message, but he was having none of that -- he was making plans for the future. I realized then that he wouldn't die quite yet. The next day was my planned departure day. He had quit coughing and had slept well, had eaten breakfast, and was once again reading. It was a gorgeous sunny morning, the first sunny morning in more than a week of overcast weather. A beautiful Turquoise Cotinga came out to sun itself in a bare tree at the edge of the yard. I left Los Cusingos in the early afternoon and planned to return for his 100th birthday party the next week, but I found out later that Alexander's health quickly deteriorated in the afternoon, and he died peacefully early that evening.

He was buried at Los Cusingos, as he wished, a few feet from the worn out, but still beautiful, old house that he built by hand some 62 years ago. Nearly 100 people showed up for the interment, including neighbors of many years, birdwatchers young and old, and a group of school children in their uniforms.

I have many fond memories of my visits with Alexander and Pamela Skutch over the years, and my best paintings were made in the tranquility of Los Cusingos. A very keen observer of the natural world, Skutch wrote 30 some books on general natural history and travel, the habits of birds, and religion and philosophy. His detailed life histories of over 300 species of tropical birds are great contributions to neotropical ornithology. He was nevertheless a very modest and humble man, and he had perhaps the simplest personal philosophy of anyone I've ever met--- Don't do anything that hurts other feeling creatures, and live simply and modestly so as not to tax the environment and its resources. He lived by these principles every day of his long life.

I will miss him, as will the many people who enjoyed visiting Los Cusingos and continue to enjoy reading his many books. I may still go and visit Los Cusingos, however, as it is now a sanctuary for neotropical birds run by the Tropical Science Center. Visits by tourists, birdwatchers, and researchers are encouraged. The yard and pasture by the river will be turned into a botanical garden, and Skutch's old house will be restored and turned into a museum. An anthology of his writings will be put out shortly by Axios Press.

Sincerely,
Dana Gardner

If you've never read it, or would like to reread it, I did an interview with Dr. Skutch in 1997.

On 17 May 2004, National Public Radio honored Dr. Skutch by playing this interview with him on All Things Considered.

For those of you who are able to read Spanish, Costa Rica's leading daily newspaper, La Nación, published this tribute to Dr. Skutch on 23 May.

And the Asociación Ornitológica de Costa Rica dedicated the June 2004 edition of Zeledonia to the memory of Dr. Alexander F. Skutch.

The country list continues to grow with the arrival of another widespread, open country species. On 26 April 2004, Ernesto Carman and Daniel Martínez observed a female Shiny Cowbird (Molothrus bonarienses) near Hone Creek, Limón. They watched the bird for about twenty minutes in the middle of the day as it foraged in recently-cut roadside grass. Writing in the abovementioned recent edition of Zeledonia, they report being able to distinguish this new arrival from the resident Bronzed Cowbird (M. aeneus) by its brown (not red) eye, grayish coloration with dark streaks on the back [sic], and obvious pale eyebrow.

I would greatly appreciate reports of any further sightings of this new species in SE Costa Rica, or anywhere else in the country. For as Ernesto and Daniel mention in their article, this species has the propensity to colonize Costa Rica the way both Great-tailed Grackle (Quiscalus mexicanus) and Melodious Blackbird (Dives dives) have. Unfortunately for many native passerine species, the shiny, like other cowbirds, is a nest parasite. Thus, all the more reason to keep tabs on the potential spread of this species.

Rafa Campos wrote to tell how he managed to miss what would have been his life Crested Eagle (Morphnus guianensis) when birding at Esquinas Rain Forest Lodge on 23 June 2004. While Rafa was leading a group of birders on a walk down one of the forest trails, a local guide at Esquinas called to Rafa's driver, Greivin Alfaro, to come look at a very large raptor that was flying low over the compound. Much to Rafa's chagrin upon eventually hearing the report, the bird was identified as a Crested Eagle.

It seems that Esquinas Rain Forest Lodge and the road leading to it from the PanAmerican Highway have been veritable birding hot spots in recent months.

Rolando also got to see five Southern Lapwings (Vanellus chilensis) flying across the entrance road, some 500 meters before the elementary school in the little community of La Gamba.

While birding along the same road in the afternoon of 22 March and the morning of 23 March 2004, Kevin Easley and Mike Mulligan heard Gray-breasted Crake (Laterallus exilis) and saw large numbers of Brown-throated Parakeets (Aratinga pertinax) and Blue-headed Parrots (Pionus menstruus), along with a pair of Pearl Kites (Gampsonix swainsonii).

Highlights included seeing White-tipped Sicklebill (Eutoxeres aquila) and a male White-crested Coquette (Lophornis adorabilis) at Bosque del Río Tigre, as well as the Uniform Crake (Amaurolimnas concolor) mentioned in the April GBN. Near the Río Rincón bridge, they had a male Yellow-billed Cotinga (Carpodectes antoniae) and a male Turquoise Cotinga (Cotinga ridgwayi) feeding in the same tree.

Along the lower section of the road that climbs from Ciudad Neily to San Vito, they came across two colonies of Crested Oropendolas (Psarocolius decumanus). At the San Joaquín marsh just beyond San Vito, they found a Wattled Jacana (Jacana jacana) and three Masked Ducks (Oxyura dominica). And while checking out the Rosy Thrush-Tanager site, Kevin was able to photograph this Olivaceous Piculet (Picumnus olivaceus), which "appeared to be using a small twig to work some larvae (termites?) out of a small dead tree. The photographs were not clear enough and the wind was blowing strong so it was difficult to see what exactly he was doing with this twig. Wondered if anyone has seen this before. Reminded me of the Woodpecker Finch on Galapagos."

Traveling north along the Pacific coast, Kevin reported "spectacular views of Spot-fronted Swift (Cypseloides cherriei) in several locations just south of Quepos. The bonus was that Black Swifts (Cypseloides niger) were also present. This is about the same day Jay Vandergaast on his Field Guides tour reported Spot-fronted and Black Swifts together along the La Selva entrance road - ironic!"

The grand climax came on 28 March 2004 while birding the "Peninsula" road in Arenal NP. Mike picked up his CR tick #699 with very good views of a Warbling Vireo (Vireo gilvus) in nice breeding plumage. This was only the second time that Kevin had seen this rare migrant in CR -- the first sighting was "years ago at Lankester Gardens" -- and it's a bird that I'm still looking for here.

Not long afterwards, celebration was truly in order as Mike achieved the 700 milestone with nothing less than a Keel-billed Motmot (Electron carinatum)! Congratulations, Mike!

In early May, Luis Sánchez Arguedas, Administrator of the La Amistad International Park, wrote to say that several of his co-workers at the park had seen White-throated Magpie-Jay (Calocitta formosa) in the vicinities of both Ujarrás and Potrero Grande de Buenos Aires, Puntarenas Province. For the last several years, there have been scattered reports of this dry forest species at lowland sites between Dominical and Sierpe, but now it seems that some birds have worked their way up the Térraba River system. The latter site, though some 50 km inland from the coast, is not at any great elevation; Ujarrás, some 10 km NE of Buenos Aires, lies at the very base of the Talamanca massif at an elevation of nearly 600 meters.

"Elizabeth and I saw a Rufous-necked Wood-Rail (Aramides axillaris) just after dawn on June 12 at Los Suenos [the Mariott hotel complex north of Jacó]. It had rained very heavily for a long time the night before. Although it was out of habitat and, according to Stiles & Skutch somewhat out of range we got very good looks at it and are certain of the ID. It was crossing the road from the golf course into steep mountainside rainforest. I initially assumed it was a Northern Jacana (Jacana spinosa), of which we have many, then realized it was bigger than a Jacana and had a long yellow bill with a very slight downward curve. My next thought was Gray-necked Wood-Rail (Aramides cajanea), which I have seen once but not near Los Suenos, though it had no gray on the head, but rather an all red head with just a small grayish patch on the back. Skutch describes immature Gray-necked Woodrails as similar to the adult, but belly sooty black flecked with buff. Legs were more of an orange red than the coral red that is described in Stiles & Skutch. Size was far more consistent with Rufous-necked than Jacana albeit looking closer to the described size for the Gray-necked than the Rufous-necked in my view. I didn't see it bob its tail which Skutch says Gray-necked Wood-Rail does constantly. We were in our car and watched it for maybe 10 or 15 seconds as it was in no hurry to move into the dense vegetation."

I received relatively few responses to the quiz image in the previous newsletter and wonder if it was generally viewed as too easy or, more likely, too difficult. At any rate, congratulations to Joel Alvarado and Daniel Garrigues who submitted: Royal Tern (5), Sandwich Tern (1), Laughing Gull (1) and the feet of 2 Brown Pelicans. Four species total.

Here's a more revealing view of of the problematic tern.

Let's try something different for this edition's puzzler. Can you ID the birds in this nest? [Hint: the photo was taken in the southern Pacific portion of the country.]

Thanks to everyone who contributed news of rare sightings and good finds. I hope that you've enjoyed this newsletter and welcome any comments at gonebirdingcr@gmail.com or if you're in Costa Rica, feel free to give me a ring at 293-2710.

https://www.angelfire.com/bc/gonebirding/index.html

April 2004

Rusty-margined Flycatcher, Striated Heron, Red-billed Tropicbird, Masked Yellowthroat, Black-headed Grosbeak, Cape May Warbler, MacGillivray's Warbler, Bullock's Oriole, Crested Eagle, Uniform Crake, Paint-billed Crake, White-rumped Sandpiper, Maroon-chested Ground-Dove, Rufous-vented Ground-Cuckoo, Tropical Mockingbird, Blue Seedeater

January 2004

Christmas Bird Count results, American Bittern, Gray Kingbird, White-eyed Vireo, Brewster's Warbler, Great Swallow-tailed Swift, Unspotted Saw-whet Owl, Maroon-chested Ground-Dove, Worldwide Ornithological Literature website

October 2003

Cory's Shearwater, Swallow-tailed Gull, Black Tern, Gray-breasted Crake, Gray Kingbird, Orange-crowned Warbler, Blue-headed Vireo, Bobolink, Lincoln's Sparrow, Peg-billed Finch, Buffy-crowned Wood-Partridge, rare raptors

July 2003

Greater Ani, Green Heron, Bat Falcon, Orange-breasted Falcon, Swallow-tailed Kite, Keel-billed Motmot, Spot-tailed Nightjar, Black-whiskered Vireo, Lincoln's Sparrow, Yellow-breasted Chat, Mouse-colored Tyrannulet, Strong-billed Woodcreeper

April 2003

Large-billed Tern, Green Heron, Golden-cheeked Warbler, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Keel-billed Motmot, Red-throated Caracara, Pheasant Cuckoo, Wattled Jacana, Tropical Mockingbird

January 2003

Christmas Bird Count results, Southern Lapwing , Short-tailed Nighthawk, Lanceolated Monklet , Sunbittern, Magnolia Warbler, Prevost's Ground-Sparrow, Tricolored Munia

October 2002

Golden-cheeked Warbler, Migrant monitoring, Southern Lapwing, Harpy Eagle, Violaceous Quail-Dove,Wedge-tailed Grass-Finch, Rusty Sparrow

July 2002

Dr. Skutch update, Veraguan Mango, Pearl Kite, Red-breasted Blackbird, Tody Motmot, Mourning Dove, Red Knot, Pinnated Bittern, Black-and-white Owl

April 2002

Harpy Eagle, American Avocet, Pacific Golden Plover, Ruff, Cave Swallow, Southern Lapwing, South Polar Skua, Maroon-chested Ground-Dove

January 2002

Southern Lapwing, White Tern, Chipping Sparrow, Black-headed Grosbeak, Ash-throated Flycatcher, Migrant warblers, hummers and more hummers

October 2001

South Polar Skua, Pomarine Jaeger, Sharpbill, Long-billed Curlew, Lovely Cotinga, Black-banded Woodcreeper, Blue-and-yellow Macaw, White-tipped Sicklebill, Bicolored Hawk, Lanceolated Monklet

July 2001

South Polar Skua, Silvery-fronted Tapaculo, Scaled Antpitta, Pearl Kite, Scarlet Macaw, Mystery hummers, White-eyed Vireo, Nashville Warbler, Masked Duck

April 2001

Crested Oropendola, Rosy Thrush-Tanager, Wattled Jacana, Brown-throated Parakeet, Lanceolated Monklet, Black-banded Woodcreeper, Lovely Cotinga, Cinnamon Teal, Silvery-throated Jay, Migrant wood-warblers, Violaceous Quail-Dove

January 2001

Crested Oropendola, Lark Sparrow, Oilbird, Double-striped Thick-knee, Pheasant Cuckoo, Y2K CBCs, Ochre-breasted Antpitta, Crested Eagle, Rufous-necked Wood-Rail

October 2000

first migrants and rare warblers, disappearing migrant shorebird habitat, Mallard (sic), Rufous-necked Wood-Rail, Scaled Antpitta, Black-and-white Owl

July 2000

Blue-tailed Hummingbird, Prairie Warbler, Tiny Hawk, Red-throated Caracara, Western Slaty-Antshrike, Red-breasted Blackbird, Clapper Rail, Swallow-tailed Gull

April 2000

Green-winged Teal, Painted Bunting, Green Ibis, Western Slaty-Antshrike, Pearl Kite, Southern Lapwing, Lanceolated Monklet