Monteverde mammals


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	Monteverde mammals Anna: 4-5-01 As we walked along the Bajo del Tigre, I soon took off my shoes. It was one of those days when being barefoot is simply the only way to be. The brown leaves were thick on the path, the sun was warm but not hot, the wind was making the trees sigh. We stopped at a picnic table and I, for once, wanted to do nothing but sit and be still, picking leaves out of the cracks in the tabletop. And then we saw the monkeys! White-faced Capuchin (Cebus capucinus) - A group of white-faced monkeys passed by us in the trees, perhaps 10 altogether. They were silent except for the crash of vines as they jumped into a tangle and, later, one chittering at us as we followed too close. The monkeys were very cute and moved with the grace of cats. Then they leapt, spread-eagled, into another tree --- skydiving! Each monkey followed in single file behind the monkey before, but two left the group and came closer to look at us, curling up their tails as they walked along broad branches. 3-9-01 This morning, our host Don Eduardo took us on a guided walk in Bajo del Tigre. We quickly discovered a White-nosed Coati (Nasua narica). Female and young coatis are very gregarious, banding together in groups of up to forty, but outside the mating season the male is a loner and is colloquially known as the Coatimundi. In Mayan lore, the Coatimundi is the sacred clown, and we soon saw his funny side. Eduardo caught the coati's attention by waving his blue bandana, and the male stood up on his hind legs like a bear, hoping for food. Mantled Howler Monkeys (Alouatta palliata) were the most common monkeys we saw during our wanderings. Actually, we usually just heard them. The male's call --- like a combination of a lion's roar and an obstinate car being started --- can travel up to three miles, making howler monkeys the loudest land animal. We ran into Spider Monkeys (Ateles geoffreyi) only once and found them a trifle daunting. The huge brown monkeys were larger than howler monkeys, had big, pale pot bellies and baboon-like white cheeks. While we watched, the biggest monkey hung onto a branch and broke limbs off, shaking the tree at us. We soon moved on and left him in peace. Maggie: 3-12-01 This morning we headed out for La Finca Ecologica but luckily changed our destination to the Hidden Valley Nature Trail. When Anna drew her first plant there and I went off exploring, I saw an Agouti (Dasyprocta punctata) on my way to discovering leaf cutter ants. On my way back to tell Anna, an agouti lead me along the path like the rabbit in Alice in Wonderland. Escape the rat race with Microbusiness Independence. Want to be notified when new comments are posted on this page? Click on the RSS button after you add a comment to subscribe to the comment feed. RSS Like Moby Dick When we found ourselves in the middle of a monkey family it was "daunting". But getting comfortable in a foreign country is magic. Being able to take off our shoes deep in the rainforest was just one way we did that. I would add that I got up closer than advised to the agouti's and all sorts of creatures of the wilderness. Comment by Maggie — Sat Aug 7 14:13:40 2010 Remove comment Real exploration You probably did a lot more real exploration than I did. In retrospect, I can't imagine what you did for six to eight hours a day while I sat on the ground and drew plants. Comment by anna — Sat Aug 7 19:33:19 2010 Remove comment I walked and walked... I was already fit then. Walking came easy and I did it. I walked paths into being. I said to myself, here should be a path, and there it was! Comment by maggie — Sat Aug 7 20:04:25 2010 Remove comment Walking meditation ...and you probably meditated as you walked... Comment by anna — Sat Aug 7 20:29:31 2010 Remove comment private rainforest investigator I was like your private investigator for finding things in nature. An explorer. I really think I saw wild boars, and luckily am still alive. I also collected many of the seedpods and fallen flowers that fell on the ground for you to draw. Comment by maggie — Sun Aug 8 16:16:58 2010 Remove comment Collected flowers My sketchbook is chock full of those flowers, and I constantly wrote appreciatively of your finding skills in my journal. We made a good team! Comment by anna — Mon Aug 9 07:50:48 2010 Remove comment Add a comment