A Double-edged Rainbow

Casas, casas, casas. Looking at them and thinking about them is mostly what we've been doing lately. We have been surprised and very happy with the combination of planning, coincidence and good timing that has broadened our network of connections here in Cerro Azul. Through the Internet (how, can anybody out there remind me, did we ever live without it??), we were fairly well-prepared to launch ourselves into the house-hunting project. We joined several yahoo group forums and combed through the archives and current posts for recommendations of real estate agents, lawyers, prices and warnings and such.

We already had a few friends here, mainly Carlos Bethancourt and Jose Soto (of Canopy Tower fame.) Once we were here in C.A., we (mostly Les) started talking to anyone and everyone we met. But I made a few contacts too, and remembered some people from our December trip when we just happened to see them up here. Panama is a small country, and everyone knows everyone, we keep hearing. It's turning out to be true. Word got around in the ex-pat community that we were hunting; from them we received tips on a few un-listed houses, and also leads on reliable contractors. We met gardeners, who connected us up with several houses for sale that were listed nowhere - not even a "se vende" sign on the fence. It really is who you know, not what you know.

Our real estate agent Yolanda, of Las Olas Properties, has been fantastically wonderful. She is a Woman of Action! On each trip up to C.A. to show us houses, she has brought along her husband Sergio. They are a great team - he offers pertinent observations and advice as we walk through the houses and around the lots. On Saturday, August 15th, Yolanda brought Sergio and her two children, Fernando and Sophia, all pictured here.

So today (August 16), after the early-morning fog lifted, and after he had fed the birds their breakfast bananas, Les pointed out a rainbow. He said it was a good omen, since we were to look at a couple more houses with Yolanda this afternoon.

We already had 3 favorites amongst the houses we had been inside, but felt we should view a few more before deciding on one. Today we looked at one more - the habitat was beyond wonderful - nary a pine tree on the lot. It was the only lot we have looked at that had nothing but native trees. We saw our lifer Scarlet-thighed Dacnis there a couple weeks ago, and Yolanda had contacted the owner, who sent his gardener over to open the place up for us. Every time Les and I went there (about 5 times since the Scarlet-thighed discovery), great birds were around - Violaceous Trogon, Masked Tityra, Streaked Flycatchers, Buff-throated Saltators, hordes of tanagers and honeycreepers. The house has a nice paint job on the outside, but heavy drapes over all the windows, so we had no idea about the inside. Today we gained access, and it was awful. Dank and dark upstairs - three rooms full of who-knows-what, since there were blankets and comforters covering the head-high stacks of whatever. On the main level was a tiny and sad-looking little kitchenette and living space, dark and in poor condition. We also heard through friends that residents in this area (the Frente district of C.A.) had not been able to obtain phone service, despite months of attempts. That's a deal-breaker for us - we must have our Internet.

Then we went back to what we have been calling Casa Roca (the Rock House.) We really like it. Rock walls, mucho character and personality, a lot of potential. But it would need a lot of work. No hot water in the bathrooms except the on-demand hot water in the showers, unknown if there is hot water in the kitchen, probably would need electrical re-habbing, bathroom on the main level needs to be completely redone. Could we endure the construction and rehab? We're not sure.

As we were leaving Casa Roca, Arturo, the gardener for Casa Roca, came along and told us that he had yet another house to show us, but not until Monday the 17th. From the outside, it looked clean and well-maintained, in great condition, and other than the bright orange paint job (popular up here in C.A.) we liked the looks of it. We will report on it later. He also showed us another FSBO (for sale by owner) home, which was in the most perfect condition we have yet observed. No mold, no peeling paint, no bugs anywhere inside, completely finished ceilings, tasteful wall colors and tiles, beautiful inside and out, perfect move-in condition. But it was surrounded too closely by large, somewhat ostentatious homes, some with indoor dogs that barked a lot, and we felt closed in when we were outside. The lot was kind of small, so there was no buffer zone. We want to have windows and doors open so we can enjoy our yard and the birds and the sounds - this perfect house was probably not for us.

A couple days ago we thought our top three choices were #1- Casa Roca; #2- a little orange house (Casa Naranja #1) on a mostly pines lot in move-in condition but nothing exciting; and #3- one we call Casa Termita (saw a few termite trails on the outside of the walls - but the habitat on the lot was great and the house was cute.) Now we had to think about #4- the Perfect House that we'd all but rejected, but it was within our price range and so perfect, and #5- the potentially great Casa Naranja #2 that we had not been inside. Decisions usually come easy for us - the right choice is so obvious. But now we have almost too many choices - any one of them could be the right one.

Onward.

A Couple More Terrace Birds

Three-Toed Sloth © George Griffeth 2009

Ok, the picture isn't of a bird. But, our amigo Jorge captured the essence of Three-toed Sloth. And we saw one yesterday from the terrace. Today (12 August 2009) we saw our first Squirrel Cuckoo in C.A., and it was just 10 feet off our terrace. A Thick-billed Euphonia chased it away, but not before we had a good view.

Also today we finally saw Swallow-tailed Kites from the terrace - we saw them every day we were at the big house on Castillo. We don't know why they don't pass over this house more often - there are plenty of odes for them.Vultures are also in short supply over this plot on C.A. Additional species for our Terrace list (since the original Terrace post)include Scaled Pigeon, White-tipped Dove, Dusky-capped Flycatcher, Boat-billed Flycatcher, Lesser Greenlet, Masked Tityra, Tropical Gnatcatcher, Buff-throated Saltator.

Gecko Feeder

Last night (11 August 2009) while climbing the spiral staircase to our internet room I spied something moving on the hummingbird feeder. Cindy held the flashlight while I shot videotape. There are several geckos around (but not in, so far as we've noticed) the house, but this is the first we've seen indulging in agua con azucar (sugar water). Hope she finishes off with a tasty gnatty tidbit.

Tayra and Mantid

The past couple of days we've done a little of this & a little of that, without much to report. Yesterday a short walk on one of the trails in the forest was fun, with nothing unusual, but we did meet up with a couple of large, fast-moving passerine flocks that challenged us - they were in the highest tree-tops and we were on the ground. It was fun, and walking through the tropical forest continues to amaze us. There is just so much to see, discover, hear, and try to identify.

Today we were driving back up the hill toward C.A. when I saw a Tayra (Eira barbara) on a hillside. He was headed for the road (which he crossed after Les screeched to a halt so we could watch this beautiful beast) and then he disappeared into the forest. He was very dark brown or black, without the lighter-colored head they attain when older. We were really excited - our first mustelid in Panama!

This afternoon Les spotted a really cool mantid on the terrace. It's about 3 inches long and looks like leaves - see Les's video. We think it is a Hooded Mantis. It was walking toward the shade of the terrace. When it came to the wall of the house it began searching for footholds and made it up about two feet before falling back down. It sat for a few moments and then continued on it's walk.

Toucan Terrace

Below our terrace at Cerro Azul a large bare tree was ripe for being a toucan hang-out. We watched for several days with nothing. Then yesterday Cindy called out, "They're here!" We saw a total of 8 Keel-billed Toucans roosting and displaying around the tree. I grabbed a quick videoscope shot.

Then today I read The Birdchick note about how the birds regulate body temperature with the large bill.

First Walk on the Xenornis Trail

Cerro Azul borders on the Chagres National Forest, which explains much about the richness and diversity of the birdlife here. In A Bird-Finding Guide to Panama by Angehr, Engleman & Engleman, a recommended hike is along the Xenornis Trail. This trail is within the Chagres N.F., and a road leading to the top of it is in C.A. We drove as far as we could up this muddy dirt road. Our low-slung little Yaris performed well considering that we have had rain on each of the last 3 afternoons, and one time it was torrential, first for about an hour from the SW (causing a small flood in the kitchen due to no grout at the base of floor-length windows and no awning above them) and then for another 40 minutes from the SE. Water was pouring off the corrugated tin roof in sheets, and would have filled several 50-gallon barrels, not just a few measly buckets.

After parking the vehicle we walked up the road toward the trailhead. We heard and saw several Western Slaty Antshrikes along the way, a Song Wren, a few tanagers, wrens and grassquits. We also heard a few songs that were completely unfamiliar to us. The singers remain a mystery - we could not see them. At the top of the road, we managed to find the Xenornis Trail - it was not obvious. It is overgrown, steep, muddy, slick, and we saw antbirds within the first 10 minutes. If you try it, we recommend the following equipment (other than bins): walking stick, sharp machete, laser pointer, sturdy hiking shoes with a good tread, mosquito repellent. We really enjoyed our hike - it felt wild in there with the Bicolored Antbirds,

Spotted Antbirds (Les's stills and video are of different individuals from Pipeline road), and a lot of ants. As we were hiking up and out, a seemingly curious Yellow-eared Toucanet (our 17th lifer of this trip) flew in and appeared to be carefully examining us from several perches just 8 to 10 feet above our heads. When we exited the forest onto the road, a kettle of 8 to 10 Swallow-tailed Kites was swirling above. Rain clouds were moving in, and not wanting to give any more challenges to the Yaris, we headed back to the car and drove to our apartment to replenish the bananas on the terrace.

House-hunting in Cerro Azul

We have looked at a few houses since our arrival in Panama. We saw two in Las Cumbres (a neighborhood on the edge of Panama City at a slightly higher elevation than the city) and have seen several in Cerro Azul, since we like the climate up here.

There is no Multiple Listing Service for houses in Panama - it's every man and woman for him- and her-self. An owner can advertise property for sale by placing an ad in a newspaper or online, or by a "Se Vende" sign at the front of the property, or through the use of a licensed real estate agent. We have heard that many of the houses in C.A. that are for sale are not listed anywhere, sometimes not even with a Se Vende sign. It's all word of mouth, through friends, neighbors, gardeners. So far, we have been using all the avenues mentioned above, and it is cumbersome. We have never searched for or bought a house before in any country - whether that makes it easier or more difficult, we do not know.

We have also been driving through the entire development up here in C.A. I think we have gone up and down every street, including every cul de sac, at least once. One place where we saw the Se Vende sign had fabulous habitat on the lot, but the house has obviously not been lived in for a long time. The paint on the outside is fresh, and there are tools and supplies strewn about that indicate efforts toward maintenance and upgrades, but much work would still need to be done to make it habitable. But the birds! Violaceous Trogon, Rufous-capped Warbler, Golden-hooded Tanager, Blue-gray Tanager, Crimson-backed Tanager, Thick-billed Euphonia, Plain-colored Tanager, Bay-headed Tanager, Palm Tanager, Red-legged Honeycreeper, Blue Dacnis, our lifer Scarlet-thighed Dacnis, Masked Tityra. It was a goldmine of birds, undoubtedly due to the yard being full of native trees, several of which were in bloom or fruit, and not a single pine tree. (C.A. was planted with pine trees several decades ago. We have heard stories about why this was done, among which are: because Panamanians are fond of pine trees, the pines were used as stabilizers for the steep hillsides, and because the pines reminded the Swiss expats of their homeland.) Admittedly, we have seen quite a few woodpeckers on the pines, but other than that, we don't like the pines here and when we do buy property, we will chop the pines and replace them with cecropia or other natives that the birds love.

We have been back to the "Mega-habitat House" several times, at various times of the day, and it always impresses us with the birds. But we are not sure we have the stomach and patience for major remodeling. We have been warned away from it since before we even began exploring in Panama. Contractors from hell (some would say all contractors are from there) are legendary in the U.S.A., but in Panama, it's reported to be worse.

So there are other houses that are "move-in ready" - we have seen a few, and we wonder if we could quickly make the yards more attractive to birds, so we would not have to wait too terribly long to create our own mega-habitat house. We saw a small house on a lot with mainly pines, but the little Geoffrey's Tamarins still came foraging along through the pines. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad to be in a yard full of pines for a year or so. Cecropias grow fast - 6 or more feet per year - maybe we could have a cecropia forest in a fairly short time.