Cost Rica Journal Entry 1

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When I am here, I wander the grounds looking for insect activity. So far it has been pretty slow for seeing much, partly because of the season and partly because there is no natural vegetation nearby. To the north is a cornfield, to the west, a pasture with cattle and to the south a pasture with emergent shrubs and horses. Across the street are residences.

Even still, if one looks close enough, there are things to see just as in any urban area in Tucson. This cryptic spider remained in this position for four days. I don’t know how long it may have been there before I discovered it.

This crab spider seems quite similar to the Selenops so common around SASI. This species appears to be common here in La Guacima.

In the area where I found the amblypygid on my first day, I discovered these two wolf spiders (Lycosidae), their nests only 12 inches apart (below). What caught my attention was the one with her egg case extended out into fresh air. The spider looking out also had an egg case attached to her spinnerets.

Under a few rocks I have found this tiny leafcutting ant and its fungus garden. It has always been in a place that was much dryer than what would expect for an Attinine ant.

This ant has really captured my attention. It lives in undisturbed areas and can be seen going up trees where I believe it lives. On my first Sunday here we took a picnic about a mile from home. After spending quite a while trying to catch a photo of one as they ran along a bamboo fence, I discovered I could get them to stop with some food. They relished this piece of nearly raw chicken that had fallen through the grill.

I found this Battus polydamus pupae on the shaded side of a fallen tree. After I confirmed its ID with Joris, it was returned to the wild to emerge.

This unidentified lycaenid had come to roost for the evening on a large tree in the front yard.

This pre-pupal sphinx moth caterpillar strolled through the construction site. The worker who brought it to me had not seen it before so couldn’t direct me to a hostplant. Given the color of the caterpillar, I suspect the plant has toxins that the larva sequesters for protection against predators. I set it up in a container of soil so will learn its identity in the future. Unfortunately, it was diseased. It pupated but within a couple of days it was oozing black fluid so I won't learn its identity from an adult specimen.