November 2018
Tom and I are not birders.
We don’t specifically go out looking for birds…..or we didn’t until we
went to Guyana. There we did
specifically go birding to see macaws, toucans, and a few others. In Trinidad, we have been to Asa Wright Bird
Center. But we aren’t serious birders.
We learned of
Roger Neckles from Laura and Jason (sv Blue
Blaze). In the fall of 2016, they had
gone out with Roger for a full day of birding.
They couldn’t say enough wonderful things about this day. Good enough for us. I contact him and set it up. Bruce (sv Wild Matilda) and Susie (sv
Spirited Lady) came along as well.
Roger is the premier wildlife photographer in the
Caribbean. He has worked for National
Geo as well as many other well known magazines and wildlife organizations. He has done lengthy photo assignments in
northern Norway and Novia Scotia. Oh
yeah, and he happens to be Trini. Roger
was born in Trinidad but moved to England when he was a baby and raised
there. But he came home to roost some
thirty years ago. Get it? Roost?
Bahahahha! He shoots all wildlife
but birds are his specialty and passion. And
when I say passion, I mean it. He goes
out nearly every day and he still gets excited about seeing various birds and
getting THE SHOT – the perfect pic.
Besides his own birding and pictures, he teaches photography, does guided tours like ours and goes on group bird holidays as the trips expert.
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| Pre-sunrise over TTSA |
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| Pre-sunrise over TTSA |
Since we are NOT birders, meaning we don’t have a list of
birds we are checking off, and we are not amateur photographers……I am a point
and shoot sort of girl, we told Roger “
We can do whatever. We just want to go, see and learn.” I will say Bruce is a very good amateur
photographer. In fact, he has probably
sold his photos a few times as he is that good.
I let Roger know that Bruce was the photographer in our group and he was
good at making sure Bruce got The Shot on several occasions.
He picked us up at 5:30 am SHARP. We took off for Caroni
swamp. However, we weren't out of sight of
the sailboats in Chaguaramas when Susie pointed out the beautiful, stormy
sunrise over TTSA and Roger whipped off to the side of the road so he/we could
take a few pics of it. Stunning.
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| cardinal the same colors at TT national flag |
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| I thought this was funny |
At Caroni Swamp, we didn’t actually go in but hung around at the
entrance looking for a specific cardinal. It
wasn’t long until Roger spotted one.
Then he began calling it. Another
one showed up and they kept coming closer and closer, responding to Roger’s
bird calls. His bird calls are simply
amazing. We also spotted a few Scarlet Ibis in the tree tops in the distance.
Roger pointed out a few other birds of course. As we were driving out of the swamp, we
spotted a few Scarlet Ibis in the mangroves feeding. It was SO dramatic seeing the head to toe,
bright red birds feeding among the brown of the muddy mangroves. Roger got so excited. We all got pics, then he tried to get a
little closer via the car and then closer and closer. “I have never been this close to a Scarlet
Ibis!”
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| Scarlet Ibis - SO red |
To avoid the traffic, we cut through this agricultural area
east of the Caroni Swamp. Of course
there were many interesting birds in this area.
I can’t name them all. I will ask Bruce because he knows them all and get back to you. In the mean time, just enjoy.
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| Can you see the bird? Birds? |
Tummies grumbling, Roger stopped at one of the famous
doubles areas in Trinidad. Just off the
main highway, near the racetrack is a tiny track of dirt with 3 very busy
doubles stands. I opted for the saheena. Yum!
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| Tom, Roger, Susie |
Then we headed up into the mountains. As we climbed higher on smaller, rougher
roads, Roger keep a keen ear out. Soon
he heard a familiar bird, slamming on the brakes, he cocked his head out the
window to listen. “There!! It’s a such and such woodpecker.” We all piled out and started scanning the
area he pointed to. Sure enough, there was
a big, fat woodpecker high up in a tree. Next stop we searched and searched for
a ground living bird. We could hear it
but just couldn’t spot it. Finally,
Susie spotted it. Then I spotted some
other type of bird. “Roger, what is this
one?” “Oh my goodness! That is a blah, blah Guyana bird.”
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| Can you see the big spotted moth on the side of the banana plant? |
The next stop was a spot Roger had scouted earlier in the
week with good luck on hummingbirds. In
a stand of wild ginger, several hummingbirds flew in for feeding. One hummingbird kept the others away. Roger and Bruce were focused on the
feeding. I spotted the hummingbird’s
perch, where it keeps a watch for predators and other competing
hummingbirds. Roger was impressed that I
found the perch and planned to set up a tripod near it in the future to get some
shots. Again, Roger’s passion for this
was infectious.
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| Can you see the bird nest hanging front and center? |
We then drove higher up in the hills, near undeveloped land
Roger owns. He stopped to say a quick
hello to his ancient neighbor and then we climbed even higher still. We ended up at a house that had been
converted into a hummingbird place. No,
not Yerette. This is a different
place. They had four feeders set up. We spent the next hour and a half watching
dozens of hummingbirds frantically flying all around at blurring speeds, often
buzzing incredibly close to us. It turns
out that these birds are actually fighting each other for feeding
privileges. The sound of the wings was a
sort of buzzing (zoom, zoom, zoom) or…..humming. Duh! OR…..like light sabers when they are first
turned on for battle!
*We just saw Star
Wars The Last Jedi.”
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| Humming bird feeders |
As we were leaving the hummingbird place I said to Roger
“What is the name of this place?” “Um……I
don’t know. Hey Henry, what is the name
of this place?” he asked the guy in charge.
“Um, I don’t know. It’s uncle’s
house there.” *Uncle is a generic term used for an elder in the Caribbean. He shrugged his shoulders
and so did Roger. A well hidden secret
indeed.
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| Humming birds fighting to feed |
On the way back to Chagauramas Roger shared another story of
his photographer adventures and answered questions. We heard about all things
birds, photography and Trinidad and beyond. He asked what our favorite bird sighting
was. It was hard to decide. It was all good.
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| Many varieties of humming birds |
While we still aren’t official birders, I do find myself
wanting to get a bird book and check off those we have seen……so maybe we are on
the way to being birders. It was
certainly an amazing day and we learned a lot, giving us an even deeper
understanding and appreciation of tropical birds, their beauty and
struggles. Poaching is still an issue! Unbelievable in this day and age. Argh! Roger does work in the schools in Trinidad trying to teach wildlife conservation.
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| See the humming bird? My favorite one |
If you are ever in Trinidad, go spend a day with
Roger. You won’t regret it. Or go on one of the birding adventures with
him. I believe this year is Belize,
Galapagos and the Amazon. Take extra
batteries!
For more REAL pictures check out Roger's pics -
Roger Neckles Photography
Bruce's pics -
Wild Matilda
