🔍 Stingless Bee | Trigona sp. 🐝 📍 Grecia, Alajuela, Costa Rica 🇨🇷 💬 Stingless bees are nature’s tiny powerhouses — they’ve been managed by indigenous Mesoamerican cultures for thousands of years for their medicinal honey! Unlike honeybees, they defend their hives by biting rather…
🔍 Muscovy Duck | Cairina moschata 🦆 📍 San Sebastián, San José, Costa Rica 🇨🇷 💬 Despite being called “Muscovy,” this duck has no connection to Moscow — the name’s origin remains a mystery! Wild Muscovy Ducks are actually native to the Americas and are…
🔍 Black-bellied Whistling Ducks | Dendrocygna autumnalis 📍 Seen in Cascajal, San José, Costa Rica 🇨🇷 💬 The Black-bellied Whistling-Duck is famously unbothered by humans — it often nests in backyard boxes and urban parks, making it one of the few wild ducks you might…
🔍 African Lion | Panthera leo 🦁 📍 Seen in Simón Bolivar Zoo, San José, Costa Rica 🇨🇷 💬 Kivú was a lion born in Cuba in 1998, transferred to Costa Rica’s Simón Bolívar Zoo at 6 months old. He spent 18 years in a…
🔍 Domestic Cattle | Bos taurus 🐄 📍 Seen in San Ramón, Alajuela, Costa Rica 🇨🇷 💬 Domestic cattle are remarkable creatures that have been humanity’s partners for over 10,000 years — a single cow can produce up to 6-7 gallons of milk per day…
🔍 Tiger Moth (Larva) | Turuptiana obliqua 🪱 📍 Seen in Grecia, Alajuela, Costa Rica 🇨🇷 💬 The Turuptiana obliqua is a stunning example of tropical moth diversity, showcasing the incredible array of nocturnal lepidopterans that flutter through Central American rainforests — many species in…
🔍 Metallic Blow Fly | Chrysomya sp. 🪰 📍 Seen in Grecia, Alajuela, Costa Rica 🇨🇷 💬 Metallic blow flies might look like uninvited party crashers, but they’re actually nature’s unsung cleanup crew — scientists even use them in forensic entomology to help determine time…
🔍 Tropical / Cassius Blue | Leptotes cassius 🦋 📍 Seen in Atenas, Alajuela, Costa Rica 🇨🇷 💬 Did you know the Cassius Blue is one of the smallest butterflies in North America, with a wingspan so tiny it can rest comfortably on your fingernail?…
🔍 Western Tanager | Piranga Ludoviciana 🐤 📍 Seen in Grecia, Alajuela, Costa Rica 🇨🇷 💬 The Western Tanager is the only North American tanager whose brilliant yellow pigment doesn’t come from the bird’s own diet — scientists believe it gets its rare red-orange pigment…
🔍 David B. Burks American Heritage Building (Harding University) 🏢 📍 Seen in Harding University, Arkansas, United States 🇺🇸 💬 The David B. Burks American Heritage Building at Harding University is named after the university’s longest-serving president, who led the institution for over 25 years…
🔍 Multi-Colored Asian Ladybug | Harmonia axyridis 🐞 📍 Seen in Alajuela, Costa Rica 🇨🇷 💬 When threatened, they release a yellowish fluid from their leg joints (called reflex bleeding). It smells bad, tastes worse to predators, and can even stain walls or fabrics.
🔍 Dysschema Tiger Moth | Dysschema dissimulata 🐛 📍 Seen in Alajuela, Costa Rica 🇨🇷 💬 These caterpillars may sequester (store) toxic compounds from the plants they eat — turning the chemicals into their own defense system.
