Before breakfast we went down to the beach where Lynn had a swim and I watched a Green Heron hunting for its breakfast along the shore. There was a also significant NE passage of Rough-winged Swallows.
Green Heron 6 Aug 2024 Guanahacabibes © Tim Norriss
A Wilson's Plover was resting a little further along the beach. They can be found around much of the coast of Cuba.
We then went to the Centro de Visitantes Guanahacabibes, paid the small fee and picked up our guide Osmani for the day to take us into the National Park heading towards the lighthouse at Faro Roncali. Our first stop was by a shallow pool on the north side of the road where there was an immature White Ibis feeding. A Killdeer was running around on the edge and there were several Seaside Dragonlet Erythrodiplax berenice.
On the other side of the road we found a Cuban Knight Anole Anolis equestris. This is a variable species that has many different forms in different parts of the country. We'd never seen a pale one like this before. Unfortunately there is no modern book covering all the reptiles of Cuba most of which are endemic. A book has been in preparation for many, many years but there is still no indication of a publication date. As a result only a handful of people in the country know what they are looking at and unless you can increase the awareness amongst the general population about how wonderful these creatures are most people will remain in ignorance and they will not be protected. In my view this is wrong and what should have been done years ago is that a pdf should have been produced as a 'work in progress' that could have been updated every year or two with a new revision number as more research is done. This would have the effect of educating the people in conservation and also the many amateurs with cameras. This would stimulate a huge interest and would greatly increase the knowledge of the range of the different species. Yes I understand that more research needs to be done on certain species groups to understand their relationships and that can continue before issue of the hard copy book. But how long do the Cuban people have to wait for even the basic information - another ten years? There really is a complete lack of critical thinking here.
Let's face it, very few people will ever own the hard copy of the book. But they would use a free pdf that they can store on their phones or laptop. A few years ago the first Field Guide to be written on the Butterflies of Cuba was published by Carlos A. Mancina, Director of the Institute of Ecology and Systematics in Habana. Although a few hard copies were printed the main advantage of the book is that it is available as a free pdf. It was produced with the purpose of raising awareness and as a learning aid for the population of Cuba. This is what should have been done years ago for the reptiles.
Let's face it, very few people will ever own the hard copy of the book. But they would use a free pdf that they can store on their phones or laptop. A few years ago the first Field Guide to be written on the Butterflies of Cuba was published by Carlos A. Mancina, Director of the Institute of Ecology and Systematics in Habana. Although a few hard copies were printed the main advantage of the book is that it is available as a free pdf. It was produced with the purpose of raising awareness and as a learning aid for the population of Cuba. This is what should have been done years ago for the reptiles.
Cuban Knight Anole Anolis equestris 6 Aug 2024 Guanahacabibes © Tim Norriss
Osmani soon found a Bee Hummingbird that was perching on top of the dead bare branches of nearby trees but they were beyond the capabilities of my camera. There was also a dragonfly which was one of the Saddlebags but I couldn't pin it down to species and the photos weren't great. A Cuban Black Hawk also made an appearance overhead. Other things of interest seen today were Blue-gray Gnat-catcher, a gelechiid moth called Ethmia phylacis, lots of Jutia droppings and the reptiles Pholidoscelis auberi Cuban Whiptail and Cyclura nubila Cuban Iguanas.
And along the track by the hotel in the evening there were lots of Adelpha iphicleola Iphicleola Sister and Libytheana motya Cuban Snout.
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