I have uploaded my photos from my trip to Costa Rica onto my Google Picassa photo albums gallery, you can view the albums (in two parts) at the following links: part 1 and part 2

Hope you like them, and I will surely be back to the tropics in the future!

The following short video captures the moment of my first rainforest ‘capture’ in Costa Rica, courtesy of Frog blog Manchester

Me photographing a Fer-de-lance or Terciopelo (Bothrops asper) (C) Andrew Gray

Species observed in Costa Rica (23nd Nov-6th Dec), with some notes:

Amphibians:

• Cane toad (Bufo marinus)- Commonly found on the Caribbean coast
• Hourglass tree frog (Hyla ebraccata)- Common at mid elevations
• Drab tree frog (Smilisca sordida)- Common everywhere
• Reticulated glass frog (Hylolinobatrachium valerioi)- Only 4 specimens seen
• Fleischmann’s glass frog (Hylolinobatrachium fleischmanni)- Quite common
• Unidentified species of glass frog (Hylolinobatrachium ssp)- At only one site
• Smoky jungle frog (Leptodactylus pentadactylus)- Only 2 large adults seen
• Lowland tree frog (Scinax elaeochroa)- Very common on Caribbean coast
• Variable rain frog (Craugastor crassidigitus)- Common
• Common tink frog (Eleutherodactylus diastema)- Heard calling literally everywhere!
• Brilliant forest frog (Lithobates warszewitschii)- 5 seen
• Red-eyed leaf frog (Agalychnis callidryas)- Found at 3 sites
• Spurrell’s leaf frog (Agalychnis spurrelli) Only one adult found
• Splendid leaf frog (Cruziohyla calcarifer) 3 specimens at one site
• Lemur leaf frog (Hylomantis lemur) 15-20 seen
• Strawberry poison dart frog (Oophaga pumilio) Common at several sites
• Green & black poison dart frog (Dendrobates auratus) Common at several site

Reptiles:

• Deppe’s whip tail lizard (Cnemidophorus deppii) Commonly seen
• Four-lined whip tail lizard (Ameiva quadrilineata) Commonly seen
• Slender anole (Norops limifrons) Common
• Pug-nosed anole (Norops capito) Common
• Green tree anole (Norops biporeatus) Only 4-5 individuals
• Rose-bellied spiny lizard (Sceloparus variabilis) Not common
• Lemur anole (Norops lemurirus) Uncommon
• Striped basilisk (Basiliscus vittatus) Common
• Green basilisk (Basiliscus plumifrons) Common
• Litter skink (Sphenomorphus cherrei) Only 1
• Spiny-tailed iguana (Ctenosaura similis) Common on Pacific coast
• Yellow-headed gecko (Gonatodes albingularis) Only a few specimens
• House gecko (Hemidactylus frenatus) Very common
• Spectacled caiman (Caiman crocodilus)  3 specimens seen at night
• American crocodile (Crocodylus acutus) Common at one Pacific site
• Lichen coloured slug eating snake (Sibon longifrenis) DOR
• Ebony keelback (Chironius grandisquamis) One adult 0f over 200cm not caught/or photographed
• Cat-eyed snake (Leptodeira septentrionalis) 1 live 1 DOR, both found at night
• Yellow blunt-headed vine snake (Imantodes inomatus) 1 specimen found at night
• Coral snake (Micrurus alleni) 1 adult in leaf litter beside stream at night
• Golden eyelash viper (Bothriechis schlegelii) 2 ”golden” specimens found on Caribbean coast
• Fer-de-lance/Terciopelo (Bothrops asper) 2 specimens seen, one found sitting in the road at night after a rain shower