The waves crashed on the beach. The wind rippled through the trees. Sky of blue and sea of green. Soft yellow sand. Simply put, idyllic.
After a long trip across multiple cities and midnight arrival on distant shores, it was time to rest. To sit back in the warm cocoon of the tropics and let the mind dissolve in the pleasures of the sand and mesmerizing palm fronds.
Two minutes later...
... What was that sound?
It was a sharp cry or call. It sounded like a big bird.
I sat up and looked around. The sound had come from that general direction near the fence.
Leave it alone, said my brain. You're here to relax not hunt for birds.
The unmistakable call sounded again. So loud and vaguely familiar. I had earlier ignored some little doves and chubby birds frolicking around, but this creature was something else.
I sprang into action by reaching for the camera in my satchel. The photographic lens neatly tucked in the inner pocket.
Are you seriously going to go hunting for that bird? What about the vacation and relaxation?
"No rest for the wicked," I said fingers fiddling with the camera gear.
- Detach the cover from camera and put back in pouch.
- Remove the two lens covers and put back in pouch.
- Find the dot markers on the lens and camera; attach with a clockwise motion.
- Zip up the pouch and store in satchel.
- Go!
Vacation was officially over.
The hunt had begun.
The warm sand was strewn with sticks from the few trees that grew there along with patches of vegetation that somehow had managed to grow on that sandy soil. Carefully, I stepped across the unfamiliar terrain, changing my gait as I skulked across the sand steering clear of the coconut trees but keeping my eyes on them with camera in hand.
My senses came alive with the thrill of the hunt.
Peewwwwww!
There it was again! I was close.
To my utter amazement, there was a bird clinging to the trunk of a coconut tree. It swayed in the breeze.
Was that a woodpecker? I peered through the camera lens. It did look like a woodpecker or flicker. These birds are common in Canada, so it was surprising to come across them in this tropical island, where I was currently stationed for my hedonic assignment.
Tiny holes on the trunk
This bird was an unexpected find. I thought I was about to photograph some exotic species with extravagant and colourful plumage. Not a woodpecker. For a moment I wondered if this was just a weird dream. I've seen plenty of flickers in the Pacific Northwest of Canada, so to find one so far from there was like finding a polar bear in the Sahara or a 7-11 store on the mountains of Tibet. It's one thing to know intellectually that similar bird species exist all over the world, but it's another to actually see it with one's own eyes.
I was reminded of the old poem by TS Eliot.
We shall not cease from exploration
And the end of all our exploring
Will be to arrive where we started
And know the place for the first time.
T.S. Eliot, Four Quartets
Notice the reddish spot on the back of the head
This woodpecker (Hispaniola) is a different species from the one found in North America such as the red-headed variety. It just goes to show how a particular adaptation like wood pecking can spread far and wide to become the dominant biological trait of a successful species on a global scale.
Thank you!
The evil ones don't rest hahahaha you can't miss the opportunity to hunt birds! You were expecting something giant and well... it wasn't that big but a different version of the woodpecker you knew.
I wasn't expecting a woodpecker. I thought it was going to be like a toucan or a giant parrot.
😆
Very beautiful beach, nice weather.. The presence of birds is also there which adds to the joy. Amazing photography
It was so hot, but it was fun trying to catch a glimpse of this bird. :)
Fun!!
Stalking that bird was a hoot and a nice distraction from the searing heat, which made me realize, I belong in the Pacific Northwest :)
It's a beautiful place to belong! 🌲👊
👌