No Woman, No Cry - Bob Marley and the Wailers (Part II)

 It was a full 13 years before returning to St Lucia as part of my efforts to conquer all the countries of the America's and to redress the small matter of the outstanding 'endemic'. With but a single day on the Island and no Birding Pal to lean on drastic action was needed, and employed, as once again we laid all our hope at the door of the

 Rastfarian Nation! 

Lion of Judah, Bob Marley and King of Kings Haile Selassie

 Working on the principal that 'Faint Heart never captured Fair Lady', firstly find your Rasta.

Ah these 2 lads look likely candidates, so with a few familiar hand gestures, starting every sentance with "hey man" and you've got your link. They didn't know where my object of desire might be found but had some idea of who might and introduced me to

to one of his friends who in turn introduced me to Lucas
who agreed, for the price of a pint, would in turn introduce me to his mother who knows everyting hereabouts!

Bundling me into the pickup and handing me a beer we first headed to

it was a 'quick one' as agreed in the local

HOSTALRY

before driving through virgin forest to the top of the hill where, at the peak, we met a

WHITE-CHINNED THRUSH
just before entering the

OLD SLAVE MASTER'S HOME
and being introduced to now owner

The Formidable and WorldlyWise
Mrs EDWARDS

EARED DOVE

and her beautiful young grand-daughter

LUCY

SAFFRON FINCH

During a most interesting Cook's Tour

which included some of the

Slave Driver's Paraphernalia she also introduced me to the rest of the family

Ralph, Jerome, Lucas and Boz

LESSER ANTILLIAN BULLFINCH

 It was warming to know that those days were now gone, and oh how the tables had been turned!

PEARLY-EYED THRASHER 

Telling her of my dream, she mustered the lads and instructed them in almost military fashion, ending the briefing with the words "if you don't find de bird, there'll be no dinner"!

On the Road Again

YELLOW-THROATED WARBLER

The Lads Began the Search

GREEN-THROATED CARIB

No Stone Unturned

RED-BILLED STREAMERTAIL

While

Lucas introduced me to wild grown, jungle

STARFRUIT

It, or maybe that should read they, took a full 3½ hours in the comeing, but come they did!

     Quite likely a pair, but not given to lingering they departed as quickly as they had arrived              the 'endemic'

 SAINT LUCIA PARROT

or more accurately, so they tell me, Amazon? Not a chance of getting the canon to bear like some of the others above the images are borrowed.
and as the Rasta Taxi Driver had said all those years ago "as big as a Chicken man, as big as a CHICKEN"!

We Hope to Bring You the Rest of the Rasta Diaries in Days to Come!