Red-throat
Crested Guan: Pierrella Ecology Gardens, Sarapiqui, Costa Rica, December 2024 — Pierrella Ecology Gardens is the public facing effort of a family owned commercial butterfly farm. They raise and ship tropical rainforest cocoons to butterfly gardens and research centers all over the world. Most of the cocoons are raised right in the forest, in mobile enclosures, so the heath of the forest is essential, and a healthy forest attracts a wide variety of all kinds of interesting birds, frogs, lizards, mammals, and other insects. All of which makes a tour of the gardens a special treat. This is the Crested Guan, a near threatened species similar in size and habits to the North American wild turkey (at least a hen turkey). The bright red waddle really sets of the speckled black plumage. Sony a6700. Tamron 50-400 at 600 and 382mm equivalents. Program mode with my custom bird and wildlife modifications. Processed in Photomator.
Nope!
Great Egret: Black Point Wildlife Drive, Merritt Island NWR, Titusville, Florida, USA, January 2025 — Try and try again…the is how Great Egret hunting goes (or any other fishing bird for that matter). Still that dull, dank, dark first Thursday of my visit to the Space Coast Birding and Wildlife Festival. Sony a6700. Tamron 50-400 at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Photomator.
Oh brother.
Mantled Howler Monkey: Caño Negro Wetlands Reserve, Costa Rica, December 2024 — We cannot leave Caño Negro without visiting our tree brothers, the Mantled Howlers that move along the edges of the waterways, often looking out over the water, apparently contemplating life in the rainforest. Sony a6700. Tamron 50-400 at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my bird and wildlife modifications. Processed in Photomator.
Out of the grey
Forster’s Tern (?): Black Point Wildlife Drive, Merritt Island NWR, Titusville, Florida, USA, January 2025 — I am not a tern and gull expert, but I am thinking Forster’s Tern, as being one of the mostly likely at Merritt Island in winter. Still that dull, dark, dank Thursday so it is mostly grey on grey…kind of condensed out of the sky with the tail feathers just solid enough to see. 🙂 Sony a6700. Tamron 50-400 at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my birds-in-flight and action modifications. Processed in Photomator and assembled in FrameMagic.
not-Green Iguana
Green Iguana: Caño Negro Wetlands Reserve, Costa Rica, December 2024 — The Green Iguana is only green when it is young. As adults they are various shades of bronzy brown and dull orange. This is, I think, a big adult male, lounging in the foliage along one of the many channels in the Caño Negro wetlands. Sony a6700. Tamron 50-400 at 246 and 600mm equivalents. Program mode with my birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Photomator. Assembled in FrameMagic.
Misery!
Reddish Egret (immature): Black Point Wildlife Drive, Merritt Island NWR, Titusville, Florida, USA, January 2025 — Still that first dull, dark, dank, Thursday in Florida, and this immature Reddish Egret is really feeling it. Sony a6700. Tamron 50-400 at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Photomator.
Grey-cowled Wood Rail
Grey-cowled Wood Rail: Caño Negro Wetlands Reserve, Costa Rica, December 2024 — in one of the moments of sun between rain showers while we were on the boat on Caño Negro, we came up on a small group of birds hanging out on the flooded boardwalk near the HQ building, among them this Grey-cowled Wood Rail in an unusual off the ground view. Sony a6700. Tamron 50-400 at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Photomator.
Egret in the gloom
Great Egret: Orlando Wetlands Park, Christmas, Florida, USA, January 2025 — Still from the gloom, wet, damp, dank, dark Thursday of the Space Coast Birding and Wildlife Festival at Orlando Wetlands. Leading a Point’nShootNature Photography workshop. Not bad light for an Egret…you get to see the full range of feather detail. Sony a6700. Tamron 50-400 at 489mm equivalent. Program mode with my bird and wildlife modifications. Processed in Photomator.
Boat-billed
Boat-billed Heron: Caño Negro Wetlands Reserve, Costa Rica, December 2024 — We saw several Boat-billed Herons from our boat on Caño Negro…all but this one facing the wrong way for a photo. And this one was buried in foliage. I had only long enough for a burst of 5 shots before we drifted past the window. I was amazed and gratified to find that the subject detecting, eye-tracking auto focus manage to nail it even through the thicket. Sony a6700. Tamron 50-400 at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my bird and wildlife modifications. (ISO 8000) Processed in Photomator.
Black Headed Trogon
Black-headed Trogon: Caño Negro Wetlands Reserve, Costa Rica, December 2023 — I saw more different species of Trogons on this trip than I have ever seen in Costa Rica on any other trip…which is particularly special because I saw no lowland Trogons on my December 23 trip at all. This is two different birds…I think, or at least two different bird encounters along the same stretch of water at Caño Negro as we motored along. Front and back view. I have to admire the subtle shades and tones of the back view. Sony a6700. Tamron 50-400 at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Photomator.