Posts in Category: Costa Rica
Costa Rica! Portrait of the King
King Vulture: Mirador El Pizote, Boca Tapada, Costa Rica, December 2024 — This portrait shot of a mature King Vulture shows off most of the weirdness of the weird bird. Note the bright bare skin of the neck and the buzz cut fuzz on the top of the head, and, of course the big orange carbuncle (or wattle) surrounding the nostrils…what is that all about? Then there is the large external crop, pretty full on this bird. They can suck that back behind the breast feathers when they choose, but this bird was pretty relaxed. Sony a6700. Tamron 50-400 Di iii @ 600mm equivalent. Program mode with bird and wildlife modifications. Processed in Photomator.
Costa Rica! Blue-grey
Blue-grey Tanager: Mirador El Pizote, Boca Tapada, Costa Rica, December 2024 — Not the most colorful of the Costa Rican tanagers, but in some places the most abundant…though not at Mirador El Pizote in Boca Tapada. I only saw one at a time, and infrequently at that. Still a pretty bird. Sony a6700. Tamron 50-400 Di iii @ 600mm equivalent. Program mode with bird and wildlife modifications. Processed in Photomator.
Costa Rica! red legs x 3
Red-legged Honeycreeper: Mirador El Pizote, Boca Tapada, Costa Rica, December 2024 — Male, female, and immature male Red-legged Honeycreepers from Mirador El Pizote. The Honeycreepers are, somewhat surprisingly, tanagers, and are generally found in mixed feeding flocks around fruit feeders anywhere in lowlands Costa Rica. Spectacular little birds. A blessing and a privilege to be surrounded by them. Sony a6700. Tamron 50-400 Di iii @ 600mm equivalent. Program mode with bird and wildlife modifications. Processed in Photomator.
Costa Rica! Golden
Golden-hooded Tanager: Mirador El Pizote, Boca Tapada, Costa Rica, December 2024 — Tropical Tanagers (all tanagers for that matter) tend to be brightly colored, but the Golden-headed is certainly one of the more striking. It is not hard to see as it comes to fruit feeders with other tanagers and honeycreepers, and has range from southern Mexico down into western Peru, mostly in lowland Rainforest and along the edges. I have photographed it many times before, but Mirador El Pizote offers some of the best views I have had yet. Sony a6700. Tamron 50-400 Di iii @ 600mm equivalent. Program mode with bird and wildlife modifications. Processed in Photomator.
Costa Rica! Yellow-throated Euphonia
Yellow-throated Euphonia: Mirador El Pizote, Boca Tapada, Costa Rica, December 2024 — Euphonia means “musical” or “sweet voiced” and there are several birds of that name that you might encounter in Costa Rica. This is the Yellow-throated, which was common at the feeders at Mirador El Pizote. Again, such a great place for bird photography. They were at the feeders often, but the number of perches around the feeders made it easy to get them in a more natural setting. Sony a6700. Tamron 50-400 Di iii @ 600mm equivalent. Program with my bird and wildlife modifications. Processed in Photomator and assembled in FrameMagic.
Costa Rica! Shiny!
Shinning Honeycreeper: Mirador El Pizote, Boca Tapada, Costa Rica, December 2024 — Mirador El Pizote has a wonderful set of feeders, ideal for photography of the tanagers and honeycreepers and euphonias who frequent the lowlands of Costa Rica…including the Shinning Honeycreeper, which can be one of the more difficult honeycreepers to see. They have hummingbird feeders too, and large fruit feeders for the toucans, aracaris, and oropedolas. This Shinning Honeycreeper could not struck a better pose. Sony a6700. Tamron 50-400 Di iii @ 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Photomator.
Costa Rica! Yellow is the color
Yellow-throated Toucan: Tico Rainforest B&B, Sarapiqui, Costa Rica, December 2024 — One of the most recognizable birds of the American Tropics, the Yellow-throated Toucan has a wide range, when including its nominate and 2 sub-species, all down through the lowland rainforests of Central America and along the north-west rim of South America from eastern Venezuela to southern Peru. It is still listed as “near threatened” by the IOU. No one actually knows how it is doing within its range…but there is a lot of deforestation going on throughout, and it is assumed numbers are declining. Big, bold, loud and just a little clumsy around feeders, it is one of those birds that you see in the air or perched and think, “How is that possible?” For one thing that huge beak is a thin, hollow shell, and weighs very little compared to the mass of the bird. Always a delight to see. Sony a6700. Tamron 50-400 Di iii @ 600 and 515mm equivalents. Program mode with my bird and wildlife modifications. Processed in Photomator.
Costa Rica! Showing some scarlet
Scarlet-rumpled Cacique: Tico Rainforest B&B, Sarapiqui, Costa Rica, December 2024 — In my experience it is rare to see any red at all on the rump of the Scarlet-rumped Cacique…they mostly keep it well hidden under the tips of the wings. To be fair though I have not seen many…they were occasional visitors to Selve Verde where I have stayed in the Sarapiqui in the past…they were daily, hourly visitors at Victor’s place. I am told that Cacique means chief in native caribbean languages, and it has come to mean “boss” (as in party boss or gang boss or mob boss) in much of Latin America. And like most in the blackbird family, the Scarlet-rumped Cacique is very much the boss of the feeders when it comes around. Sony a6700 with Tamron 50-400 Di iii @ 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Photomator.
Costa Rica! Posed Parakeet
Orange-chinned Parakeet: Tico Rainforest B&B, Sarapiqui, Costa Rica, December 2024 — Victor’s feeder by the corner of the 2nd floor deck is ideal of bird portraits…as in this portrait of a Orange-chinned Parakeet who posed nicely on the moss with the bromeliad. Sony a6700 with Tamron 50-400 Di iii at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my bird and wildlife modifications. Processed in Photomator.
Costa Rica! Parakeets
Orange-chinned Parakeet: Tico Rainforest B&B, Sarapiqui, Costa Rica, December 2024 — Victor has a flock of Orange-chinned Parakeets that frequent his fruit feeders daily. They are noisy and aggressive and he often moves them on with feather duster on a long pole once they have eaten, otherwise they would dominate the feeder for hours, not eating, but preventing other birds from eating. It seems to be all part of the game to them. I am posting the second photo to show the orange chins, which are hard to see unless you catch them just right. The Parakeets fly as flock but often perch as pairs. I am assuming that is intentional, and reflects the inner structure of the flock…a flock of mostly pairs. Sony a6700 with Tamron 50-400 Di iii @ 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my bird and wildlife modifications. Processed in Photomator.