Olive-backed Euphonia (male and female): Dave and Dave’s Costa Rican Nature Park, La Vergin, Costa Rica, December 2023 — Euphonia’s are small finches of the American tropics. They tend to be seen in mixed feeding flocks with Honeycreepers and other Tanagers. They were part of such a flock at Dave and Dave’s, along with Blue-Grey Tanager and Green Honeycreeper, feeding on the berries along the viewing platform. OM Systems OM-1 with ED 100-400mm IS zoom at 800mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Photomator.

Chestnut-headed Oropendola: Dave and Dave’s Costa Rican Nature Park, La Vergin, Costa Rica, December 2023 — I have never seen a Chestnut-headed Oropendola at Selva Verde lodge, right on the Sarapiqui River, but they are common at Dave and Dave’s on the sharp bluff 100 feet above the river…but that might be because Dave and Dave’s is at canopy hight for the trees growing below, and perhaps Chestnut-headed are less likely to drop down to feeders than Montezuma’s are. ?? I have seen both at Dave and Dave’s. Not quite as colorful as the Montezuma, the Chestnut-headed is still an impressive bird. They also build the same kind of hanging, oriole-like (they are indeed members of the Oriole family), nests in colonies and though I did a google search I could find no indication that they ever share a nesting colony with their slightly larger cousins. OM Systems OM-1 with ED 100-400mm IS zoom at 420 and 800mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Photomator.

Green Honeycreeper (male and female): Dave and Dave’s Costa Rican Nature Park, La Vergin, Costa Rica, December 2023 — Clearly the Green Honeycreeper is named for the female of the species…otherwise it would be the turquoise honeycreeper. In whichever sex and color it is a striking bird of the fruiting undergrowth under the rainforest canopy. A member of the tanager family, it is generally part of a mixed feeding flock with other honeycreepers, tanagers, and euphonias. They are often seen in pairs, as we encountered them at Dave and Dave’s. OM Systems OM-1 with ED 100-400mm IS zoom at 800mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Photomator.

Boat-billed Heron: Puerto Viejo, Costa Rica, December 2023 — Not my best shot of a Boat-billed Heron, since his signature feature…the huge flat bill, is completely hidden under his wing…but still 🙂 The bird was tucked well back into the dark foliage above the water at the junction of the Sarapiqui and Puerto Viejo rivers. It took some tricky maneuvering on the part of our boat captain to get us even this good a view. OM Systems OM-1 with ED 100-400mm IS zoom at 800mm equivalent. Program mode with my custom birds and wildlife modifications. Processed in Photomator.