Black Vulture
February 2013 – Cahuita, Costa Rica
A group of these vultures were hanging out in a bare tree with a group of iguanas – quite a sight. This was right near the entrance to Cahuita National Park.
Black Vulture
Category Archives: **** – Good
Royal Tern
Royal Tern
February 2013 – Cahuita, Costa Rica
This tern was resting with a few of his brothers and sisters in the relatively calm waters of the Cahuita bay.
Western Slaty-Antshrike
Western Slaty-Antshrike
February 2013 – Cahuita National Park, Costa Rica
This female was feeding a youngster who was hanging out in a trailside bush. The male, seen below, is slightly more colorful, with little white speckles. I saw a few of these along the trail in Cahuita National Park.
Western Slaty-Antshrike
Semipalmated Plover
Ringed Plover
February 2013 – Cahuita National Park, Costa Rica
One of the many shorebirds that spend the winters down south. Smart birds.
Roadside Hawk
Roadside Hawk
February 2013 – Osa Peninsula, Costa Rica
Yup, that’s the official name of this bird… To me, it’s like calling a sparrow “Brown Bird” or something. But, I will admit… I got this photo along the side of a road. So, I suppose there’s something to it.
Yellow-headed Caracara
Yellow-headed Caracara
February 2013 – Osa Peninsula
I know what you’re thinking… this bird does not have a yellow head. But, it’s a youngster… its plumage changes after the 2nd year. I do have other shots of the adult bird, but I like this one better with the palms… This was on Carate Beach.
Mangrove Black-Hawk
Mangrove Black-Hawk
February 2013 – Osa Peninsula, Costa Rica
These were fairly common in the Carate Beach area… They look like some other Black-Hawk species, but I had to do a bit of detective work to arrive at this identification… just because they’re called a “Mangrove” Black-Hawk, doesn’t mean there needs to be a mangrove forest nearby…
Bananaquit
Bananaquit
February 2013 – Osa Peninsula, Costa Rica
So, it seems the Bananaquit is in a class by itself… not sure how it’s related to other bird families. That’s fine with me. Saw a bunch of these in and around the Carate Beach area.
Black-throated Trogon
Black-throated Trogon
February 2013 – Osa Peninsula, Costa Rica
I have to thank Dennis, the driver of our car, for hearing this Black-throated Trogon calling softly as we drove underneath. He got out and spotted the bird pretty quickly… and a female nearby too. Pretty amazing experience, even if it was only brief.
Black-throated Trogon – Female
Barred Becard
Barred Becard
February 2013 – Monteverde, Costa Rica
This is one of those birds that visited a branch nearby in the undergrowth for one a few moments. I managed a couple decent shots, and then it was gone.