Tuesday, August 19, 2025
Volcano Junco
The Volcano Junco, seen here gathering nesting material, has a staring yellow eye set against black face. Otherwise, gray with browner flanks, brown back with black streaks and a pale pink bill.
Sunday, August 17, 2025
Talamanca Hummingbird
The Talamanca Hummingbird is a very large for a hummingbird and size alone separates it from many other species.
Males are green overall and the head appears black until it hits the light and reveals an iridescent purple crown and turquoise throat like seen on this male image above.
Females, as seen in the above image, are duller with fuzzy mottled appearance on grayish underparts and some greenish on sides. Note the large white spot behind the eye that trails into a messy eyeline. The females have a longer and slightly more decurved bill than males.
They use to be called Magnificent Hummingbird, but recently split into Rivoli’s Hummingbird (from southwest U.S. to Nicaragua) and Talamanca Hummingbird (found in mossy cloud forest in Costa Rica and Panama). Cornell All About Birds
Males are green overall and the head appears black until it hits the light and reveals an iridescent purple crown and turquoise throat like seen on this male image above.
Females, as seen in the above image, are duller with fuzzy mottled appearance on grayish underparts and some greenish on sides. Note the large white spot behind the eye that trails into a messy eyeline. The females have a longer and slightly more decurved bill than males.
Friday, August 15, 2025
Spotted Woodcreeper
The Spotted Woodcreeper is a medium to large woodcreeper of humid evergreen and pine-evergreen forest in highlands and foothills that feeds on trunks and larger branches, often at bromeliads.
Wednesday, August 13, 2025
Crimson-fronted Parakeet
The Crimson-fronted Parakeet is a mostly green with long, pointed tail and red forehead.
Monday, August 11, 2025
Crested Guan
The Crested Guan is a very large, long-tailed game bird of tropical and subtropical forest. They are often seen high in trees or flying through the forest canopy.
Saturday, August 9, 2025
Collared Trogon
The Collared Trogon is a relatively small, red-bellied trogon of humid forest in tropical lowlands and foothills.
Thursday, August 7, 2025
Gray-headed Chachalaca
The Gray-headed Chachalaca is a large chickenlike bird with long neck and tail and is overall brown with a grayer head.
Tuesday, August 5, 2025
Rufous-collared Sparrow
The Rufous-collared Sparrow is a handsomely patterned sparrow from the highlands of Chiapas south to temperate South America. They occur in open and semiopen habitats such as villages, towns, and farmland with hedges and brushy thickets.
Sunday, August 3, 2025
Great Curassow
The Great Curassow is a very large game bird of tropical forest, eliminated from most areas by hunting. Rarely found except in protected parks or very remote areas.
Usually seen on the forest floor, like in this image, either singly or in small groups, but also feeds in trees. Males often sing from high in canopy and their song is a very low-pitched, almost subliminal, booming sound.
Usually seen on the forest floor, like in this image, either singly or in small groups, but also feeds in trees. Males often sing from high in canopy and their song is a very low-pitched, almost subliminal, booming sound.
Friday, August 1, 2025
Buff-rumped Warbler
The Buff-rumped Warbler is a small ground-dwelling warbler frequently found around water, especially forested streams. Also often seen hopping along trails and sometimes around army ant swarms.
Thursday, July 31, 2025
Keel-billed Motmot
The Keel-billed Motmot is a medium-sized forest-dweller that likes to sit motionless. They are mostly dull green, slightly buffier below, with a black mask and breast spot.
The orange forehead and blue eyebrow and chin are distinctive. Most similar to larger Lesson’s Motmot below.
The orange forehead and blue eyebrow and chin are distinctive. Most similar to larger Lesson’s Motmot below.
Tuesday, July 29, 2025
Broad-winged Hawk
Broad-winged Hawks are small, compact raptors with chunky bodies and large heads. In flight, their broad wings come to a distinct point. The tail is short and square.
Adult Broad-winged Hawks have reddish-brown heads, barred underparts, and broad black and white bands on the tail. The pale undersides of the wings are bordered in dark brown.
Juveniles are lighter brown with coarse streaking on the underparts, particularly on the sides of the breast; the tail is narrowly banded. Cornell All About Birds
Adult Broad-winged Hawks have reddish-brown heads, barred underparts, and broad black and white bands on the tail. The pale undersides of the wings are bordered in dark brown.
Juveniles are lighter brown with coarse streaking on the underparts, particularly on the sides of the breast; the tail is narrowly banded. Cornell All About Birds
This was a very co-operative Broad-winged Hawk at Arenal Observatory, usually in the same hunting location every evening.
Sunday, July 27, 2025
Black-cheeked Woodpecker
The Black-cheeked Woodpecker is a medium-sized woodpecker of humid evergreen forest and edge in tropical lowlands.
Distinctive, with big black mask, white patch behind eye, black upperparts with narrow white bars, and big white rump patch.
Distinctive, with big black mask, white patch behind eye, black upperparts with narrow white bars, and big white rump patch.
Male has full red crown. Female has grayish forecrown and red hindcrown.
Friday, July 25, 2025
Long-tailed Tyrant
The Long-tailed Tyrant is a distinctive flycatcher with long central tail feathers that are usually obvious. They are longer in males than females. Even without tail, the plumage is unique. A black body with white back and eyebrow.
Wednesday, July 23, 2025
Buff-throated Saltator
The Buff-throated Saltator is fairly common in humid tropical lowlands. They favour forest edges, plantations, and dense second growth.
Monday, July 21, 2025
Chestnut-capped Brushfinch
The Chestnut-capped Brushfinch is a fairly stocky, sparrowlike bird of highland forests occurring mainly in humid evergreen and pine-oak forest understory, often in brushy flower banks and shady canyons, where typically skulking and difficult to see well.
Saturday, July 19, 2025
Tawny-capped Euphonia
The Tawny-capped Euphonia is a small finchlike bird, compact and short tailed. Generally yellow below and dark blue-black above with stout, short bill.
Thursday, July 17, 2025
Green Honeycreeper
The Green Honeycreeper is a very attractive small tanager of humid tropical lowlands.
Found in humid evergreen forest edges, plantations, and gardens at times with mixed-species feeding flocks of honeycreepers and euphonias.
They are often in pairs, feeding at all levels in fruiting trees and bushes. Note the short, curved bill.
They are often in pairs, feeding at all levels in fruiting trees and bushes. Note the short, curved bill.
Red-legged Honeycreeper
The Red-legged Honeycreeper is a small, warbler-like tanager of tropical lowlands that favours forest edge, woodland, and semi-open areas with taller trees. Often occurs in small groups, sometimes larger flocks, usually in the canopy of flowering trees, where it probes for nectar with its long bill
The red legs are bright on male, however dullest on young birds. The male is blue in breeding plumage, with a turquoise cap while the female and non-breeding male are greenish overall with faint streaking on the chest.
The red legs are bright on male, however dullest on young birds. The male is blue in breeding plumage, with a turquoise cap while the female and non-breeding male are greenish overall with faint streaking on the chest.
Tuesday, July 15, 2025
Blue-gray Tanager
The Blue-gray Tanager is a common and widespread powder blue-gray bird of open and semi-open areas with larger trees and hedges, towns, villages, and gardens in tropical and subtropical regions. A bird we observed most days on our trip.
Sunday, July 13, 2025
Blue-and-Gold Tanager
The Blue-and-Gold Tanager is a chunky, stout-billed tanager. They are slightly larger and slower moving than many classic smaller tanagers. Overall dark slaty blue with golden yellow underparts with a short tale and red eye.
Friday, July 11, 2025
Emerald Tanager
The Emerald Tanager is a well-named tanager that is mostly emerald-green with trapezoidal black cheek patch, back streaking and wing markings.
Wednesday, July 9, 2025
Silver-throated Tanager
The Silver-throated Tanager is a small tanager, overall lemon-yellow but not super bright that usually looks a bit dirty. They have a distinctive silvery throat and green edges on wing feathers and black streaks on back.
They are common and active; usually found in pairs or small flocks, sometimes with larger mixed feeding flocks and tend to be found in more open areas such as forest edges or gardens feeding on fruit. Cornell All About Birds
Monday, July 7, 2025
Bay-headed Tanager
The Bay-headed Tanager is a stunning tanager that is mostly green with reddish head. Some populations have electric blue underparts, others entirely green.
Saturday, July 5, 2025
Golden-hooded Tanager
The Golden-hooded Tanager is a very attractive small tanager of humid tropical lowlands that is found in humid evergreen forest edges, plantations, and gardens. At times with mixed-species feeding flocks of honeycreepers and euphonias as was the case when we observed this tanager.
Thursday, July 3, 2025
Scarlet-rumped Tanager
The Scarlet-rumped Tanager is fairly common in humid tropical lowlands. They favour evergreen forest edges, plantations, and verdant second growth, such as areas along roadsides. They forage mainly at low to middle levels often in fairly noisy small groups.
Tuesday, July 1, 2025
Crimson Collared Tanager
The Crimson Collared Tanager is a beautiful tanager of humid tropical lowlands that favours evergreen forest edge and verdant second growth.
They forage unobtrusively at all levels in trees and bushes, usually in pairs. The sexes are alike and are velvety black overall with a bright bluish-white bill and a glossy crimson collar and rump. Cornell All About Birds
They forage unobtrusively at all levels in trees and bushes, usually in pairs. The sexes are alike and are velvety black overall with a bright bluish-white bill and a glossy crimson collar and rump. Cornell All About Birds
Sunday, June 29, 2025
Green-crowned Brilliant
The Green-crowned Brilliant is a fairly large hummingbird, sleek and long-tailed with straight bill. The male is entirely emerald green with small blue throat patch only visible at some angles as seen here.
The female has spotted green breast with a conspicuous white mustache stripe and white spot behind eye as seen here.
The female has spotted green breast with a conspicuous white mustache stripe and white spot behind eye as seen here.
The juvenile has pale rufous malars and chin as seen below.
Friday, June 27, 2025
Slaty-backed Nightingale Thrush
The Slaty-backed Nightingale Thrush is a small skulking thrush, far more often heard than seen. It was raining pretty good when we observed this thrush in the understory. They are all sooty gray, darkest on forehead, with whiter belly.
Wednesday, June 25, 2025
White-eared Ground-sparrow
The White-eared Ground-sparrow is a strikingly patterned large sparrow that favours tropical and subtropical forests, shade-coffee plantations, and brushy edges.
Monday, June 23, 2025
Green-fronted Lancebill
The Green-fronted Lancebill has a super long straight bill. They are dull greenish overall with iridescent green forehead and bronzy nape.
Saturday, June 21, 2025
Green Thorntail
The Green Thorntail is a tiny hummingbird with a short straight bill. The male is all shimmering green with distinctive, long, pointed tail feathers while the female has a short tail and a distinctive white mustache.
It took quite awhile but I was pretty happy capturing this image of a Green Thorntail one of my favourite hummers that we observed.
Thursday, June 19, 2025
Green Hermit
The Green Hermit is a large hummingbird with long white-tipped central tail feathers. The male is entirely blue-green while the female has a gray belly, green back, and obvious stripes on face.
Tuesday, June 17, 2025
Hoffman's Woodpecker
The Hoffman’s Woodpecker is a medium-sized woodpecker with bold black-and-white barring on back and a cream-colored belly. A patch of yellow on the lower belly can be difficult to see.
Common in open woodlands, second growth, and gardens. Distinctive in range, but hybridizes extensively with Red-crowned Woodpecker on the Pacific slope in Costa Rica.
Common in open woodlands, second growth, and gardens. Distinctive in range, but hybridizes extensively with Red-crowned Woodpecker on the Pacific slope in Costa Rica.
Sunday, June 15, 2025
Band-tailed Barbthroat
The Band-tailed Barbthroat is a scarce hummingbird of humid evergreen forest and edge in tropical lowlands. Favors shady understory, especially with Heliconia flowers. Usually visits flowers briefly and whips away with a sharp buzzy squeak.
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