The jacanas are a group of wetland birds, which are identifiable by their huge feet and claws which enable them to walk on floating vegetation in the shallow lakes that are their preferred habitat. They are found worldwide within the tropical zone. In Jamaica this bird is also known as the ‘Jesus bird’, as it appears to walk on water.
The Northern Jacana (Jacana spinosa) has a dark brown body with a black head and neck. In addition, its bill has yellow patches and its forehead has a yellow wattle. Its bill has a white base. When a jacana is in flight, its yellowish-green primary and secondary feathers are visible. Also visible are yellow bony spurs on the leading edge of the wings, which it can use to defend itself and its young. The greenish color of the wing feathers is produced by a pigment, rather rare in birds, called zooprasinin, a copper-containing organic compound.
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Much like owls, this species is nocturnal. They prey on large insects and small vertebrates, which they capture in sallies from high perches.
Possibly its most well-known characteristic is its unique moaning growl that the Great Potoo (Nyctibius grandis) vocalizes throughout the night, creating an unsettling atmosphere in the Neotropics with its nocturnal sounds. This nocturnal predator is usually seen perched high above the ground while foraging; hawking when prey is spotted. After the pounce, the Potoo almost always returns to its previous perch. Normally, during the day it perches upright on a tree stump, and is overlooked because it resembles part of the stump; this is a camouflage, not just by coloration, but also camouflage by the setting. The Great Potoo can be located at night by the reflection of light from its eyes as it sits vertical on a post, roost, or angled-tree trunk.
The fossil record of the Trogons dates back 49 million years to the Early Eocene. They are closely related to Mousebirds and Owls. The word trogon is Greek for “nibbling” and refers to the fact that these birds gnaw holes in trees to make their nests.
Trogons are residents of tropical forests worldwide. The greatest diversity is in the Neotropics. They feed on insects and fruit, and their broad bills and weak legs reflect their diet and arboreal habits. Although their flight is fast, they are reluctant to fly any distance. Trogons are generally not migratory, although some species undertake partial local movements. Trogons have soft, often colourful, feathers with distinctive male and female plumage. They are the only type of animal with a heterodactyl toe arrangement (inner toes face front, outer toes face back). They nest in holes dug into trees or termite nests, laying 2–4 white or pastel-coloured eggs.
Costa Rican Pygmy Owls hunt from a low perch in dense forest. They wait for small prey, usually birds, lizards, or large insects, and then strikes in swift flight. If the target is missed, the bird returns to perch rather than pursuing. Like other pygmy owls, they swish their tails from side to side when agitated.
The owls call mainly in early morning, late afternoon and at night with a long, slow song of randomly spaced, clear toots. Sometimes the sounds appear to come in groups of two or three. When excited, the owls give a faster, higher series of five toots.
This species prefers canopy and edges of highland forests and adjacent habitat, and sometimes even enters pastures and plains with scattered trees.
The Crested Caracara has broad wings and a long tail that is white in color with a broad terminal band and black barring. With the help of long yellow legs it can easily run and walk on the ground.
This bird normally stays low to the ground even when they are flying, so it is easy to steal food from other birds. The Crested Caracara also follows automobiles and trains to fetch the food that falls from them.
Just another one of the beautiful bird species found here in Costa Rica. See more bird photos HERE
The Bare-Throated Tiger Heron is one of 12 different types of “herons” in Costa Rica.
This one is identified by its bare yellow throat skin and its black cap. They are widespread coastal birds and can be seen in our area around marshes, lagoons, swamps, and mangroves. Their range is from Mexico down through Central America and northern South America.
They can be seen patiently waiting and wading in the water in a position with their heads stretched out and pointed down, ready to pierce a fish with their long bills.
Thankfully, it’s not a threatened species.
Just another one of the beautiful bird species found here in Costa Rica. See more bird photos HERE
The Golden-Hooded tanager has a very wide range of distribution. It can be found as far north as southern Mexico, throughout Central America, and down through Colombia.
They are distinguished by their golden hoods and beautiful blue and black feathers.
Golden-Hooded tanagers like to eat fruit and insects and are often found in pairs. The males and females are very similar in appearance.
They are plentiful and are considered to be in the category of “least concern” by conservationists.
The Golden-Hooded tanagers are just another of the beautiful bird species found in our area.
Just another one of the colorful and amazing birds that can be found throughout Quepolandia. See more bird photos HERE
The Emerald Toucanet is the smallest of the 6 toucan species found here in Costa Rica. It also has the shortest bill.
It’s a very colorful bird with shades of green including emerald, grass, and olive. Other colors displayed are red, blues, chestnut, yellow, & white.
The green body easily blends into the rainforest so it is sometimes hard to see.
The Costa Rican Emerald Toucanet is different from those found in Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, and South America because of it’s blue throat.
They can be found in the mountainous cloud forests here in Costa Rica. I took this photo at Bosque del Tolomuco Lodge which is about 20 minutes outside of San Isidro.
Just another one of the colorful and amazing birds that can be found throughout Quepolandia. See more bird photos HERE
I can’t think of another bird that I was more excited to see during my first trip to Costa Rica than the Yellow-Throated Toucan.
It is one of 6 different types of toucan species found throughout Costa Rica and one of two that can be found in our area. The other is the Fiery-Billed Aracari.
The Yellow-Throated Toucan is the largest of the 6 and are they are easy to locate. Often you will hear them first with their high pitched calls. They are not graceful fliers and can be seen moving about the trees hopping from one branch to another.
You will often find them up above eating ripe papayas in papaya trees and the fruity growths in cecropia trees. Besides eating fruits I have seen them raid other bird’s nests and pick out the eggs and even the young chicks! Their long bills help them reach the fruit and they actually function as a thermoregulator. This action helps cool off the toucan’s body temperature as heat dissipates through it’s large bill.
Just another one of the colorful and amazing birds that can be found throughout Quepolandia. See more bird photos HERE
The Lineated Woodpecker is a large woodpecker with a very distinctive red crest.
It is found all throughout our area and it’s habitat ranges from Mexico down to South America. You can often hear it pecking away at old trees as it looks for ants and other insects. They also eat fruit and seeds from heliconias.
When I see them the crest reminds me of punk rockers with tall red hair. They can also be recognized by the white stripes running down their faces and sides of their necks. A streaked chin also helps to identify it.
Just another one of the many colorful birds that are found here in Quepolandia. See more bird photos HERE.
The Red-Headed Barbet is a very colorful bird found in the humid mountainous forests of Costa Rica. It has a wide range that also includes Panama, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru.
This is another one of those bird species that shows a very different color pattern between the male and female. The male is on the left and the female is on the right.
The face reminds me of the angry bird video games.
The Red-Headed Barbets’ diet consists of insects and fruits and will often come down to feeders if offered bananas and papayas.
If you see one you will usually see the other as they do travel in pairs. I photographed this pair just outside of San Isidro at Bosque del Tolomuco Lodge. They are one more example of the beautiful birds that can be found here in Costa Rica.
The Rufous-Tailed Hummingbird is one of the most common hummingbirds seen here in Costa Rica.
It is named after its very distinct rufous colored tail. It has a very pink bill and a bright green body that appears to glitter when the sunlight hits it just right.
The Rufous-Tailed Hummingbird is very territorial. When other hummingbirds try to feed on its area of flowers it will make an aggressive dive towards them which results in their retreat.
Their wings flap at an impressive 60 beats per second and they like to feed on nectar and small insects. They are typically found in gardens and particularly like the colorful flowers on the rabo leon bushes.
Even though they are very common I still look forward to photographing them to capture their beautiful colors in the right light.
One of the most colorful birds found here in Costa Rica is also a personal favorite of mine. The Resplendent Quetzal has iridescent feathers that can show colors of green, cobalt blue, lime, yellow, and ultramarine. It’s body can appear green, gold, or blue-violet also depending on the light. The chest is a bright red and it’s bill is a bright yellow. To watch it in flight is an eye opening experience that one never forgets.
Only the male has tail feathers that can extend over 2 feet long during mating season.
They are found from southern Mexico down into Panama. But the best place to see them is right here in Costa Rica in our protected forests.
Resplendent Quetzals will eat small insects and an assortment of fruits but their main food is wild avocados.
My favorite place to see them is either in San Gerardo de Dota or Santa Maria de Dota. They are in the Trogon family and their large eyes have helped them adapt to the low light of the cloud forests.
Resplendent Quetzals are classified as near-threatened due to the loss of habitat but are flourishing in the above mentioned areas, as well as in the Monteverde cloud forest.
One of the more interesting birds found in our area is the Montezuma Oropendola. When you hear its call there will be no doubt about what it is. The sound is a very strange kind of gurgling.
This class of bird is aptly named for the golden (oro) yellow color of its tail feathers and for the pendulum (pendola) type of movement that it makes when courting. It actually swings by its feet, dips down, and then back up again in repeated sequences.
It has chestnut colored body feathers and an orange cone shaped bill. I think that shaped bill gives it an aerodynamic advantage during flight which is evidenced by the smooth sound it makes when flying overhead.
They nest in colonies. The nests look like hanging baskets and hang delicately from very tall tress as protection from predators.
The Montezuma Oropendolas are one of 3 types of Oropendolas found here in Costa Rica. The others are the Chestnut-Headed and the much less common Crested Oropendolas.
The jacanas are a group of wetland birds, which are identifiable by their huge feet and claws which enable them to walk on floating vegetation in the shallow lakes that are their preferred habitat. They are found worldwide within the tropical zone. In Jamaica this bird is also known as the ‘Jesus bird’, as it appears to walk on water.
Much like owls, this species is nocturnal. They prey on large insects and small vertebrates, which they capture in sallies from high perches.
By Paul Gerace
By Paul Gerace
By Paul Gerace
By Paul Gerace