Bulletin 262 - Costa Rica 2016 #6 - owls, motmots, prong-billed barbet

As you know, owls are probably my favorite subjects to photograph. Of course, being nocturnal makes them even more difficult. But my wonderful guide got me 3 new owls and a fourth that I already had, but it is always nice to see them. We only missed one of the 5 we tried for.

The one I already had was the 15" Black-and-white Owl (Strix nigrolineata). This one was found roosting in a tree in the daytime.Here he is with his head down and standing on 1 foot.

Black-and-white Owl

The first night, we were able to call up the 10" Bare-shanked Screech Owl (Megascops clarkii). This brown owl is described in the book as having an indistinct facial disk. He first appeared so close that this was all I could get in the photo. Well you can see why the face is indistinct, as the feather extend beyond the edge of his head.

Bare-shanked Screech Owl

So I backed up a little bit until I could get most of the bird in the photo. Cool bird!

Bare-shanked Screech Owl

The next 2 owls were real prizes. The 15" Striped Owl (Pseudoscops clamator) perches regularly on the wires along the highway beside the beach resort of Jaco on the Pacific coast. However, our spotlights were too dim to allow auto focus on my camera, so I had to resort to manual focus and hope and pray that it would work. I am not used to manual focus and my old eyes aren't too good. I took a couple of photos and we moved closer for more. I didn't think I would get anything worthwhile, but was amazed when I looked at them in my hotel room that night. This is a brown streaked owl with ear tufts. He is looking down, so the tufts don't show.

Striped Owl

The last owl was the most difficult, the guide told me. We shouldn't expect to see it. It is 6" Central American Pygmy-Owl (Glaucidium griseiceps). We stopped on a road where it had been seen previously. Pygmy-Owls are diurnal and can be called in during the day. The guide book says it is uncommon. The guide played the tape once, and the bird responded immediately overhead! He was perhaps 50 feet up in the tree and wouldn't come down, but did move around in the tree and I got this great clear photo. The guide said I was really lucky!

Central American Pygmy-Owl

There are 14 motmots in the family. I got 1 new one and improved photos of 2 others, so now have 9 of the 14.

The 7" Tody Motmot (Hylomanes momotula) is the smallest motmot and lacks the raquet tail.  It has a black and white striped face. I had photographed him in Guatemala, but this was better.

Tody Motmot

The 13" Turquoise-browed Motmot (Eumomota superciliosa) had also been photographed in Guatemala, but they were very common in NW Costa Rica and this one flew in while photographing some other birds. He has the longest bare shaft on the tail of any of the motmots.

Turquoise-browed Motmot

The new one was the 13" Keel-billed Motmot (Electron carinatum).  He is green with rufus underparts and blue over the eye. Notice he is missing one of his raquets.

Keel-billed Motmot

The last bird today is the 7" Prong-billed Barbet (Semnornis frantzii). Barbets are closely related to toucans. But there is another family of just 2 species, the toucan-barbets of which this is one. This bird is endemic to Costa Rica and western Panama. It is ochraceous in color, with a red eye and stout bill.

Prong-billed Barbet

Happy birding and photography,

David McDonald
dkmmdpa@gmail.com

photos copyright 2006 - 2016 David McDonald

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Bulletin 259 - Costa Rica #4 - Raptors and other large birds

I had been surprised that I had seen so few raptors on previous tropical trips, but this trip made up for it.

The adult 22" Common Black-Hawk (Buteogallus anthracinus) is an all black robust hawkwith a white band on the tail.

Common Black-Hawk - adult

The juvenile is brown and the breast heavily streaked.

Common Black-Hawk - juvenile

His opposite is the 23" White Hawk (Pseudaster albicollis). He is all white except a few black stripes on his wings and tail

White Hawk

The 15" Roadside Hawk (Rupornis magnirostris) is a very common hawk in the Americas with a range from Mexico to Argentina. I was surprised that I had not a photo previously except a very distant one. This trip there was one beside the road and I took photos out the window of the car. The bird is IDed by the gray head and brown streaked chest and belly.

Roadside Hawk

The tiny 9" Pearl Kite (Gampsonyx swainsonii) has been expanding its range from Amazonia recently and was first reported in Costa Rica in the mid 1990s and now is into Nicaragua.

Pearl Kite

This 16" Yellow-headed Caracara (Milvago chimachima) was sitting in the road and just flew up to a fence post beside the road. I took this photo out the window and just got a head shot as I was so close. 

Yellow-headed Caracara

I got 1 new toucan on this trip, the 17" Fiery-billed Aracari (Pteroglossus frantzii). The red and black bill IDs this bird.

Fiery-billed Aracari

A pair of 22" Black-mandibled Toucans (Ramphastos ambiguus) were in a tree and decided to get into a disagreement and locked bills in the dispute.

Black-mandibled Toucans

And another photo

Black-mandibled Toucans

I got better photos of 2 cracids this trip as well. The 24" Black Guan (Chamaepetes unicolor) came to the feeder at the first lodge.

Black Guan

The 20" Gray-headed Chachalaca (Ortalis cinereiceps) also showed up at a feeder at another location. It is brown with a gray head and neck and rufous on the wings.

Gray-headed Chachalaca

Happy birding and photography,

David McDonald
dkmmdpa@gmail.com

photos copyright 2006 - 2016 David McDonald


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Bulletin 227 - Costa Rica #7 - Trogons, Toucans and others

Trogons are a small (43 species) worldwide tropical family of colorful medium sized forest birds. 2 species occur in Southeast Arizona. 10 species can be found in Costa Rica.

The male Black-throated Trogon (Trogon rufus) is a 9" green headed bird with a black throat and yellow breast and bill. The long square tail is finely barred black and white. The eye ring is blue. The female (not shown) is duller with a brown head.

Black-throated Trogon - male

The 10" male Collared Trogon (Trogon collaris) has a dark green head, the belly is red and it has a white collar.

Collared Trogon - male

The female has a brown head and back.

Collared Trogon - female

The 12" male Slaty-tailed Trogon (Trogon massena) has a green head, red belly, orange-red bill and plain gray tail.

Slaty-tailed Trogon - male

Quetzals are 6 members of the trogon family with more elaborate plumages. The   male Resplendant Quetzal (Pharomacrus mocinno) is a 14" trogon with 4 very long tail feathers (up to 30"). This bird is considered by many to be the most beautiful bird in the world. It was sacred to the Mayans and is the national bird of Guatemala and their currency is called the quetzal. It has a green head and back, bushy crest, red belly and yellow beak. Notice also the green feathers that cover the wings.

Resplendant Quetzal - male

And a frontal view.

Resplendant Quetzal - male

The female has a gray belly and lacks the crest and long tail feathers.

Resplendant Quetzal - female

The toucans are a neotropical family of birds familiar to everyone because of their large colorful beaks. The sexes are similar. The Black-mandibled Toucan (Ramphastos ambiguus) is a 22" toucan with bicolored bill (yellow and dark brown). This bird flew to this bare tree at dawn each morning at La Selva, and played the role of a rooster to get everyone up.

Black-mandibled Toucan

Aracaris are smaller toucans with more pointed bills. the 16" Collared Aracari (Pteroglossus torquatus) has a whitish upper mandible, yellow belly and a band across it.

Collared Aracari

Toucanets, as the name suggests, are smaller toucans. The 12" Blue-throated Toucanet (Aulacorhynchus caeruleogularis) is green bodied with a brown head, a bicolored bill and blue throat.

Blue-throated Toucanet

Jacamars are another small (18 species) neotropical family of birds. They have long pointed bills and look like large hummingbirds. The 9" Rufous-tailed Jacamar (Galbula ruficauda) is green with rufous belly and undertail and a very long black bill. This is a male. The female is duller with a beige rather than white throat.

Rufous-tailed Jacamar - male

Puffbirds are another small (37 species) neotropical family of mostly black and white or brown and white birds. They eat insects and small reptiles or amphibians. The 6" Pied Puffbird (Notharcus tectus) has a black head and body, white underparts and a black band across the breast. These birds sit quietly are are very difficult to find.

Pied Puffbird

Happy birding and photography,

David McDonald
dkmmdpa@gmail.com

photos copyright 2006 - 2015 David McDonald

To have these trip reports sent to your email, please email me at the above address and ask to subscribe.