Resplendent Rainforests of Costa Rica

[Frank Fremerey]

Wow again. Yes. "Floored" is the word

[armando_m]

Wow again. Yes. "Floored" is the word

yes WOW again

[Ann]

Thank you all for your comments about the snakes: definitely not creatures that one would want to get as close to as we did — unless there are very skillful snake-handlers with you!

The chief credit for my having such amazing opportunities to see such a huge variety of different creatures in such photogenic environments in less than a couple of weeks has to be due to the detailed and careful planning that Juan put into the expedition and I do credit the equipment which I was lucky enough to be using for the results too.

Monkey Business

The same farm as the one where I photographed the Macaws has a very active troupe of Capuchin Monkeys hanging-out (literally!) in their garden.
The owners of the farm do put our food for the Capuchins so they stay around and, because they are used to humans, they are not in the least timid so I was able to walk around among them and get close-up portraits of their very expressive faces.



























Costa Rica has four species of Monkeys of which I was able to photograph two: the Capuchins and the tiny, very pretty but also very agile and fast-moving Squirrel Monkeys.

The Black Howlers are supposed to be the most numerous of the monkeys but. although we searched for them in the right terrain, we never saw them but I did hear them in the distance. The Spider Monkeys evaded me entirely.

[Øivind Tøien]

Ann, the life you have captured in this series continues to amaze me! Great behavioral study in this last series, thanks for posting all of these.
I also notice that your 300mm f/4 PF is doing very well with a 1.4x converter. 

[Anthony]

Almost human.  Wonderful.

[armando_m]

LOL, the capuchin sticking out it's tong

Another wonderful series

Thanks for sharing it

[Chrisar]

After the worst journey i have yet to endure (as detailed in my “Gods Driven Crazy” thread!), I finally caught up with my friends on what would prove to be an amazingly exciting adventure and a truly wonderful experience over the next couple of weeks visiting a number of private estates, gardens, farms and Lodges in the cloud- and rain-forests in different parts of Costa Rica where I hoped to find and photograph the elusive Resplendent Quetzal or even a Jaguar.

The Toucans were out in force to greet me when I finally reached the very remote Laguna del Lagarto Lodge in the forests in the far north of Costa Rica just five miles short of the Nicaraguan border.

The Lodge (originally a private house which was later extended with several very comfortable guest rooms) is reached after a long drive through the rain on a dirt-road through pine-apple fields and protected wild forest.

The Lodge stands in its own extensive gardens and forest besides a river. Feeder stations have been set-up directly in front of its covered verandas so that even when it rains, (after all, these are Rain-Forests!) you can photograph in comfort and stay dry. The natural background is the soft green foliage of the forest and the staff keeps the feeders fully supplied with fruit so animals and birds of myriad species arrive in an endless stream to enjoy this bounty.

Two different kinds of Toucan (Keel-billed and Black-mandibled Toucans) and their boisterous and rather aggressive cousins, the Aracari, are among them:

Your photos of this toucan are just fantastic ! Sharpness of the details and colours in particular.

[Mongo]

Wow - Ann. Mongo has just had a most wonderful trip vicariously through your images which are filled with variety and stunning colour. Than you for sharing them with us.

[Ann]

Thank you all for your very kind comments.

Øivind remarked on the fact that I was using a TC-14 iii on the 300 mm PF.
That combination does work extremely well and provides a very useful lens for quick hand-held use.
I even use a TC-20 iii on occasion to provide a very small fast-focussing 600 mm lens. If I stop-down by just a single stop, the quality is remarkably good and it can make the differenece between getting the shot or not. The next series was shot with the the 300mm + TC-14 combination.

Squirrel Monkeys:



The tiny Grey Crowned Central American Squirrel Monkey (Saimiri oerstedii citrinellus) is found only in a very small area on the southern Pacific coast   of Costa Rica around Manuel Antonio. Because of de-forestation, and also the pet trade, these beautiful little animals were headed towards extinction and were listed as being "Critically Endangered".
1,600 acres in the area are now a protected National Park; local residents have been planting trees extensively; and the monkeys are slowly recovering in number.

Juan and I arrived in Manuel Antonio in the evening and the next photograph shows one of these little Titi monkeys (as they are known locally) on the utility wires in the middle of the town on its way to it sleeping perch in the neighbouring forest.



The following morning we set off to explore roads less travelled and had the extraordinary good fortune to spot a large troop of these very small monkeys (only about 25 cms between nose and base of tail but with a very long non-prehensile tail) moving through the forest canopy in search of breakfast. They are omnivorous so will eat fruits and small animals.

We leapt out of the car and noticed that the Squirrel Monkeys were moving through the forest parallel with the road but crossing the road in a certain place.  I anchored myself under that spot and was able to get a number of photographs although the high contrast of the bright sky, the sun shining through the leaves in patches and the deep shade of the forest made exposure rather tricky.



Locking focus on them as they leapt from branch to branch was also quite a challenge.



Their long fluffy tails cannot grip onto anything but do  provide a useful balance and rudder as they leap though the canopy at speed.








A baby who was trying to keep up!

[Ann]

Fine Feathers

Some more examples of just a few of the more unusual and exotically coloured and feathered birds in Costa Rica. Each of the Lodges where we stayed has recorded nearly 800 different species in their own grounds.

The first set shows some Great Curassows.
These once quite commonly seen birds, with exotic hair-dos, have become extremely scarce and are now seen only in protected forests because, unfortunately for them, they are apparently very good to eat!











The next ones are the very elegant Longtailed Silky Flycatchers:









Then there are the Crested Guans. (This is the male, the female is brown and less dramatic.)





The striking Montezuma Oropendola:



The next two are a pair of Red-headed Barbets.
These striking birds are rarely seen but we found these two at feeding station in the garden of a small Lodge up in the Talamanca Cordillera.





In deep, heavy shade on a very wet afternoon we saw this nesting pair of Boat-billed Herons on the far side of a large pond.
The lighting was terrible (ISO 25,600!) and there was no way to get closer to them so this is a clipped section but with their large broad bills and plumed-crests they are such an unusual kind of heron that I have included their photograph in this collection:

[Frank Fremerey]

wow again. I wish I will be as vigorous as you are once I reach your age. what colors, what details, what biodiversity, what a pleasure to enjoy your work!

[Ann]

Frank:

Thank you. The biodiversity in Costa Rica; and the frequency of remarkable sightings too; was absolutely astonishing but it certainly helped that I was being taken to truly exceptional places by someone who knows where the most rewarding places are.

Some months ago you asked if we were going to Guanacaste.

We didn't visit that Province itself during this trip but stayed for several days besides the Arenal Volcano which is very close to the eastern boundary of Guanacaste.

The Observatory Lodge there is one of the places which has recorded nearly 800 different species of birds in their own grounds and it is where I photographed those Crested Guams. We also found three-toed Sloths in that area and lots of Hummingbirds too.

[Akira]

I'm looking at these birds with nothing but awe.  The nature is indeed a talented artist.  Thank you for these fantastic additions!

[Ann]

More Exotic Feathers

The Motmots are part of the Bee-eater family and like them, excavate tunnels in muddy banks and cliffs in which to build their nests. Six of the nine species of Motmots live in Costa Rica and I found three of them. They all have these exotic tails with a bare wirey-section which finishes in a paddle-shaped racquet.



Blue-headed Motmot.
I found him in the same garden where I saw the Barbets. We were literally in the Cloud Forests and were photographing in a wet swirling fog which did provide perfect diffused lighting.



Broad-billed Motmots photographed in the northeastern lowland forest on the Nicaraguan border.



Turquoise-browed Motmot in the Oak forests of the Central Valley.

In addition to the Macaws, Costa Rica also has several varieties of small green Parots:



Orange-chinned Parakeet



Brown-hooded Parrot

Among the Flycatchers are these:



Boat-billed Flycatcher



Great Kiskadee

Why stick your head inside a flower and get pollen all over your face when you can literally nip it in the bud to get the nectar?



Slaty Flowerpiercer

Some Woodpeckers:



Cinnamon Woodpecker



Acorn Woodpecker



Black-cheeked Woodpecker



Grey-cowled Wood Rail



Crested Caracara: A raptor in the Falcon family

[Frank Fremerey]

800 bird species on premesis? wow!