pair (female - left, male - right) "Martín Pescador Amazónico" Chloroceryle amazona Lago Arenal, Costa Rica Feb. 25, 2011 Wouldn't you know it, I'd have to travel all the way to Costa Rica to get a good photo of a kingfisher! It was great to get a pair! The Amazons are larger than the Belted Kingfishers that we have in east Tennessee.
"Caracara Cargahuesos" (bone-carrier Caracara) Polyborus plancus La Fortuna, Costa Rica Feb. 25, 2011 This is a common bird in Costa Rica. I had seen them in Texas and Florida too.
adult male "Zopilote de Mar" (sea vulture) Fregata magnificens Quepos, Costa Rica Feb. 28, 2011 Magnificent Frigate birds are the "pirates of the tropical skies", they will often steal fish from other sea birds. We got a laugh when our Costa Rican guide, Willy, told us a man on one of his earlier trips thought he called this a "Freakin' Bird" with his thick Spanish accent! :) It is too dark to see the red pouch under this bird's neck. Males enflate the pouch during mating displays to attract a female.
