field notes from 02/08/23

Monteverde cloud forest

· Monteverde Cloud Forest, Costa Rica · Mist and drizzle, 62°F all day, dripping moss everywhere · Fujifilm X-T5, 150-600mm

Flew into San José and drove up the afternoon before. Monteverde in the wet season is exactly what you’d hope — wet, green, full of sound. Hired a local guide at the reserve gate. Resplendent Quetzals were feeding in a fruiting aguacatillo tree about thirty meters up, and we watched a male come in and eat for maybe four minutes. That’s the bird I came for.

Everything was wet by ten minutes in. My rain cover didn’t quite keep the elements off the 150-600 and I was paranoid the rest of the day.

Male quetzal in fruiting tree
Male on aguacatillo. Tail banner visible. Resplendent Quetzal 450mm, 1/2000s, f/8, ISO 800
Quetzal head only, iridescent green
Closer, head-only frame. Iridescence. Resplendent Quetzal 450mm, 1/2000s, f/6.3, ISO 1250
Large purple hummingbird at feeder
Giant purple hummer at the lodge feeders. Violet Sabrewing 250mm, 1/800s, f/5.6, ISO 640
Green hermit hummingbird
Long curved bill. One clean frame. Green Hermit 200mm, 1/1250s, f/6.3, ISO 800
Bellbird in canopy
Called first, ID'd second. Three-wattled Bellbird 300mm, 1/1600s, f/7.1, ISO 640
Black guan in tree
Big dark guan. Surprisingly approachable. Black Guan 400mm, 1/2000s, f/7.1, ISO 400
Trogon on branch
Trogon on the trail. Orange-bellied Trogon 300mm, 1/1000s, f/7.1, ISO 200
Wide view of cloud forest with mist
The classic cloud forest view. Cloud forest interior 23mm, 1/1000s, f/5.6, ISO 160
Small brown toad on leaf
Not the extinct one. Small unidentified toad. Golden Toad lookalike 23mm, 1/320s, f/5.6, ISO 1600
Close view of wild orchid
Tiny orchid on moss. Orchid, epiphyte 150mm, 1/800s, f/8, ISO 800
Coati crossing trail
Group of four cut across the path. White-nosed Coati 500mm, 1/1600s, f/6.3, ISO 800