Carara National Park - Tarcoles, Costa Rica

[Ely Teehankee]

It is always exciting to be going to a new place. So when Ariel & I got to Tarcoles just about sunrise, we went birding around the area first as the park does not open until 8:00 AM. We got to photograph different kinds of birds at different distances. At the Carara National Park we got a guide to show us around and this is where I saw the Bairds Trogon for the first time.




Canon EOS 1D Mark IV, Canon EF 300mm
f/2.8L IS USM. All pictures with Canon 2X TC II. Gitzo GT3530LS tripod, Wimberley WH200 head. Manual exposure in available light.



Red-lored Parrot (Amazona autumnalis) 13 inches (33 cm)
1/1000 sec., f/5.6, ISO 1600 Distance to subject 46.4 meters




Northern Harrier (Circus cyaneus) 20 inches (51 cm)
1/250 sec., f/5.6, ISO 1600 Distance to subject 25.5 meters




Great-tailed Grackle (Quiscalus mexicanus) Male 17 inches (43 cm) Female 13 (33 cm) Immature.
1/500 sec., f/5.6, ISO 1600 Distance to subject 13.8 meters




Hoffman's Woodpecker (Melanerpes hoffmannii) Endemic from southern Honduras to Costa Rica. 7 inches (18 cm)
1/1600 sec., f/5.6, ISO 1600 Distance to subject 25.5 meters




Black Vulture (Coragyps atratus) 25 inches (64 cm)
1/800 sec., f/5.6, ISO 1600 Distance to subject 25.5 meters




House Wren (Troglodytes aedon) 4 inches (10 cm)
1/800 sec., f/5.6, ISO 1600 Distance to subject 7.37 meters




White Ibis (Endocimus albus) 25 inches (64 cm)
1/800 sec., f/5.6, ISO 1600 Distance to subject 46.4 meters




Great-tailed Grackle (Quiscalus mexicanus) Female 13 (33 cm)
1/4000 sec., f/5.6, ISO 1600 Distance to subject 17.8 meters




Baird's Trogon (Trogon bairdii) 11 inches (28 cm) Endemic to Costa Rica and western Panama
1/320 sec., f/5.6, ISO 1600 Distance to subject 17.8 meters




Baird's Trogon (Trogon bairdii) 11 inches (28 cm) Endemic to Costa Rica and western Panama
1/320 sec., f/5.6, ISO 1600 Distance to subject 17.8 meters




Baird's Trogon (Trogon bairdii) 11 inches (28 cm) Endemic to Costa Rica and western Panama
1/250 sec., f/5.6, ISO 1600 Distance to subject 13.8 meters




Slaty-tailed Trogon (Trogon massena) 12 inches (30 cm)
1/125 sec., f/5.6, ISO 3200 Distance to subject 25.5 meters

[steve pryor]

Hi Ely,
For the Trogons. First thing to look at is the presence of an eye-ring distinguishable from the coloration of the surrounding feathering. These have one, and moreover, it is blue. Therefore, the first three photos are, yes, Baird's Trogon. I presume three shots of the same bird. The bird is a male bird, however, it is not an adult. The whitish undertail of the adult male Baird's is not acquired until later, until that time, the immature birds, such as this one, has the fine transverse rectrical barring on the outside vane of the tail feathers that resembles the undertail of the female.

The last photo of a Trogon is not a Baird's. It seems to me to be Trogon massena. The color of the eye-ring is wrong, and the Baird's never has this sort of shiny appearance of the wing coverts (i.e., the shoulder here). This bird looks to be adult, however a young adult. The full adult would have the eye-ring of a more conspicuous reddishness, and the bill would also be redder.

As for the Raptor. On instinct, I would exclude genus Circus (i.e., a Harrier), and I would exclude genus Accipiter. It appear buteonine to me, possible a juvenile Grey Hawk (Buteo nitidus), but I need more time to look at the possibles.

[Ely Teehankee]

Aug 11, 2012 15:01:02 GMT steve pryor said:

Hi Ely,
For the Trogons. First thing to look at is the presence of an eye-ring distinguishable from the coloration of the surrounding feathering. These have one, and moreover, it is blue. Therefore, the first three photos are, yes, Baird's Trogon. I presume three shots of the same bird. The bird is a male bird, however, it is not an adult. The whitish undertail of the adult male Baird's is not acquired until later, until that time, the immature birds, such as this one, has the fine transverse rectrical barring on the outside vane of the tail feathers that resembles the undertail of the female.

The last photo of a Trogon is not a Baird's. It seems to me to be Trogon massena. The color of the eye-ring is wrong, and the Baird's never has this sort of shiny appearance of the wing coverts (i.e., the shoulder here). This bird looks to be adult, however a young adult. The full adult would have the eye-ring of a more conspicuous reddishness, and the bill would also be redder.

As for the Raptor. On instinct, I would exclude genus Circus (i.e., a Harrier), and I would exclude genus Accipiter. It appear buteonine to me, possible a juvenile Grey Hawk (Buteo nitidus), but I need more time to look at the possibles.

I was wrong in thinking that the 4 pictures of the Trogon were of the same specie. Now that you have identified the last one to be different from the first three, it clears the mystery. Thank you Steve for identifying the birds for me. I will wait for your confirmation on the raptor.

[Ariel Matias]

I think the last image is a Slaty Trogon. Another great and high-quality pictures you have here. We truly had a great time in this area.

[Ely Teehankee]

Aug 16, 2012 0:06:40 GMT Ariel Matias said:

I think the last image is a Slaty Trogon. Another great and high-quality pictures you have here. We truly had a great time in this area.

Thank you Ariel. This place will always be remembered for the Tarcoles river with the birds and crocodile.

[Ramon Quisumbing]

Excellent harvest, Ely!

[Ely Teehankee]

Sept 3, 2012 22:59:29 GMT Ramon Quisumbing said:

Excellent harvest, Ely!

Thank you Ramon. It was our first day at Tarcoles so we went around the area looking for the birds around the vicinity while waiting for the park to open at 8:00 AM.

[Juan Manuel C. Del Prado]

Enviable photography, Ely.

[Ely Teehankee]

Sept 12, 2012 9:06:29 GMT Juan Manuel C. Del Prado said:

Enviable photography, Ely.

Thank you Poch. The pictures are shared for everyone to enjoy the beauty of nature that we sometimes take for granted as if it will always be there. We should always thank God for all his beautiful creations.