On 15 February we had a full day around the La Selva site, making an early start with some pre-breakfast birding soon after dawn. Photography was very difficult in the early morning light and, while there were some interesting birds around such as the Chestnut-coloured Woodpecker, it was impossible to get acceptable shots. However, as the sun rose conditions improved and we got good photos of a Cocoa Treecreeper catching insects on a tree close to the accommodation. As the light increased we photographed Long-tailed Tyrant, Buff-throated Saltator, Golden Hooded Tanager and Rufous-tailed Hummingbird.
After a quick breakfast we started walking some of the forest trails of La Selva where we were soon seeing some excellent birds, including Slaty-tailed Trogon, Fasciated Antshrike, Rufous-tailed Jacamar and Broad-billed Motmot. A highlight of the morning session was coming across a Keel-billed Toucan eating fruit high in the treetops. Despite having my lens almost vertical I somehow managed to get some good shots.
We also encountered some interesting mammals along the trails, including a Northern Tamandua (a type of anteater), Hoffmann’s Two-toed Sloth and the pig-like White-lipped Peccary.
The forests around La Selva are quite dense but at times it was possible to see ground-feeding birds in more open spaces, including male and female Great Curassow and Crested Guan.
Toucans are some of the most visually striking birds of the neotropics and towards the end of our morning session we were lucky enough to see a Yellow-throated Toucan perking on a high branch close to one of the trails.
After lunch we were back out on the trails, although the birds weren’t as active as in the morning. But we did see Chestnut-sided Warbler, Tropical Gnatcatcher and Great Currasow.
Photographing birds that live primarily on the forest floor is often difficult but we were lucky enough to get a good shot of a Great Tinamou as it crossed one of the trail paths. On the other hand, the Olive-backed Quail-Dove we saw remained firmly in the undergrowth and we were fortunate to get a few photographs as it rapidly moved away from us..
After dinner we did a night walk and encountered a Common Pauraque resting on one of the paths.
The following morning (16 February) we had a final birding session at La Selva before we set off for Savegre, and had good views of the beautiful Red-capped Manakin, along with Wedge-billed Woodcreeper, Ochre-bellied Flycatcher, Short-billed Pigeon, White-collared Manakin, Passerini’s Tanager and Black-faced Grosbeak.
Two striking animals we saw on the forest floor were the Plumed Basilisk and the Strawberry Poison-dart Frog, which is also known as the Blue-jeans Frog.
