Wild Journal
Explore the rich avian and animal life of Costa Rica through the “Wild Journal”, your informative source about birds and animals in Costa Rica. Many of the species we feature can be observed directly on our property, which alone boasts over 300 identified bird species.
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Yellow-throated Euphonia
Yellow-throated Euphonia: Tiny finch of tropical lowlands and foothills, mainly in humid areas. Found in forest canopy, adjacent clearings with trees, gardens.


Purple-throated Mountain-gem
Purple-throated Mountain-gem: Stunning medium-sized hummingbird. Male shows bright purple throat, blue crown, and white line behind eye.


Swainson’s Thrush
Uniform medium-brown above from head to tail. Distinctive pale, buffy eyering and face separates Swainson’s from other thrushes. Spots are concentrated and clearly defined on upper breast, becoming smudgier towards belly. Breeds in the boreal forest.


Red-lored Amazon
Fairly large, bright green parrot of humid tropical lowlands. Fairly common. Found in forest, edge, and semiopen areas with scattered tall trees and forest patches.


White-collared Manakin
Chunky little bird of humid forest edge and second-growth thickets (especially with Heliconia plants) in tropical lowlands.


Silver-throated Tanager
Small tanager, overall lemon-yellow but not super bright; usually looks a bit dirty. Distinctive silvery throat; also note green edges on wing feathers and black streaks on back. Sexes similar; females a bit duller than males.


Olive-throated Parakeet
Parakeets are fairly small parrots, usually with a relatively long and somewhat pointed tail. This species is fairly common in tropical lowlands, mainly in semi-open areas with scattered trees, woodland, locally in towns and suburban areas.


Northern Rough-winged Swallow
Plainest swallow in North America. Plain brown above with indistinct brown wash across throat and breast. Wings are relatively broad; tail is short and square (or slightly notched). Juveniles have rusty wingbars.


Groove-billed Ani
Anis are bizarre, coal-black cuckoos with long floppy tails and unique, curiously tall, flattened bills. Groove-billed occurs in a variety of open and semi-open habitats in tropical lowlands and foothills, typically staying low in shrubs and grasses.


Masked Tityra
Handsome, mostly silvery gray bird of tropical and subtropical forest and adjacent semi-open areas with taller trees.


Black Vulture
Large raptor. Uniform black with silvery patches on undersides of wingtips. In flight, broad, rounded wings with distinct “fingers” are held flat like a board.


White-fronted Nunbird
Fairly large gray bird with flat head and upright posture. Distinctive white forehead and chin and bright red bill. Sexes alike. Found in forested areas, often perched on an open branch at middle or upper levels; also can be seen at forest edges or clearings.


Chestnut-headed Oropendola
Rather large, dark, yellow-tailed bird of humid evergreen forest and edge in tropical lowlands. Where present, colonies of large pendulous nests adorn tall trees. Often in flocks, usually in forest canopy at fruiting trees.


Red-legged Honeycreeper
Small, warbler-like tanager of tropical lowlands. Favors forest edge, woodland, and semi-open areas with taller trees. Often occurs in small groups, sometimes larger flocks, usually in the canopy of flowering trees, where it probes for nectar with its long bill.


Orange-chinned Parakeet
Small, fast-flying parakeet of humid lowlands; restricted to the Pacific slope in the northern parts of its range. Favors forest patches and fairly open country with hedges and tall trees, including towns and villages.


Crimson-fronted Parakeet
Mostly green with long, pointed tail. Red forehead. In flight, look for red patch under shoulder. Almost always in small flocks, which feed inconspicuously on fruit in gardens, forest edges, and second growth.


Mealy Amazon
Large, bright green parrot of humid evergreen forest in tropical lowlands. Uncommon. Found in rainforest and adjacent clearings, not in open habitats.


White-fronted Amazon
Fairly small parrot of tropical lowlands. Found in semi-open areas with scattered trees, woodland, and forest patches, in both drier and more humid areas.
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