I took a recent trip to Costa Rica and was able to take a day trip Birding. I was able to photograph almost 100 species and probably seen or heard another 30. I didn't achieve this success on my own I had some serious help. First came in the form of a world class birding guide, Pat O'Donnell. you can read his blog and contact him through his blog at http://birdingcraft.com/wordpress/ Pat is one of the most impressive birders I've ever had the pleasure viewing with, not only does he know how to find them, but can also call and phish them out of the dense rainforest. In hindsight, one of the most impressive things about the day was we never stepped one foot into the woods, everything was on the side of the road or off observation decks. So, if your ever in Costa Rica, you definately need to spend a day with Pat.
Second, some of the most impressive shots came from an observation deck designed for bird photography.This was done at the nature pavillion http://www.eco-observatory.com/welcome . Dave the owner, is passionate about developing his property and local ecology to support eco-tourism. You can see more great pictures at his website. This too is a must see in Costa Rica if you have interests in Bird Phothography. Here are some of the shots I liked the most.
1. Bananaquit
2. Black and yellow silky-flycatcher
3. Black Bellied Hummingbird
4. Black billed Nightingale thrush
5. Black-cheeked woodpecker
