Chris saves the day: Royal Flycatcher

The Royal flycatcher was one of our target birds.  It’s a rare bird and very rarely the male displays this amazing crest. Although featured in the day’s itinerary, we really had a little chance of seeing it. We went out with a guide to Carara National Park, where it is occasionally seen.

While walking through the park, we stopped to look over a stream and Chris saw a bird fly in the distance with a flash of color about 250 feet away.  With binoculars our guide identified it as the royal flycatcher and we watched as two of them gathered material from an old nest to make a new nest.  It’s a bit far for an excellent photo and Mike tried adjusting various camera setting until he found one that would work in the distance and light.  The bird rested on a branch, but Mike just couldn’t find the bird in the camera, so he passed it to Chris who had eyes on it through her binoculars and she took several shots. Not bad for her first use of the new camera.

One even shows a bit of the crest that he raises to impress a mate.