Perfect Perches, Part IX

A Quest for Resplendent, Scintillant, Magnificent Perches               17 July 2013

Resplendant Quetzal, male, near the nest tree

The first picture here represents a dream come true all by itself.  Not only is this an iconic bird of tropical cloud forest, but Costa Rica's Resplendant Quetzal is biologically distinct as a population. As is true for this entire blog, every picture featured in a single post is from a single day in nature. The 17th of July in 2013 was incredibly generous, as is the nature of tropical cloud forest and the habitats protected by the Savegre Hotel, Natural Reserve and Spa of San Gerardo de Dota, Costa Rica.

Resplendant - very impressive in richness of color and ornament; stunning, attractive -- as in Resplendant Quetzal.

Scintillant - Of sparks, brilliant or tiny flashes; sparkling -- as in Scintillant Hummingbird.

Magnificent - Striking, complexly beautiful, awesome and breathtaking, extravagant, striking -- as in Magnificent Hummingbird.

All of these species have been aptly named.  The sparkling iridescence and endless depth of color, the deep and mysterious habitat realms of the cloud forest, make these birds biological treasures. These birds convey the essence of deep fog, lush green foliage, and crystal clear, clean, cold cascades fed by mountain springs and reliable rains.  These birds give a true sense of place.

Some places on Earth are richer than others in biological diversity.  In this place, the wealth of diversity is astounding, mind-blowing, riveting.  To see such diversity amid this beauty of landscape is to feel small, grateful, humble, and wonderfully alive.

Every day brings some rain in the cloud forest.  It is an ecosystem rich in epiphytes, diverse communities of mosses, and lianas.  The rain brings abundance, and life seems to network through all kinds of structural levels.  No longer can we apply the simplicity of thought in ground layer, shrub layer, subcanopy and canopy.  There are vastly more structural levels to the forest, with layers moving in all directions, dense vegetative volume creating opportunities for insects, birds, mammals, reptiles, fungi, and flowering plants from the ground to the supercanopy trees.

Birds occupy a baffling number of niches, and examples of competition, co-evolution, and adaptive rule-bending can be seen running along nearly vertical trunks, rippng open the nectar tubes of flowers, and fluttering out into the misty, open spaces.  A moment through the lens, I find myself focused on a single, small bird. A tiny mite crawls out onto the bill of the Scintillant Hummingbird, Costa Rica's smallest hummingbird. The tiny arthropod reaches the end of the beak, turns around, and crawls all the way back to the warmth and security of feathered skin.  The bird rouses, flies off for a second, and returns to the same perch.  I recompose and make an image...

The day has been spent in search of exceptional bird photographs, images clean and sharp, interesting in line, dazzling in color.  I have sought to capture that mysterious sense of place, to blend the lush cloud forest mystique with the iridescence of feather.  While I may have succeeded to some degree, there is nothing that compares to being there, senses fully involved in the fresh, clean, humid smells, the great height of the trees, the deepest of greens, and the gigantic, sweeping expanses of forest veiled in mysterious cloud.

To visit an eco-lodge in Costa Rica is to support habitat protection and wildlife conservation.  It is the best use of travel money, immersing yourself in the life-changing beauty of a new place while enjoying the double duty of the dollars as they directly support land trust and positive reward for preservation.  In short, the money is well spent as it empowers the people who care most about keeping Costa Rica's wild places and spaces intact and often vastly wild!

All images were made with a Canon 7D and Canon 300mm f4 L IS lens.  All images were made on a Gitzo tripod with Gitzo ball head.  I used a digital cable release for the images to reduce camera shake.  Working in a cloud forest means making the most of low light.  A tripod and cable release are essential gear.