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Collared Aracari 2

Image # 1D2_05065

near Arenal Observatory Lodge

 

Canon 600L/f4 IS, with 2x II Teleconverter

ISO 1250, f/9, 1/1600 second

Manual Exposure

Gitzo 1329/ArcaSwiss B1/Wimberley Sidekick

We stayed a fair distance away from the nest, to avoid disturbing them, or interfering with their behavior, so after getting some shots with the 600 by itself, and with the 1.4x teleconverter, I put on the 2x to get in a little tighter. Even with this, I had to moderately crop this image. What's interesting in this shot is that if you look carefully near the back of its mouth, you'll see what looks like a little cluster of green berries. After the Aracari landed at the nest opening, it had a rapid series of head movements for several seconds, and it wasn't readily apparent what this was for. Once I was able to examine the series of images I had taken on my laptop, I was able to see this clump of food appear at the back of its mouth, get transferred to the tip of its beak, and it then put its entire beak into the nest to feed its chick(s). (You can also see its long, skinny tongue protruding from its mouth as well.)