A youthful Green Heron (Butorides striatus) perches on the wood of a dock along the Tortuguero River. It’s just beginning to lose its stripes, and to show the rusty red neck and shoulder feathers that distinguish adults of the species. A few mature green feathers are growing in on its wings too.
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Tricolored Herons (Egretta tricolor) often frequent marshy habitats, slowly stalking prey like small fishes. This one was lurking about in the tall grasses around the lagoon near Carate.
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Yellow-crowned Night-herons (Nyctanassa violacea) are common all along Costa Rica’s coasts, both Caribbean and Pacific. They like to roost during the day near streams and mangroves. This one was photographed at the Tortuguero River in 2004.
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With the discipline of a yogi, this Bare-throated Tiger Heron holds its pose and warms its wings in the evening sunlight near Tortuguero.
Bare-throated Tiger Herons (Tigrisoma mexicanum) are distinguished from other tiger herons by the yellow skin below their long beaks. These striped birds are common in the low wetlands, marshes, and mangroves, of Costa Rica, especially on the Caribbean side.
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Snowy Egrets (Egretta thula) can be distinguished from other white herons in Costa Rica by their slender black bill. They also have black legs with yellow feet, which aren’t visible on this specimen that I found wading in the shadows one morning in Torguguero.
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A young great blue heron wades in the shallow water where the Madrigal River meets the Pacific.
This is one of my all-time favorite photos from Costa Rica. In 2006, I came upon this elegant young great blue heron fishing at the mouth of the Madrigal River in the Corcovada National Park. I watched and photographed it for a long time until it eventually took flight over the waters of the Pacific shore.
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