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Project Noah Nature School
Cyanerpes cyaneus
Seen here in the company of the equally colourful emerald tanager, this male red-legged honeycreeper in breeding plumage has black upperparts, bright red legs, mostly bright blue underparts and a turquoise crown. I could not get a shot of the bird in flight but then it shows a yellow vent.
Spotted here at the Arenal Observatory, Costa Rica. Lives in evergreen forest and edges, citrus and cocoa plantations, semi-open areas with scattered trees, open woodlands and clearings. Found up to 1,200 m ASL. Distribution: from southern Mexico, through Central America, southwards to Peru, Bolivia and central Brazil. Also found in Cuba, Trinidad and Tobago.
This bird's long decurved bill allows it to take nectar from flowers. The emerald tanager has its own spotting: http://www.projectnoah.org/spottings/624...
Spotted on Jan 19, 2008
Submitted on Aug 15, 2011
32 Comments (1–25)
Incredible picture Daniele Pralong!
Thanks ceejayalyssa and Ali!
Beautiful !
incredible colors!
Thank you again fatima1! I'm glad you like them.
Thanks fati1, larita1 and lucas1!
Thank you ChristineFisher!
Such lovely colors :)
Thank you Rico Bopanna!
VERY COLOURFUL.AMAZING CAPTURE........
Thank you Sean.
Beautiful Birds Daniele! :)
Thank you bong.ambutong!
Exceptional shot Daniele. odd couple and beautiful indeed.
I knew you were complimenting Heather! No worries;-)
Daniele - I believe you - they are so brilliant that they "look fake: though. It's supposed to be a compliment but, well, there is really no way to say that where it doesn't sound like I'm accusing. I'm not. The opposite in fact. I'm complimenting. I am very impressed with the way the picture turned out. It looks like something from a movie set.
Love the Pixar comment Heather! I promise colors in the pic are natural: you just need to check the melons in the background... Some neotropical birds just have incredible colors...
They seem fake their colors are so bold!!! What a find you made. I love how they are "talking" over lunch. I expect to see these in a Pixar movie because of their bright colors.
Thanks Jaybird!
Nicely done.
Great moment for a picture and great colours.
Thanks Matthijs!
Very nice color.. !
So glad you found him :-)!
Thanks Nicole. They were certainly having a conversation over lunch, as in fighting for pieces of fruit!
Off topic, I've finally found an ID for the little yellow Ethiopian bird: he's a local species of weaver bird. I will update the information shortly. Thanks again for bringing him to my attention!