Costa Rica Top 10 Recap

Before I left for Costa Rica, I posted a lofty list of my 10 most wanted birds. Here's the outcome:

1. Rufous Motmot - Missed it again, but I did see Broad-billed Motmot and Turquoise-browed Motmot which is a wonderful consolation prize.
2. Great Curassow - If I had not come home early, I surely would have seen this.
3. Ornate Hawk-Eagle - It's a tough bird to see and we didn't see one.
4. Golden-browed Chlorophonia - Apparently, this bird is now called Blue-crowned Clorophonia. I was one of two people in my group who saw one fly past us. I got a nice look at it in flight. It's neon!
5. Scarlet Macaw - I'll never forget my first sighting of a pair of Scarlet Macaws flying in the distance. They were everywhere in the Punta Leona area. We saw some nesting as well.
6. King Vulture - Missed it again...
7. Yellow-billed Cotinga - We had an incredibly lucky sighting of one flying over the Rio Tarcoles bridge. Our amazing driver, Vernon, spotted it. Great scope views for all!
8. Mangrove Hummingbird - We took a boat tour of the mangroves and were lucky to see this endemic.
9. Giant Cowbird - It has evaded me once more...
10. White-tipped Sicklebill - My biggest regret is not seeing this bird due to not participating in the second leg of the trip.

All-in-all, not such a bad turnout for a very demanding list.