Photos of some of the colourful residents of the Bocas Del Toro treetops.
With over 900 species of bird crammed into an area roughly the size of Wales, Panama is surely one of the most exciting countries in the world for birdwatching. Whilst many species are exquisitely coloured, they can still be hard to see as they retreat to the shady canopies or forest floor when the heat is at its most intense. During my visit to Bocas Del Toro in March, I met up with nature guide Lucas Dell who kindly showed me around his local jungles on Isla Colon to track down its feathered stars.
Here are just 8 species we commonly saw during our many walks in the jungle - but for more, visit my Panama Gallery.
A male Passerini's Tanager, endemic to the islands of Bocas Del Toro
and recently split from the Cherrie's Tanager which lives on mainland Panama
A Black-Cheeked Woodpecker looks for ants on a palm
A curious Grey-Necked Wood-Rail is lured out into the open, attracted to our tape-recording of its call
A Golden-Collared Manakin at its dawn lek site. It picks a branch where it will buzz its wings and dance for passing females
A Rufous-Tailed Hummingbird perches high up in the penumbra of the canopy
The national bird of Costa Rica, the drab Clay-Coloured Thrush is celebrated for its exquisite song
which not only inspires local poets and musicians but also heralds the start of summertime
A Mealy Amazon, the most common of the island's 6 parrot species
Like a descendent of the dinosaurs, the odd-looking Groove-Billed Ani is actually a type of tropical cuckoo
Thanks for reading! To see more images of Panama's wonderful wildlife, be sure to check out my Panama Gallery or my blogpost about my time with a family of caiman.