Trigonium egertonianum (Dragons mouth) Lankester Botanical Gardens #plants #botanicalgarden #orchid #lankesterbotanicalgarden #cartago #costarica #trigonium #trigoniumegertonianum #dragonsmouth #photography

Slipper Orchid Lankester Botanical Gardens Paphiopedilum gratrixanum in bloom #plants #botanicalgarden #orchid #lankesterbotanicalgarden #cartago #costarica

Horse Balls Tabernamontana smithii Evergreen tree in the dogbane family Apocynaceae. It is commonly known by several names, including huevo de gato, huevos de toro, and huevos de caballo. Bursts open and is full of red seeds that the birds like eating #tree #horseballs #fruit #catballs #bullsballs

They Grow Up So Fast! Monarch Caterpillars on Lantana They are resident rather then migratory butterflies in Costa Rica #insects #butterflies #caterpillar #costarica #monarch #lantana #watchingthemgrowup

Brown-throated Three-fingered Sloth Sarapiqui, Costa Rica #sloth #rainforest #sarapiqui #costarica #brownthroatedsloth #slothsofinstagram #threetoedsloth #puravida #wildlife #wildlifephotography #mammalsofinstagram #travelphotography #travel

Groundcover Bosque Caricias, Heredia Costa Rica I thought this was so pretty.

Bosque Caricias Heredia, Costa Rica This is the mountain behind our ranch. A group of us went up yesterday to watch the sunset, I liked how the clouds loosely mimicked the treeline on the mountain. Also, it smelled wonderful, woodsy, and fresh. The clouds were coming in as heavier and heavier mist

Night Walk San Isidro, Heredia, Costa Rica On a night walk, saw frogs + all the nocturnal animals living were active (owls, kinkajou, porcupine, paca, sloth, etc.) Once our group set off looking for critters, with lights flashing, it felt like I was also on display. #costarica #nighttour #headlamp

Monarch Butterfly caterpillar (on Lantana) (Danaus plexippus) I spotted the big caterpillar, then in showing it to Connor, another volunteer, he spotted the tinier iterations or instars. I check on them every morning now. #monarch #caterpillar #lantana #costarica #striped #beautiful #insect #instar

Sloth House Toucan Rescue Ranch San Isidro, Heredia, Costa Rica I'm working here currently, at the Sloth House. Baby + juvenile sloths are housed inside nights + in outside enclosures days. I like the style of this mural. #slothhouse #toucanrescueranch #costarica #mural #internship #heredia

Io Moth Caterpillar (Automeris io) Bright green with white side stripes + defensive urticating/stinging hairs that cause a burning sensation if touched. These caterpillars feed on a variety of plants, including hibiscus. #iomothcaterpillar #insect #caterpillar #iomoth #stinging #costarica

Blue Frosted Banner Butterfly Also called a Stoplight La Paz Waterfalls, Costa Rica #insect #butterfly #bannerbutterfly #photography #wildlife #travel #costarica

Purple-throated Mountain Gem (male) (Lampornis calolaemus) La Paz Waterfalls, Costa Rica #birds #hummingbird #costarica #eastcoastkin #westcoastkin #wildlife

Green and Black Poison Dart Frog Dendrobates auratus These frogs are used for poison darts. Batrachotoxin binds to/irreversibly opens sodium channels on nerve cells preventing them from closing, resulting in paralysis and death. No antidote is known #photography #ambhibians #wildlife #poison #frog

Side Striped Pit Viper Bothriechis lateralis Mountains of Costa Rica + western Panama. I love this blue-aqua color morph! Can exceed 39" (100cm). Arboreal species. Ambush hunters that will strike quickly if disturbed. #CostaRica #pitviper #reptile #snake #sidestripedpitviper #photography #wildlife

Absolutely love this piece, but all his work is lovely

Red-eyed Tree Frog Have 3 eyelids, The translucent striped nictitating membrane is shown. Pattern helps break up their red eyes, making frogs less visible to predators. Membrane acts "goggles" protecting eyes from injury, maintaining crucial moisture. #redeyetreefrog #frog #amphibians #photography

Green Vine Snake Oxybelis fulgidus My favorite snake in Central America, 6 feet/2 meters long + very slender. Arboreal predators of frogs + lizards, mildly venomous to humans. Very 'bendy'. #snake #wildlifephotography #snakelover #snakelovers #green #greenvinesnake #vinesnake #reptiles #photography

Black-eyed Susan I love these, they are common is Costa Rica #flowers #saturday #sun #costarica #vine

Pink Bananas Heredia, Costa Rica Though sweet like a regular banana are they are not normally consumed by humans as they have a lot of big dark seeds which makes eating them cumbersome. Birds love them. #bananas #pinkbananas #costarice #photography #birdfood #pretty #christmascolors #plants

Tabu #Oncilla #Tigrello #NorthernTigerCat Leopardus tigrinus Rare in captivity, with only 2 in Costa Rica. Tabu arrived as an orphaned kitten, likely taken from the wild/kept as a pet. He surprised me by coming close #oncilla #beautiful #wildcat #photography #costarica #smallcats #Leopardustigrinus

Tirimbina Biological Reserve and Rainforest Sarapiqui, Costa Rica The real deal when it comes to rainforest. #ForestFriday #EastCoastKin #Hiking #Nature #Outdoors #Photography #Art #rainforest #jungle #textures #mosquitoes #Forest #travel

Merry Christmas! As close to a christmas tree as I could find in the archives, one of my peacocks, well now my neighbor's peacocks... #birds #peacock #christmas #decorative #blue #EastCoastKin #WestCoastKin #BlueSkyArtShow #alphabetchallenge #WeekYForYearPast #artadventcalendar #day24 #photography

The atmospheric CO2 level has increased by 30% since the early 1970s. This blog post discusses the multifaceted impacts of rising CO2 levels on human health, and cognitive performance: 🌊🧪 ocean2climate.org/2025/12/24/i...

Jaguarundi Herpailurus yagouaroundi Sleek, stealthy as a shadow, fast as a bullet — darts through forests, savannas, and scrublands of Central/South America. Diurnal, agile, loves to climb, jump, swim. 13 vocal sounds. A skilled mid-level predator. #jaguarundi #photography #wildlifephototography

Gray Hawk Portrait Buteo plagiatus Heredia, Costa Rica Handsome, compact raptor. Adults distinctive, all pale gray with thin white bars. Gray Hawks form monogamous pairs, engaging in aerial courtship with dives, calls, then build stick nests. #birds #grayhawk #raptors #birdsofprey #hawksofcostarica

Young American Crocodile Crocodylus acutus Can swim up to 20mph. Males grow up to about ~15', females ~9' The only species other than the saltwater crocodile to thrive in saltwater. #reptiles #americancrocodile #wildlifephotography #naturephotography #photography #crocodylusacutus #wildlife

Commonly known as the Flamingo Flower or Painter's Palette, stately Antherium andraeanum in Bloom I love heart-shaped antheriums, though sometimes they look so unreal, like vinyl, or plastic. I grew up in a house full of them. #antherium #bloom #flower #costarica #gardening #tropics

Orizaba Atlas Moth (Rothschildia orizaba) Sarapiqui, Costa Rica #AlphabetChallenge #WeekYforYearPast #InsectThursday #iPhone #macrophotgraphy #photography #insects #artadventcalendar #day01 #moths #atlasmoth #orizabaatlasmoth #costarica #beautiful #November #sarapiqui

White Honduran Leaf Tent Bats Sarapiqui, Costa Rica #artadventcalendar #day05 #bats #tentbats #honduranwhitebats #costarica #cute

Crested Guan Pair Heredia, Costa Rica #artadventcalendar #day02 #birds #guans #crestedguans #costarica

Common Potoo (Nyctibius jamaicensis) Usually a large ROUND faced bird, this one posed as a stick as I walked by. These are such cool birds! #potoo #pseudoowls #commonpotoo #stick #camouflage #costarica #nyctibiusjamaicensis

Coleus Scutelliroides Such a pretty, festive color pattern #coleus #gardening #limegreen #wine #coleusscutelliriodes #plants #costarica

Geranium in Bloom Heredia, Costa Rica #flower #blossoms #geranium #fuchsia #brightpink #gardening #costarica🇨🇷

Passionflower Heredia, Costa Rica I love how complex these blossoms are. #photography #passionvine #passionflower #costarica #red

This is a collared peccary. I fell in love with this little pig. When I arrived her enclosure was a concrete cellblock, but we turned it into a mini jungle, and daily brought her a bucket of foods we discovered she was fond of in the local forest. #peccary #enrichment #rescue #photography #wildlife

"Lulu" Golden Mandibled Howler Monkey Likely abandoned. She's doing great, growing like a weed. Monday, she moves to another release site that specializes in monkeys and I head to HQ. What a privilege to see her grow & thrive #howlermonkey #photography #releasesite #rescue #rehab #wildlife #costrica

Chestnut Mandibled Toucan, release Birds bolt out of the carrier, so you get ONE shot, it you're lucky. The iPhone on the door recorded the best footage, but not my phone. This toucan was hit by a car, had been addled, but fortunately, not badly injured #photography #toucan #release #wildlife #rehab

Chestnut Mandibled Toucan release They birds bolt out of the carrier, you get ONE shot, it you're lucky. The iPhone on the door recorded the best footage, but not my phone. The toucan was hit by a car and been addled, but fortunately, not badly injured. #photography #toucan #release #wildlife #rehab

Greater Grison (Galictis vittata) Weasel-like carnivore that looks like a small, slim honey badger. Light gray fur with black legs, throat, face, belly. A white stripe wraps from forehead to the back of the neck. #grison #mustelid #sarapiqui #costarica #wildlife #wildlifephotography⁠ #photography

Brown-throated Sloth Costa Rica The most well-known species in the country is active day and night. Primarily vegetarian, with a diet of leaves that is slow to digest, they are known for their slow movements and "smiling" facial expression. #sloth #photography #wildlifephotography #portrait #smile

Wild Scarlet Macaw (Ara macao) Sarapiqui, Costa Rica We have a huge beach almond tree that macaws love. Mainly the Great Green, but also the Scarlet stop by for the almonds. This one stayed around for a bit. #macaw #scarletmacaw #cheeky #birds #photography #wildlife #wildlifephotography #costarica

Preening Wild Chestnut Mandibled Toucan (Ramphastos swainsonii) Sarapiqui, Costa Rica #bird #birdsoftheworld #toucan #chestnutmandibledtoucan #birds_captures #my_best_birds #wild #birdphotography #birdlife #preening #costarica #costaricabirds #birdsofcostarica #planetbirds #bestbirdsWild

Wild Poison Dart Frog (Oophaga pumilio) Tiny, this global top poisonous species, could sit easily on a thumbnail, using poison as a defense against predators + for hunting. Bright colors are a visual warning that they're toxic. #amphibian #frog #reptile #aposematiccoloring #photography #wildlife

Wild Collared Araçari (Pteroglossus torquatus) Costa Rica Aracaris travel in groups of 6-15, which often include other toucan species. They roost communally ~7 can occupy a nest cavity overnight. About half the size of a toucan and flighty. #birds #aracari #collaredaracari #wildlifephotography

White Honduran Bats (Ectophylla alba) They have white fur, found in 6 of 1,300 bat species. They construct "tents" out of leaves they cut with their teeth; then roost inside. Eat exclusively one type of fig. #whitehonduranbats #wildlife #wildlifephotography #tentmakingbats #costarica #photography

Wild Pair of Rainbow Billed Toucans Ramphastos sulfuratus Sarapiqui, Costa Rica #birds #toucans #twosday #costarica #sulphurbreastedtoucan #keelbilledtoucan #rainbowbilledtoucan #pair #ramphastossulfuratus #photography #wildlifephotography #wildlife

Wild Three-toed Sloth in a Tree Sarapiqui, Costa Rica It's rare that a sloth is SO visible, or this low to the ground. 5 minutes later I went back and couldn't find it at all! Much more common experience. #wildlife #animals #sloth #photography #wildlifephotography #costarica #threetoedsloth

Gray-headed Chachalaca Ortalis cinereiceps This is my foot! Large chicken-like bird with a long neck and tail. Overall brown with grayer head; note rufous wing feathers. Usually seen in small flocks crashing clumsily around in trees, lol. #birds #chachalaca #costarica #ortaliscinereiceps #goofy

Wild Baird's Tapir Tapirus bairdii Tapirs are shy, mostly nocturnal, and spend their time in dense forests looking for fruit and leaves. Because they're so quiet and reclusive, seeing one in the wild is rare, even for locals. #tapir #photography #wildlifephotography #wildlife #bairdstapir #lucky