Three Red-legged Honeycreepers in an Aerial Chase at Arenal

Two blue males and an olive-green female pursue one another in a fast, layered flight sequence beneath the lodge canopy at Arenal Observatory Lodge & Spa in Costa Rica. The slender decurved bill is adapted to fruit and nectar feeding; adult males combine cobalt-blue breeding plumage with a turquoise crown, black mantle and vivid red legs. The exposure of 1/4000 sec, f/5.6 and ISO 4000 freezes the decisive body position and separates the principal wing and tail feathers while retaining only fine traces of motion at the fastest edges; the photograph was made in natural light without flash.