Turquoise-browed Motmot Pair at a Tárcoles Nest Bank

Two Turquoise-browed Motmots meet beside a burrow in the earthen riverbank, turquoise wings and racket tails crossing in mid-air at Tárcoles River in Costa Rica. The turquoise crown stripe, blue-green wings and two racket-tipped tail feathers identify the Turquoise-browed Motmot of Costa Rica's Pacific dry country. The exposure of 1/4000 sec, f/5.6 and ISO 1250 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.