Front-facing Male Resplendent Quetzal in San Gerardo

The quetzal faces the camera from his branch, yellow bill centred beneath the crested green head while long coverts fall out of frame at San Gerardo de Dota valley in Costa Rica. The Resplendent Quetzal is the national bird of Guatemala and an enduring Mesoamerican cultural emblem; adult males carry elongated upper-tail coverts over the true tail. The exposure of 1/20 sec, f/5.6 and ISO 640 renders the stationary bird and fine plumage detail sharply against the softly separated background; the photograph was made in natural light without flash.