Male Resplendent Quetzal Beginning His Nest Departure

The male leans head-first from the cavity, green shoulders and crimson belly emerging as he commits to flight at Paraiso Quetzal Lodge area 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. This nesting pair was caring for two chicks that had hatched two days before the visit, photographed from a fixed viewing platform about 30 metres away. The exposure of 1/2500 sec, f/4 and ISO 3200 holds the flight posture and major feather groups sharply while leaving restrained motion in the quickest wing tips; the photograph was made in natural light without flash.