Black-crested coquette, male fluffed (photo from Wikimedia Commons)

28 January 2026: Day 10, Cloud forest, then heading back to San José— Road Scholar Birding in Northern Costa Rica: Tanagers to Toucans

Seen yesterday at Arenal National Park, the black-crested coquette (Lophornis helenae) flies like a bee to nectar. Colorful males flaunt their beauty by puffing out their feathers, raising their crests and posing with beak open. There are many photos of this behavior, which appears to be territorial, but I cannot find any literature on it.

Laura Wolf captured a series of photos found on Wikimedia Commons.

A video of two males puffed and perched shows the behavior in action. Interestingly they display while perched near each other and don’t chase.

Today we leave Arenal for San Jose. Tomorrow we leave for home.