Arenal volcano and Lake Arenal, Costa Rica (photo from Wikimedia Commons)

27 January 2026: Day 9, Arenal Sky Walk— Road Scholar Birding in Northern Costa Rica: Tanagers to Toucans

Today we’ll be eye-to-eye with birds, high in the forest canopy on a sky walk at the Arenal hanging bridges. Some of the bridges are wide, some are narrow, but all of them — thankfully! — have high sides. I will avoid looking down.

Arenal Hanging Bridge (photo from Wikimedia Commons)

Arenal hanging bridge, side view (photo from Wikimedia Commons)

Arenal hanging bridges with people on them (left and right photos from Wikimedia Commons)

Canopy sky walks are the best way to see birds who never come down from the treetops. Today’s highlights include these potential Life Birds, some of them on the ground.

Streak-crowned Antvireo (Dysithamnus striaticeps) Feeds singly or in pairs on insects and spiders. Typically 5 to 25 feet above the ground. It also hover-gleans.

Streak-crowned antvireo (photo from Wikimedia Commons)

Slaty Antwren (Myrmotherula schisticolor) Named for the slate-colored male, female below is rusty. Forages in dense vegetation 3 to 20 feet above the ground, will go as high as 40 feet, will also follow prey dropping to the forest floor. It must be hard to photograph this bird because so few photos exist.

Slaty antwren (photo by Andy Reago & Chrissy McClarren via Flickr Creative Commons license)

White-fronted Nunbird (Monasa morphoeus) This bird has a wide range and 7 subspecies. Wikipedia says (paraphrased): “Diet is mostly insects and other arthropods, small lizards and amphibians, some fruits. Follows troops of monkeys, army ant swarms, and flocks of caciques and oropendolas to capture prey dislodged by them.”

White-fronted nunbird (photo from Wikimedia Commons)

Keel-billed Motmot (Electron carinatum) is listed as Vulnerable to extinction at IUCN and is rare in Costa Rica. Two cool things about him: (1) His genus name is Electron. (2) He has a unique voice. Read more at the links above.

Keel-billed motmot (photo from Wikimedia Commons)

 Purplish-backed Quail-Dove (Zentrygon lawrencii) This Life Bird should be easy to find on the ground if he’s not a skulker. He lives only in Costa Rica and Panama and is abundant though declining with a 20,000 to 49,999 population. Listen to his call. I’m surprised I haven’t seen or heard him on prior trips.

Purplish-backed quail-dove (photo from Wikimedia Commons)

p.s. at 5:00am: Though this is the dry season it’s been pouring off and on since 3:00am. We’re going to get wet today.