a bird in hand
A bird in the hand is said to be worth two in the bush. We’d add that a lot depends on the bird in question. As we’ve entered the final month of our two-and-a-half years in Costa Rica, D has grown increasingly more intent on carving out opportunities to go birding in the hopes of reaching his target of 700 species in Costa Rica. Last week, browsing eBird hotspots for chance reports of his remaining likely targets, D came across close-up photos of the black hawk-eagle — a spectacular raptor that, while not uncommon, is usually only ever seen high in flight. The photos had been taken at a nest discovered not far from Monteverde and were almost too good to believe. Use one of his few remaining birding opportunities to try to find some of the species that have eluded us or get up in the middle of the night to drive three hours to Monteverde for a chance to see a nesting hawk-eagle? D considered the choice for a split-second, then set his alarm. This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity: a bird (almost) in hand that would be worth dozens in the bush!