Costa Rica National Bird – Clay Colored Robin Thrush

One would think that in a land in which birds are so brightly colored you can’t believe they are real, the National Bird would be a magnificent, multi-colored Great Green Macaw. Not in Costa Rica, the National Bird here is a Clay Colored Robin Thrush. They do have a beautiful song and they fly gracefully but are about as common as a pigeon.

I believe that this image shows how the Costa Ricans could think this bird majestic enough to choose it as their National Bird. It is ready for its debut on a colon bill (Official Money of Costa Rica).

We found this Robins nest in a lower branch of yellow bamboo. It had two eggs in it when we first came upon it and then only this one left by the time we got the camera to it. We are unsure why the mother Robin put this nest in such a precarious position, so close to the ground and susceptible to wind gusts and racoon hands. The egg has more brown on it than other Robins eggs that we were used to seeing in the Midwest of the U.S. We thought that it was because the Robins there were the Red-Breasted variety.

A study by a Queens University biology professor, Bob Montgomerie, suggests that a brighter blue Robins egg directly relates to the health of the female. In his study, the male robins care more for eggs that have a brighter hue. You can read a short article about it here.

We found the nest on the ground, empty one morning. We have no idea whether the wind knocked it from its perch, a natural predator had an early breakfast or possibly the little unhealthy looking egg hatched and the baby robin flew happily into its future as the National Bird of Costa Rica.