Magnificent Hummingbird (female), Eugenes fulgens, Panama highlands

ISO 100 | 100mm | 1/200 | f/3.2

A female hummingbird in the highlands of Panama.

Note the presence of bird mites on the dorsal base

of the beak. These warm climate parasites might

be transmitted between birds at common

feeders.

Hyla rosenbergi, Panama

Pool frog (male), Rana lessonae, Baden-Württemberg, Deutschland

ISO 200 | f/5.6 | 300 mm | 1/80

During the spring and summer breeding season

these common pond-dwellers are vocally active

during the day and night. Males, like the one pictured

here, engage in vocal and physical disputes with other

males in the breeding aggregation. Their song has a

'squeeky' quality, is of variable duration, and is radiated

through bilateral vocal sacs located directly beneath

the ear drums.

a mountain gem (genus Lampornis) in the highlands of western Panama

nocturnal quiescence

Tun-gara...Tun-gara-ra-ra

f/5.6  1/100  ISO100 100mm

Tungara Frog

f/8  1/100 ISO100 100mm

A male tungara frog deflates his submerged 

lungs as he waits for safety to begin calling 

again. 

Scinax rubra

f/5.6  1/100 ISO100 100mm

Tungara Frog

f/3.2  1/100  ISO100 100mm

Every night during the wet season is a star-

struck night of romance for the male

Tungara frog.

A male tungara frog

f/2.8  1/125  ISO100 100mm

Despite its toad-like appearance Physalaemus

pustulosus is in fact a frog and a prolific

frog at that. This is one of the most abundant and 

broadly distributed amphibians in the neotropics. 

In pursuit of this honor males congregate at ephemeral 

pools of rainwater during the wet season and chorus to 

attract females, whom control mate choice and select 

males on the basis of a male's song. As with males of most 

animal species, a male tungara frog spends considerable 

time courting with little, if any, mating opportunity.

Hyla ebraccata calls above embryos

f/10  1/100  ISO100 100mm

more Scinax rubra

f/3.2  1/100th  ISO 100  100mm

Scinax rubra considers flight.

Scinax rubra

f/4.0  1/100  ISO 100  100mm

This Scinax species is famous for its willingness

to jump off tall aerial stuctures, gliding down

to the earth safely with its body stretched out

like a base-jumper. 

Hyla rosenbergi, Gladiator Tree Frog

f/5.6  ISO 100  100mm 1/100th

I believe this species is the most affectionate of 

Panama's frogs - you can see the personality in

their eyes. It is not uncommon for a gladiator 

to lunge from a branch onto a human observer, 

climbing up onto one's shoulder and perching 

patiently for an opportunity to sing. Precious. 

Leptodactylus labialis y aguacate

Panamá, 2006

This image is the 4th in a series that belongs to

"Tropical frogs and fruit: disingenuous color
combinations from the forests and streetstalls of
Panama"

Agalychnis callidryas y maracujá

Panamá, 2006

This image is the 3rd in a series that belongs to

"Tropical frogs and fruit: disingenuous color
combinations from the forests and streetstalls of
Panama"

Hyla ebraccata y piña

Panamá, 2006

This image is the 2nd in a series that belongs to

"Tropical frogs and fruit: disingenuous color
combinations from the forests and streetstalls of
Panamá"

Agalychnis callidryas y granadilla

Panamá, 2006

This is the first image in a series that belongs to

"Tropical frogs and fruit: disingenuous color
combinations from the forests and streetstalls of
Panamá"

Smilisca phaeota: a glance

ISO 100 f/2.8 1/20 100mm macro
June 2007, Panamá

Seeing Sound

ISO 100 1/125 f/16 100mm macro

The nighttime serenade of the male tungara frog has
visual, acoustic, and aquatic vibration components.

Jamaican Fruit Eating Bat on the Wing

ISO 100 1/100 f/8 100mm macro

Hyla rufitela, Red Webbed Tree Frog

ISO 100 1/100 f/9 100mm macro

This kaliedoscopically colored tree frog advertises
vocally from leaves hanging above small tropical
streams.

Jamaican Fruit Eating Bat

ISO 100 1/100 f/8 100 mm macro

Tungara Turf War

ISO 100 1/125 f/10 100 mm macro

Metamorphic Hourglass Tree Frog

ISO 100 1/100 f/3.5 100 mm macro

Leptodactylus pentadactylus, The Smoki Jungle Frog or South American Bullfrog

ISO 100 1/125 f/2.8 100mm macro

As the largest of the neotropical frogs, the muscular
L. pentadactylus preys on other frog species and is largely
left alone by predators due to a toxic skin secretion.

emerald eyes - deep and bright inside

ISO 100 1/50 f/4.0 100mm macro

Tungara Magic!

Gamboa, Panama 2006

Phrog and Frotographer

ISO 400 1/100 f/2.8 20mm

- I wonder

Smilisca phaeota

ISO 100 1/6 f/3.5 100mm

Portrait of a masked tree frog.