Today's Image is a Toco Toucan. I captured images of this bird during our Anaconda diving expedition off Bonito, Brazil. The wildlife here has a special place in my heart. Everything about the wildlife here is fantastic. As a kid, one of the most common sights in our kitchen was the cereal Fruit Loops. And the mascot was Toucan Sam. So I grew up with this iconic animal always a part of my life. I remember as a kid seeing one in the Zoo and getting very excited about it.

Fast forward to our anaconda trip. I was sitting by a bird feeder at our host hotel in the early morning, waiting for our van to pick us up and take us to the river to begin our search for snakes. I was watching a very wet motmot zipping around, grabbing fruit left for them on the feeder. Next, a purple jay came in and grabbed some fruit. I snapped some images of him. The motmot images came out horrible, so I'm not going to share those.

After snapping a few jay images, I looked at the pictures I had just shot and decided to change my settings. The light was getting better, so I was able to drop my ISO some more. When I looked back up to the feeder - I froze. There less than ten feet away from me, was a Toco Toucan. For a moment, I thought I was dreaming. I had to blink, and then I remembered I was holding a camera. It was so beautiful; the colors on them are so powerful. My hands were shaking; I had to steady myself. I was star-struck when I saw it. I started shooting, holding my breath, trying to keep my camera from shaking. I remember talking to myself, "Please be in focus, please be in focus!"

The toucan was eating fruit, and I was hoping it would stay for a while. With birds, you never know how long you will get with them. Thankfully the toucan remained for a good three to four minutes, and I captured so many pictures of this bird. It flew off, and I ran to tell the rest of our group about the bird. They were already making fun of me because I am bird crazy, and they did not have much interest in Brazil birds, but this animal is unique, and I felt it was important to share. Sadly the toucan did not return, but I was happy I snapped a bunch of images of it before it flew away, and more importantly, it left me with a fantastic moment etched in my memory forever.

Thank you for reading!