Harpy

[Sorry for the delay in posting my Guyana pictures/diary. Internet connections here are very slow and uploading even small picture files is problematic.]

Ask 100 birders which Neotropical bird they'd most like to see, and I'll bet that a substantial number of them would quickly say "Harpy Eagle". This huge bird of prey is almost mythical -- wary, rare and declining, and generally restricted to the most remote parts of remaining pristine rainforest. And yet, sometimes you just get lucky. Today was one of those days. While bouncing along the narrow, muddy, potholed main "highway" between Lethem and Georgetown, we happened across this majestic sight -- an adult Harpy with the bloody remains of a Hoffmann's Two-toed Sloth clutched in its talons. For 30 minutes, we watched as it tried to eat while being dive-bombed by a trio of very fired-up Red-throated Caracaras. It ducked, it dived, it panted, it raised its impressive crest feathers, it tried a couple of different perches, and finally it flew off with the coterie of screaming caracaras right behind. And there were high fives all around. What an awesome bird!