Goodwill Ambassadors of the Americas

Be at one with nature, just don't wear a red shirt when hiking in the tropical Monteverde Cloud Forest in Costa Rica.  The hummingbirds are attracted to red flowers, curious and will fly by to check you out.  

The lush, dense green rainforest is home to an incredible diversity of plants and animals.  Many cannot be found anywhere else in the world.

Be still.  Watch for the flashy hummingbirds fast moving wings — red, green, purple, or orange, shimmering in the sunlight, changing colors, as tiny birds dart about before your eyes.

With more than 30 species of hummers, competition for nectar supplies at lower elevations is fierce.

Loud buzzing announces ruby-throated hummingbirds and violet-crowned woodnymphs, beelining for the bright red and pink flowers of orchids growing wild on nearby trees.

Be still, and watch these goodwill ambassadors of the Americas fly up, down, to the side, and upside down, and roll over and drink on the wing.  

— And what a grandly choreographed ballet performance it is by these tiny dazzling jewels of the rainforest!