Monday, February 20, 2012

Hyacinth Macaws

I visited the Montreal Biodome over the weekend and was fascinated by this pair of Hyacinth Macaws.  I heard their screams from afar, but thought that it was the pair of Military Macaws creating the ruckus.  But upon approaching the pair of Military Macaws, I realized that they weren't the only ones guilty of the loud squawks and later turned around and found this pair courting.

I had the worst light possible, being in the Rainforest region in the Biodome.  The tropical vegetation was dense and therefore, the light was scarce.  I shot these images at ISO 3200 and had to remove quite a bit of noise in Lightroom.  The angles could have been better if I didn't have to shoot in between the bobbing heads of the visitors and being careful not to bump my lens into their heads either.  Everyone seemed enthralled by this pair. Beautiful birds!  I'm definitely going back to see them again.

Hyacinth Macaw by Shiny Dewdrop

Hyacinth Macaw pair by Shiny Dewdrop

Hyacinth Macaw pair by Shiny Dewdrop

Hyacinth Macaws courting by Shiny Dewdrop

Hyacinth Macaws courting by Shiny Dewdrop

Hyacinth Macaw pair courting by Shiny Dewdrop

Hyacinth Macaw by Shiny Dewdrop