It’s been a while since I have written any blog post because I was busy redesigning and updating my website. I hope you like the result!

The Pantanal in Brazil offers exceptional opportunities to observe birds and one of the highlights of any trip to the Pantanal, whether you are a birder or not, is the chance to see the Toco Toucans, one of the bird “ambassadors” of Brazil. The habitat along the Transpantaneira road is perfect for observing and photographing these birds as it is relatively open. One of the very best places to do this is the Fazeda Santa Tereza/SouthWild Pantanal. Toucans are regular visitors here and seen right on the lodge grounds, especially at the bird feeding station. I photographed this one from the porch of our room.

Apart from normal portrait photography I always try to photograph animal behaviour whenever I can. Toucans have a very interesting and photogenic method to feed due to their large beaks. They will pick the item of food with the tip of the beak and then toss it in the air and tilt their head back to swallow it. They have perfect aim every time and are surprisingly graceful and dextrous.

Canon 5D Mark III | Canon EF 200-400 4L IS USM Extender 1.4x @ 560mm | f5.6 | 1/640s | ISO 2000.