Groove-billed Ani

In Costa Rica, at the Six-Dog-Eating Crocodile Pond at the Ensenada Lodge on 8 July 2017, Erika and I found a Groove-billed Ani on a nest. At the time, we were well-aware that anis are strange cuckoos. As such, we should have expected strange breeding behavior. Anis live in groups of one to five pairs that defend a territory. All the females lay eggs in a single nest. All of the group incubate the eggs and care for the young. Other anis show similar behavior. The Groove-billed Ani is unique, however, in that females will sometimes remove eggs from the communal nest before laying their own (Bowen 2002).

The second photo is of a young Groove-billed Ani at the Ensenada Lodge. The final photo is of an adult seen near the Laguna Lagarto Lodge later during our travels. Anis range from southern Texas to northern South America.