The Top Twenty Signs That You Are Becoming An Experienced Neotropical Birder

20. You begin to take Roadside Hawks for granted.

19. You no longer jump out of your skin when a Manakin suddenly begins his snap-display.

18. You belatedly reach the conclusion that listening might be just as important as looking.

17. You no longer confuse the trill of the Giant Toad with that of the Guatemalan Screech Owl.

16. Your ego remains intact when the group of beginners from Michigan, who only bird with a guide, brag about their
list being twice the size as yours, even though you've stubbornly gotten every one of those birds "on your
own."

15. You no longer suffer from bouts of chagrin when the totally clueless yuppie couple staying at your lodge
describe the "bluebird" they saw in such a way that it could only have been a Lovely Cotinga, a nemesis
bird that you have missed in six trips to the region.

14. Since there are no road signs in conventional terms, you learn to watch for the placards on busses and follow
them to your destination.

13. You decide that the Three-Wattled Bellbird simply does not exist, its ubiquitous calls being made by local hoodlums
who have been hired by practical jokers to make life more vexatious for birders.

12. Claiming to be of sound mind, you have made out your last will and testament just in case you step on the
fer-de-lance coiled inconspicuously beside the trail as you are trying to get a good look at a bundle of black
feathers that turns out to be just another Melodious Blackbird.

11. You gradually come to realize that the word "jeep" is a generic term in most Central American countries, usually
referring to a much less expensive vehicle that rents for about two or three times the rate for the real thing in the
States

10. Every time you hear a really neat-sounding hawk, you are no longer surprised that it turns out to be a Brown Jay.

9. You begin to suspect that some of the indigenous birding guides may have seen some of these very birds before at the
very same places.

8. You realize that raucous, irritating "treefrog" is actually a Keel-Billed Toucan.

7. You discover that those beautiful, tiny birds resembling wood warblers all over the place in Belize in March
really are Wood Warblers.

6. You are certain that the people who publish the road maps of Costa Rica have a highly unorthodox notion of the
meaning of the word "paved."

5. You learn that the "buzzy" warbler song you have been trying to run down for thirty minutes is actually a
Scaly-Breasted Hummingbird sitting in plain view.

4. When you finally identify that exotic orange bird you've been seeing everywhere, it is actually a "plain ole" Hepatic
Tanager.

3. You are told that the best place to see the Ornate Hawk-Eagle is along a trail where an adult male Jaguar has been
seen frequently. Your response is, "So . . ?"

2. You wish the Plain Chachalacas and Montezuma's Oropendulas would hold it down so that you could hear some
of the other birds.

1. You spend hours in humid rainforest trying to track down an elusive owl that emits a persistent "hoot, hoot" call.
You fail to find the owl, but are delighted with the number of Motmots you've seen.