You do not find this bird, it finds you. A family group arrives in the garden, lands on everything, comments loudly on all of it, and takes whatever is on the table if you look away.
Where you’ll see it
Everywhere in Coco and along the whole coast. Beach restaurants, gardens, the trees over the road. They are bold and social, moving in groups of half a dozen or more, and they have thoroughly worked out that people mean food.
What to know
The crest curls forward like a question mark and the tail is absurd, longer than the rest of the bird. They eat almost anything: insects, fruit, eggs, small lizards, and chips. They are intelligent and cooperative, with younger birds helping raise the next brood.
The only practical note is about the food. Leave a plate unattended on a terrace and an urraca will have the best thing off it before you sit back down.
