20th Annual Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest Natural World
Tayra. Basically a Giant Ferret

I had the incredible chance to stumble upon 2 beautiful Tayras (they stem from the Weasel Family) while hiking by myself in the Manzanillo National Park on the Caribbean Coast of Costa Rica. They each appeared about 10m in front of me crossing the hiking trail one after the other. The first one appeared and didn't notice me, sniffed around, and suddenly saw me, froze, and jumped away into the decor. What made this iconic was that the second one did the exact same scene in front of my eyes. Tayras are very rare to spot in the wild and this definitely was one of the biggest highlights of my trip.

Photo Detail
Date Taken: 11.2022
Date Uploaded: 11.2022
Photo Location: Manzanillo, Costa Rica
Copyright: © Sasha Eikel