The Story
I photographed this Gray-crowned Yellowthroat (Geothlypis poliocephala) at Hacienda Montecristo near Santa Rosa de Copán, Honduras. Its yellow underparts and gray crown stood out against the surrounding foliage. It lives mostly between sea level and 1,500 meters, locally up to about 2,000, and eats insects and other invertebrates. Its nest is a deep cup of grass lined with finer grass and hair. IUCN lists it as Least Concern, though its population, estimated at no fewer than 500,000 adults, is believed to be decreasing.
I made this frame with a Canon R5 and the RF 800mm f/11 plus the RF 1.4x extender, at 1/250 sec, f/16, ISO 3200. Hacienda Montecristo is a regular birding route for COAS Copán, the Santa Rosa de Copán club whose first outing was held there on Global Big Day in May 2017.
©2024 Adam Rainoff Photographer
The bird
The Gray-crowned Yellowthroat (Geothlypis poliocephala) belongs to the family Parulidae (New World Warblers) in the eBird/Clements taxonomy.
Source: eBird.org (opens in a new tab)
Conservation
Least Concern on the IUCN Red List (assessment published 2020), with the population trend listed as decreasing. Source: IUCN Red List
