The Story
I photographed this Long-tailed Sylph (Aglaiocercus kingii) at El Palmar, the entrance to the Alto Combeima forest reserve in the Cañón del Combeima above Ibagué, Tolima, Colombia. The species is found in Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia, between 900 and 3,000 meters. It feeds on nectar and insects, usually hovering at flowers, and at lower elevations it feeds mostly in the treetops. IUCN lists it as Least Concern. Only the male has the long tail.
I photographed him with a Canon R5 and the RF 100-500mm f/4.5-7.1L, at 1/500 sec, f/11, ISO 12800. The Alto Combeima reserve covers 7,356 hectares between 2,000 and 4,800 meters on the eastern slope of the Central Andes, and it borders Los Nevados National Natural Park.
©2022 Adam Rainoff Photographer
The bird
The Long-tailed Sylph (Aglaiocercus kingii) belongs to the family Trochilidae (Hummingbirds) in the eBird/Clements taxonomy.
Source: eBird.org (opens in a new tab)
Conservation
Least Concern on the IUCN Red List (assessment published 2024), with the population trend listed as decreasing. Source: IUCN Red List
