The Story
I photographed this Brown Jacamar (Brachygalba lugubris) at the Reserva Natural Ecoturística El Pescador, near San Vicente del Caguán, Caquetá, Colombia, in February 2021. It lives in three separate areas of northern South America east of the Andes, in the canopy, along forest edges, in shrubby clearings and along watercourses in savanna. It usually ranges from the lowlands to about 900 meters. It perches on exposed branches in pairs or small groups and sallies out after flying insects. Its nest has not been described, but it is thought to be a burrow in a bank or a termite nest in a tree. IUCN lists it as Least Concern.
I made this frame with a Canon R5 and the RF 100-500mm f/4.5-7.1L, at 1/180 sec, f/6.7, ISO 800. San Vicente del Caguán was the center of the demilitarized zone created for peace talks with the FARC between 1998 and 2002.
©2021 Adam Rainoff Photographer
The bird
The Brown Jacamar (Brachygalba lugubris) belongs to the family Galbulidae (Jacamars) 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
