The Story
This Red-headed Barbet (Eubucco bourcierii) was photographed at Finca Alejandría, at Kilometer 18 near Cali, Valle del Cauca, Colombia, at about 1,960 meters. Males have a red head, an orange to yellow breast, a white belly, and a white collar between the head and the olive-green back. The species ranges from Costa Rica and Panama through Colombia and Venezuela to Ecuador and Peru, at 400 to 2,400 meters. Its diet includes caterpillars, adult insects and fruit such as berries, and at feeders it takes bananas. IUCN lists it as Least Concern.
I photographed it with a Canon R5 and the RF 800mm f/11, at 1/750 sec, f/11, ISO 6400, −1 EV. The San Antonio cloud forest at Kilometer 18 is recognized as an Important Bird Area and a Key Biodiversity Area, with the Multicolored Tanager as its symbol species.
©2023 Adam Rainoff Photographer
The bird
The Red-headed Barbet (Eubucco bourcierii) belongs to the family Capitonidae (New World Barbets) 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
