The Story
I photographed this Crested Oropendola (Psarocolius decumanus) at Pozos La Chorrera, near Acacías, Meta, Colombia, in January 2020. Both sexes have a large ivory bill and blue eyes, and males carry a crest of long nape feathers. It nests in colonies, and the female weaves a hanging, open-topped bag nest of plant fibers. Displaying males bow forward on a perch, raise the tail and flap their wings as they sing. It eats mostly fruit, insects and spiders, with some tree frogs and nectar. IUCN lists it as Least Concern, though its numbers are believed to be falling.
I made this frame with a Pentax K-1 and the HD Pentax-D FA 150-450mm f/4.5-5.6, at 1/320 sec, f/5.6, ISO 6400. The owners offer birdwatching walks in the foothill forest, where hummingbirds are among the birds visitors look for.
©2020 Adam Rainoff Photographer
The bird
The Crested Oropendola (Psarocolius decumanus) belongs to the family Icteridae (Troupials and Allies) 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
