The Story
I photographed this White-banded Swallow (Atticora fasciata) at the Raudal del Guayabero, near San José del Guaviare, Guaviare, Colombia, in February 2021. It is black with white thighs, a white breast and a deeply forked tail. It lives in the tropical lowlands of northern South America, along rivers and in forested areas, and it does not migrate. It nests in burrows and does not use artificial cavities. IUCN lists it as Least Concern.
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 6400, −0.5 EV. An hour’s climb above the Raudal leads to rock paintings of tapirs, lizards and ritual dances, which have not been dated exactly but may be 7,000 to 12,600 years old.
©2022 Adam Rainoff Photographer
The bird
The White-banded Swallow (Atticora fasciata) belongs to the family Hirundinidae (Swallows) 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