The Story
I photographed this Eastern Meadowlark (Sturnella magna) at Hacienda La Cabaña, near Tauramena, Casanare, Colombia, in January 2020. Adults are yellow below with a black V on the breast, and brown with black streaks above. It nests on the ground, sometimes in a cattle hoofprint, under a roof woven from grasses. Its song is a run of pure, melancholy whistles. It ranges from eastern North America to northern South America. IUCN lists it as Near Threatened, and its numbers are falling.
I made this frame with a Pentax K-1 and the HD Pentax-D FA 150-450mm f/4.5-5.6, at 1/1600 sec, f/5.6, ISO 1600. In Nova Scotia it is listed as a species at risk, and an agricultural program there works to reduce losses by changing farming practices.
©2020 Adam Rainoff Photographer
The bird
The Eastern Meadowlark (Sturnella magna) belongs to the family Icteridae (Troupials and Allies) in the eBird/Clements taxonomy.
Source: eBird.org (opens in a new tab)
Conservation
Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List (assessment published 2020), with the population trend listed as decreasing. Source: IUCN Red List