The Story
I photographed this Andean Emerald (Uranomitra franciae) at Birdwatch La Conchita, at Kilometer 18 near Cali, Valle del Cauca, Colombia. Its glittering blue crown and bright emerald cheeks stand out against a soft, even green background, and the light shows the iridescence of its feathers. Males have a glittering violet-blue crown and a white center to the underparts. It lives in Colombia, Ecuador and Peru, from 600 to 2,100 meters, and besides nectar it catches insects by flying out from a perch. IUCN lists it as Least Concern.
I photographed it with a Canon R5 and the RF 100-500mm f/4.5-7.1L, at 1/90 sec, f/6.7, ISO 400. 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.
©2024 Adam Rainoff Photographer
The bird
The Andean Emerald (Uranomitra franciae) belongs to the family Trochilidae (Hummingbirds) 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