The Story
I photographed this Blue-naped Chlorophonia (Chlorophonia cyanea) in the Cincinati area above Minca, in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, Magdalena, Colombia. This small, bright green and yellow finch feeds almost entirely on fruit, and it forages in pairs, family groups or small flocks, usually in the forest’s middle and upper levels. Its nest is a ball of grass with a side entrance, typically tucked into an earthen bank. It occurs across most of mainland South America. IUCN lists it as Least Concern.
I used a Canon R5 with the RF 800mm f/11 for this one, at 1/250 sec, f/11, ISO 3200, −0.5 EV. These mountains rise from the Caribbean coast to 5,700 meters, apart from the Andes, and they are the source of 36 rivers.
©2021 Adam Rainoff Photographer
The bird
The Blue-naped Chlorophonia (Chlorophonia cyanea) belongs to the family Fringillidae (Finches, Euphonias, 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 2024), with the population trend listed as decreasing. Source: IUCN Red List