The Story
On July 6, 2017, I photographed this Brown-throated Parakeet (Eupsittula pertinax) in La Macarena, Meta, Colombia. Its crown, nape and upperparts are green, and its belly is grass green with an orange patch in the center. It lives in savannas, dry scrub, mangroves, many kinds of forest and farmland with some trees left standing. In Colombia it reaches 2,600 meters, though elsewhere it is found mostly below 1,200 meters. IUCN lists the species as Least Concern. The nearby Serranía de la Macarena is an isolated mountain range about 120 kilometers long, separated from the Eastern Andes.
I used a Canon EOS 70D and the EF400mm f/5.6L USM for this one, at 1/250 sec, f/5.6, ISO 400. La Macarena is a growing ecotourism destination, and visiting with local guides is one way to support the communities that protect its rivers and forests.
©2018 Adam Rainoff Photographer
The bird
The Brown-throated Parakeet (Eupsittula pertinax) belongs to the family Psittacidae (New World and African Parrots) in the eBird/Clements taxonomy.
Source: eBird.org (opens in a new tab)
Conservation
Least Concern on the IUCN Red List (assessment published 2021), with the population trend listed as stable. Source: IUCN Red List