The Story
This Brown Violetear (Colibri delphinae) was photographed at Birdwatch La Conchita, at Kilometer 18 near Cali, Valle del Cauca, Colombia, at about 1,950 meters. Its plumage is mostly brown, with a violet patch running back from the eye. It feeds on nectar from the small flowers of trees, shrubs and epiphytes, and it catches insects in flight for protein. It breeds between 400 and 1,600 meters and spreads widely into other elevations when not nesting. Males gather to sing in loose leks of up to several dozen birds. IUCN lists it as Least Concern.
I used a Canon R5 with the RF 100-500mm f/4.5-7.1L for this one, at 1/250 sec, f/6.7, ISO 1600, −1 EV. Cali, Yumbo, La Cumbre and Dagua have committed to conserving the San Antonio–Km 18 Key Biodiversity Area, its forest and its water sources.
©2023 Adam Rainoff Photographer
The bird
The Brown Violetear (Colibri delphinae) 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 2021), with the population trend listed as decreasing. Source: IUCN Red List