The Story
I photographed this Collared Inca (Coeligena torquata) at the Recinto del Pensamiento in Manizales, Caldas, Colombia. The Collared Inca feeds on flower nectar, especially from bromeliads, and gets protein from small arthropods. It is normally solitary and can be found at many heights, often in the open. It lives in humid Andean forests from western Venezuela through Colombia and Ecuador to Peru. The Recinto del Pensamiento is a 179-hectare nature reserve of Andean cloud forest above 2,000 meters, at Km 11 on the road from Manizales to the Magdalena. IUCN lists the Collared Inca as Least Concern, with a decreasing population.
I made this frame with a Pentax K-1 and the HD Pentax-D FA 150-450mm f/4.5-5.6, at 1/50 sec, f/5.6, ISO 400. The reserve belongs to the Comité Departamental de Cafeteros de Caldas and is run by the Corporación para el Desarrollo de Caldas to promote nature tourism in Manizales.
©2020 Adam Rainoff Photographer
The bird
The Collared Inca (Coeligena torquata) 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