The Story
I made this photo of a Crested Ant-Tanager (Driophlox cristata) at Fincas Verdes in San Antonio, Tolima, Colombia. It is found only in Colombia, between about 700 and 2,000 meters. The male’s head is dusky red with a bright scarlet crest. It eats mostly insects and other arthropods, along with palm seeds and other fruit. It forages through the undergrowth in pairs or small groups, and groups have been seen following army ant swarms. San Antonio lies in southern Tolima, about 109 km from Ibagué.
I used a Pentax K-1 with the HD Pentax-D FA 150-450mm f/4.5-5.6 for this one, at 1/250 sec, f/5.6, ISO 3200, +0.7 EV. IUCN lists the Crested Ant-Tanager as Least Concern, with a decreasing population.
©2019 Adam Rainoff Photographer
The bird
The Crested Ant-Tanager (Driophlox cristata) belongs to the family Cardinalidae (Cardinals 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 2018), with the population trend listed as decreasing (listed by IUCN as Habia cristata). Source: IUCN Red List