The Story
This Large-billed Tern (Phaetusa simplex) perched on a branch over calm water near Puerto Nariño, in Amazonas, Colombia, its heavy yellow bill and black cap clear against the blurred green. It is the only species in its genus, and it lives along rivers and freshwater lakes across most of South America east of the Andes and north of the Pampas. It was first described as a Sterna tern, and the genus Phaetusa was created for it in 1832. IUCN lists it as Least Concern.
I used a Canon R5 with the RF 800mm f/11 plus the RF 1.4x extender for this one, at 1/250 sec, f/16, ISO 3200, −1 EV. On the nearby Tarapoto lakes, a nursery for river dolphins and fish, 22 Indigenous communities agreed on fishing rules that Colombia’s fisheries authority AUNAP recognized in 2017.
©2023 Adam Rainoff Photographer
The bird
The Large-billed Tern (Phaetusa simplex) belongs to the family Laridae (Gulls, Terns, and Skimmers) 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 stable. Source: IUCN Red List