The Story
I photographed this Rufous-gaped Hillstar (Urochroa bougueri) at Avistamiento de Aves Doña Dora, in Dagua, Valle del Cauca, Colombia, in February 2020. It lives only in Colombia and Ecuador, in montane forest and shrubby slopes, often near streams. It usually ranges between 1,600 and 2,800 meters but is sometimes found well below that, and Doña Dora’s place sits at about 1,300 meters. It builds a cup nest of moss and lichen on a vertical branch 8 to 12 meters up. It is fairly common in Colombia. IUCN lists it as Least Concern.
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 6400. The reserve takes up to 8 overnight guests, keeping groups small out of respect for its conservation work.
©2023 Adam Rainoff Photographer
The bird
The Rufous-gaped Hillstar (Urochroa bougueri) 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