The Story
I photographed this Saffron-crowned Tanager (Tangara xanthocephala) at La Florida, El Bosque de las Aves, in the Kilómetro 18 area near Cali, Valle del Cauca, Colombia, in October 2019. It lives in the northern Andes, in cloud forest and forest edges with mossy trees. It has a blue-green body and a yellow head with a black forecrown, eye area and chin. It is the most fruit-eating tanager in its genus, taking Cecropia, Miconia and other fruits along with insects. It travels in pairs or small groups with mixed-species flocks of tanagers and other canopy birds. 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 1/2000 sec, f/5.6, ISO 800. It is not considered globally threatened, though habitat destruction is a threat to it.
©2020 Adam Rainoff Photographer
The bird
The Saffron-crowned Tanager (Tangara xanthocephala) belongs to the family Thraupidae (Tanagers 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 2024), with the population trend listed as decreasing. Source: IUCN Red List