The Story
I photographed this Scrub Tanager (Stilpnia vitriolina) at the Kairi Lodge Natural Reserve, near Manizales, Caldas, Colombia, in February 2020. It is found only in Colombia and Ecuador, in moist montane forest, high-elevation shrubland and heavily degraded former forest. It was long placed in the genus Tangara, until a 2014 genetic study showed that genus was not a natural group, and Stilpnia was created for it and its relatives in 2016. The name Stilpnia comes from a Greek word meaning glittering. IUCN lists it as Least Concern.
I used a Pentax K-1 with the HD Pentax-D FA 150-450mm f/4.5-5.6 for this one, at 1/80 sec, f/22, ISO 1600. Kairi is recognized as a biological corridor for birds between the Ecoparque Alcázares and the Reserva El Arenillo.
©2020 Adam Rainoff Photographer
The bird
The Scrub Tanager (Stilpnia vitriolina) 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 stable. Source: IUCN Red List