The Story
I photographed this Sooty-capped Hermit (Phaethornis augusti) at the Finca Ecoturística Canaguaros, near Tauramena, Casanare, Colombia, in January 2020. Its next-to-middle tail feathers are longer than the rest, and all of them have white tips. Like other hermits, it feeds by trap-lining, visiting a regular circuit of flowers for nectar. It is grayish brown above with a rufous rump, and its face has a black mask set off by a white eyebrow and throat stripe. IUCN lists it as Least Concern, with a stable population.
I made this frame with a Pentax K-1 and the HD Pentax-D FA 150-450mm f/4.5-5.6, at 1/800 sec, f/5.6, ISO 3200. Tauramena was founded in 1663 by Governor Pedro Ordóñez de Vargas with Achagua people from the Upía and Cusiana rivers.
©2020 Adam Rainoff Photographer
The bird
The Sooty-capped Hermit (Phaethornis augusti) 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 2018), with the population trend listed as stable. Source: IUCN Red List