The place
Quebrada Las Doradas, El Caraño, Florencia, Caquetá, Colombia. Above Florencia, El Caraño follows clear foothill streams like Las Doradas down toward the Amazon lowlands, and I was beside the water early, at about 6:20 a.m. on a February morning in 2020.
The shot
Right at the edge of the stream, with rocks and running water all around, the Sunbittern opened both wings wide. Its finely barred grey body turned into a fan of orange, black and gold, with the full “sunburst” pattern spread across both wings and its banded tail flared below.
The bird
The Sunbittern (Eurypyga helias) belongs to the family Eurypygidae; BirdLife lists tropical swamp forest and permanent rivers and streams as its major habitats.
Conservation
Least Concern (IUCN Red List, last assessed 2020), with an estimated 500,000–4,999,999 mature individuals and a decreasing population trend, according to BirdLife. Source: BirdLife International