The Story
I photographed this White-vented Plumeleteer (Chalybura buffonii) at Qawana Reserva Natural near Ibagué, Tolima, Colombia, at about 1,300 meters. The species ranges from Panama to Peru, from sea level to about 2,000 meters, and seems able to tolerate some habitat disturbance. Females are paler green above and gray below, with dull gray tips on the outer tail feathers. It forages mostly by trap-lining, visiting a circuit of flowers, but also defends rich patches aggressively. IUCN lists it as Least Concern. Females lack the male’s blue breast.
I used a Canon R5 with the RF 800mm f/11 for this one, at 1/250 sec, f/11, ISO 12800, +2 EV. Ibagué has more than 551 recorded bird species, and a SiB Colombia bird-monitoring project there describes birdwatching as an important strategy for both development and conservation.
©2021 Adam Rainoff Photographer
The bird
The White-vented Plumeleteer (Chalybura buffonii) 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 2022), with the population trend listed as decreasing. Source: IUCN Red List