The Story
I photographed this White-winged Swallow (Tachycineta albiventer) at Corpoamazonia’s Centro Experimental Amazónico, near Mocoa, Putumayo, Colombia, in October 2019. It is a resident swallow of tropical South America and is not found west of the Andes. It usually lives in lowlands along rivers and lakes. It hunts flying insects low over the water and rests on branches near the water between flights. It nests in tree holes, between boulders or in man-made structures, usually a few meters above water. IUCN lists it as Least Concern, with a stable population.
I used a Pentax K-1 with the HD Pentax-D FA 150-450mm f/4.5-5.6 for this one, at 1/800 sec, f/5.6, ISO 800, +0.3 EV. Corpoamazonia’s Centro Experimental Amazónico is a protected area that combines research, environmental education and the care of rescued wildlife.
©2020 Adam Rainoff Photographer
The bird
The White-winged Swallow (Tachycineta albiventer) belongs to the family Hirundinidae (Swallows) 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