The Story
I photographed this White-winged Swallow (Tachycineta albiventer) at Hacienda La Cabaña, near Tauramena, Casanare, Colombia, in January 2020. 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. Its call is a harsh chirrup or a rising, buzzy zweeed. 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 1/320 sec, f/5.6, ISO 200. 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 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