The Story
I photographed this Yellow-hooded Blackbird (Chrysomus icterocephalus) at the Charca de Guarinocito, near La Dorada, Caldas, Colombia, in February 2020. It eats seeds and insects, and cultivated rice is an important part of its diet. Males may have several mates and build several nests of wet sedge and grass, then each female picks one and lines it. Colonies of up to 100 nests form in rice fields and marshes, and outside the breeding season flocks of 600 have been seen. The female incubates alone for 11 to 13 days. IUCN lists it as Least Concern.
I made this frame with a Pentax K-1 and the HD Pentax-D FA 150-450mm f/4.5-5.6, at 1/250 sec, f/5.6, ISO 200, +0.3 EV. The lagoon is protected as the Charca de Guarinocito Integrated Management District.
©2020 Adam Rainoff Photographer
The bird
The Yellow-hooded Blackbird (Chrysomus icterocephalus) belongs to the family Icteridae (Troupials and Allies) in the eBird/Clements taxonomy.
Source: eBird.org (opens in a new tab)
Conservation
Least Concern on the IUCN Red List (assessment published 2020), with the population trend listed as increasing. Source: IUCN Red List