The Story
I photographed this Crested Caracara (Caracara plancus) at Hato Mata de Palma in Casanare, Colombia. The Crested Caracara avoids the Andean highlands and dense humid forest such as the Amazon, where it keeps mostly to open areas along major rivers. Hato Mata de Palma is one of three ranches, with Altamira and Montana, that make up El Encanto de Guanapalo, a reserve of almost 9,000 hectares of flooded savanna and gallery forest in San Luis de Palenque. IUCN lists the Crested Caracara as Least Concern, with a stable population.
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 100. El Encanto de Guanapalo pays for its conservation through traditional cattle ranching, ecotourism and carbon credits, using the Cataruben Foundation’s Co2Bio model.
©2022 Adam Rainoff Photographer
The bird
The Crested Caracara (Caracara plancus) belongs to the family Falconidae (Falcons and Caracaras) in the eBird/Clements taxonomy.
Source: eBird.org (opens in a new tab)
Conservation
Least Concern on the IUCN Red List (assessment published 2023), with the population trend listed as stable. Source: IUCN Red List
