The Story
I photographed this Hoatzin (Opisthocomus hoazin) in La Macarena, Meta, Colombia on July 6, 2017. It is the national bird of Guyana, where it is called the Canje pheasant. It lives in swamps, riverside forest and mangroves of the Amazon and Orinoco basins. It is the only living member of its family, and its chicks have claws on two of their wing digits. IUCN lists the species as Least Concern. La Macarena is a town and municipality in Meta Department, about 280 kilometers south of Bogotá. La Macarena has become an ecotourism destination, above all for Caño Cristales, the river of five colors.
I took this with a Canon EOS 70D and the EF400mm f/5.6L USM, at 1/250 sec, f/5.6, ISO 160. La Macarena is a growing ecotourism destination, and visiting with local guides is one way to support the communities that protect its rivers and forests.
©2018 Adam Rainoff Photographer
The bird
The Hoatzin (Opisthocomus hoazin) belongs to the family Opisthocomidae (Hoatzin) 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 decreasing. Source: IUCN Red List