The Story
I made this photo of a Bare-faced Ibis (Phimosus infuscatus) at Reserva Natural El Encanto de Guanapalo in Casanare, Colombia. The Bare-faced Ibis forages in soft soil and along the edges of standing water, eating insects, worms, clams and other small invertebrates. It is usually seen in large flocks, alone or with other species. It breeds in small colonies. El Encanto de Guanapalo brings together three ranches, Mata de Palma, Altamira and Montana, in a reserve of almost 9,000 hectares of flooded savanna and gallery forest in San Luis de Palenque. IUCN lists the Bare-faced Ibis 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 1/1000 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.
©2021 Adam Rainoff Photographer
The bird
The Bare-faced Ibis (Phimosus infuscatus) belongs to the family Threskiornithidae (Ibises and Spoonbills) in the eBird/Clements taxonomy.
Source: eBird.org (opens in a new tab)
Conservation
Least Concern on the IUCN Red List (assessment published 2025), with the population trend listed as stable. Source: IUCN Red List