The Story
I photographed this Cocoi Heron (Ardea cocoi) at the Charca de Guarinocito, near La Dorada, Caldas, Colombia, in October 2020. This long-legged heron of South America ranges from Central America to the Strait of Magellan. It uses almost any body of water or wetland away from dense forest, including lake shores, swamps, rivers and estuaries, and it is found up to 2,550 meters. Adults of both sexes weigh from 1.14 to 3.2 kilograms. It feeds mainly on fish more than 20 centimeters long, and also takes mammals, amphibians and sometimes insects. 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 1/1000 sec, f/4.5, ISO 800. The lagoon is protected as the Charca de Guarinocito Integrated Management District.
©2021 Adam Rainoff Photographer
The bird
The Cocoi Heron (Ardea cocoi) belongs to the family Ardeidae (Herons, Egrets, and Bitterns) in the eBird/Clements taxonomy.
Source: eBird.org (opens in a new tab)
Conservation
Least Concern on the IUCN Red List (assessment published 2021), with the population trend listed as stable. Source: IUCN Red List