The Story
I photographed this Cocoi Heron (Ardea cocoi) at La Charca de Guarinocito in La Dorada, Caldas, Colombia. The Cocoi Heron prefers fish and mammals as prey over insects. It 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. The Charca de Guarinocito is an old channel of the Magdalena in La Dorada, protected since 1988 and now delimited by Corpocaldas at 167 hectares. IUCN lists the Cocoi Heron 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 200. In 2025 Corpocaldas zoned the charca for preservation, restoration and sustainable use, recognizing its role in community tourism and artisanal fishing.
©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