The Story
This juvenile Scarlet Ibis (Eudocimus ruber) was at Hato Barley in Tauramena, Casanare, Colombia when I photographed it. Its scarlet color comes from a heavy diet of red crustaceans. Juveniles are a mix of gray, brown and white, and the color change begins around the time they start to fly. It spends most of its time on foot or wading, but it is a strong flyer and moves in V-shaped flocks. Native flocks live in Brazil, Colombia, French Guiana, Guyana, Suriname and Venezuela, and on Trinidad and Tobago. Casanare lies in Colombia’s Orinoquía region, the eastern plains, at an average of about 350 meters.
I made this frame with a Pentax K-1 and the HD Pentax-D FA 150-450mm f/4.5-5.6, at 1/1600 sec, f/5.6, ISO 400. IUCN lists the Scarlet Ibis as Least Concern, with a decreasing population.
©2019 Adam Rainoff Photographer
The bird
The Scarlet Ibis (Eudocimus ruber) 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 decreasing. Source: IUCN Red List