The Story
I photographed this Neotropic Cormorant (Nannopterum brasilianum) from the Ferry Marcopolo on the Orteguaza River at Puerto Arango, near Florencia, Caquetá, Colombia, in February 2020. It lives on coasts, including mangroves, and on inland waters. It eats mainly small fish, along with tadpoles, frogs, aquatic insects and shrimp, and groups sometimes beat the water with their wings to drive fish into the shallows. Pairs are monogamous and nest in colonies. Both parents incubate for about 25 to 30 days and feed the young until about 11 weeks old. 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 1/2000 sec, f/5.6, ISO 3200, −0.3 EV. The Ferry Marcopolo leaves from Puerto Arango, about 15 kilometers from Florencia, on a two-hour trip on the Orteguaza River, passing the mouth of the Hacha River and stopping at a sandbar for lunch.
©2021 Adam Rainoff Photographer
The bird
The Neotropic Cormorant (Nannopterum brasilianum) belongs to the family Phalacrocoracidae (Cormorants and Shags) in the eBird/Clements taxonomy.
Source: eBird.org (opens in a new tab)
Conservation
Least Concern on the IUCN Red List (assessment published 2018), with the population trend listed as increasing. Source: IUCN Red List