I met this handsome bird in the forest when we went to look at a small glacier near Mount Fitzroy in Argentina. It is called the southern caracara (or the southern crested caracara, or carancho), and it is the largest of caracara and second in body weight of any falcon in the world (on average, an adult weighs about 1-1.6 kg with a wingspan of more than a meter).
These smart elegant birds live in central and southern South America. Crested is called because of the dark brown cap of feathers on the head, which can be lifted and they get a pretty crest.
Basically, birds of prey, in general they are omnivores, in addition to living prey, they can also eat carrion, insects and fruits, steal prey from other raptors, and also get into the habit of stealing food from people. It is not under immediate threat of extinction, but in some places farmers continue to exterminate them due to attacks on small livestock such as lambs.
They live especially well in popular tourist places like there: he will definitely not be left without food, if he does not steal it himself, then curious tourists themselves will donate something to him. Therefore, the bird can be arrogant and is often not afraid of people :) This is also a plus, so we can take a picture of him quite calmly. Otherwise, it's usually much more difficult for me to sneak up on wild birds :) Wow, what claws he has!
OLYMPUS E-M1 Mark II
Exposure time: 1/1250 sec
Aperture: F 3.2
Sensitivity: ISO 6400
Focal length: 150 mm
35 mm equivalent: 300 mm
You can also see my photos in my blog LJ and in my profile on NatGeo