Scarlet Ibis II

SCARLET IBIS, CARTAGENA, COLOMBIA, MARCH 28, 2018

Pentax K-3
Pentax 18-135 at 135mm
1/800 f8
ISO 1600

A fairly prosaic photograph at the Aviario Nacional de Colombia had a busy, distracting background. A little work in Lightroom to darken and obscure the distraction transformed the photograph into a striking one. Journalistically this technique is a no-no, for it alters the reality a news photograph is intended to capture, but artistically it's quite permissible.

Indian Peacock

INDIAN PEACOCK, CARTAGENA, COLOMBIA, MARCH 28, 2018


Pentax K-3
Right: Pentax 55-300 at 300mm, 1/2000 sec. f8, ISO 1600
Below: Pentax 18-135 at 40mm, 1/500 sec. f8, ISO 1600

Native to South Asia (and the national bird of India), the Indian peafowl has been distributed around the world and has been found in the wild even in Canada.

This specimen at the Aviario Nacional de Colombia was utterly unafraid of humans and remained aloof even when Trooper, my service dog, expressed interest in sniffing him.

Great Egrets

GREAT EGRETS, CARTAGENA, COLOMBIA, MARCH 28, 2018

Both:
Pentax K-3
Pentax 18-135 at 135mm

Above: 1/250 sec. f8, ISO 1600
Below: 1/6400 sec. f8, ISO 1600

The Great Egret, also called Common Egret, Great White Egret or Great White Heron, is one of 11 species of the water bird found all over the world.

It's distinguished from its fellows by its size and black legs and feet.

These reside in the Aviario Nacional de Colombia just outside Cartagena.

Blue and Gold Macaws

BLUE AND GOLD MACAWS, CARTAGENA, COLOMBIA, MARCH 28, 2018

Pentax K-3
Pentax 18-135 at 135mm
1/800 sec. f8
ISO 200

This common species of South American parrot (this one was photographed at the Aviario Nacional de Colombia) ranges from northern South America up through Central America. Widespread, noisy and long-lived (60 plus years), it's frequently kept as a pet in U.S. homes because of its striking plumage and quickness to mimic human speech.

Scarlet Ibis

SCARLET IBIS, CARTAGENA, COLOMBIA, MARCH 28, 2018

Pentax K-3
Pentax 18-135 at 135mm
1/2000 sec. f8
ISO 1600

This striking specimen, photographed at the Aviario Nacional de Colombia just outside Cartagena, is a common wading bird in tropical South America and the Caribbean.

Its long bill probes for bugs and crustaceans in mud.

Some biologists think it is simply a color variation of the white ibis instead of a separate species.