The largest and most conspicuous of the falconids of the Iberá. A brown body with a black nape and crest, a whitish neck and breast with brown barring, and a bare orange-red face that intensifies with the bird's mood. The bill is hooked and yellowish. It measures 49 to 59 cm. It is the opportunistic scavenger par excellence: it walks upright and confidently across pasture, road or sandy flat in search of anything edible.
Behaviour
A complete omnivore: carrion of all sizes, insects, frogs, small lizards, snakes, mice, eggs stolen from other birds' nests, and even plant matter. It often waits patiently for the turkey vulture or the black vulture to find a carcass, then displaces them and eats first. It associates with livestock to catch the insects they flush.
How and when to see it
Year round. Impossible not to see caracaras on any trip through the park, from the access roads to the interior of the portals.
Where to see it in the Iberá
The gateways of the Great Iberá Park where southern caracara has confirmed presence:
Tours to see it
Verified providers operating at the gateways where southern caracara lives. You contact them directly on WhatsApp from the app.
- Esteros Ñe’é
Experiencias con relato local y mirada cultural sobre los esteros.★ 5.0 - Gaucho Argentino
Travesías a caballo por una red de refugios en el Iberá. Cabalgatas de varios días con…★ 5.0 - Jurassic Plant - Tour Nocturno
El único jardín de plantas carnívoras de Argentina y pionero en Latinoamérica. Tour…★ 5.0 - Irupé Excursiones
Senderismo guiado. Visita guiada a museos, lugares históricos, capillas y senderos del…★ 5.0
Species profile
- Common nameSouthern Caracara
- Scientific nameCaracara plancus
- GroupBird
- StatusNative
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