This noisy forest raptor feeds mostly on arboreal bees, wasps, and hornets, tearing their nests apart to obtain larvae. We watched this individual attack and destroy a small white cotton-like insect nest while a group of Black Caracaras watched. Mysteriously the wasps reportedly do not defend themselves against attack by the Caracara.
This species was formerly included with the Black Caracara in the genus Daptrius, but recent studies found the two are not closely related. Red-throated Caracara is now classified in its own monotypic genus Ibycter which means "singer of war-songs," a reference to its loud, raucous cries. Widespread in the neotropics, this species has retracted from parts of its former range in Middle America and is now considered extirpated from Mexico. The main threat appears to be fragmentation of mature forests. Canon PowerShot SX60 HS.
References:
Bierregaard, R.O., Jr & Kirwan, G.M. (2019). Red-throated Caracara (Ibycter americanus). In: del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A., Sargatal, J., Christie, D.A. & de Juana, E. (eds.). Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona. (retrieved from https://www.hbw.com/node/53188 on 2 August 2019).
Davis, C. and S. McCann (2014). Red-throated Caracara (Ibycter americanus), version 1.0. In Neotropical Birds Online (T. S. Schulenberg, Editor). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi.org/10.2173/nb.retcar2.01
Global Raptor Information Network. 2019. Species account: Red-throated Caracara Ibycter americanus. Downloaded from http://www.globalraptors.org on 2 Aug. 2019