About Theristicus melanopis branickii Berlepsch & Stolzmann, 1894
This subspecies has a total length of approximately 75 centimetres (30 in). Its head, neck and lower chest are buffish; its crown and nape are cinnamon; its upperparts and often incomplete chest-band are grey; its belly and flight feathers are black; and its wing-coverts are whitish, which does not create a strong contrast with the grey upperparts. Its bill, throat-wattle and the bare skin around its eyes are blackish, and its legs are red. The similar buff-necked ibis, which is almost entirely restricted to warm regions, has contrasting large white wing-patches, dark grey rather than buff lower chest, and a smaller throat-wattle than this black-faced ibis subspecies. The black-faced ibis is mainly found in southern South America, ranging across most of southern and central Argentina and Chile, where it occurs from sea level up to an altitude of approximately 2,500 metres (8,200 ft). It also occurs in very localized areas of coastal Peru. It remains fairly common in Argentina and Chile, but the species has now been almost entirely extirpated from the Peruvian portion of its range. Overall, the species is not threatened, so the IUCN has assigned it the Least Concern conservation status.
