![]() ![]() Favorite foraging spots include waters low in oxygen, where fish must surface more often. With its head down, using binocular vision, the bird will either stand and wait or walk slowly in the shallow water, often surrounded by grasses and papyrus. They can be found roosting in trees, but are usually commonly found on the ground near water.ĭiet: Shoebills spend the majority of their day fishing. However in some regions, they can be found moving seasonally between feeding and nesting zones. Food permitting, shoebills are non-migratory. They are somewhat reluctant to fly, but can be seen soaring on thermals over their territory. They have powerful wings which allow them to take off almost vertically. Even breeding pairs will feedĪt opposite ends of their territory. Shoebills tend to be solitary, silent birds. Partially nocturnal, it tends to be sluggish but is also a strong flyer and soarer. Wings are occasionally held aloft during hunting to assist in balance while the bird walks across unstable matted vegetation. A reinforced beak and skull act as a shock absorber during these violent thrusts. The bird flaps forward and plunges its enormous bill down simultaneously. The “collapse” is unexpectedly swift, generally lasting less than a second and is performed with immense power. Males are slightly larger than females and have longer bills.īehavior: Shoebills feed mainly by ambush, standing motionless for long periods of time before “collapsing” on the prey in a manner unique for a large fish-eating bird. Size: The Shoebill stork stands 3.5 – 5 feet (1.07 – 1.5 m) tall weigh an average of 12.3 pounds (5.6 kg) have an average wingspan of 7.7 feet (2.33 m). The legs are skinny and long, like the legs of most wading birds feet are unwebbed. Males and females have similar coloration with small crest or white tufts sticking out from the back of the head. It has yellow eyes and extremely long toes. The head is large in proportion to the body, and the many-colored bill is wide and thick, The hooked bill is 8 – 12 inches (20 – 25 cm) long, 4 – 5 inches (10 – 13 cm) wide and has cutting edges. ![]() Shoebills are the only member of their genus Balaeniceps, and the only living member of their family, Balaenicipitidae.Description: Being entirely gray the Shoebill is easily recognized, even without its most distinguishable feature which gives it its name – a bill that resembles a hook-tipped Dutch clog. The global population is currently estimated at between 5,000-8,000 birds and the species is classed as Vulnerable by the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. The Shoebill is undergoing a continuing decline owing to the effects of habitat destruction and degradation, pollution, nest disturbance, hunting, and capture for the live bird trade. The breeding season varies, being dependent on Africa’s seasonal flood cycle. Although a clutch of up to three dull, chalky-white eggs is laid, typically only one nestling survives due to inter-sibling rivalry, where the larger (generally first born) chick will out-compete and/or kill its siblings. ![]() The construction can be up to three metres wide. ![]() The nest is large and flattened, built amid swamp grasses or sedges and usually on a mound of floating vegetation or a small island. Individuals are highly solitary – often the male and female in a breeding pair prefer to occupy different ends of their shared territory. This large waterbird is unmistakable due to its unique ‘shoe-shaped’ bill which gives it an almost prehistoric appearance – reminding us of birds’ dinosaur ancestry.įound in nine countries across Africa the species has a large range, but exists in small localised populations concentrated around swamps and wetlands. ![]()
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