The bill is bright red orange
I took this photo while staying on Longboat Key on the Gulf Coast of Florida. There were thousands of birds wading on the shore each day here. It was a birdwatcher’s paradise. The American white ibis was one of the many species that lined the beach. The scientific name of this bird is Eudocimus albus. You can find it in the southern portion of the east coast of the United States of America, as well as along the gulf coast states, and the coasts of the Caribbean and Central America.
The white ibis is easily identified as an ibis with its long and curved bill. The bill is bright red orange, which is the same color as their legs. Behind their colored bills, the white ibis has pink facial skins that darkens as it approaches the bill. The males are larger than females and have longer bills. White ibises have wings that are almost exclusively white, but they have black wing tips that are typically only visible when they are flying. When these birds first hatch, they are covered in violet-colored down feathers that are darker on the head and wings.
Adult white ibises are large birds. The males weigh between two and two and three quarter pounds for males, and females weigh one and one quarter to nearly two pounds. The wingspan of an adult white ibis is about 35 to 41 inches. These birds can fly at altitudes of 3,300 feet. When traveling, they will form long lines or V formations. Juveniles pick up these formations by the end of the summer of their first year.
The behavior of the white ibis is well studied. They will spend on average more than 10.25 hours looking for food. 13 hours of their day is spent resting, roosting, and attending to their nests. They spend around 45 minutes flying. White ibis take daily baths. They do this by first squatting in water. They then preen themselves, as well as rubbing the oil glands on the sides of their heads on their back plumage.
White ibis will spend on average more than 10.25 hours looking for food
Did you know?
- Surprisingly, their wingbeat speed is known. They fly at around 3.3 wingbeats per second.
- The onomatopoeia for a white ibis call is urnk urnk or hunk hunk.
- More than 30,000 white ibis were counted in one breeding colony in Florida.
- The preferred food of the American white ibis is crayfish and other crustaceans. They will also eat aquatic insects and small fish.
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