White Ibis

 

So, in the afternoon, if there is no wind for the Hobiecats, I like to hike along the Cayo Coco beach about 3km to a deserted area I love to bird at low tide called Las Coloracas. On this particular day I observed a Spoonbill standing on a log amongst the mangroves. I immediately started shooting. The bird eventually lifted and flew behind some mangroves. I was intent on getting some flight shots of a Spoonbill and was intently shooting as it came out the other side from behind the mangroves. As I was glued to the viewfinder it took me a minute to realize that I was now shooting a White Ibis. The Spoonbill had perched behind the mangrove but flushed an Ibis. All totalled there were 6 White Ibis amongst the mangroves that afternoon.

We have been able to observe 6 type of Ibis, White, White-faced, Glossy, Sacred, Scarlet, and Hadada. However there are 29 species of Ibis!

White Ibises gather in groups in shallow wetlands and estuaries in the southeastern United States. At each step, their bright red legs move through the water and their curved red bill probes the muddy surface below. As adults, these striking wading birds are all white save for their black wingtips. White Ibises nest in colonies in trees and shrubs along the water's edge, changing locations nearly every year.

Male White Ibises are super protective. They guard the nest and their female to prevent other ibises from stealing sticks from the nest and from advances of other males during nest building and egg laying.

When baby White Ibises hatch their bills are straight. Their bills don't start to curve downward until they are 14 days old.

Female White Ibises are smaller than males, weighing nearly 10 ounces less on average with a smaller bill and shorter wings.

The oldest recorded White Ibis was at least 16 years, 4 months old when it was found in Florida in 1972. It was banded in Alabama in 1956. Cornell All About Birds