Tag ibis

Madagascar Ibis

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The Madagascar Ibis (Lophotibis cristata) is a bird in the Threskiomithidae family of ibises. It is also known as the Madagascar Crested Ibis, the White-Winged Ibis, and the Crested Wood Ibis.

The Madagascar Ibis is brown with white wings, a crest of green or glossy, iridescent blue and white feathers on the back of its neck. Its head is black. Its chin, neck, throat, and underparts, are dark brown. It has a bare red patch (featherless) around its eyes. It has a yellow beak and red legs. It has brown eyes. 

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Northern Bald Ibis and Chick

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The Northern Bald Ibis (Geronticus eremita) is a non-wading bird in the Threskiornithidae family of wading birds. Most ibises are wetland wading birds, living near water sources, but the Northern Bald Ibis is not a wetland wading bird.

It lives and breeds in colonies and flocks of up to 100 individuals. It makes a stick nest high on a cliff ledge to avoid predators. 

The female lays 2-3 eggs. The chicks hatch after about 25 days and gain their feathers within 40-50 days. 

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Why does the Avocet have an upturned beak?

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Why does the Avocet have an upturned, or upcurved, beak?

The Pied Avocet (Recurvirostra avosetta) is a small bird in the Recurvirostridae family of waders. It has long legs to wade in water. It lives in wetlands, such as marshes, swamps, lakes, estuaries, and rivers.

The Avocet has a long, thin, upcurved black beak. It measures about 8 centimetres (3 inches) long. Many wetlands birds, such as Ibis and Curlew, have a long, thin downturned beak, but the Avocet has an upturned beak.

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Scarlet Ibis

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The Scarlet Ibis (Eudocimus ruber) is a large wetlands bird in the Threskiomithidae family of ibises. It is a wader and a shore or coastal bird. It is the only red coastal bird in the world.

The Scarlet Ibis is scarlet red. Its wingtips often have black or dark blue markings. It has a long downward-curved red beak, which is darker towards the tip. Its feet are red. Its neck and legs are long, and they are out-stretched when they fly.

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African Sacred Ibis

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The African Sacred Ibis (Threskiornis aethiopicus aethiopicus) is a common African water bird.

The African Sacred Ibis is mainly white. It has a wrinkled black featherless head and neck, that has a large decurved beak (curving downward). Its tail feathers are iridescent blue-black. Its eyes are brown with a dark red eye-ring when it is breeding, which is also called an orbital ring. Its legs and feet are black.

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How does a Parent Bird Feed its Chicks?

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How does a parent bird feed its young chicks?

Newly-hatched altricial chicks are born featherless, blind, and helpless.

Chicks open their eyes after about four days. They take time to gain all of their feathers. Initially, the down feathers make young chicks look fluffy. They sit close to their parents to keep warm and safe.

During this time, young chicks stay in the nest. Adult birds look after and feed their young – sometimes, just the mother, sometimes just the father, and other times both the mother and father look after their chicks.

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Hadada Ibis

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The Hadada Ibis (Bostrychia hagedash) is a medium-sized, common African wading bird, found in the grasslands, rainforests, and urban areas of Sudan, Ethiopia, Senegal, Uganda, Tanzania, Gabon, Zaire, Cameroon, Gambia, Kenya, Somalia and South Africa.

The Hadada Ibis has brown and iridescent green feathers, a long black downward-curved beak with a red stripe on it upper mandible (top beak), and long black legs. It is related to the Spoonbill.

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