What is a Spoonbill Bird?
The Rosie spoonbill is one of the members of six species of long-legged wading birds. The Rosie spoonbills have belonged to a subfamily Plataleinae and the family Threskiornithidae from the order Ciconiiformes. The ibises birds also belong to the same family. Usually, the Spoonbills can found in estuaries, saltwater bayous, and lakes. The spoonbill birds ger their feed by using long bills from side to side in the mud or shallow water. They will catch small fish and crustaceans from wetlands as feed. While flying, the roseate spoonbills will extend their necks and legs and flap their wings steadily to get balance. They frequently breed with ibises and herons in colonies. During their breeding season, they use their build own large nest with sticks in trees or low bushes and lay three to five white eggs, which are blotched with reddish-brown.
The average length of the roseate spoonbills is about 60 to 80cm. The head of these species is partly or entirely bare. Most of the species have white plumage and sometimes a rosy tinge. The roseate spoonbills in North and South America can grow up to the length of 80cm. They are in deep pink in colour with a white neck and upper back. These species are widely spread over from the Gulf Coast of Texas and the West Indies to Argentina and Chile. Many plume hunters are targeting the Rosie spoonbills and became a reason for extinction on large scale.
The scientific name of the European spoonbills is Platalea leucorodia. The European spoonbills are white birds, which can grow up to the length of 60 cm with cinnamon buff on the fore neck.
These breeds are in marshes of central and southern Europe and Asia, south to Egypt, India, and Taiwan.
Some of the other popular species of spoonbills are listed here. The scientific name of the African spoonbill is Platalea alba. The Platalea minor is the scientific name of lesser spoonbills, which are found in Eastern Asia. The Platalea regia, the royal or black-billed spoonbills and the Platalea flavipies, the yellow-billed, or yellow-legged spoonbills are the two species widely found in Australia.
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Types of Spoonbill and Their Ranges
The scientific name of Eurasian spoonbill is Platalea leucorodia. They are widely spread over in the northeast of Africa, Europe and Asia across Japan. The juveniles and adult birds are majorly white in colour with black outer wing-tips and dark bills and legs. Usually, they breed in reed beds without any other species.
The scientific name of the Black-faced spoonbill is Platalea minor. The physical appearance of the black-faced spoonbills is closely related to the Eurasian spoonbills. Can encounter them on a large scale from Taiwan, China, Korea and Japan.
The scientific name of the African spoonbill is Platalea alba. They are widely found in Africa and Madagascar region. They are the large white species similar to Eurasian spoonbill, but they can distinguish by their pink face with the paler bill. The major food source of these birds includes insects and other small creatures, and they usually nest in trees, marshes or rocks.
The scientific name of Royal spoonbill is Platalea regia. They have a large white body with a black face. These kind birds are widely spread over in south-east Australia, and they are also situated in a temporary wetland of New Zealand’s South Island, and sometimes as stragglers in the land of New Guinea, Indonesia, and the Pacific Islands
Yellow-billed spoonbills are the native species of Australia and the scientific name of these species are Platalea flavipes. They have a white body with yellow bills.
The Roseate spoonbill is widely found in South America, the Caribbean, and the Southeastern United States. The scientific name of this species is Platalea ajaja. Usually, the adult birds look large with pink feathers.
Characteristics of Spoonbills
The Rosie spoonbill is one of the large species of wading Bird, which can encounter from the gulf coast of the United States to Argentina to the tip of South America. The Roseate Spoonbill is one among the species, that can found across the world, which are much suitable for inhabiting warmer, tropical climates. These types of spoonbills are only found in the western hemisphere. The Roseate Spoonbill have a spatula-shaped beak, which looks flatter and broader in the end. Through that, they can scoop their food from the water. They are similar appearances of other large wading Birds including, Storks, Herons, and Egrets and most of the time while tourists encountering them, they are mistakenly considered as Florida for Flamingoes.
Physical Appearance of Spoonbills
Usually, Spoonbills have pink and white body feathers with orange tail feathers and red legs and eyes and black feet. Like other wading birds, they have thin and long legs, which allows them to walk in shallow water to get their feed. They have very sensitive long beaks, which help them to detect the presence of prey and two slits on their bills are helping them breathe whilst, while the beak is submerged in the water. The skin present on their heads do not have feathers and have a greenish tinge, which is leading to their lighter coloured beak.
Behaviour and Lifestyle of Spoonbill
Usually, the spoonbill birds are very sociable birds. They prefer wetland homes for their living. The roseate spoonbills are widely found along with the other waders birds like Herons, Egrets and Ibises. Also, their behaviours also resemble the same. But, the Spoonbills are comparatively large birds, so they can take time to travel long distances. While flying, they fly with small flocks in diagonal lines. The spoonbills will have outstretched heads and necks while flying. They usually change their habitats and migrate for annual nesting sites. The black spoonbills will take small flocks to obtain their feed. The birds distributed in the wild field are the shy Birds. The whole colony of birds will fly off when they are disturbed. The spoonbill birds are adapted well to have shelter near the Human disruption
Reproduction and Life Cycles of Spoonbills
The roseate spoonbills are the colonial nesting birds, which means many birds gather together and choose a particular area to give birth to a young one and make all possible protections. Usually, the spoonbill birds will reach their sexual maturity at the age of 3 or 4 years. Once they attain sexual maturity, they start searching for finding the nesting grounds to choose the perfect mate partner. Once the birds get paired near nesting land, both the male and female birds together start to construct their own nest on trees or near thick bushes. These birds will lay about four eggs per clutch and start protecting them from hatching. The eggs of Roseate Spoonbill usually get hatched after the completion of the incubation period, which is around three weeks. Then they and fledge by their month. The young spoonbills will have white plumage with a slight pink tinge. Their colourful feathers will start growing after attaining a couple of years from their birth. Both male and female parents will share and start incubating their eggs and feeding the chicks.
Diet and Prey of Spoonbill
Most of the spoonbill birds are omnivorous animals, they use their spoon-like beak to catch small animals in the water. The distinctive shape bills of spoonbill birds can search and detect their feed from side to side close to the bottom of the water, little whirlpools of water. Although the spoonbill birds can eat all the plant and animal species, They will include small Fish such as Minnows as the primary source of food, which comprises roughly 85% of their diet. They also include other small aquatic organisms like Shrimp, Molluscs and aquatic Insects that lurk close to the muddy bottom, along with a number of aquatic plant species.
Predators of Spoonbills
The Spoonbills are large size birds. So they do not have any hungry predators to hunt them. But the Alligators in the water, felines like pumas and jaguars located in their natural environment will hunt the adult spoonbills. Most of the time, human beings remain the biggest threat for spoonbill birds through hunting. The eggs and chicks of spoonbills are facing more threatens from various species like Raccoons, Coyotes and Hawks. One of the biggest threat to the spoonbills are the loss of their native natural habitats. This is mainly either because of drained wetlands or an increase in population and sometimes due to the contamination of water bodies.
Interesting Facts and Features of Spoonbills
The Rosie spoonbills have a very distinctive appearance, so they are often mistaken as other birds like the Flamingo, particularly when they are flying.
They are smaller in size and longer and wider beaks than other pink birds, still, people are facing difficulty to differentiate.
They use their bills for catching food, but they also have sensitive nerves at the end. So, the spoonbills can snap shut quickly when it comes into contact with small aquatic organisms.
Many researchers believed that the main reason behind their pink colour on plumage is mainly due to consuming algae and fishes which contains particular pigments.
Spoonbill Relationship with Humans
The Roseate Spoonbill will always be conscious of the presence of human beings near them So, they can survive in the populated areas. This is mainly because they are started to share their living space with the populations in Florida.. But hunters hunted almost maximum species during the mid to late 1800s for their plumage. Most of their species population kept extinct only because of the hunters. The primary target of the hunters is Spoonbill feather, which is best for making luxury ladies garments. After analysing the extinction of their species, In the mid of 1940s, the government and NGOs took many conservation measures to protect and preserve the habitat and livestock of spoonbill birds.
Conservation Status of Spoonbill
The black spoonbill is one of the least conserved species in the world. Also, the Roseate Spoonbills are on the list of animals that are the least concerned and about to extinct in immediate future. Since 1940, governments and NGOs are taking all the necessary measures to improve the population and re-built the lost infrastructure for the conservation of spoonbill birds. Also, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) kept black spoonbills in the list of most endangered species.
FAQs on Spoonbill
1. Are Spoonbills Related to Flamingos?
Both the flamingos and roseate spoonbills have many similar characteristics. They have two pink long-legged wading birds. They also have a similar head appearance, wing shapes and plumage. But the flamingos belong to the Metaves and spoonbills belong to the Coronaves.
2. Why Do Spoonbills Turn Pink?
The Roseate Spoonbills will obtain their pink colours from the food they are eating. Some species like Crustaceans and other aquatic invertebrates have the pigment called carotenoids. Which will help them to turn the colours of birds.
3.Are Spoonbills Common?
The spoonbill birds are commonly found in southeast Australia. But the count of the roseate spoonbills on other parts of the continents is less. They are also spread over in the wetland of New Zealand, that too particularly from the South Island and sometimes they can encounter from New Guinea, Indonesia, and the Pacific Islands. Usually, the white spoonbill is with a yellow coloured bill.
4.Can Spoonbills Fly?
The roseate spoonbill birds are medium-sized wetland water birds. They have a football-shaped body with long legs. They usually have long bills, which are flattened into a spoon at the end that protrudes from their small head. While flying, they can use their long outstretched neck and often rest with the curled in the form of S.
5.How Many Spoonbills Are Left?
International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) recognized the black spoonbill bords as the most endangered species and they are mainly threatened by deforestation and increasing population in their habitat. As of the survey of 2012, only 2,693 species of black spoonbills are left over, which includes 1600 matured individuals.
