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Black-headed Ibis - BirdForum Opus

Revision as of 07:29, 8 June 2017 by Aloktewari (talk | contribs) (Legend Image 3)
Pair in breeding plumage
Photo by Alok Tewari
Basai Wetlands, Gurgaon, Haryana, India, June-2015
Threskiornis melanocephalus

Identification

65–76 cm (25½-30 in)

  • White overall plumage
  • Greyer areas on wings
  • Black bald head
  • Black neck and legs
  • Black, thick curved bill

Sexes are similar, but juveniles have whiter necks and black-tipped wings.

Distribution

India to south-east Asia. Winters to eastern China, Sumatra, and the Philippines; which seems to be extremes of the range of this species.

Juvenile
Photo by James Williams
Ranganathittu, Karnataka, Southern India

Taxonomy

This is a monotypic species[1].

This member of the family Threskiornithidae has previously been considered a part of the Sacred Ibis, but is now considered a full species.

Habitat

Rivers, marshes and paddyfields. Also present in coastal areas.

Behaviour

Diet

Immature
Photo by santhoshk
Photographed in Ranganthittu, India

The diet consists of fish and frogs, tadpoles, worms, snails, larval and adult insects.

Breeding

They build a stick nest in a tree. The clutch consists of 2–4 eggs.

References

Immature
Photo by bentwing
Keoladeo National Park, India, March 2011
  1. Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2015. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2015, with updates to August 2015. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
  2. Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive (retrieved February 2016)
  3. Wikipedia
  4. BF Member observations

Recommended Citation

External Links


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