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Marabou Stork
Steve G

Marabou Stork (Leptopilos crumeniferus)

I was buzzed by this massive bird whilst photographing a perched White-backed Vulture. These massive ungainly storks fly with their necks withdrawn unlike the typical storks. Marabou become quite common inland in The Gambia where many village Baobabs hold small colonies. These huge birds are heavily dependent on thermals which carry them large distances in their search for food. Marabou eat carrion, fish & amphibians but also raid weaver & Quelea colonies, catch the odd snake or lizard & sometimes go 'mousing' when rodents are plentiful. Certainly on all our travels in The Gambia we never saw a thin Marabou!
Habitat
open savannah woodland, wetlands, grasslands
Location
near Farafenni, North Bank Division, The Gambia
Date taken
20/11/05
Scientific name
Leptopilos crumeniferus
Equipment used
Canon 1D mkII + 500mm IS lens + 1.4x convertor handheld

Media information

Category
Africa
Added by
Steve G
Date added
View count
175
Comment count
2

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