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Food permitting, shoebills are non-migratory. They are somewhat reluctant to fly, but can be seen soaring on thermals over their territory. They have powerful wings which allow them to take off almost vertically. Even breeding pairs will feedĪt opposite ends of their territory. Shoebills tend to be solitary, silent birds. Partially nocturnal, it tends to be sluggish but is also a strong flyer and soarer. Wings are occasionally held aloft during hunting to assist in balance while the bird walks across unstable matted vegetation. A reinforced beak and skull act as a shock absorber during these violent thrusts. The bird flaps forward and plunges its enormous bill down simultaneously. The “collapse” is unexpectedly swift, generally lasting less than a second and is performed with immense power. Males are slightly larger than females and have longer bills.īehavior: Shoebills feed mainly by ambush, standing motionless for long periods of time before “collapsing” on the prey in a manner unique for a large fish-eating bird. Size: The Shoebill stork stands 3.5 – 5 feet (1.07 – 1.5 m) tall weigh an average of 12.3 pounds (5.6 kg) have an average wingspan of 7.7 feet (2.33 m). The legs are skinny and long, like the legs of most wading birds feet are unwebbed. Males and females have similar coloration with small crest or white tufts sticking out from the back of the head.
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It has yellow eyes and extremely long toes. The head is large in proportion to the body, and the many-colored bill is wide and thick, The hooked bill is 8 – 12 inches (20 – 25 cm) long, 4 – 5 inches (10 – 13 cm) wide and has cutting edges. Here, they can be found in areas like the Mabamba Swamp, Lake Mburo national park, the Queen Elizabeth national park and more.Description: Being entirely gray the Shoebill is easily recognized, even without its most distinguishable feature which gives it its name – a bill that resembles a hook-tipped Dutch clog. The largest population of wild shoebills live in Uganda where a record of 1000. In addition, the big bird doesn’t migrate and has very limited seasonal movement due to food availability, habitat changes, and human disturbances. Although there have been sightings of the stork in the surrounding countries like Kenya, Ethiopia, and more. They can be found in Southern Sudan, Western Tanzania, Rwanda, Uganda, and the Northern parts of Zambia. They are predominantly found in the freshwater swamps of the central and eastern countries. The shoebill is endemic to Africa, meaning the bird is regularly found there. Shoebills live in African countries such as Uganda and Rwanda Commonly, the larger birds will force the smaller bird, its own offspring, to flee from the nest and live independently. As a result, when more than one is born in the same nest, the birds have been known to compete with each other for their mother’s attention. As they are solitary creatures, shoebills prefer to be alone and therefore have territorial behaviors. This is more common than you think among larger birds. Young shoebill storks will often attack each other And it is this sharp curve that is used to pierce through the bodies of their prey, which can sometimes be other birds. The tip of their beak curves down to form a hook.
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The shape of their beak has evolved all stork species to assist them in eating small fish and other animals in a single gulp. And as a result, it was given the name ‘shoebill’, and resembles that of a baleen whale hence the nickname ‘Whalehead.’ The bird’s beak is the 3rd longest out of any species in the world, stretching up 24cm in length and 20cm in width it can be more than a quarter the size of their bodies.