Northern bald ibis

Geronticus eremita

Photo by Agustín Poovedano (Flickr)

Common name:
northern bald ibis (en); íbis-calva (pt); ibis chauve (fr); ibis eremita (es); waldrapp (de)

Taxonomy:
Order Ciconiiformes
Family Threskiornithidae

Range:
Historically, this species was probably found throughout North Africa and into the Middle East, but presently it is only found in two disjunct populations. There is a western population in Morocco, located in Souss-Massa National Park and nearby Tamri, and an eastern population in Turkey and Syria, of which possibly only a few individuals remain in a breeding area at Palmyra, in Syria. The western population is sedentary, while the eastern population migrates south to winter in central Ethiopia.

Size:
These birds are 70-80 cm long andhave a wingspan of 125-135 cm. They weigh 1,3-1,6 kg.

Habitat:
The northern bald ibis breeds in cliffs and escarpments in remote arid regions, often near the banks of rivers, along streams or on the coast. They forage in dry grasslands and scrublands, wetlands, pastures and stubble fields. They are present from sea level up to an altitude of 1.400 m.

Diet:
They forage in large, loose flocks, mainly large invertebrates such as grasshoppers and locusts, crickets, beetles, earwigs, ants, woodlice, spiders, scorpions and molluscs, but also small vertebrates such as lizards, frogs, fish, rodents and birds.

Breeding:
Northern bald ibises breed in February-June. They nest in small colonies of 3 to about 40 pairs, each pair building a loose platform of branches lined with grass and placed on a cliff ledge or cave. The female lays 2-4 eggs, which are incubated by both parents for 24-28 days. The chicks are fed by both parents and remain near the nest until fledging, 43-47 days after hatching, but continue to be fed by the parents for quite some time afterwards. They reach sexual maturity at 3-5 years of age.

Conservation:
IUCN status - CR (Critically Endangered)
This species as a small breeding range and a global population estimated at just 200-250 individuals. The Syrian population is believed to be in decline, while the population in Morocco has been stable or slightly increasing since the 1980s. The species declined over several centuries partly owing to unidentified natural causes, but the more recent declines result of a combination of factors, namely illegal building and disturbance close to the breeding cliffs, changes in farming practices on the feeding grounds, hunting and habitat degradation through overgrazing and collecting of firewood. Conservation actions underway include captive breeding programmes, based on the many northern bald ibises that live in zoos worldwide, while the Souss-Massa National Park was designated specifically to protect nesting and feeding areas, and the provision of freshwater near the breeding colonies in the national park has been shown experimentally to increase productivity, buffering individuals against the impacts of low rainfall.

Hadada ibis

Bostrychia hagedash

Photo by Sumeet Moghe (Wikipedia)

Common name:
hadada ibis (en); singanga (pt); ibis hagedash (fr); ibis hadada (es); hagedasch (de)

Taxonomy:
Order Ciconiiformes
Family Threskiornithidae

Range:This species is found across most of sub-Saharan Africa, from southern Mauritania to southern Sudan and south to South Africa. It is mostly absent from Angola, Namibia and Botswana.

Size:
These birds are 65-75 cm long and have a wingspan of 90-100 cm. They weigh 1,2-1,3 kg.

Habitat:
The hadada ibis is mostly found in wooded streams and rivers, also using wet grasslands, savannas, irrigated areas, marshes, lakes and reservoirs, mangroves, coastal beaches and forest edges.

Diet:
They feed on various invertebrates, such as earthworms, crustaceans, large insects, spiders and molluscs, but also take lizards and human scraps.

Breeding:
Hadada ibises can breed all year round, varying among different parts of their range. They are monogamous, solitary nesters. The female builds the nest alone, consisting of a platform of sticks with a central bowl lined with grass, lichen, weeds, leaves and other debris. It is typically placed in the fork of an horizontal branch, or occasionally on another structure such a cliff, dam wall, telephone pole or pergola. The female lays 1-5 eggs, which are incubated by parents for 25-28 days. The chicks are fed by both parents and fledge 33-40 days after hatching, but only become fully independent about 3 weeks later.

Conservation:
IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)
This species has an extremely large breeding range and is described as widespread and common. The population has probably increased in the last century due to an increase in the availability of nest sites and food from habitat modification by humans.

Australian white ibis

Threskiornis molucca

Photo by Josep del Hoyo (Internet Bird Collection)

Common name:
Australian white ibis (en); íbis-branco-australiano (pt); ibis à cou noir (fr); ibis blanco australiano (es); Molukkenibis (de)

Taxonomy:
Order Ciconiiformes
Family Threskiornithidae

Range:
This species is found in eastern and northern Australia, and to a lesser extent also in south-western Australia. The Australian white ibis is also found in the Solomon islands, in New Guinea, in the Moluccas and in the Lesser Sundas.

Size:
These birds are 65-75 cm long and have a wingspan of 112-124 cm. The males are larger than the females, weighing 1,7-2,5 kg while the females weigh 1,4-19 kg.

Habitat:
The Australian white ibis is mostly found in swamps, lagoons and floodplains, but also in wet grasslands, mangroves, estuaries, agricultural areas and in recent decades it has also became a successful inhabitant of urban parks and gardens.

Diet:
They feed on aquatic and terrestrial invertebrates, such as crayfish, mussels and insects, as well as fishes, frogs and also human scraps.

Breeding:
Australian white ibises breed in August-May. They nest in large colonies, often together with
often with the straw-necked ibis Threskiornis spinicollis, as well as egrets, herons, spoonbills and cormorants. The nest is a shallow dish-shaped platform of sticks, grasses or reeds, located in a tree near a body of water such as river, swamp or lake. the female lays 1-3 dull white eggs, which are incubated for 21-23 days. The chicks fledge 6-7 weeks after hatching. Each pair can raise 1-2 broods per season.

Conservation:
IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)
This species has a large breeding range and is described as common. The overall population trend is fluctuating, although some populations are stable and others have unknown trends.

Black-headed ibis

Threskiornis melanocephalus

Photo by J.M. Garg (Wikipedia)

Common name:

black-headed ibis (en); ibis-de-cabeça-preta (pt); ibis à tête noire (fr); ibis cabecinegro (es); schwarzkopfibis (de)

Taxonomy:

Order Ciconiiformes

Family Threskiornithidae

Range:

This Asian species is found from Pakistan, India and Sri Lanka, through Bangladesh and Myanmar down to Indonesia, and along the Philippines and China all the way to Japan.

Size:

The black-headed ibis is 65-75 cm long and weigh up to 1,5 kg.

Habitat:

These birds are found in freshwater marshes, lakes, rivers, flooded grasslands, paddy fields, tidal creeks, mudflats, saltmarshes and coastal lagoons. They generally occur in lowland areas, but may occasionally be present up to an altitude of 950 m. They tend to be nomadic, in response to water levels and feeding conditions.

Diet:

They mostly eat fishes, frogs and aquatic arthropods, generally feeding in shallow waters where they use their bill to probe soft muddy substrates.

Breeding:

Black-headed ibises generally breed in July-March. They breed in colonies, sometimes together with other ibises, herons and even cormorants. Each pair builds an unlined cup-shaped stick nest in a tree, usually over water, where the female lays 2-4 eggs. The eggs are incubated for 23-25 days and the chicks fledge 36-44 days after hatching. Each pair produces a single brood each season.

Conservation:

IUCN status - NT (Near-Threatened)

This species has a very large breeding range and a global population estimated at 20.000 individuals. The population is suspected to be declining at a slow to moderate rate, owing to hunting, egg collecting, disturbance at breeding colonies, drainage and agricultural conversion.

White ibis

Eudocimus albus

Common name:

white ibis (en); ibis-branco (pt); ibis blanc (fr); ibis blanco (es); schneesichler (de)

Taxonomy:

Order Ciconiiformes

Family Threskiornithidae

Range:

The white ibis breeds from the United States, along the coastal region of Virginia, south and west to Louisiana, including inland South Carolina through Florida, and along the entire coast of Mexico, Belize, Nicaragua, Cuba, Jamaica, Panama, and Costa Rica.

Size:

These birds are 56-68 cm long and have a wingspan of 95 cm. They weigh 750-1.050 g.

Habitat:

The white ibis lives in a variety of coastal freshwater, saltwater and brackish marshes, rice fields, mudflats, mangrove swamps and lagoons.

Diet:

They forage in shallow, sparsely vegetated water, using their long, sensitive bill to search for its prey by touch rather than by sight. They feed on a variety of crustaceans, insects, amphibians, small snakes and small fish.

Breeding:

White ibis tend to breed in June-July, but the breeding season may vary according to food abundance. They nest in colonies, with the females builds the nest in the forking branch of a tree or bush, weaving dead twigs collected by the male together with vegetation. The female lays 1-4 eggs which are incubated by both parents for 21 days. The hatchlings are cared for constantly as they are weak and prone to overheating, and they are fed on freshwater prey such as small fish. They fledge 2 weeks after hatching but remain in the colony for at least another 40 days. They only become fully independent after 2 years.

Conservation:

IUCN status - LC (Least concern)

This species has a large breeding range and a global population estimated at 350.000 individuals. The overall population estimate is believed to be stable, but the population in the United States has increased by almost 600% over the last 4 decades.