Nature and Trees Birds - Woolly- necked Stork , Asian Openbill & Spoonbill
3,659 views · Published 21 May 2012 · 3:20 · Indexed 22 September 2026
Channel: Menora James · 2012 · Pets & Animals
It was so amazing to see the pair of Woolly-necked Storks that I had never seen before.They seem to be very unique. I hope you will really enjoy these captures taken during my holidays. Woolly-necked Stork ================ The Woolly-necked Stork or White necked stork (Ciconia episcopus) is a large wading bird in the stork family Ciconiidae. It is a widespread tropical species which breeds in Africa, and also in Asia from India to Indonesia. It is a resident breeder in wetlands with trees. The large stick nest is built in a forest tree, and 2-5 eggs form the typical clutch. This stork is usually silent, but indulges in mutual bill-clattering when adults meet at the nest. They are a broad winged soaring bird, which relies on moving between thermals of hot air for sustained long distance flight. Like all storks, it flies with its neck outstretched. It is a large bird, typically 85 cm tall. It has a glistening black with black 'skull cap',white neck and white lower belly. It has long red legs and heavy blackish bill.Sexes are alike. The Woolly-necked Stork walks slowly and steadily on the ground seeking its prey, which like that of most of its relatives, consists of amphibians, small reptiles and large insects. African birds are attracted to bush fires. Asian Openbill =========== The Asian Openbill or Asian Openbill Stork (Anastomus oscitans) is a large wading bird in the stork family Ciconiidae. This distinctive stork is found mainly in and around the Indian subcontinent. It is mainly greyish white with glossy black wings and tail and the adults have the beak with a narrow gap formed by the arched upper mandible and recurved lower mandible. Young birds are born without a gap in the bill and this structure is thought to be an adaptation that aids them handle snails. The usual foraging habitats are inland wetlands and are only rarely seen along river banks and tidal flats. Groups may forage together in close proximity in shallow water or marshy ground on which they may walk with a slow and steady gait. They feed mainly on large molluscs, and they separate the shell from the body of the snail using the tip of the beak. The tip of the lower mandible of the beak is often twisted to the right. This tip is inserted into the opening of the snail and the body is extracted with the bill still under water. The breeding season is after the rains,They may skip breeding in drought years. They breeds colonially, building a rough platform of sticks often on half-submerged trees typically laying 2-4 eggs. The nesting trees are shared with those of egrets, cormorants and darters. Like other storks, they are silent except for clattering produced by the striking of the male's bill against that of the female during copulation. Males may sometimes form polygynous associations, typically with two females that may lay their eggs in the same nest. Spoonbill ======= Spoonbills are a group of large, long-legged wading birds in the family Threskiornithidae, which also includes the Ibises. All have large, flat, spatulate bills and feed by wading through shallow water, sweeping the partly opened bill from side to side. The moment any small aquatic creature touches the inside of the bill an insect, crustacean, or tiny fish it is snapped shut. Spoonbills generally prefer fresh water to salt but are found in both environments. They need to feed many hours each day. Spoonbills are monogamous, but, so far as is known, only for one season at a time. Most species nest in trees or reed-beds, often with ibises or herons. The female lays a clutch of about 3 smooth, oval, white eggs and both parents incubate; chicks hatch one at a time rather than all together. The newly hatched young are blind and cannot care for themselves immediately; both parents feed them by partial regurgitation. Chicks' bills are short and straight, and only gain the characteristic spoonbill shape as they mature. Music By Vladimir from Jamendo.com
