These birds are Australian White Ibis. They are not the most popular birds in Australia. They are often trip dwellers, chip stealers and public space bullies. I think they have a rather reptilian look to them – especially around the head.
As you can see I have not been employed by the White Ibis Appreciation Society to write this post!
However, as a flock wheeling overhead they can make a very spectacular site, and during those times I am prepared to forgive them their chip stealing nature. You can see that the juvenile bird has a much shorter beak than the adult birds.
All three of these images were taken in a park- two at Healesville Sanctuary in Victoria and the other in Central Brisbane, Queensland.
You can find more birds from around the world here at World Bird Wednesday.
You can find the latest post to my other blog by clicking the Paying Ready Attention image on the RHS of the screen.
Enjoy the birds.
I totally agree with you Stewart! I don't like the Ibis at all. Apart from being quite ugly, they have no other redeeming features. I took a great landing shot of one a few months back but I keep puching it to the bottom of the WBW posting pile... maybe one day :)
ReplyDeleteGreat shots though!
Wow!! With the negative press, I wonder if some Ibis defender group will show up. Boom & Gary of the Vermilon River, Canada.
ReplyDeleteHi Stewart,
ReplyDeleteGreat bird, but I have to agree with the reptilian look around the head! Like the Bald Ibis in Morocco, it`s not the best looking bird in the world!
J
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cool! thanks for showing the youngster w/ his still-developing beak! neat!
ReplyDeletecertainly quite ugly, but impressive in their own way!
ReplyDeleteThey are not the prettiest birds, but I still think they are cool looking. Great shots.
ReplyDeleteI love their shadows in the first two shots!
ReplyDeleteSo, the juvie hasn't taken on his Pinocchio nose yet. :)
Nice series Stewart!
Don't know about the reptilian look, I always thought of that upper portion as rather vuluresque.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your obviously kind thoughts Stewart.
As usual I have a small identification problem: not sure my birds are cormorants, by the way they moved, I would have tipped on darter but the beak does not quite fit, also, my book does not go into terns at length and I am sure it is not the Caspian since the beak is yellow. So once again, "help!!"
Wow! Didn't know they were so unpopular. They look pretty cool to me.
ReplyDeleteIt sound like they are similar in nature to the sea gulls--with the chip stealing and all. I've never met an ibis, but they I think they look pretty cool with the long bills. I'll have to reserve judgement on their personalities until I actually see one in person!
ReplyDeleteI think it has a prehistoric look, with its vulturesque head and long hooked beak! Thank you for sharing.
ReplyDeleteI like the look of them! Can't be any worse than the gulls for chip stealing ;)
ReplyDeleteBTW, I live in Canada, and frequent Australia. I'm in Canada now. SA is gorgeous, where are you headed?
Great shots!
ReplyDeleteI think they look cool too.
It's amazing how long their beaks are. Funny that something considered a bit of a pest in its own environment seems so exotic somewhere else. :)
ReplyDeleteLord Stewart, you have kicked up a firestorm here. I am certainly no judge of an ugly bird, I'd just as soon they not be to cute to tell you the truth. And never having met an Australian White ibis or had my chips stolen by one, I won't jump to defend their reputations with folk that know them more intimately. As a Darwinian sort of guy though, it puzzles me that the Ibis's beak appears so poorly designed as a chip eating devise!
ReplyDeleteGreat post Sir!
Thank you for your scintillating reply to my question explaining the White Ibis's evolutionary drift toward an efficient chip eating species. While not perfect, the beak of the Ibis is the best available adaptation for the job an therefore an advantage is derived in the push and shove world of everyday survival.
ReplyDeleteI am predicting, based on our current consumption of this recent dietary anomaly, the development of a draft beer gland over the next few million years to help the stale chips go down. That would be an evolutionary change worth competing for!
Cheers, Dave
Hey Stewart they can come and steal my chips anyday - do they prefer vinegar or ketchup?
ReplyDeleteFantastic shots, Stewart! I just love the bill on the Ibis. They're not pretty birds, but I think they're unique looking.
ReplyDeleteNice shots of this controversial bird Stewart. Our White-faced Ibis is nothing like this species. It is colorful and shy.
ReplyDelete