Ibisbill
| Ibisbill | |
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| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Charadriiformes |
| Family: |
Ibidorhynchidae Bonaparte, 1856 |
| Genus: |
Ibidorhyncha Vigors, 1832 |
| Species: | I. struthersii |
| Binomial name | |
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Ibidorhyncha struthersii Vigors, 1832 |
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| Synonyms | |
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Clorhynchus strophiatus Hodgson, 1835 |
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Clorhynchus strophiatus Hodgson, 1835
The ibisbill (Ibidorhyncha struthersii) is a bird related to the waders, but sufficiently distinctive to merit its own family Ibidorhynchidae. It is grey with a white belly, red legs and long down-curved bill, and a black face and black breast band. It occurs on the shingle riverbanks of the high plateau of central Asia and the Himalayas.
The ibisbill belongs to the order Charadriiformes which also includes the sandpipers, plovers, terns, auks, gulls, skuas and others. Although its evolutionary relationships are not fully understood, the ibisbill appears to be most closely related to a group including the oystercatchers, avocets, stilts and Pluvialis plovers, but sufficiently distinctive to merit its own family, Ibidorhynchidae.
There are no subspecies. The species was described in 1831 by Vigors based on painting by John Gould although Brian Hodgson had sent a manuscript to the Asiatic Society of Bengal two years earlier describing it as the "Red-billed Erolia" but this was published only in 1835 with an apology from the editor. Hodgson later suggested a new genus name of Clorhynchus for the bird stating that Gould's description of Ibidorhyncha was inaccurate while Vieillot's Erolia had been rejected. The species is named in honour of Dr. Struthers who collected specimens of the bird from the Himalayas.
The ibisbill is 38–41 cm (15–16 in) long and is quite unmistakable in appearance. The adult is grey with a white belly, a crimson, long down-curved bill similar to that of the unrelated ibis, and a black face and black breast band. The sexes are similar, but young birds lack the black on the face and breast, and the bill is duller. The bill is 6.8–8.2 cm (2.7–3.2 in) long and is slightly longer in females. The legs are greyish purple in the breeding adults and dull sepia in juveniles or greenish in younger or non-breeding adults. The legs of deceased ibisbills change color to a crimson similar to the bill shade shortly after death. The tarsi is short and reticultated. The ibisbill has three toes, lacking the hind toe. The outer and middle toes are connected by a small, idented web, while the middle and inner toes possess no webbing. The Ibisbill typically weighs 270–320 g (9.5–11.3 oz) and females weigh slightly more than males. In spite of its spectacular appearance it is inconspicuous in its stony environment. The call is a ringing Klew-klew similar to that of a greenshank. In flight, its outstretched neck and rounded wings give an ibis-like appearance.
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Wikipedia