Yellow-billed spoonbill
| Yellow-billed spoonbill | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Pelecaniformes |
| Family: | Threskiornithidae |
| Genus: | Platalea |
| Species: | P. flavipes |
| Binomial name | |
|
Platalea flavipes Gould, 1838 |
|
| Synonyms | |
|
Platibis flavipes |
|
Platibis flavipes
The yellow-billed spoonbill (Platalea flavipes) is common in southeast Australia; it is not unusual on the remainder of the continent, and is a vagrant to New Zealand, Lord Howe Island and Norfolk Island. It is around 90 cm (35.5 in) long, and has white plumage with a yellow bill, legs and feet. It nests in trees, marshes or reed-beds, and often roosts in trees. It occurs in shallows of wetlands and occasionally on dry pasture. It feeds largely on aquatic life, which it finds by sweeping its bill from side to side. Like all members of the ibis and spoonbill family, it always flies with its head extended.
The renowned ornithologist John Gould first described the yellow-billed spoonbill, naming it Platalea flavipes although noting its distinctness from other members of the genus. Bonaparte erected the genus Platibis in 1856, and Gould followed this classification in his later work. He noted the species appeared in great numbers across New South Wales in 1839, particularly in the north between the Hunter and lower Namoi Rivers. The year had been wet, in contrast to droughts in previous years.
A 2010 study of mitochondrial DNA of the spoonbills by Chesser and colleagues found that the yellow-billed and roseate spoonbills were each other's closest relative, and the two were descended from an early offshoot from the ancestors of the other four spoonbill species. They felt the genetic evidence meant it was equally valid to consider all six to be classified within the genus Platalea or alternatively the two placed in the monotypic genera Platibis and Ajaja respectively. However, as the six species were so similar morphologically, keeping them within the one genus made more sense.
Measuring around 90 cm (35.5 in), the yellow-billed spoonbill has all white plumage. The long spoon-shaped bill, bare-skinned face, legs and feet are all yellow, while the iris is pale yellow. The sexes are similar in plumage and coloration. In the breeding season, the face is lined with black, long hackles develop on the chest, and the wings have black tips. The bill of the yellow-billed spoonbill is narrower and works more like a forceps than the larger-ended and more spoon-like bill of the royal spoonbill, which acts like a pair of tongs.
...
Wikipedia