WHITE IBIS (Eudocimus albus)
Location: Cross Creek
Photo: © 2004 Jeffrey Berger
The nomadic white ibis is experienced in massive flocks like star clusters in the Milky Way. I found this flock foraging the grasses and sedges of Lochloosa Lake.
The ibis has bright white feathers with black wingtips and stands about two feet tall. The ibis is a tactile feeder that will use its thin orange decurved bill as a probe, sweeping it from side to side in shallow water. With the first touch of food, the bill snaps shut. The ibis nests near freshwater because their young are salt-stressed on marine cuisine.
