Shoebill storks are native
to East-Central Africa. They favor
freshwater swamps and dense marshes where they eat fish, young waterfowl,
amphibians, and small reptiles – including baby crocodiles!
These birds are very prehistoric-looking and have a very unusual beak! It can be up to twelve inches long and five inches wide and it resembles the shape of a wooden shoe.
These birds are very prehistoric-looking and have a very unusual beak! It can be up to twelve inches long and five inches wide and it resembles the shape of a wooden shoe.
The beak resembles the shape of a wooden shoe
Shoebills are fairly large
birds, with some reaching up to five feet in height with a wingspan of seven to
eight feet in length. They are
quite solitary birds; even a mating pair will often forage at separate ends of
their territory. The monogamous
pair builds a grassy nest on a floating platform of vegetation, up to nine feet
wide, often amid dense stands of Papyrus, which is similar to reeds in our
country. The female lays up to
three eggs but usually only one hatchling will
survive. The younger chicks are
considered to be back-ups in case the eldest chick doesn’t survive. Both parents will help to feed and
protect their young. They become
reproductively mature at three to four years old and can live up to thirty-six
years in captivity.
Some Shoebills may reach up to five feet in height
The Shoebill Stork is
mostly an ambush predator. They
stand absolutely still waiting for prey.
Sometimes they will wade through the marsh very slowly in search of
their next meal. Once prey is
spotted they can move with amazing speed and power. The hook at the end of their large beak helps to grip and
crush. Click here
to see some amazing footage of a Shoebill Stork hunting lungfish! Their very large feet are well adapted
for standing and walking on aquatic vegetation while hunting. Their middle toe measures up to seven
inches in length!
Shoebills are listed as a
vulnerable species by the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Their population is declining because
of habitat loss, hunting, and capture for the black market bird trade. Their habitat is being destroyed in
order to create farmland and pasture.
These birds are also hunted for food in some countries and their eggs
are collected and sold as food or to zoos or collectors. Capture and sale of these birds is a
problem, especially in Tanzania, where trading of the species is still
legal. In Zambia, fire and drought
threaten shoebill habitat, and nests are often crushed by large herbivores
foraging in the swamps.
If you want to help
endangered birds, part of the World Bird Sanctuary’s mission is to secure the
future of threatened bird species in their natural environments. You can help us fulfill that mission by
simply visiting us and spreading what you’ve learned, becoming a member or
friend, or adopting-a-bird and feeding that bird for a year!
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