Wood Stork (Mycteria americana)
Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary
Southwest Florida
USA
The wood stork (Mycteria americana) is a large American wading bird in the stork family Ciconiidae. It was formerly called the "wood ibis", though it is not an ibis. As of June 26, 2014 it is classified as a threatened species by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service.
This is a subtropical and tropical species which breeds in much of South America, Central America and the Caribbean. The wood stork is the only stork that presently breeds in North America. In the United States there is a small breeding population in Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina, along with a recently discovered rookery in southeastern North Carolina.
After a successful three-decade conservation effort resulting in an increased population in the southeastern United States, the wood stork was removed from the endangered species list and upgraded to threatened on June 26, 2014. In the United States, the wood stork favors cypress trees in marshes, swamps, or (less often) among mangroves and nearby habitat.
A resident breeder in lowland wetlands with trees, the wood stork builds a large stick nest in a forest tree. They nest colonially with up to twenty-five nests in one tree. Breeding once a year, a female typically lays three to five eggs in the clutch. During the breeding season, wood storks need over 400 lb (180 kg) of fish to feed themselves and their offspring. – Wikipedia
Wood Stork (Mycteria americana)
Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary
Southwest Florida
USA
The wood stork (Mycteria americana) is a large American wading bird in the stork family Ciconiidae. It was formerly called the "wood ibis", though it is not an ibis. As of June 26, 2014 it is classified as a threatened species by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service.
This is a subtropical and tropical species which breeds in much of South America, Central America and the Caribbean. The wood stork is the only stork that presently breeds in North America. In the United States there is a small breeding population in Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina, along with a recently discovered rookery in southeastern North Carolina.
After a successful three-decade conservation effort resulting in an increased population in the southeastern United States, the wood stork was removed from the endangered species list and upgraded to threatened on June 26, 2014. In the United States, the wood stork favors cypress trees in marshes, swamps, or (less often) among mangroves and nearby habitat.
A resident breeder in lowland wetlands with trees, the wood stork builds a large stick nest in a forest tree. They nest colonially with up to twenty-five nests in one tree. Breeding once a year, a female typically lays three to five eggs in the clutch. During the breeding season, wood storks need over 400 lb (180 kg) of fish to feed themselves and their offspring. – Wikipedia