14-10-2015 VALENCIA BIOPARC - AFRICAN SACRED IBIS (Threskiornis aethiopicus ssp. aethiopicus)

Striking white ibis with a naked black head and neck and black legs and feet. White wings framed by black wingtips and trailing edges. Can be encountered in almost any open habitat from wild wetlands to farmland and rubbish dumps. Originally restricted to sub-Saharan Africa, but now established in Taiwan and Europe, with feral colonies in France, Italy, and Spain.

The African Sacred Ibis has black and white plumage on its head and tail. It is named after the god Thoth, whom it embodied. It was domesticated and kept in temples and parks, where the ancient Egyptians worshipped it. When a Sacred Ibis died, it would be mummified and received ritual burial. Today, however, these birds have disappeared from Egypt.

They are found mainly in the streams and lake areas of southern Africa and Asia. They feed mainly on insects and worms, as well as crustaceans and small reptiles, which they capture with their long curved bill.

The ibis is a  carnivorous bird; its diet is very similar to that of storks or marabous. It feeds on insects and worms, as well as crustaceans and small reptiles, which it captures with its long bill.

A diurnal and gregarious bird, it inhabits the banks of  rivers, lakes and stagnant waters. It sometimes forms very numerous colonies. It builds nests in trees. Chicks are born white, except for their neck and head, which are black and featherless. Incubation lasts about 28 to 29 days and is carried out by both mother and father.

The young of the Sacred Ibis leave the nest 20 days after birth to meet in a kind of nursery. Before the second month of life they acquire their independence.