I received a call last Wednesday from my friend, Howard Vainright saying that he was in our area looking at a small flock of Glossy Ibis and that I should come out and take pictures. Had this call come from most anyone else, I would have probably said to myself, “Yeah, right!”. But when one of the best and most knowledgable birders in North Carolina says anything about birds, it is time to listen! I jumped in my car and arrived at the scene in about 20 minutes. Sure enough, about 70 yards from the road, in a small, shallow field pond were 6 beautiful Glossy Ibis busily probing the pond for food. It was a little after noon and the sun was directly in my face, but I tried for the next 30 minutes to capture a reasonable picture. There was no way to get to the other side of the birds, so I knew the beautiful details of the Ibis would be lost. I was afraid they might not be there later, but I decided to come back in late afternoon when the light would be in my favor. I was not able to get back until the next late afternoon, but thank goodness five of them were still there. I gratefully spent the next hour getting a series of great shots of them feeding, preening, and flying. What a treat to see these gorgeous birds right here near home in an area where they are seldom seen. Howard said he could only remember a couple of local sightings in Pitt County in the last 30 years. So what a rare treat!
Usually, I see them near the coast in marshy areas. Their habitat ranges along the Atlantic coast from Maine down to Florida and across the Gulf coast to Texas. They are also in the West Indies and along the east coast of South America. They are not native to the west and likely migrated from Africa to our continent several hundred years ago. They are also found in Australia.
The Ibis is around 20-24” tall with a 3’ wing span, long legs, and a curved bill for probing. They have purple to black to greenish feathers on head, neck, back, and belly. In breeding season, they have a rusty red coloration on neck, chest and sides. This is when they are most beautiful and we were fortunate to photograph our local birds in breeding colors. For complete information on life cycle, etc of the Ibis, go to the Audubon site. The Greenville Daily Reflector on Saturday, May 2 ran a story with one of my pictures about this rare visit to the area.
My appreciation again to Howard for the tip on these birds! Please enjoy the photos below of these rare visitors to our area. Beautiful birds!!!!
Usually, I see them near the coast in marshy areas. Their habitat ranges along the Atlantic coast from Maine down to Florida and across the Gulf coast to Texas. They are also in the West Indies and along the east coast of South America. They are not native to the west and likely migrated from Africa to our continent several hundred years ago. They are also found in Australia.
The Ibis is around 20-24” tall with a 3’ wing span, long legs, and a curved bill for probing. They have purple to black to greenish feathers on head, neck, back, and belly. In breeding season, they have a rusty red coloration on neck, chest and sides. This is when they are most beautiful and we were fortunate to photograph our local birds in breeding colors. For complete information on life cycle, etc of the Ibis, go to the Audubon site. The Greenville Daily Reflector on Saturday, May 2 ran a story with one of my pictures about this rare visit to the area.
My appreciation again to Howard for the tip on these birds! Please enjoy the photos below of these rare visitors to our area. Beautiful birds!!!!
SEE GALLERY BELOW. CLICK ANY PIC TO ENLARGE. USE SIDE ARROWS TO SCROLL | |
RSS Feed