Hello! We are called the Painted Storks. We are big birds with a big bill. If you are from India, you can find us near rivers, canals etc feeding on fish. Here are some important things about us. Have a look:
- Unlike other water birds, we are quite silent. We only make harsh and moaning sounds when nesting.
- We are not migratory birds and stay at a single place almost for a lifetime.
- Like many other storks, we fly in the sky (soaring on thermals) slowly and regulate body temperature.
- We have long naked legs which take heat more than our body, for this reason, we perform urohydrosis. This is a process where we urinate on our legs to cool the legs. This actually makes our legs white in color despite them being yellow to red color.
- We protect our young from the heat by stretching our long wings and providing them shade.
- T.C. Jerdon, a British Zoologist first discovered us and named us “Pelican Ibis” which was changed later.
- We are very elegant and beautiful when you look at us flying.
SOME QUICK FACTS ABOUT US:
Our Scientific Name: Mycteria leucocephala.
Identification: Big and white waterbird with pink wings and an orange-red head.
Our Habitat: freshwater wetlands. Canals, and crop fields.
Our Range:
Food Habits: Omnivorous; feed on on fish, frogs and small snakes.
Breeding Period: November to March.
Number of eggs laid: 3-4 eggs.
Incubation period: about 30 days.
Lifespan: 28 years in captivity, less in wild.
IUCN red list status: Near Threatened.
CITES: Not listed
Indian Wildlife Protection Act: Schedule IV.
SCIENTIFIC CLASSIFICATION:
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Ciconiiformes
Family: Ciconiidae
Genus: Mycteria
Species: M. Leucocephala
COMPLETE DETAILS ABOUT US FOR ANIMAL ENTHUSIASTS:
Painted Storks are large wading birds belonging to the stork family.They are scientifically called as Mycteria leucocephala.
HOW WE LOOK:
We are medium-sized birds with a height of 93cm-102cm and a wingspan of 150cm-160cm. We weigh 2kg-2.5kg. Both males and females of our species look alike.
We have a bare orange-red head with bright pink flight feathers that extend over the bank. We have a black breast band with white scaly markings. The whole body is white in color with a heavy yellow beak having a down-curved tip. Legs are yellow to red in color. The tail is short and black with a green gloss.
The young chicks of our species are white with grey colored bills.
WE ARE FOUND IN:
We prefer living in freshwater wetlands, rivers, canals, and crop fields in all seasons.
Our range is distributed over the plains of Asia. We can be seen in India, Nepal, Pakistan, southern Bangladesh, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam and the East Coast of China. The young ones of our species migrate in this range.
WHAT WE EAT:
We are an omnivorous species. We walk slowly in water, disturb the water with our feet luring the fish and catch them. We also hunt the fish using our half-open bill sweeping in the water.
We mainly feed on fish and sometimes feed on frogs and small snakes.
OUR REPRODUCTION:
We usually live alongside other species of water birds. We build our nest on trees using sticks and leaves. Our breeding season is from November to March. The female lays 3-4 eggs at a time and the incubation period is 30 days.
The young chicks are taken care and fed by both the parents. These young chicks leave the nest after 2 months. In captivity, we are known to be living for as long as 28 years and lesser in wild.
MORE ABOUT US:
We are silent birds like other storks, but we make harsh sounds and low moaning sounds at the nest.
We protect our young chicks from mid-day heat by stretching our wings.
We have a habit of urohydrosis which means we defecate on our legs to regulate body temperature.
OUR CONSERVATION:
We live in many colonies in our range which act like tourist attractions. The largest population of our species is in India. The total population of our species is around 16,000- 24,000 individuals.
We suffer a varied range of threats to our living including human intrusions & disturbances, Dams, Water management, diseases due to pollution and other invasive species. These reasons made our species enter as “Near Threatened” in the red list of IUCN. We are also protected under Indian Wildlife Protection Act, 1972 Schedule IV.
