The Wood Stork is one of Florida's signature wading birds, a long-legged, awkward-looking bird on land that soars like a raptor in the air. The wood stork is the only stork species found in North America. It is 40-44 inches in length with a wingspan of five feet. It has a naked gray to black head and neck, a white body and black edged wings and tail. It has a long, slightly curved black bill and long legs. Unlike herons, the wood stork flies with its neck stretched straight out. Males and females look alike.
The wood stork can be found in coastal areas, tidal waters, marshes, swamps, streams and mangroves.It feeds during the day and at night. It eats small fish, frogs, mollusks, snails, insects, and aquatic invertebrates. It hunts for its prey in shallow, muddy-bottomed banks or wetlands. The wood stork moves slowly through the shallow water with its bill open feeling for movement. When the wood stork locates a fish, it quickly snaps its bill shut.
The Wood Stork is the generally accepted name for this Floridian wading bird, although due to the appearance of its head and upper neck, you may also hear of it being called “Ironhead” or “Flinthead”.
They are also called a Wood Ibis or gannet, but this is purely down to its resemblance and not anything to do with genetics.
I found this one in my Backyard! Lake Wales, Polk County, Florida.
Tags: nature outside bird birds feathers fly wings wildlife Wood Stork Juvenile Florida Lake Wales Polk County backyard water yard animal Long Legged Wading wading bird marshes swamps tidal areas streams mangroves fish frogs snails insects SX60HS canon camera photograph image PowerShot ghelm4747 Gary Helm USA US
© All Rights Reserved
There is no evidence that wood storks deliver babies.
The Wood Stork has many folk names, including Wood Ibis (due to its downcurved, ibis-like bill) and flinthead (for its scaly-looking bare head). The word "wood" probably refers to the bird's favored nesting habitat in lowland wetlands.
This is North America's only breeding stork, and the U.S. population is now federally listed as Threatened, downlisted from Endangered in 2014 due to some population recovery. However, like the Snail Kite, Wood Storks face continuing threats from habitat degradation and invasive species.
Uncertain Future in Florida.
Wood Stork are widespread and fairly common throughout Latin America and the Caribbean, although populations there are also probably declining for similar reasons.
Florida holds the largest nesting population of Wood Storks in the United States. Canals, irrigation, and other water control projects have long affected the flow and path of the water channeling into the Everglades, the stronghold of this species.
These factors, combined with severe droughts occurring over several years, have caused significant declines in Wood Stork and other wading bird populations.
Raccoons are major Wood Stork nest predators in the Everglades, particularly when drought allows them easy access to colonies. Invasive plants and animals, especially the exploding population of escaped pythons, pose a serious threat to habitat and birds.
In addition, pesticides and mercury accumulating in water and fish can kill adult storks.
These social storks nest colonially, with up to 25 nests in one tree. Pairs often mate for life.
In Florida, Wood Storks breed during the late winter dry season, when their fish prey are concentrated in shrinking pools. They regularly fly up to 12 miles from the nesting colony while foraging and will go much farther during droughts in search of food.
Wood Storks have a specialized style of feeding, relying on touch to catch fish. A group feeds by slowly wading through the water with open bills; when a bird's bill touches a fish, it quickly snap it shut to secure the meal.
Although not considered true migrants, juvenile Wood Storks disperse northward after the breeding season, and adults move in response to food availability. They are impressive fliers, with flocks soaring as high as 6,000 feet on warm air thermals.
I found this one at Lake Cypress. Osceola County, Florida.
Tags: Woodstorks babies bird birds feathers perch perched flight fly white black Florida Osceola County Lake Cypress nature wildlife ouside outdoor animal Wood Ibis Flinthead ghelm4747 Gary Helm SX60HS canon camera image photograph PowerShot USA US North America swamps marsh trees water fish
© All Rights Reserved
I found this Wood Stork Walking around the edge of Lake Marian in Osceola County, Florida loudly proclaiming over and over, "I am not a Turkey"! Just in case anyone might think differently, especially this time of the year in the U.S.
Happy Thanksgiving to all!
Tags: Wood Stork bird birds animal grass Lake Marian Thanksgiving Osceola County Florida Joe Overstreet nature wildlife outside outdoor fly flight wade image photograph canon SX60HS PowerShot Turkey ghelm4747 Gary Helm USA I am not a Turkey happy Happy Thanksgiving Wading Birds Florida Wildlife
© All Rights Reserved
The Wood Stork is one of Florida’s signature wading birds, a long-legged, awkward-looking bird on land that soars like a raptor in the air.
The Wood Stork has many folk names, including Wood Ibis (due to its downcurved, ibis-like bill) and flinthead (for its scaly-looking bare head). The word "wood" probably refers to the bird's favored nesting habitat in lowland wetlands.
This is North America's only breeding stork, and the U.S. population is now federally listed as Threatened, down listed from Endangered in 2014 due to some population recovery.
Florida holds the largest nesting population of Wood Storks in the United States.
Wood Storks have a specialized style of feeding, relying on touch to catch fish. A group feeds by slowly wading through the water with open bills; when a bird's bill touches a fish, it quickly snap it shut to secure the meal.
Although not considered true migrants, juvenile Wood Storks disperse northward after the breeding season, and adults move in response to food availability. They are impressive fliers, with flocks soaring as high as 6,000 feet on warm air thermals.
I found this one along Peavine Road in Osceola County, Florida.
Tags: bird birds Wood Stork Flinthead animal photograph image nature wildlife outside outdoor fly flight feathers wings sky blue bald ghelm4747 Gary Helm Osceola County Joe Overstreet Road Peavine Road Florida Wildlife Florida USA Wading Bird wetlands water wood
© All Rights Reserved