Glossy Ibis (Plegadis falcinellus)

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A Field Guide to Eastern Birds. by Roger Tory Peterson.

Return to Eastern Ibises

Color Photograph: South Florida Water Management District

Glossy Ibis (Plegadis falcinellus)

Identification: Length from tip of bill to tip of tail 22 to 25 inches.

Adult: Plumage a rich, shiny, dark rusty brown with green iridescence on the wings. Bill gray-brown, long, curved downward. Legs red and gray. Face without feathers between eye and bill and with a very thin white line around the eye. Eye brown during the breeding season.

Immature: Similar in shape to the adult, but grayer and without the green iridescence on the wings. Neck and side of head with white streaking.

Similar Species:  The Glossy Ibis is nearly identical to the White-faced Ibis and the two can only be reliably separated during the breeding season. During the breeding season the White-faced Ibis has a broad band of white around the eye and the eye is red. These characters constrast with the fine white line of the Glossy Ibis and the brown eye during the breeding season. The immatures are virtually indistinguishable. The Glossy Ibis is easily distinguished from the White Ibis by the all white adult plumage of the White Ibis and the all white belly of the immature.

Breeding Range (see map below): The Glossy Ibis is originally an inhabitatant of Africa apparently crossing the Atlantic to South America in the 19th century. The species is resident in North America along the Atlantic Coast and westward along the Gulf Coast to Louisiana. The species breeds (but is not resident) as far north as southern New England. The Glossy Ibis is found throughout most of the tropical New World.

Overwintering Range:  See above.

Habitat: The Glossy Ibis is found along coastal mudflats, lagoons, and coastal bays. It also occurs inland in swamps, marshes, and flooded fields.

Food:  This species feeds primarily on invertebrates, including crayfish at inland localities and crabs in salt water habitats. However the Glossy Ibis will eat other prey including insects and snakes.

Behavior: The Glossy Ibis is a wader searching for its food items in shallow water or on mudflats. The voice is a series of grunts or high-pitched sheeplike noises.

Reproduction:  The clutch consits of 3 to 4 pales blue-green eggs. The eggs are laid in a nest constructed of sticks and twigs. The nest is usually placed in a tree, buy sometimes is also found on the ground. The Glossy Ibis typically nests in colonies, commonly with Herons.