the.com/spoonbill
the bird that swings its face like a metal detector through the mud
means A wading bird with long legs and a distinctive flattened, spoon-shaped bill that it sweeps side to side through shallow water to catch small prey.
from A plain English compound, exactly what it says on the tin: 'spoon' plus 'bill,' naming the bird for the broad, flattened tip of its beak. 'Spoon' traces back to Old English 'spon,' which meant a chip or splinter of wood — the same flat shape that later gave us the eating utensil. 'Bill' for a bird's beak is also Old English ('bile'). So the name simply welds together two everyday words to describe the unmistakable spatula on its face.
- touch hunter
- Feeds by feel, snapping shut on contact, not sight
- pink diet
- Roseate color comes from crustaceans they eat
- bill purpose
- Spatula shape sweeps shallow water side to side
- family tie
- Related to ibises, not flamingos despite the pink
- sleepy stance
- Often rests balanced on a single leg
roseate spoonbill — pink wading bird found in gulf coast marshes and south america, population recovered from near extinction
eurasian spoonbill — white spoonbill species across europe and asia, breeds in danube delta and winters in africa
african spoonbill — red-faced spoonbill species native to sub-saharan africa wetlands and river systems