spoonbill

1. 1. Any of several long-legged wading birds of the genus Platalea, similar to the ibis but having a long, flat bill with a broadly spatulate tip.
   2. Any of various broad-billed ducks, such as the shoveler.
2. See paddlefish.

For more information on spoonbill, visit Britannica.com.

Platalea leucorodia

SUBFAMILY

Plataleinae

TAXONOMY

Platalea leucorodia Linnaeus, 1758, Sweden. Three subspecies.

OTHER COMMON NAMES

English: Eurasian spoonbill, common spoonbill; French: Spatule blanche; German: Löffler; Spanish: Espátula Común.

PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS

27.5–37.5 in (70–95 cm); 3.3 lb (1,500) g. Overall white plumage with varying amounts of yellow (from small patch to ring) at the base of the neck. Crest of white feathers on the back of the head. Black bill tipped in yellow and black legs. Males somewhat larger than females.

DISTRIBUTION

Has the largest modern range of any species in its family. Found across the Eurasian mainland, from the Atlantic coast of the Netherlands east across the Caspian and Black Seas, over

most of China, to Mongolia, southern Siberia, and the Korean Peninsula.

HABITAT

Marshes, lakes, ponds, rivers, lagoons, flooded areas, and mudflats.

BEHAVIOR

Flies with the head and legs extended, using majestic, slow beats of its wings. Groups may fly in single file or in a loose V formation. Spoonbills rarely utter any cries. On the ground, it often rests standing on one leg. It will swim for short distances to reach suitable areas of shallow water.

FEEDING ECOLOGY AND DIET

Mainly insects, crustaceans, and fish. The spoonbill holds its straight, flattened bill slightly open while foraging, sweeping it through shallow water and picking up prey items disturbed by the motion. Experiments have determined that the bill's shape lets it act as a hydrofoil, setting up water currents which affect objects up to four inches (10 cm) away from the bill itself.

REPRODUCTIVE BIOLOGY

The spoonbill breeds, like most birds of the ibis family, in colonies of varying size. Clutch size is about three to five eggs. The young hatch after 21 days and are cared for by both parents.

CONSERVATION STATUS

Not threatened. Some local pressures due to hunting and habitat destruction.

SIGNIFICANCE TO HUMANS

None known.

Spoonbills
Royal spoonbill
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Aves
Order:	Ciconiiformes (disputed)
Family:	Threskiornithidae
Subfamily:	Plateinae
Genera and Species
See text.

Spoonbills are a group of large, long-legged wading birds in the family Threskiornithidae, which also includes the Ibises.

Eurasian Spoonbill Platalea leucorodia in India.

"Spoonbill" could also mean Northern Shoveler or Paddlefish.

All have large, flat, spatulate bills and feed by wading through shallow water, sweeping the partly-opened bill from side to side. The moment any small aquatic creature touches the inside of the bill—an insect, crustacean, or tiny fish—it is snapped shut. Spoonbills generally prefer fresh water to salt but are found in both environments. They need to feed many hours each day.

Spoonbills are monogamous, but, so far as is known, only for one season at a time. Most species nest in trees or reed-beds, often with ibises or herons. The male gathers nesting material—mostly sticks and reeds, sometimes taken from an old nest—the female weaves it into a large, shallow bowl or platform which varies in its shape and structural integrity according to species.

The female lays a clutch of about 3 smooth, oval, white eggs and both parents incubate; chicks hatch one at a time rather than all together. The newly-hatched young are blind and cannot care for themselves immediately; both parents feed them by partial regurgitation. Chicks' bills are short and straight, and only gain the characteristic spoonbill shape as they mature. Their feeding continues for a few weeks longer after the family leaves the nest. The primary cause of brood failure appears not to be predation but starvation.

Species and distribution

The six species of spoonbill in two genera are distributed over much of the world.

• Eurasian Spoonbill (Platalea leucorodia): This is the most widespread species, which occurs in the northeast of Africa and much of Europe and Asia across to Japan. Adults and juveniles are largely white with black outer wing-tips and dark bills and legs. Breeds in reed-beds, usually without other species.
• Black-faced Spoonbill (Platalea minor): Found in Taiwan, China, Korea and Japan.

Yellow-billed Spoonbill

• African Spoonbill (Platalea alba): Breeds in Africa and Madagascar. A large white species similar to Common Spoonbill, from which it can be distinguished by its pink face and usually paler bill. Its food includes insects and other small creatures, and it nests in trees, marshes or rocks.
• Royal Spoonbill (Platalea regia): Most common in south-east Australia, but regularly found in smaller numbers on other parts of the continent when temporary wetlands form; in New Zealand, particularly the South Island, and sometimes as stragglers in New Guinea, Indonesia, and the Pacific Islands. Its food is aquatic life, and it nests in trees, marshes or reed-beds.
• Yellow-billed Spoonbill (Platalea flavipes): Common in south-east Australia, not unusual on the remainder of the continent, vagrant to New Zealand, Lord Howe Island and Norfolk Island. Its food includes aquatic life, and it nests in trees, marshes or reed-beds.
• Roseate Spoonbill (Platalea ajaja or Ajaia ajaja): Adults are largely pink. They occur in South America, the Caribbean, Texas, Louisiana, and southern Florida USA. They nest in mangrove or other trees and feed on aquatic life.

External links

• Media related to Platalea at Wikimedia Commons

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Platalea

• Spoonbill videos on the Internet Bird Collection

This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)

Dansk (Danish)
n. - skestork

Nederlands (Dutch)
lepelaar

Français (French)
n. - spatule

Deutsch (German)
n. - Löffler

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - (ορνιθ.) πλαταλέα, κουταλάς

Italiano (Italian)
spatola

Português (Portuguese)
n. - colhereiro (m)

Русский (Russian)
колпица, розовая цапля, утка-широконоска

Español (Spanish)
n. - ave de cuchara, cuchareta, espátula

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - skedstork

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
篦鹭

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 篦鷺

한국어 (Korean)
n. - 노랑부리저어새, 주둥이가 숟가락 모양인 새의 총칭

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - ヘラサギ, ハシビロガモ

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) طائر مائي‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮אבי הכף (עוף בעל מקור רחב)‬

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