There were plenty of beautiful birds in the wetlands and along the creek the last time I went out to Payne’s Prarie, but among the most striking was this glossy ibis (Plegadis falcinellus). We found it wading and feeding in the shallow waters of the marsh area. Interestingly, it was feeding in close association with a single white ibis, and the pair seemed to be very attached to each other. Wherever one went, the other was sure to follow, and the two of them remained close to each other the entire time that we were watching them.

The glossy ibis is obviously closely related to the white ibis and also shares family ties with the roseate spoonbill. They are found dispersed around the world including the southeastern United States, especially peninsular Florida. You can also find them in the Caribbean, northern South America, Europe, India, Africa, and Australia. In many of those places they are residents, but some birds that breed in northern areas will migrate south for the winter. Often these migrations can be over quite long distances. These birds usually live in wetlands and they prefer freshwater water, but will sometimes settle for brackish or even salt water areas. They are opportunistic feeders and will feast on a wide variety of items including aquatic insects and worms, snails, crabs, dragonflies, frogs and toads, grasshoppers, snakes, and lizards. They also sometimes can be found feeding in plowed fields or in planted fields where they eat grubs, earthworms, insects, reptiles and amphibians, and even sometimes cereal grains. This ability to live in varied habitats and eat many types of food is almost certainly a good bit of the reason that this bird has succeeded in much of the world.