🐦

Spoonbill

Platalea leucorodia

Not yet photographed by the community

Spatula-shaped bill; now breeding in small numbers in UK.

Species Profile

Amber List (breeding), Red List (wintering)

Lifespan: 15–25 years in the wild
Size & Weight: 80–105 cm, wingspan 105–135 cm; 1,000–2,000 g
Habitat: Shallow wetlands, coastal lagoons, estuaries, and reed-fringed lakes with brackish or freshwater conditions.
UK Distribution: Rare breeding visitor to East Anglia (Norfolk and Suffolk), increasing in numbers since the 1990s. Passage migrant and winter visitor to southern and eastern coasts, with occasional sightings elsewhere.
Diet: Aquatic invertebrates including fish, crustaceans, and insect larvae, located by sweeping its distinctive spatulate bill side-to-side through shallow water.
Prey: Small fish (up to 8 cm), shrimp, dragonfly nymphs, and other aquatic invertebrates
Predators: Foxes, mink, and raptors (particularly to eggs and chicks); adult spoonbills rarely predated
Mating Season: April to June
Breeding: Clutch size 3–4 eggs; incubation period 21–24 days; fledging period 35–40 days; typically one brood per season. Nest colonially in reedbeds or trees.
Behaviour: Highly gregarious, often feeding in small flocks with synchronized sweeping movements. They are relatively silent birds but perform elaborate courtship displays involving head-flagging and bill-clattering. Migratory populations travel between breeding grounds in Europe and British wintering sites.

Did You Know?

•The distinctive spatulate (spoon-shaped) bill contains highly sensitive nerve endings that detect prey vibrations in murky water
•Spoonbills were hunted to extinction in Britain by the 1840s but have successfully recolonised East Anglia since 1989
•Both parents incubate eggs and feed chicks, with young remaining dependent for several months after fledging
•British breeding birds are primarily migratory, wintering in West Africa and the Mediterranean
•Their plumage develops a golden-buff wash on the head and neck during the breeding season as a result of preen-gland secretions

🐦

No photos yet

Be the first to photograph a Spoonbill and share it with the community.