- 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.