a kayak - Wavelength Paddling Magazine

Wildlife for kayakers
by James Dorsey
FOR THOSE OF US who love
to paddle coastal waters, there
is a feathery companion whose
historical link to coastal man may date
back further than any other seabird.
The ibis is a wading bird, often
mistaken for a heron. It frequents coastal
shallows, lagoons, marshes and bay, and its
historic connections with humans can be
traced all the way back to the bible.
They are of the family Threskiornithidae,
(order Ciconiiformes) and their name is
believed to be Greek, borrowed from the
ancient Egyptian “HIB.” There are about
30 known species and 13 separate genus
of this varied and curious creature.
I have often glided silently by them
in the marshy wetlands of Southern
California where I live, and also in the
mangroves of Baja, Mexico, where I
frequently paddle. They walk along nobly
as they use their long curved beak that
they often bury up to their eyes to probe
in the mud for mollusks, crustaceans, and
small fish.
They are found in warm latitudes
throughout the world with some of
them migrating to warmer climates in
wintertime. They can stand two and a
half feet (75 cm) in height on their long
legs, and vary in color and plumage
depending on the particular species. All are
identifiable by the orange beak. Because
of the beak’s unique curved shape and
strength, the ibis will also probe into grass
to find worms, helping to aerate the soil as
it feeds.
They nest either on the ground or in
short bushes near the coast, building homes
of small tree limbs. The female will lay
three to five green or blue eggs often with
brown speckles. They are social within their
species and often nest colonially with both
male and female caring for the eggs and
newborn hatchlings. They feed their young
small fish, frogs, and sometimes human
detritus that both male and female collect.
During mating they are known to make
grunts and croaking noises, but other than
that are usually silent. When hunting they
can draft low over the water looking for
prey, riding the thermal currents just off
the caps of waves. While rooting along in
shallows they will usually be found in pairs,
one standing watch while the other hunts.
Among the species, the glossy ibis is
found throughout the lower eastern United
States and as far as Europe and Australia,
while the white face and white ibis are only
found in the Americas. The scarlet ibis,
bright red or pink as its name implies, is
native to South America where it is often
hunted for its bright plumage. Because it was
so devastatingly hunted there, the scarlet ibis
was introduced to the United States in the
1960s in hopes of maintaining the species
and it is now doing well there. It is still the
national bird of Trinidad and Tobago.
44 COAST&KAYAK MAGAZINE SPRING 2011