| Shoebill | |
|---|---|
| Photographed at Weltvogelpark Walsrode, Germany | |
| Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Pelecaniformes |
| Family: | Balaenicipitidae Bonaparte, 1853 |
| Genus: | Balaeniceps Gould, 1850 |
| Species: | B. rex |
| Binomial name | |
| Balaeniceps rex Gould, 1850 |
|
The Shoebill (Balaeniceps rex) also known as Whalehead or Shoe-billed Stork, is a very large stork-like bird. It derives its name from its massive shoe-shaped bill. The adult bird is 115 to 150 centimeters (45 to 59 in) tall, 100 to 140 centimeters (39 to 55 in) long, 230 to 260 centimeters (91 to 100 in) across the wingspan and weighs 4 to 7 kilograms (8.8 to 15 lb).[2][3] Their beaks have an average length of 30 centimeters (12 in).[4] The adult is mainly grey while the juveniles are browner. It lives in tropical east Africa in large swamps from Sudan to Zambia.
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This species was only classified in the 19th century when some skins were brought to Europe. It was not until years later that live specimens reached the scientific community. However, the bird was known to both ancient Egyptians and Arabs. There are Egyptian images depicting the Shoebill, while the Arabs referred to the bird as abu markub, which means one with a shoe, a reference to the bird's distinctive bill.
The Shoebill is one of the bird taxa whose taxonomic treatment is murky. Traditionally allied with the storks (Ciconiiformes), it was retained there in the Sibley-Ahlquist taxonomy which lumped a massive number of unrelated taxa into their "Ciconiiformes". More recently, the shoebill has been considered to be closer to the pelicans (based on anatomical comparisons; Mayr, 2003) or the herons (based on biochemical evidence; Hagey et al., 2002). A recent DNA study suggests they are part of the Pelecaniformes.[5]
The dispute has turned out to be mainly one of where to draw the boundary between Ciconiiformes and Pelecaniformes, or whether to draw it at all. Since cormorants and relatives are probably not actually Pelecaniformes, a solution adopted by some modern authors is to merge the "core" Pelecaniformes with the Ciconiiformes. The Shoebill and the Hammerkop (Scopus umbretta) are the "missing links" that connect pelicans and storks, and including the pelican lineage in the Ciconiiformes expresses this more adequately than other treatments do.
So far, two fossil relatives of the shoebill have been described: Goliathia from the early Oligocene of Egypt and Paludavis from the Early Miocene of the same country. It has been suggested that the enigmatic African fossil bird Eremopezus was a relative too, but the evidence for that is unconfirmed. All that is known of Eremopezus is that it was a very large, probably flightless bird with a flexible foot, allowing it to handle either vegetation or prey.
Shoebills feed in muddy waters, preying on fish, frogs, reptiles such as baby crocodiles, and small mammals. They nest on the ground and lay from 1 to 3 eggs, usually during the dry season. These eggs measure 80 to 90 millimeters (3.1 to 3.5 in) x 57 to 61 millimeters (2.2 to 2.4 in). Both parents incubate the eggs for about a month. The newborn chicks will be able to fly after about 100 days, while it will take them 3 years before they become fully sexually mature.[6]
This species is considered to be one of the five most desirable birds in Africa by ornithologists.[7]
The population is estimated at between 5,000 and 8,000 individuals, the majority of which live in swamps in Sudan, Uganda, eastern Zaire, and Zambia.[8] BirdLife International have classified it as Vulnerable with the main threats being habitat destruction, disturbance and hunting.
In the Nintendo game The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword, the Loftwings are a race of birds which assist the people of Skyloft by flying them to different regions of the sky. The faces of the Loftwings resemble those of shoebills.