Marabou Stork
Leptoptilos crumeniferus
Size: | Up to 152 cms high, wingspan more than 3 metres |
Habitat: | Savannas, swamps, river and lake margins |
Feeding: | Carrion, rodents and reptiles |
The Marabou Stork is a very large wading bird. It is a very ugly bird with a bare head and neck similar to a vulture and a large pink sac hanging from its throat.
The underparts are white and the wings are black. The legs are grey/white.
The Marabou is a scavenger and can often be found near rubbish tips.
These photos were taken at a heronry in the Okavango Delta, Botswana, where the Marabou were tending their young in a nest made of sticks high in a tree.
Click on any of the photographs on this site to see a larger image.