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Platalea ajaja
A bizarre wading bird, the bright pink Roseate Spoonbill uses its odd bill to strain small food items out of the water. Like the American Flamingo, their pink color is diet-derived, consisting of the carotenoid pigment canthaxanthin. Another carotenoid, astaxanthin, can also be found deposited in flight and body feathers. The colors can range from pale pink to bright magenta, depending on age and location. Adults have a bare greenish head ("golden buff" when breeding) and a white neck, back, and breast (with a tuft of pink feathers in the center when breeding), and are otherwise a deep pink. The bill is grey.
A small rookery on Jefferson Island Road.
Spotted on Apr 21, 2013
Submitted on Apr 30, 2013
2 Comments
Thanks It was a wonderful trip in April - planning on returning for more photos :)
Great picture. I was at Jefferson Island yesterday and toured the gardens. There were no roseate spoonbills in the rookery. They don't come until April. I did see some from afar at a marsh field but they flew away as soon as we were spotted. Enjoyed seeing your picture. Thanks!