A Marabou Stork seen at the dump site in George yesterday afternoon.

Marabou Stork

The Marabou Stork - Leptoptilos crumeniferus - is a large bird in the stork family Ciconiidae. It has one of the largest wing-spreads of any living bird. They have a wide distribution through sub-Saharan Africa, from Senegal east to Eritrea and south to KZN in South Africa. It inhabits open savannas, swamps, river margins and lake shores, and is often seen around human settlements.

Description

The Marabou is unmistakable due to its size, bare head and neck, black back, and white underparts. It has a huge bill, a pink gular sac at its throat, a neck ruff, and black legs and wings. Although the natural colour of the legs and feet is dark grey/black, the build up of excrement makes them appear almost white The sexes are alike, females are smaller than males, but the young bird is browner and has a smaller bill. Full maturity is not reached for up to four years.

Call

It is not very vocal, but indulges in bill-rattling in the courtship displays as well making various noises from the gular sac.

Food

The Marabou Stork is a frequent scavenger, and the naked head and neck are adaptations to this. It eats mainly carrion, scraps and faeces, but will opportunistically eat variety of live prey including lizards, frogs, various insects, snakes, rats, mice and birds.

Breeding

The pair build a stick nest, in trees or on cliffs-ledges, and sometimes on buildings in towns and villages. When the nest is finished, the female lays a clutch of two to three eggs, which are incubated over 29 to 31 days. The chicks fledge when around 13 to 15 weeks old, but do not reach sexual maturity until at least four years.

Conservation Status –Least concern

This species has an extremely large range and the population is suspected to be increasing as with the increasing availability of waste as a food resource. This species is hunted and traded at traditional medicine markets in Nigeria.

Birdwatching

Ask Aves Birding Tours/Safaris/Adventures to create a tour for you or book on one of the following Aves scheduled tours: -

Aves Arid Birding Tour/Safari/Adventure.

Aves Highlands / Tembe Birding Tour / Safari / Adventure.

Aves KZN Birding Tour / Safari / Adventure.

Aves North East Birding Tour / Safari / Adventure.

Aves North West Birding Tour / Safari / Adventure.