WADING BIRDS 
(Herons, Bitterns, Storks and Flamingoes) 
Extremely long stilt-like legs adapt members of this group for wading 
in shallow waters and marshlands in search of food. Most of them are 
equipped with long, sharply pointed bills for spearing fish. These bills 
can be submerged almost completely without any impediment to breathing 
as the small, slit-like nostrils are located at the very base of the bill. The 
boat-billed herons and the flamingoes are exceptions to this rule and feed 
by scooping and sifting the mud bottom. 
The long and powerful wings of these large birds enable them to fly 
great distances, though they seldom do so except during migration. They 
will normally make only short excursions unless pursued. As might be 
expected of birds that do not take to the deeper waters of the open ocean, 
they seldom swim either on or under water. 
Many wading birds roost in trees and often build nests in their pro¬ 
tective foliage, rather than in the more exposed swampland. This perching 
ability is unusual for aquatic birds and is accounted for by the peculiar 
construction of the feet, which are equipped for both grasping and wading. 
Herons: 
Boat-billed Heron. 
Cocoi Heron. 
Bitterns: 
Least Bittern. 
Ibises: 
Scarlet Ibis. 
Storks: 
White Stork. 
Shoe-bill Stork. 
Marabou Stork. 
Wood Ibis. 
Flamingoes: 
American Flamingo. 
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