No this is not the racist joke joke about  people from ethnic minorities and prison. This is a sensible post about ibis. Now not a lot of people know this – but there are three species of ibis in Australia. The most well known is the Australian White Ibis (Threskiornis molucca) also commonly known as the Australian Bin Chicken and sometimes referred to as the tip turkey thanks to its habit of rummaging in rubbish. I think we can all agree it is not a very good looking bird,  in fact it looks a little primeval.

 

 

The second ibis that people may be aware of is the Straw-necked Ibis (Threskiornis spinicollis)and they are fairly widespread and can be found around shallow fresh water bodies. They have not succumbed to an urban diet of rubbish but feed on aquatic insects, molluscs, frogs, and on land, they thrive on grasshoppers, crickets, and locusts.

 

 

The third is one that most people are unaware of, and that is the Glossy Ibis (Plegadis falcinellus).  Seen in dull flat light the bird appears to be a dark dirty brown colour, but it is when it is seen in strong directional light its plumage takes on an iridescent green-and-purple gloss. One might almost say that for an ibis it is a good looking bird. They, like their straw-necked cousins, can be found foraging around large shallow fresh water bodies for  frogs, snails, aquatic insects and spiders. This is also our most cosmopolitan ibis being found not just in Australia but also  in warm regions of Europe, Asia, Africa,  and the Atlantic and Caribbean regions of the Americas.