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Wood Stork

Mycteria americanaOrder: CICONIIFORMES Family: Storks (Ciconiidae)
Codes: Common Name: WOST Scientific Name: MYCAME ITIS Taxonomic No.: 174897
Least Concern
 
Wood Stork_2
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Overview

Wood Stork: Large, odd wading bird, mostly white except for black flight feathers and tail. Upper neck and head are featherless and dark gray. The bill is thick, long, and curved downward. Legs and feet are gray black. Alternates between strong wing beats and gliding. Soars on thermals and updrafts.

Range and Habitat

Wood Stork: Breeds in Florida and Georgia; very rarely elsewhere along the coast from South Carolina to Texas. Wanders as far as California and Massachusetts, though very rarely. Breeding habitat is chiefly in cypress swamps; also in mangroves.

Topo Map: Long-legged-like Body


Listen to Call

Voice Text

Generally silent

Interesting Facts

 In Florida, the Wood Stork breeds during the late winter dry season when its fish prey are concentrated in shrinking pools.

 Wood Storks have been known to fly as high as 6000 feet. They will fly as much as 50 miles in search of food.

 They nest above water to prevent predators such as raccoons from feeding on their eggs and young.

 A group of storks has many collective nouns, including "a clatter of storks", "a filth of storks", "a muster of storks", "a phalanx of storks", and a "swoop of storks."


Bird Term Glossary



Author

Gary Owen Dick

Artist

Santiago Cornejo

Splitbar
Range Map for Wood Stork

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Family Stork (Ciconiidae)_blue
Species Mycteria americana
Length35 - 45 Inches
Wingspan65 Inches

Wood Stork

Wood Stork: Large, odd wading bird, mostly white except for black flight feathers and tail. Upper neck and head are featherless and dark gray. The bill is thick, long, and curved downward. Legs and feet are gray black. Alternates between strong wing beats and gliding. Soars on thermals and updrafts.

● Song: Generally silent

● Foraging & Feeding: Wood Stork: Eats small fish, tadpoles, frogs, and crayfish. Hunts by wading with its bill open just under the water surface, snapping it shut when encountering prey.

● Breeding & nesting: Wood Stork: Lays two to five white eggs in nest made of twigs, vines, and moss, built at the top of tall tree; nests in colonies. Incubation ranges from 27 to 32 days and is carried out by both parents.

● Similar species: Wood Stork: White Pelican tucks neck in flight, has short legs and long, orange bill. Whooping Crane has white secondaries and a white, feathered head and neck. White Ibis is much smaller with white head and neck, red bill, and white secondaries.

Flight Pattern

Alternates between strong flapping flight and gliding., Rides high on thermals.
Wood Stork Body Illustration_2
● Range & Habitat: Wood Stork: Breeds in Florida and Georgia; very rarely elsewhere along the coast from South Carolina to Texas. Wanders as far as California and Massachusetts, though very rarely. Breeding habitat is chiefly in cypress swamps; also in mangroves.
BreedingMonogamous
PopulationFairly common
MigrationNonmigratory
Weight96 Ounces
Long-legged-like BodyX
Flight feathersX
Located on the wing, and collectively called remiges (singular, remex). The long stiff feathers are subdivided into two major groups based on the location and are called primaries and secondaries.
4 and 6 letter alpha codesX

The four letter common name alpha code is is derived from the first two letters of the common first name and the first two letters of common last name. The six letter species name alpha code is derived from the first three letters of the scientific name (genus) and the first three letters of the scientific name (species). See (1) below for the rules used to create the codes..

Four-letter (for English common names) and six-letter (for scientific names) species alpha codes were developed by Pyle and DeSante (2003, North American Bird-Bander 28:64-79) to reflect A.O.U. taxonomy and nomenclature (A.O.U. 1998) as modified by Supplements 42 (Auk 117:847-858, 2000) and 43 (Auk 119:897-906, 2002). The list has been updated by Pyle and DeSante to reflect changes reported by the A.O.U from 2003 through 2006.

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ITIS CodesX

The Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS) was established in the mid-1990�s as a cooperative project among several federal agencies to improve and expand upon taxonomic data (known as the NODC Taxonomic Code) maintained by the National Oceanographic Data Center (NODC), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

To find the ITIS page for a bird species go to the ITIS web site advanced search and report page at http://www.itis.gov/advanced_search.html. You can enter the TSN or the common name of the bird. It will return the ITIS page for that bird. Another way to obtain the ITIS page is to use the Google search engine. Enter the string ITIS followed by the taxonomic ID, for example "ITIS 178041" will return the page for the Allen's Hummingbird.

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Parts of a Standing birdX
Head Feathers and MarkingsX
Parts of a Flying birdX