General

Glossy Ibis: Medium-sized wading bird, iridescent bronze and red-brown overall with a very thin band of white feathers around bare dark blue face and long, down curved, gray bill. Eyes are dark and legs are yellow-gray. Sexes are similar. Winter adult and juvenile show less red tones and iridescence and are browner.

Range and Habitat

Glossy Ibis: Most common in marshes and wetlands along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts; occasionally wanders inland. Scattered populations occur in and around the Caribbean Basin on the Yucatan Peninsula and northern Venezuela; also widespread in Eurasia, Southeast Asia, Pacific Islands, Africa, and Australia.

Breeding and Nesting

Glossy Ibis: One to five pale blue or green eggs are laid in a shallow cup of reeds, lined with grass, and built in a low bush, usually in a marsh. Nests in large colonies, often with other wading birds. Eggs are incubated for 21 days by both parents. Juveniles leave the nest in as soon as 8 days but do not fly until 28 days old.

Foraging and Feeding

Glossy Ibis: Diet consists of crayfish and other invertebrates, as well as frogs, fish, and plants; eats crabs on the coast. Forages by probing mud with its long bill; often forages in flocks of dozens to hundreds of birds.

Vocalization

Glossy Ibis: Flight calls are low grunts such as as "graa..graa..graa" or "uhrr..uhrr..uhrr". At breeding sites, individuals also emit grunts, coos, rattles, and croaks.

Similar Species

Glossy Ibis: White-faced Ibis has a red-skinned face and red legs during the breeding season, with the white border on the face connecting behind eye.