The roseate spoonbill (Platalea ajaja) is a species of wading bird that belongs in the same family as other spoonbills and ibises. Native to South and North America, its habitats include tropical wetlands and mangroves.
Like the American flamingo, their pink color is diet-derived, consisting of a pigment called canthaxanthin, which they obtain from small crustaceans that they eat. Depending on the age, location, and possibly breeding, the colors can range from pale pink to bright magenta. Unlike herons, spoonbills fly with their necks outstretched. The diet of the roseate spoonbill also includes aquatic insects, mollusks, small fishes, frogs, and newts.
Roseate spoonbills are often trailed by egrets when foraging, as the spoonbill's disturbance of the sediment makes prey more available to the egret.
Behind the Scenes[]
In the script of John Sayles' Jurassic Park IV, a small flock of roseate spoonbills resided in John Hammond's aviary. Nick and John pass by them as they were wading through a shallow pond when the latter explains his current legacy.[1]
