The Columbus Zoo has two white-faced ibises in its North American aviary. The birds were perhaps first-years in 2018. All About Birds says, "In good light, note the metallic green and bronze wings."
 |
May 7, 2018
|
 |
July 25, 2018 - They've got brown heads and necks with a little red.
|
 |
August 7, 2018 - Here's the whole bird. The red on the back is actually the inside leading edge of the wing.
|
 |
April 3, 2019 - The next spring, the red is gone. (This picture is of the golden plover at the back. I thought it might be interesting to have the two ibises out-of-focus in front. They're on the roof their winter home in the aviary.)
|
 |
May 15, 2019 - Six weeks later, the ibises' necks and breasts are red, and we see why they're called white-faced. (I don't know what the ceremony is. If it's related to mating, nothing will come of it because both are male.)
|
 |
July 1, 2019 - The colors are still strong after another six weeks.
|
 |
November 4, 2019 - Back to brown.
|
 |
June 11, 2020 - Looking fancy again.
|
As far as I know, feathers don't change color, so there must be two molts per year: One to turn red, presumably for breeding season, and another to return to brown. Or maybe the red just fades.
Do they look as sad as bluejays when they molt?
ReplyDelete