A-Z Challenge – R is for Roseate Spoonbill

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The feature image was a feature image for my Bird Weekly Photo Challenge: Reflections.

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Roseate Spoonbill

A curious Common Gallinule was looking on (right).

Roseate Spoonbills are pale pink and white birds with a patch of brighter pink on the shoulders and rump. They are so named because of their spoon-shaped bill. Crustaceans and other aquatic invertebrates contain pigments called carotenoids that help turn their feathers pink after they eat them. The more they eat, the brighter pink in their feathers.

They forage in shallow marshlike areas and they are feeding here with the migrating Blue-winged Teals along the mangroves at Merritt Island Wildlife Refuge.

Roseate Spoonbills can be found in the coastal areas of the United States in Florida, Texas and Louisiana. They also can be seen year-round along the coast of Mexico, Central and South America and all over the Caribbean Islands.

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This is my first time participating in April Blogging from A-Z Challenge. As a birder and photographer, I will be sharing a new bird with you every day. I host a weekly photo challenge called Bird Weekly and would love for you to stop by anytime. Join in if that is your thing too.

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