It takes just 150 beats per minute to keep this impressive animal aloft. The shoebill is similarly nonconformist in the air, where it has one of the slowest flapping rates of any bird. Known as the whale bill, whale-headed stork or shoe-billed stork, this giant bird is endemic to Africa. Shoebills have long, wiry legs that help them move. Shoebills have a similar appearance to dinosaurs, although they are not related to them. They have a large bill that is yellow-orange in color. Their eyes are yellow and they are blue-gray in hue. The shoebill stork has an average wingspan of over 2.5m © Getty images Where To See Shoebill Storks + 19 Other Surprising Facts Shoebills are one of the most fascinating birds in the world. What is the shoebill stork wingspan Shoebill storks have a wingspan of 3.3-5 ft (1.0-1.5 m). Not so scary now, eh? Known as urohidrosis, it’s a messy but deliberate habit that helps the bird to stay cool. They can stand motionless for hours, before attacking, shaking, crushing and then swallowing their prey, and yet, this relative of the pelican is so much more than some villainous caricature.įor one thing, it poos on its own legs. The large African bird gets its name from its distinct beak, which looks like a shoe. Its specialized bill allows the shoebill to grab large prey, including lungfish, tilapia, eels, and. Looking like a mix between a dinosaur and a Jim Henson puppet, the shoebill stork (Balaeniceps rex) is a sight to behold. It’s also slow, purposeful and utterly relentless. Tan with brown splotches, it's five inches wide and has sharp edges and a sharp hook on the end. No other bird can remind us of its kinship with dinosaurs as well as the Shoebill stork or Shoe-billed Stork (Balaeniceps rex). However, the shoebill stork is aggressive and known to attack and fight Nile crocodiles, especially if they are disturbed. This freshwater swamp specialistfrom eastern Africastands over a metre tall, has a wingspan of up to 75cm, and its sharp, clog-shaped bill grows up to 24cm long. Ostriches, with their flightlessness, quick movement, and slender neck, resemble the ornithomimosaurus, which also had a similar long, thin neck and moved like. It also doesn’t help that the bird is physically intimidating. And yes, its stare is somewhat intense – think Paddington Bear meets Vinnie Jones. Yes, it has an enormous, shoe-shaped beak that can kill a baby croc or wrangle a lungfish. Yes, it’s a solitary loner that picks off its prey one at a time.

Shoebill stork related to dinosaurs