Black-faced Spoonbills (Platalea minor) are long-legged, long-necked wading birds that resemble egrets. Their feathers are snow white most of the year while their legs, feet, and toes are jet-black; faces are black and bare around the eyes and across the forehead. Their black, elongated beaks gradually narrow, then abruptly flare out into a flattened disk with a nail at the tip.

Black-faced Spoonbills are the rarest, and least-studied, spoonbills in the world. Their world-wide population dwindled to several hundred in the 1990s but increased to at least 1,000 by 2003 thanks to conservation efforts. There is currently a global population of around 3,300 Black-faced Spoonbills, of which it is estimated that about 2,000 migrate to South West Taiwan (around Tainan) in the winter.

Many of these birds can be found in the Zengwen River estuary in Tainan City which has been transformed into a reserve for the spoonbills and other birds. They can often be found in the numerous wetlands, fish farms and dried salt pans in the region.

January 31st, 2018

November 23rd, 2017

Animal Interactions and Animals in Action

January 31^st, 2018

November 23^rd, 2017