Animals Birds

Saddle-billed Stork

SCIENTIFIC NAME:

Ephippiorhynchus senegalensis

PROFILE:

Have you ever stood eye-to-eye with a bird? At five feet tall, saddle-billed storks are the tallest of their kind in Africa. Don’t be fooled by their lanky appearance. These birds are skilled predators.

TYPE OF ANIMAL:

bird, ciconiiformes (storks, herons, egrets, and their relatives)

NATIVE TO:

tropical Africa

IUCN CONSERVATION STATUS:

least concern

DIET:

carnivore

LIFESPAN:

zoos - up to 35 years

SOCIAL STATUS:

solitary or found in pairs; occasionally groups of up to 12 individuals are spotted