Unfortunately, it is one chic that survives to maturity.” “This involves bring water in the bills to cool the nest during very hot days,” says Uganda Wildlife Authority ranger John Logwe in Kidepo Valley National Park. This includes feeding the young ones until they are old enough to leave the nest. The couple shares the responsibility to takes care of the eggs and chicks. The female lays two eggs at the end of the rain season. They help each other to build a very wide nest on floating vegetation. The male and his female partner dine on opposite sides of their territory. But their closest relatives are Pelicans.” “Shoebills share some traits with storks and herons,” observes a seasoned birder Herbert Byaruhanga. As the fish sucked in the fresh air and sunbathed, the grey neck sprang forward and took the unsuspecting fish by surprise. It stayed ramrod stiff until a lungfish that never saw the danger popped its head above the water. The habituated bird responded when told to bow and fly.īut those in the wild places like the Mabamba swamp live a solitary lifestyle.

You see those long legs they are ideal for walking on the vegetation in swamps and freshwater – that is its habitat.”Īs Mukisa described the grey bird, it clattered its bill and made crackling sounds before bowing the way Chinese/Indians do when saluting someone elderly.

“The wingspan stretches up to eight feet. “It stands five feet tall,” says a UWEC guide Emmanuel Mukisa. In captivity at Uganda Wildlife Education Center (UWEC) the Shoebills does not look like they can lay an ambush for its range of prey. Other snacks include lungfish, tilapia and snakes. It ably dines on delicacies like baby crocodiles and monitor lizards. The unique shape of its five-inch-wide bill earns it a name.īesides that, the sharp edges and a hook of a shoebill enable it to prey on a diverse menu.

Shoebill habitat