The shoe-bill is endemic to Africa, and birders from around the world come to Uganda to see this rare bird. For a long time, this bird was not protected and its eggs were frequently stolen from nests until the Uganda Bird Guide Club’s efforts made it illegal to trap these birds and steal their eggs.
This Whale-head, aka shoe-billed Stork, is a large wading water bird that stalks along the swampy Nile River and Lake Victoria shores where it gets its food in Uganda and East Africa. It can also be located in freshwater swamps of central tropical Africa,
With its unmistakable shoe-shaped bill and imposing stature, it captures the fascination of birders and other tourists. This magnificent wading bird’s unique characteristics and behavior makes it a highly sought-after sighting on bird watching adventures in Uganda.
It grows 4 to 5 feet tall, has bluish-grey plumage, and has an 8-plus-foot wingspan. The bill, which takes up most part of its face, looks like a huge Dutch wooden clog.
Shoe bill storks have a repulsive habit of shitting on their legs. Apparently, the practice is effective in lowering their body temperature. That’s why taxonomists originally placed it within the family of storks since all storks also use their own shit to cool off.
They can stand virtually motionless for hours with their bills held down against their necks. Complemented by their golden eyes, the posture affects a compelling death stare as they steak out their unsuspecting prey. It swiftly pounces on its target, bill-first, decapitating its catch with the sharp edges of its bill and swallowing it whole. Its meal is mostly lungfish. Eels, catfish, lizards, frogs, monitor lizards, water snakes, and baby crocodiles
So Be Careful because it can also inflict a very powerful bite, and it’s by No means a safe bird for a stranger ignorant of its ways to approach. So keep a distance when trying to get that perfect shot.
This bird rarely breeds in captivity: At least only two chicks have hatched outside the shoe Bill’s dwelling zone in the last hundred years. Currently, only a few zoos open to the public have Shoe Bills, including the UWEC in Entebbe Uganda, Prague Zoo in the Czech Republic, Dallas World Aquarium, Pairi Daiza in Belgium, the San Diego Zoo Safari Park, all of these were legally collected from the wild. There are more than 1000 bird species in Uganda for you to watch.
Just Book a safari with TROJENN TOURS for more interesting facts about East African Birds.
by Migadde Kennedy B
