Ibises & Spoonbills

Ibises and spoonbills are wading birds with highly specialised bills. Ibises have a long, downward-curved bill that they probe into the mud in search of worms and crustaceans. The spoonbill sweeps its flat, spoon-shaped bill from side to side through shallow water — a movement it can keep up for hours on end. These birds often move in flocks and breed in colonies, sometimes mixed in with herons and egrets. In the Vendée marshes, they are a remarkable sight.