Posted : August
2013
Author : Matt Weber
20. The Shoebill
The Shoebill
(Balaeniceps rex) also known as Whalehead or Shoe-billed Stork, is a very large
stork-like bird. It derives its name from its massive shoe-shaped bill.
Although it has a somewhat stork-like overall form and has previously been
classified in the order Ciconiiformes, its true affiliations with other living
birds is ambiguous. Some authorities now reclassify it with the Pelecaniformes.
The adult is mainly grey while the juveniles are browner. It lives in tropical
east Africa in large swamps from Sudan
to Zambia.