Black-faced Spoonbill (Platalea minor) — identification, habitat & look-alikes

The Black-faced Spoonbill is an East Asian wetland bird and has no regular wild population in the United States. Unlike America's pink Roseate Spoonbill (Platalea ajaja), it is white with a striking patch of black facial skin that joins its black spoon-shaped bill.

Appearance

Appearance: This white wading bird is about 29–32 in (74–82 cm) long. Its black facial skin blends into a long black spoon-shaped bill; breeding adults grow a crest and a yellow wash on the chest.

Look-alikes

Eurasian SpoonbillPlatalea leucorodia

An adult Eurasian Spoonbill has a yellow tip on its black bill and much less black facial skin around the eye. A Black-faced Spoonbill has an extensive black mask that joins the bill.

Why they get mixed upBoth are white spoonbills and may occur together in Japan.

Roseate SpoonbillPlatalea ajaja

The Roseate Spoonbill is pink, while the Black-faced Spoonbill is mostly white with a black face and bill. Roseate Spoonbill is the spoonbill naturally found in the Americas.

Why they get mixed upIt is the spoonbill U.S. readers are most likely to know.

Where it lives

Typical habitats: tidal flats and estuaries
coastal marshes
shallow ponds
Range: It breeds mainly on small islands off the Korean Peninsula and also in northeastern China and the Russian Far East. It winters along the coasts of East and Southeast Asia, not in the United States.
Preferred conditions: It needs shallow feeding water and quiet roosting or nesting sites near productive coastal wetlands.

Behavior

Diet: It eats small fish, shrimp, crabs, frogs, tadpoles, and aquatic insect larvae.
Activity: It walks through shallow water while sweeping its slightly open bill from side to side to detect prey.
Social life: It often feeds and rests in groups and may mix with Eurasian Spoonbills (Platalea leucorodia).

Life cycle

Breeding season: April–July in Korea
Nest: It builds a stick nest on the ground or among rocks on quiet coastal islands.
Clutch size: 2–4 eggs
Incubation: about 25 days
Fledging: The young depend on their parents for about 40 days after hatching.

Conservation

IUCN Red List: VUVulnerableHigh risk of extinction in the wild
Status: Its population has recovered substantially, but it still depends on a small number of East Asian wetlands.
Threats: Coastal development and wetland loss reduce feeding habitat. Fishing line, pollution, introduced predators at colonies, and disease can also harm the birds.

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