THREE UNCOMMON BIRDS

SANDHILL CRANE

This bird used to be referred to as the “Grus Stork.” Today, there are six known subspecies of this bird. It lives today in North America (including Cuba) and also in northeast Siberia.

It is a herbivore. It has one of the longest fossil record of any extant bird: 10 million years [= late Miocene time] in Nebraska.

The male weights up to 11 pounds and has a wingspan up to nearly 7 feet.

   Classification

Kingdom Animalia

Phylum Chordata

Class Aves

O Gruiformes

Genus Anigone

Type Species A. canadensis Linnaeus, 1758

Figure 1. Sandhill Crane bird.

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RED (SCARLET) IBIS BIRD

This is the only wading bird with scarlet-red coloration. This bird is sometimes called the “red ibis.” A heavy diet of red crustaceans imparts the red coloration of this bird. Juveniles are black.

Adults are up about 27 inches or so long and 1.4 pounds. This bird is characterized by its long, curved bill. This bird lives in coastal regions in tropical South America and part of the Caribbean region. It is most common in Venezuela and Columbia.

These birds roost in large colonies in leaf canopies of mangrove swamps.

Figure 2. Red-Faced Iris Bird.

   Classification

Kingdom Animalia

Phylum Chordata

Class Aves

Order Pelecaniformes

Family Threskiomithidae

Genus Eudocimus

Type Species Eudocimus ruber [the species name incorporates the Latin adjective ruber, “red.”

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WHITE PEACOCK

This rare peacock (estimated to be only 1 in every 30,000 individuals) is an all-white variant of the “Indian Blue Peaflow,” is not an example of albinism; rather, it is a genetic mutation called leucism, which prevents color from being deposited into their feathers. Nevertheless, these birds retain their normal blue eyes. These birds are extremely rare! They represent the national bird of India.

Both males (peacocks) and females (peahens) are pure white. They are born completely yellow, and then as they grow and mature, they turn white (both females and males).

As you can imagine, their lack of camouflage makes them highly vulnerable to predators.

The first all-white ones (they had blue eyes) were found in the wild (in India). They are no longer found in the wild. 

They belong to the peafowl group. Males are called peacocks, and the females and chicks are call peachicks. Three species are known: two in Asia (in India) and one in Africa (Congo Basin). 

   Classification

Kingdom Animalia

Phylum Cordata

Class Aves

Order Galliformes

Family Phasianindae

Genus Pavo?

[Tribe Pavonini] 

Reference Wikipedia

Note: If you want to see some beautiful and unforgettable images of white peacocks, just go online and type in “white peacocks.”

Figure 3. White peacock.

REFERENCES

Wikipedia, 2026.