One of the most famous Australian birds, jabiru is the largest Australian wetland bird. It is the only species of Australian storks and it is also called black-necked stork or jabiru stork. It is 1.4m tall, mainly thanks to its long legs, and has a wing-span longer than two metres. It has got a heavy, 30cm-long black bill, a black-and-white body, and its head and neck are green-blue. Here is is some information about what it eats, where it lives, when it breeds and where in Australia you can see it.
What Jabiru Eats Jabiru Bird (Ephippiorhynchus asiaticus) is found in waterways like wetlands, swamps, floodplains and mudflats in northern and eastern Australia. It feeds on large insects, crustaceans, molluscs, fish, especially eel, and reptiles like water pythons.
Jabiru Habitat It is usually seen foraging alone or in pairs. It may form groups at times when food is very abundant, but even then the individuals hunt independently. They often share wetlands with many other interesting Australian birds, and animals such as crocodiles.
Jabiru Nest Although they are mostly solitary when feeding, they form long-term couples and may roost in couples. They roost on the ground but usually build their nest up in trees. Female lays 2-4 eggs in a large nest made of sticks which is used year after year again. Both male and female build nest, incubate eggs and feed young. Once the young are about one month old they are left in the nest while the parents go foraging.
Where to See Jabirus in Australia Although Jabirus are found in a large area in Australia, they occur at low population densities and are not very common to see unless you visit wetlands in northern Australia. Good places to see them are Lakefield National Park on Cape York peninsula in far north Queensland, Kakadu National Park in Northern Territory, and the Kimberley region in Western Australia.
NOTE: This website is written in British English, which is the English we use in Australia. You will find words like "traveller", "harbour" and "realise", and they are all correct in the language used in Australia.
