Birds In Paradise

Standing an average of five feet tall and with a wingspan of eight feet, the Jabiru stork is one of the largest bird species in the Americas. In addition to their large size, another notable feature of the Jabiru stork is its throat sac. When it expands, it communicates to other birds that they are eager and excited - an important form of expression for a social bird. When greeting one another, they turn face-to-face, hold their necks upright, and rattle their beaks very quickly while waving their necks and moving their heads up and down. Photo taken at Aviario Nacional De Colombia.