Long-legged Birds in the United States

     Collectively called waders, six kinds of large, long-legged birds illustrate convergence; life from different backgrounds shaped by the habitat they live in so they are similar in some characteristics and habits.  The six species are great blue herons, great egrets, glossy ibises, wood storks, roseate spoonbills and sandhill cranes.  They all have long legs, necks and beaks for getting food.  Although each one of these species has its own particular niche, there is overlap among all of them.  There is some competition for food.  These birds nest in colonies in trees, sometimes in pure groups, but most often in mixed gatherings of at least a few species.  Field guides to birds are helpful in identifying these large birds.   
     Great blue herons and great egrets are in the heron family and have lenghty legs for wading in water.  Both these common and wide spread species in North America consume fish, frogs, tadpoles, crayfish and other aquatic creatures.  But they also catch and eat snakes, larger insects and field mice in meadows near ponds and creeks.  When they catch mice, they dunk their victims in water to slick the fur so they can swallow them easier.  Herons fly with their legs stretched out the back, but curved-back necks.  
     Ibis are related to herons and have similar features, except ibis beaks are curved down to grab prey at different angles than their cousins, perhaps reducing competition with them for the same prey.  They fly with necks and legs stretched out.
     Wood storks have bare heads and necks, a distinguishing characteristic.  They are North America's only stork, living uncommonly in the southeastern part of the United States, but also in South America.  They can catch larger prey from the water, swamps and meadows than can the other species noted here because they have larger, thicker, therefore, more powerful beaks.  That would reduce rivalry with other waders for food.  Wood storks fly with legs and necks extended beyond their bodies and often soar high in the sky.
     Roseate spoonbills are also not common in the southeastern United States, but are more common in South America.  They are, in fact, the only spoonbills in the western hemisphere.  They have bills that are flattened at the tips like paddles.  They work their beaks sideways in shallow water and soft mud, all the while opening and closing them, to gather tadpoles, aquatic insect larvae, shrimp, small fish and other small, aquatic critters in ponds and marshes along shorelines and mudflats.      
     Sandhill cranes are the most terrestrial of all these bird species, but they, too, get some food from shallow water.  Sandhills migrate in great flocks, mostly over the prairies and farms of the American mid-west.  One of their resting areas on migration is the shallows and flats of the Platte River in Nebraska.  This type of bird eats seeds, including corn, but also berries, roots, snakes, mice, insects, frogs and crayfish.  In flight, their necks and legs are extended and they often soar in great gatherings of themselves.  They have a deep, rolling call when in flight that helps identify them.
     These are a few big, long-legged, lengthy-necked birds in the United States that overlap each others habitats, yet have their own niches.  Each species is interesting in its own way, adding more enjoyment to the outdoors.