Ephippiorhynchus is a small genus of storks. It contains two living species only, very large birds more than 140 cm tall with a 230–270 cm wingspan. Both are mainly black and white, with huge bills. The sexes of these species are similarly plumaged, but the eyes are dark brown in males and yellow in females. The members of this genus are sometimes called "jabirus", but this properly refers to a close relative from Latin America.
These large wading birds breed in marshes and other wetlands, building a large, deep stick nest in a tree. Like most storks, they fly with the neck outstretched, not retracted like a heron; in flight, they present a strange shape, with the head and large bill somewhat drooping down. They are silent except for bill-clattering at the nest.
Ephippiorhynchus storks, like most of their relatives, feeds mainly on fish, frogs and crabs, but also on young birds, and other land vertebrates. They move in a deliberate and stately manner as they hunt, in a similar way to the larger heron.
These birds are not infrequently kept in captivity by zoos or aviculturalists. Individuals occasionally escape, and these have been proposed to be responsible for sightings of "big bird" cryptids; the saddle-billed stork is the most likely basis for the kongamato cryptid.
The genus name Ephippiorhynchus is derived from Ancient Greek ephippos, a saddle (literally "something which is placed on a horse"), and rhynchus, "bill", and refers to the frontal shield which saddles the bill of one species.
^"Ciconiidae". aviansystematics.org. The Trust for Avian Systematics. Retrieved 2023-07-27.
now-extinct species, Ephippiorhynchus tchoufour, occurred in eastern to central Africa. Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ephippiorhynchus. Wikispecies has...
difference is in the colour of the iris of the two species in the genus Ephippiorhynchus. The bills of storks are large to very large, and vary considerably...
black-necked stork (Ephippiorhynchus asiaticus), commonly called "jabiru" in Australia; and sometimes also for the saddle-billed stork (Ephippiorhynchus senegalensis)...
Ciconiini, containing Ciconia, and Leptoptilini, containing Leptoptilos, Ephippiorhynchus, and Jabiru. However, the exact division of these genera among these...
tallest species in this order is the saddle-billed stork of Africa (Ephippiorhynchus senegalensis), which often exceeds 1.5 m (4.9 ft) tall and has a wingspan...
running. Lemur in public. Rothschild Giraffe. Saddle-billed stork (Ephippiorhynchus senegalensis). Gorilla "A Step-by-Step Guide to Planning Your Visit...
drona charya on the Gurgaon – Farukh Nagar Road. Black-necked stork Ephippiorhynchus asiaticus- Take off to landing at Sultanpur Eurasian spoonbill Platalea...
t22697685a110066434.en.old-form url, |date= / |doi= mismatch IUCN (2016-10-01). "Ephippiorhynchus senegalensis: BirdLife International: The IUCN Red List of Threatened...
the 6.16 kg (13.6 lb), 1.5 m (4 ft 11 in)-tall saddle-billed stork (Ephippiorhynchus senegalensis). One naturalists observed up to a half dozen attacks...
overlapping with those of the jabiru (Jabiru mycteria), saddle-billed stork (Ephippiorhynchus senegalensis) and marabou stork (Leptoptilos crumeniferus). Juvenile...
Global Information
