The Madagascar ibis, also known as the Madagascar crested ibis, white-winged ibis or crested wood ibis, is a medium-sized, brown-plumaged ibis. It has bare red orbital skin, yellow bill, red legs, white wings and its head is partially bare with a dense crest of green or gloss blue and white plumes on the nape. The Madagascar ibis is the only member of the genus Lophotibis.
Region
Madagascar
Typical Environment
Occurs mainly in the humid evergreen forests of eastern and northern Madagascar, ranging through primary and well-structured secondary forest. It frequents riverine corridors, forest edges, and can venture into bamboo thickets, plantations, and rice-field margins adjacent to forest. The species forages chiefly on the forest floor and along shaded streams. It avoids the driest spiny forests of the southwest. Roosts and nests in tall trees within forested landscapes.
Altitude Range
Sea level to 1800 m
Climate Zone
Tropical
Ease of Keeping
Beginner friendly: 2/5
Also called the Madagascar crested ibis or white-winged ibis, it is the sole member of the genus Lophotibis. Its bold white wing panels flash in flight against otherwise brown plumage, and a shaggy greenish-blue and white crest adorns the nape. The species is threatened locally by forest loss and hunting but can persist in secondary forest and agroforestry mosaics.
Wild Madagascar ibis in Andasibe National Park - the bill is muddy from probing the wet soil of the riverbank
Temperament
wary and shy
Flight Pattern
strong flier with steady wingbeats and brief glides
Social Behavior
Typically forages singly or in pairs, sometimes in small family groups. Nests singly or in loose groups, placing a stick platform high in trees. Both parents share incubation and chick-rearing duties.
Migratory Pattern
Resident
Song Description
Vocalizations are harsh and carrying, including croaks, grunts, and barking graaak notes. A rapid rattling series is often given at dusk or near the nest.
Plumage
Mostly chocolate-brown body with striking white wings; head partly bare with a dense, shaggy crest of iridescent greenish-blue and white plumes on the nape. Bare red orbital skin contrasts with a yellow decurved bill and red legs. White primaries form bold panels visible at rest and in flight.
Diet
Feeds mainly on invertebrates such as beetles, crickets, caterpillars, earthworms, snails, and other leaf-litter fauna. It will also take small vertebrates like frogs and lizards when encountered. Forages by probing and sweeping its bill through leaf litter, soil, and shallow stream margins, often flipping leaves and debris.
Preferred Environment
Forages on shaded forest floors, along stream banks, and at muddy margins in humid forest. It may also feed at the edges of rice fields and plantations adjacent to native woodland.
