A favorite bird to spot and photograph when on the southern US coast is the Roseate Spoonbill. It is the only one of the six species of spoonbills that resides in the Americas. In the US, they live along the Gulf coast of Texas and in the south and southwest of Florida.
It’s a large, goose-sized bird that can be up to 34 inches (86 cm) long. It sweeps that big bill around to grab crustaceans and fish. The pink color comes from the carotenoids in the shellfish in its diet.
The bill is distinctive, along with the reddish eye.
Roseate Spoonbills bald as they age, losing the feathers on their heads. Those of us with male pattern baldness are sympathetic!
Birds in My Viewfinder 