Glossy Ibis

Plegadis falcinellus (Linnaeus, 1766)

Threskiornithidae — Ibises, Spoonbills

Glossy Ibis, Plegadis falcinellus, is a water bird that breeds in scattered warm regions across Europe, Africa, Asia, Australia and parts of the Americas. It is also found on the east and Gulf coasts of North America, in the Caribbean and in northern Venezuela. Its most notable feature is the bill, whose curved form is reflected in the scientific name. Adults in breeding plumage have reddish-brown bodies and strongly iridescent wing feathers, while non-breeders and young birds are duller. It nests in freshwater or brackish wetlands with tall emergent plants, and feeds in very shallow water.

Order
Pelecaniformes
Family
Threskiornithidae — Ibises, Spoonbills
Breeding range
Worldwide but disjunctly : s Europe, Sub-Saharan Africa, Madagascar, c, s Asia to Philippines, Sulawesi, Java and Australia; also e and Gulf coasts of N America, Caribbean and n Venezuela
Glossy Ibis
© Giles Laurent · Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0

Tours where you can spot this bird

28 tours in Portugal 11, Romania 6, South Africa 3, Colombia 2, India 2, Croatia 1, Uganda 1, Spain 1, Namibia 1

Five-Day Danube Delta Birdwatching with Bunica Maria
Five-Day Danube Delta Birdwatching with Bunica Maria
Romania / Mahmudia Group tour 5 days

A four-night guesthouse stay with three approximately six-hour boat trips to explore the Delta’s lakes, reed beds and channels....

Four-Day Danube Delta Birdwatching with Bunica Maria
Four-Day Danube Delta Birdwatching with Bunica Maria
Romania / Mahmudia Group tour 4 days

Explore different Delta waterways on two six-hour boat excursions during a three-night stay in Mahmudia....

Three-Day Danube Delta Birdwatching with Bunica Maria
Three-Day Danube Delta Birdwatching with Bunica Maria
Romania / Mahmudia Group tour 3 days

Two nights at a family guesthouse, a full day of boat birding and an optional walk above the Delta at Bestepe Hill....

Two-Day Danube Delta Birdwatching with Bunica Maria
Two-Day Danube Delta Birdwatching with Bunica Maria
Romania / Mahmudia Group tour 2 days

An overnight stay in Mahmudia followed by a six-hour guided boat trip, with home-cooked meals and time among the Delta’s wetland birds....

Full-Day Danube Delta Birdwatching with Bunica Maria
Full-Day Danube Delta Birdwatching with Bunica Maria
Romania / Mahmudia Group tour 6h

Spend approximately six hours birding by boat through Carasuhat and Delta channels and lakes, with a fish lunch back at the guesthouse....

Half-Day Danube Delta Birdwatching with Bunica Maria
Half-Day Danube Delta Birdwatching with Bunica Maria
Romania / Mahmudia Group tour 3h

Explore Carasuhat and nearby Delta waterways on an approximately three-hour guided boat outing, followed by a traditional fish lunch....

Birding in the Colombian Andes - Araucana Lodge: Choco Endemics Bonanza
Birding in the Colombian Andes - Araucana Lodge: Choco Endemics Bonanza
Colombia Group tour 9 days

Experience one of Colombia’s most spectacular birding adventures on this 8-day journey through the Chocó Bioregion and the Western Andes....

From USD 2,495 Next: Aug 15, 2026
Spring Birding in Dalmatia
Spring Birding in Dalmatia
Croatia / Zadar Group tour 7 days

A 7-day spring birding route through Dalmatia's lakes, islands, saltpans, river canyons, karst and migration hotspots....

From EUR 1,600
15-Day Uganda Birding Tour 2027
15-Day Uganda Birding Tour 2027
Uganda / Entebbe Group tour 15 days

A 15-day Uganda birding circuit from Entebbe through Mabamba Swamp, Lake Mburo, Mgahinga, Bwindi, Queen Elizabeth, Kibale and Semliki for Sh...

From USD 4,685
Private Huila Birding Guide with Andres Algarra
Private Huila Birding Guide with Andres Algarra
Colombia / Neiva, Huila Private tour

Private Huila birding with Neiva-based biologist Andres Algarra, with flexible half-day, full-day and multi-day routes planned around local ...

Short-break Bird Photography Programme in Southern Portugal
Short-break Bird Photography Programme in Southern Portugal
Portugal / Lisbon Group tour 5 days

Five days of field photography across Tagus and Sado wetlands, Castro Verde’s open plains and the rocky Guadiana country, beginning and en...

Week-long Bird Photography Programme in Southern Portugal
Week-long Bird Photography Programme in Southern Portugal
Portugal / Lisbon Group tour 8 days

An eight-day bird-photography journey from Lisbon through the Tagus and Sado estuaries, Castro Verde, Guadiana Valley and the Algarve wetlan...

Short-break Birds and Conservation Programme in Southern Portugal
Short-break Birds and Conservation Programme in Southern Portugal
Portugal / Lisbon Group tour 5 days

A five-day small-group birding and conservation programme linking Tagus Estuary fieldwork with Guadiana Valley and Castro Verde monitoring a...

Short-break Birdwatching Programme in Southern Portugal
Short-break Birdwatching Programme in Southern Portugal
Portugal / Lisbon Group tour 5 days

A five-day small-group route from Lisbon through the Tagus Estuary, Castro Verde and Guadiana Valley, returning via the Sado Estuary wetland...

Aveiro Lagoon Birdwatching Day Tour from Porto
Aveiro Lagoon Birdwatching Day Tour from Porto
Portugal / Aveiro Private tour 1 day

A full-day private trip from Porto to Aveiro Lagoon, exploring salt marshes, mudflats, dunes, brackish channels and adjoining freshwater far...

From EUR 300
Barrinha de Esmoriz and Douro Estuary Birdwatching Day Tour from Porto
Barrinha de Esmoriz and Douro Estuary Birdwatching Day Tour from Porto
Portugal / Porto Private tour 1 day

Private half-day or full-day birding from Porto, combining Barrinha de Esmoriz’s coastal lagoon with selected habitats around the Douro Es...

From EUR 160
Algarve Private Birdwatching Day Tour to Other Sites
Algarve Private Birdwatching Day Tour to Other Sites
Portugal / Faro Private tour 1 day

A flexible private Algarve birding day built around Salgados, Ria de Alvor, Cape St. Vincent or the Monchique uplands, depending on season a...

Southwest Spain Private Birdwatching Day Tour from the Algarve
Southwest Spain Private Birdwatching Day Tour from the Algarve
Spain / Huelva Private tour 1 day

A full-day private excursion from the eastern Algarve to the wetlands of southwest Spain, with birding shaped around Odiel Marshes or the Do...

From EUR 360
Algarve Private Birdwatching Day Tour
Algarve Private Birdwatching Day Tour
Portugal / Faro Private tour 1 day

Private half-day or full-day birding in the eastern Algarve, centered on the wetlands of Ria Formosa and Castro Marim within easy reach of F...

From EUR 160
Lisbon Private Birdwatching Day Tour to Other Sites
Lisbon Private Birdwatching Day Tour to Other Sites
Portugal / Lisbon Private tour 1 day

A customizable private birding day from Lisbon, selecting one of several coastal, wetland, mountain or inland destinations to match season a...

Sado Estuary Private Birdwatching Day Tour
Sado Estuary Private Birdwatching Day Tour
Portugal / Setubal Private tour 1 day

Private half-day or full-day exploration of the Sado Estuary, combining tidal wetlands, rice fields, dunes and Mediterranean woodland just b...

From EUR 190
Tagus Estuary Private Birdwatching Day Tour
Tagus Estuary Private Birdwatching Day Tour
Portugal / Lisbon Private tour 1 day

Private half-day or full-day birding from Lisbon across the Tagus Estuary’s mudflats, salt pans, reedbeds, rice fields and wooded margins....

From EUR 160
Little Rann of Kutch Short Birding Tours
Little Rann of Kutch Short Birding Tours
India / Bhuj Private tour 5 days

The location of the Little Rann of Kutch at the crossroads of Palearctic avian migration route makes it an excellent hotspot for a Short Bir...

Bharatpur Chambal Short Birding Tours
Bharatpur Chambal Short Birding Tours
India / Bharatpur Private tour 5 days

Delhi – Dholpur - National Chambal Sanctuary -Bharatpur - Keoladeo National Park...

2-Day West Coast Birding Tour
2-Day West Coast Birding Tour
South Africa / Cape Town Private tour 2 days

Explore the Western Cape coast over two days, from Darling farmland and Geelbek shorebirds to a Berg River boat trip and Velddrif wetlands....

10-Day Western Cape Birding Tour
10-Day Western Cape Birding Tour
South Africa / Cape Town Private tour 10 days

A private or small-group Western Cape birding itinerary from Cape Town through the Cape Peninsula, West Coast, Tankwa Karoo, Agulhas Plain, ...

Private Cape Peninsula Birding Day Tour with Birding Ecotours
Private Cape Peninsula Birding Day Tour with Birding Ecotours
South Africa / Cape Town Private tour 1 day

A flexible private day from Cape Town combining Kirstenbosch, peninsula wetlands and an African Penguin colony, with Cape endemics and coast...

From ZAR 7,000
Southern Africa Birding Expedition: Namibia, Okavango & Victoria Falls with Birding Ecotours
Southern Africa Birding Expedition: Namibia, Okavango & Victoria Falls with Birding Ecotours
Namibia / Walvis Bay Group tour 18 days

An 18-day birding expedition from Namibia's Atlantic coast through Etosha and the Okavango Panhandle to Victoria Falls, combining desert nea...

From USD 10,206