African openbill

African openbill
On the bank of the Zambezi, Zimbabwe
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Ciconiiformes
Family: Ciconiidae
Genus: Anastomus
Species:
A. lamelligerus
Binomial name
Anastomus lamelligerus
Temminck, 1823

The African openbill (Anastomus lamelligerus) is a species of stork from the family Ciconiidae.[2] It is widely distributed in Sub-Saharan Africa and western regions of Madagascar.[3] This species is considered common to locally abundant across its range, although it has a patchy distribution.[4] Some experts consider there to be two sub-species, A. l. lamelligerus distributed on the continent and A. l. madagascariensis living on the island of Madagascar.[5] Scientists distinguish between the two sub-species due to the more pronounced longitudinal ridges on the bills of adult A. l. madagascariensis.[5] The Asian openbill (Anastomus oscitans) found in Asia is the African openbill’s closest relative.[2] The two species share the same notably large bill of a peculiar shape that gives them their name.

  1. ^ BirdLife International (2018). "Anastomus lamelligerus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2018: e.T22697664A132274733. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-2.RLTS.T22697664A132274733.en. Retrieved 14 November 2021.
  2. ^ a b Kahl, M. P. (1972). Comparative ethology of the Ciconiidae: part 5. The Openbill Storks (genus Anastomus). Journal Für Ornithologie, 113(2), 121–137. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01640497.
  3. ^ Vigneron, J. P., Lousse, V., Colomer Jean-François, Rassart, M., & Louette, M. (2006). Complex optical structure in the ribbon-like feathers of the african open-bill stork, Proceedings of SPIE, 6320, 632014-1–632014-10. https://doi.org/10.1117/12.682250.
  4. ^ Kahl, M. P. (1987). An overview of the storks of the world. Colonial Waterbirds, 10(2), 131–131. https://doi.org/10.2307/1521251.
  5. ^ a b Kahl, M. P. (1972). A revision of the family Ciconiidae (Aves). Journal of Zoology, 167, 451–461. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1469-7998.1972.tb01736.x.