Meet The Only Land Bird Native To Antarctica

By: EjazUlHaqBhat

Image: X/@r_kozaki

The snowy sheathbill, a white, stocky, pigeon-like bird, is the only land bird native to Antarctica

Image: X/@kelper60

The snowy sheathbill is about 15 inches long, with white plumage, a pale pink face, and a dark beak

Image: X/@kelper60

It is covered in dense, white plumage with a thick gray underdown, and has a naked, pale pinkish face with thick, fleshy eye-rings 

Image: X/@kelper60

The snowy sheathbill is an opportunistic scavenger that eats almost anything it can find, including penguin eggs

Image: X@wakingupwild

It is often found on the ground, and is commonly spotted at penguin nesting sites 

Image: X/@stephanpaw

The snowy sheathbill is also known as the greater sheathbill, pale-faced sheathbill, and paddy 

Image: X/@iaato_org

Although considered a land bird, the snowy sheathbill is ancestrally related to seabirds, similar to gulls 

Image: X/@Weird_AnimaIs

It spends 86% of its day hunting for food and the other 14% resting 

Image: X/@stephanpaw

Check More Stories

ndtv.com