Marabou stork

Description

The marabou stork is a massive bird: large specimens are thought to reach a height of 152 cm (60 in) and a weight of 9 kg (20 lb).A wingspan of 3.7 m (12 ft) was accepted by Fisher and Peterson,who ranked the species as having the largest wing-spread of any living bird.Even higher measurements of up to 4.06 m (13.3 ft) have been reported,although no measurement over 3.20 m (10.5 ft) has been verified.It is often credited with the largest spread of any landbird,to rival the Andean condor;more typically,however,these storks measure 225–287 cm (7–9 ft) across the wings,which is about a foot less than the average Andean condor wingspan and nearly two feet less than the average of the largest albatrosses and pelicans.Typical weight is 4.5–8 kg (9.9–17.6 lb),unusually as low as 4 kg (8.8 lb),and length (from bill to tail) is 120 to 130 cm (47 to 51 in).Females are smaller than males.Bill length can range from 26.4 to 35 cm (10.4 to 13.8 in).Unlike most storks,the three Leptoptilos species fly with the neck retracted like a