ALACHUA COUNTY – One of the great pleasures of Florida birdwatching is the white ibis (Guara alba). In the evening, they tend to pick insects in lawns and fields, and in most cases are not afraid of humans, and so come in close enough so you can get a good look. Often, they are in groups; if you are lucky, you can spy a mother and her young.
The birds are pure white, with tips of several outer primary colors and black. The bird has a bare face, bill and legs. It nests in in thickets (the mangrove best), and it builds nests from twigs. Eggs are from three to five and graying blue and whitish or blotched or spotted with dull yellow and umber brown.
