# Shoebill (*Balaeniceps rex*) The Shoebill is a large bird with a big, shoe-shaped bill! It lives in wetlands and is known for its unique appearance and quiet nature. Shoebills are great at standing still while they hunt for fish. - **Category:** [Birds](https://www.snappit.app/explore/categories/bird) - **Rarity:** Rare - **Danger:** 2/5 · Low - **Habitat:** Wetlands - **Also known as:** Shoebill Stork ![Shoebill](https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?title=Special:Redirect/file/Entebbe_Shoe_Bill_Stork.jpg&width=800) Photo: https://www.flickr.com/photos/zeroexposure/, CC BY 2.0 · [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Entebbe_Shoe_Bill_Stork.jpg) ## Appearance The Shoebill is a massive, grey bird with a striking, oversized, shoe-shaped bill. Its piercing yellow eyes are set forward, giving it a prehistoric appearance unlike other marsh birds. ## Taxonomy - **Kingdom:** Animalia - **Phylum:** Chordata - **Class:** Aves - **Order:** Pelecaniformes - **Family:** Balaenicipitidae - **Genus:** Balaeniceps ## Shoebill, up close The shoebill is a huge grey bird of the swamps of central and eastern Africa, from South Sudan to Zambia. It stands up to 1.4 m tall and has one of the biggest bills of any bird: wide, deep and shaped like a shoe, with a sharp hook at the tip. It hunts by standing still for a very long time, then lunging forward to grab lungfish, catfish and even baby crocodiles. It is usually silent, but pairs greet each other by clattering their bills. It has a family all of its own, and only a few thousand adults are left. A bill like a giant clog, a stare that lasts for hours, and a greeting that sounds like a drum roll. Spin the shoebill, tap it, then test yourself. ### Special abilities - **Living Statue** (85% of its time spent standing still or preening): A shoebill can stand without moving for hours, staring at the water. Fish that come up for air do not notice the giant grey shape until it is too late. [10][3][4] - In a study in Zambia's Bangweulu Wetlands, shoebills spent 85% of their time on low-energy things, mostly standing still and preening. - Hunting is slow work: the birds caught one prey animal every 8.3 hours on average. - Shoebills like water with little oxygen in it, where fish have to come to the surface to breathe more often. - They hunt alone. Even a pair feeds at opposite ends of its territory. - **The Collapse** (< 1 s for the strike): When prey is in reach, the shoebill “collapses”: it lunges or falls forward onto the fish with its bill open, grabbing it in one huge scoop. [3][2][5][10][1] - The head and neck shoot forward and down into the water. The strike usually lasts less than a second. - The bird ends up off balance and must stand up again before it can try another strike. - Not every strike works. In Zambia, 5 of 7 strikes caught something in the breeding season, but only 16 of 70 at other times. - Catfish were 71% of the prey caught in that study. Shoebills also take lungfish, bichirs, tilapia, frogs, water snakes and even baby crocodiles. - **Cut, Shake, Swallow** (10+ min to handle a big catch): The scoop brings up mud, water and plants as well as the fish. The shoebill shakes its head to get rid of the mess, then uses its sharp-edged bill to deal with the prey. [6][1] - Big prey is cut with the sharp edges of the bill before it is swallowed. Fish longer than about 60 cm are cut into pieces. - Handling one big prey animal can take more than 10 minutes. - In Bangweulu most fish it catches are 15–50 cm long. The biggest fish ever recorded for a shoebill, in Tanzania, was 99 cm. - African fish eagles often steal its large catches. - **Bill Clatter** (3 weeks age chicks start clattering): Shoebills are usually silent, but they talk with their bills. They clap the two halves together very fast, making a loud rattle that people compare to a machine gun. [1][4][5][6][8] - Clattering happens mostly around the nest. Pairs use it to greet each other. - Chicks practise it too: in a rearing centre in Zambia, chicks clattered at just three weeks old. - In Zambia the shoebill's local name, mapumambao, means “the one who drums on wood”. - Adults sometimes also moo like a cow or give high whines. - **Egg Watering** (≈30 days to hatch the eggs): Eggs can overheat in the hot sun. Shoebill parents fill their bills with water or wet grass, pour it over the nest and roll the eggs in it to keep them cool. [4][1][5][11] - The nest is a big, flat heap of swamp plants, 1–1.7 m across, on a small island or on floating vegetation. - The female lays 1–3 white eggs, usually two, up to five days apart. Each egg weighs about 164 g, three times a hen's egg. - Both parents keep the eggs warm for about 30 days. On hot days of 30–33 °C they water them. - After hatching they keep going: nest cameras in Zambia showed parents leaving the nest mainly to fetch water to cool the chicks. - **Throat Flutter** (Hot swamp cooled by a vibrating throat): To stay cool in the tropical sun, a shoebill vibrates the skin and muscles of its throat. This is called gular fluttering, and it works a bit like a dog panting. [3][2][5] - Gular means “of the throat”. The fast vibrations help the body get rid of heat. - Adults use it on hot days. Parents also cool their eggs and chicks with water carried in the bill. - Shoebills live in open swamps, papyrus and reed beds, where there is often little shade. - **Slow Flapper** (≈150 wingbeats a minute): With wings up to 2.6 m across, a shoebill flaps only about 150 times a minute, one of the slowest wingbeats of any bird. It flaps, glides, flaps and glides. [1][4][7] - The flapping and gliding come in turns of about 7 seconds each. - In flight the neck is pulled back and the wings are held flat when it soars. It can rise on warm air above its territory. - Shoebills do not migrate. When disturbed they usually fly only 100–500 m before landing again. - **Back-up Chick** (1 chick usually raised per nest): Shoebills often hatch two chicks, but they rarely raise more than one. The second chick is thought to be a back-up, in case the first one dies. [1][7][8][9][5][11] - The eggs are laid days apart, so one chick is older and bigger. The older chick often attacks its weaker sibling, which is then left to die. This is called siblicide. - When food is short, parents favour the eldest chick, so at least one survives. - Conservationists in Zambia now take the second egg from known nests and raise the chick in a rearing centre, then release it. - Parents bring food about 1.2 times a day. A chick weighs about 5.7 kg when it is ready to fly. ### Body parts - **Shoe-shaped bill** (19–24 cm bill length (7.4–9.4 in)) [1][8][3] - The bill is enormous, wide and deep, and shaped a bit like a wooden clog. It is about 9 cm wide. - It is pale and pinkish-tan with grey blotches, and a ridge called a keel runs along the top. - Among living birds, only two kinds have longer bills. - **Hooked tip** (Sharp edges and hooked nail) [1][7][6][3] - The top half of the bill ends in a sharp nail that hooks down, like a pelican's. - The hook stops slippery fish from escaping. - The bill also has sharp edges. The shoebill uses them to cut up bigger prey before swallowing it. - **Staring eyes** (Sight it hunts by looking, not touch) [3][8][1][7] - Adult shoebills have pale yellow eyes. Some have striking pale blue eyes. - It finds its food by sight alone. It is not known to feel for prey with its bill. - Sharp eyes let it spot small movements in murky water. - **Head tuft** (Small feathered crest) [3][2][1] - A small tuft of feathers sticks up at the back of the big head. - The head is a slightly darker grey than the body. - The scientific name Balaeniceps means “whale head”. - **Cooling throat** (Flutter throat vibrates to lose heat) [3][2][1] - Swamps in tropical Africa get hot. Shoebills keep cool by gular fluttering: quickly vibrating the skin and muscles of the throat. - It works a bit like a dog panting. - Begging chicks make a sound very like human hiccups. - **Blue-grey feathers** (4–7 kg weight (9–15 lb)) [1][2] - Adults are slaty blue-grey, a little paler underneath, with darker flight feathers. - Young shoebills are a darker grey with a brownish tinge. - Males are bigger than females, about 5.6 kg against 4.9 kg on average, and have longer bills. - **Broad wings** (2.3–2.6 m wingspan (7.5–8.5 ft)) [1][4][7] - The wings are huge and broad, wider than a tall man is high. - It flies with slow flaps and long glides, and can soar on rising warm air. - In flight it pulls its neck back and rests its heavy head on its body. - **Long legs** (22–25.5 cm lower leg bone (tarsus)) [1][3][4] - The legs are long, thin and dark. - Long legs let it wade in shallow water among tall swamp plants, where it hides while it hunts. - Standing up, a shoebill is 110–140 cm tall, about as tall as a 9-year-old. - **Long toes** (17–18.5 cm middle toe) [1][3][7] - The feet are very large: the middle toe alone is 17–18.5 cm long. - Long, spread-out toes share the bird's weight, so it can stand on floating plants. - They also help it walk quietly through the swamp without being noticed. ### Stats | Stat | Value | Notes | |---|---|---| | Height | 110–140 cm | 43–55 in; a few reach 152 cm [1][2] | | Wingspan | 2.3–2.6 m | 7.5–8.5 ft [1][18] | | Weight | 4–7 kg | males ≈ 5.6 kg, females ≈ 4.9 kg; About as heavy as a large house cat [1][3] | | Bill length | 19–24 cm | 7.4–9.4 in; males' bills are longer [1][2][5] | | Bill width | ≈9 cm | about 3.5 in [8] | | Middle toe | 17–18.5 cm | 6.6–7.3 in [1] | | Eggs | 1–3 | white; usually 2 [1][2][5] | | Incubation | ≈30 days | both parents take turns [1][2][5] | | First flight | ≈105 days | flying well by about 112 days [1][2] | | Adults left | 3,300–5,300 | about 5,000–8,000 birds in all [3][13][1][12] | ### Photos - [An adult in Uganda: blue-grey feathers, a pale eye and that enormous bill](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Shoebill_(Balaeniceps_rex)%2C_Uganda_(52949464409).jpg) (photo: flowcomm, CC BY 2.0) - [Head-on: the wide bill and the famous stare](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Shoebill_(Balaeniceps_rex)%2C_Uganda_(52949458009).jpg) (photo: flowcomm, CC BY 2.0) - [Bill slightly open: sharp edges, grey blotches and the hooked nail at the tip](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Shoebill_-_pretty_it_ain't!.jpg) (photo: Hjalmar Gislason from Reykjavik, Iceland, CC BY 2.0) - [The bill rests on the chest, and a small tuft sticks up at the back of the head](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Balaeniceps_rex_-East_Africa-8.jpg) (photo: Eric Inafuku, CC BY 2.0) - [Catch of the day: a big catfish, the shoebill's most common prey in Zambia](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Shoebill_hunting.jpg) (photo: Jakub Bartler, CC BY-SA 4.0) - [A parent with its downy grey chick on the nest](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Schuhschnabel_mit_Jungvogel.jpg) (photo: Ludu57, CC BY 4.0) - [Taking off at Lake Albert, Uganda: wings well over 2 m across](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Schoebill-Lake-Albert.jpg) (photo: Johannes Bahrdt, CC BY-SA 4.0) - [Soaring over Murchison Falls, Uganda, with the neck pulled in and the wings held flat](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Shoebill_flight.jpg) (photo: Tom Tarrant, CC BY-SA 3.0) - [At home among papyrus at Mabamba Bay, Uganda](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Schuhschnabel_Mabamba_Bay_20250812.jpg) (photo: Z thomas, CC BY 4.0) - [Alone and still in the Mabamba swamp: shoebills hunt by themselves](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Uganda's_Iconic_Shoebill_Stork_in_Mabamba_Wetland.jpg) (photo: Sjoerdug, CC BY-SA 4.0) ### Questions - **Is a shoebill a stork?** No. It was once grouped with storks and is often called the shoebill stork, but it is the only member of its own family. Its closest living relatives are the hamerkop and the pelicans. [1][12][3] - **Why does a shoebill stand still for so long?** It is hunting. It waits, sometimes for hours, for a fish such as a lungfish to come up for air, then lunges. In a study in Zambia, shoebills spent 85% of their time on low-energy things like standing still. [3][10] - **What do shoebills eat?** Mainly big fish: catfish, lungfish, bichirs and tilapia. They also eat frogs, water snakes, Nile monitor lizards and baby crocodiles, and now and then turtles, rodents or carrion. [1][10][3] - **Why do shoebills clatter their bills?** It is how they talk. Pairs clatter to greet each other, mostly around the nest, and even three-week-old chicks do it. Otherwise shoebills are usually silent. [1][4][8] - **Are shoebills dangerous to people?** No. Their stare looks fierce, but they are calm around people, and researchers have watched nests from 2 m away. Keep your distance anyway: disturbance at nests is one reason many fail. [1][11] - **Where can you see shoebills?** In big swamps of central and eastern Africa: South Sudan, Uganda, western Tanzania, eastern DR Congo, Rwanda and northern Zambia. A few zoos keep them too, but breeding them there is very rare. [1][12][8] - **How long do shoebills live?** A long time. Zoo shoebills have lived about 36 years. How long wild birds live is not well known; sources give figures from about 25 to 35 years. [2][3][7] - **How many shoebills are left?** About 3,300–5,300 adults, or roughly 5,000–8,000 birds in all. The species is listed as Vulnerable, and its numbers are falling. [3][13][1][14] ### Shoebill myths and facts Tap Myth or Fact for each claim, then check the answer. - "The shoebill is a kind of stork." **Myth!** It was once grouped with storks and is often called the shoebill stork, but it has a family of its own. Its closest living relatives are the hamerkop and the pelicans. [1][3][12] - "A shoebill can stand still for hours." **Fact!** That is how it hunts. In one study shoebills spent 85% of their time on low-energy things such as standing still. [3][10] - "Shoebills sometimes eat baby crocodiles." **Fact!** Mostly they eat fish, but they also take Nile monitor lizards, water snakes and baby crocodiles. [1][3][6] - "Shoebills can moo like a cow." **Fact!** They are usually silent, but adults sometimes give a cattle-like moo. [1][2][4] - "Shoebills find fish by feeling for them in the mud." **Myth!** They hunt by sight alone and are not known to hunt by touch. [1] - "Shoebill parents usually raise two chicks." **Myth!** They often hatch two, but rarely raise more than one. The second chick is usually a back-up. [1][7][8] - "Shoebills flap their wings fast, like ducks." **Myth!** About 150 flaps a minute is one of the slowest wingbeats of any bird, and it glides between bursts of flapping. [1] - "Shoebills attack people who come near." **Myth!** Despite the scary stare, they are calm around people. Researchers have watched nests from 2 m away. Please still keep your distance. [1][11] ### A shoebill's life From an egg on a floating nest to a grown-up swamp giant. - **End of the rainy season**: Building the nest. As the water starts to drop, a pair tramples an area about 3 m across and both build a flat nest of swamp plants on floating vegetation or a small island. [5][1][2] - **Day 0**: Eggs. The female lays 1–3 white eggs, usually two, up to five days apart. [1][5] - **Next 30 days**: Keeping cool. Both parents keep the eggs warm, turn them, and pour water over them on hot days. [1][3][4] - **Hatching**: A fluffy grey chick. The chick is covered in silvery-grey down and has a small, pale bill. The older chick usually gets most of the food. [2][3][8] - **3 weeks old**: First clatters. Chicks start clapping their bills, practising the shoebill way of talking. [8][5] - **About 2 months**: Proper feathers. By about 60 days the chick's feathers have fully grown in. [2] - **About 105–112 days**: First flights. The young bird leaves the nest at about 105 days and is flying well by 112. Its parents may still feed it for a month or more. [1][2] - **About 3 years**: Grown up. Shoebills are ready to breed at about three years old, and pairs stay together. [1][3] ### Shoebill vs marabou stork, Goliath heron and hamerkop Three big African wetland birds people mix up with the shoebill, and its small closest relative. | | Shoebill | Marabou stork | Goliath heron | Hamerkop | |---|---|---|---|---| | Scientific name [1][17][18][16] | Balaeniceps rex | Leptoptilos crumenifer | Ardea goliath | Scopus umbretta | | Family [12][17][18][16] | Its own family (only member) | Storks | Herons | Its own family (only member) | | Height [1][17][18][16] | 110–140 cm | Up to about 152 cm | 120–152 cm | About 56 cm | | Weight [1][17][18][16] | 4–7 kg | 4.5–8 kg | 4–5 kg | About 470 g | | Look [1][17][18][16] | Blue-grey, huge shoe-shaped bill with a hook | Bare head and neck, black back, white below, pink throat pouch | Grey and chestnut, chestnut head and neck | Brown, with a crest that makes the head look like a hammer | | IUCN status [14][17][18][16] | Vulnerable | Least Concern | Least Concern | Least Concern | Only the shoebill has the huge, wide bill with a hook. The hamerkop is its closest living relative but is much smaller, with a thin bill. ### Shoebill names A bird this odd has collected a lot of names. - **Balaeniceps rex**: John Gould named it in 1850 from a skin collected on the upper White Nile. Balaeniceps comes from Latin words for “whale” and “head”. [1] - **Whalehead, whalebill, whale-headed stork**: Old English names that, like the scientific name, compare its huge head and bill to a whale's. [1] - **Abu markub**: An Arabic name, reported to mean “father of a slipper”. [6] - **Mapumambao**: Its local name in Zambia: “the one who drums on wood”, after the clattering bill. [8] - **“Shoebill stork”**: A common name, but not quite right: the shoebill is not a true stork. [1][3] ### Is the shoebill endangered? It is listed as Vulnerable, one step away from Endangered. Only a few thousand adults are left, and their number is going down. - **IUCN Red List:** Vulnerable (VU) (Population decreasing). About 3,300–5,300 adults, or roughly 5,000–8,000 birds in all, live in swamps from South Sudan to Zambia. The number is falling because of hunting, nest disturbance and the draining and burning of their swamps. [14][1][3][12][13][15][19] - IUCN Red List: Vulnerable (assessed 2018) - **Threat: Swamps burned and cleared**: Swamps are drained, burned and turned into farmland and cattle pasture. Cattle can trample nests. [1][3][12] - **Threat: Chicks taken for trade**: Eggs and chicks are taken from nests to be eaten or sold as pets. In 2011, only about 20% of 10 nests watched in Zambia's Bangweulu Wetlands raised a chick, mainly because of people. [1][9][11][7] - **Threat: Hunting**: Shoebills are hunted for food in some places, and in others because people see them as a bad omen. [3] - **Threat: Pollution**: Pollution from the oil industry and from tanneries affects some of their wetlands. [3] - **Helping: Nest guardians**: Since 2012, local people in Bangweulu, many of them fishermen, have been paid to guard shoebill nests day and night from June to November. [8][9] - **Helping: More chicks when nests are guarded**: With nests protected in 2012–2013, pairs raised about 0.89 chicks per nest, far more than the year before. [11] - **Helping: Puppet parents**: A rearing centre opened in Bangweulu in May 2022. Carers raise the back-up chicks using shoebill hand puppets made by a Muppets puppeteer, then release them. [8][20] - **Helping: Trade controls**: The shoebill is on Appendix II of CITES, so international trade in it needs a permit. [1][2][5] - **Hamerkop** (LC): Its small closest relative, common across Africa, famous for its huge roofed nest. [16] - **Goliath heron** (LC): The world's largest living heron, often in the same swamps. [18] - **Marabou stork** (LC): A true stork and a scavenger, often found near towns and rubbish dumps. [17] ### Shoebill signals - Standing perfectly still in the swamp, bill pointing down: It is hunting, waiting for a fish to come up for air. [3][4] - Fast, loud bill clattering at the nest: A pair greeting each other. [4][5][1] - A low, cow-like “moo” or a high whine: An adult calling. Shoebills are silent most of the time. [1][2] - A chick making hiccup sounds: It is hungry and begging for food. [1][4] - A parent leaving the nest to fly off as people come close: You are too close. Disturbance at nests has been a big cause of failed breeding. [11][1] ### Ages - **Adult shoebill**: Slaty blue-grey, paler below, with darker flight feathers, a small tuft on the head, pale eyes and a huge blotched, hooked bill. Males and females look alike; males are a little bigger with longer bills. (Vulnerable; about 3,300–5,300 adults left) [1][2][3] - **Juvenile**: A darker grey than the adult, with a brownish tinge. (Starts breeding at about three years old) [1][2] - **Parent with chick**: Newly hatched chicks are covered in silvery-grey down. Their bill starts small and pale and grows over the first weeks. (Feathered at about 60 days, flying at about 105–112 days) [2][1][3] ### Shoebill quiz 1. What does the shoebill's bill look like? **Wide and deep, like a shoe.** The huge bill is wide, deep and shaped like a clog, with a sharp hook at the tip. [1][3] 2. What is the shoebill's hunting move called? **The collapse.** It lunges or falls forward onto its prey, which is called collapsing. [3][2] 3. How do shoebill pairs greet each other? **By clattering their bills.** They clap their bills together very fast, mostly around the nest. [4][5] 4. Which fish was the most common prey in the Bangweulu study? **Catfish.** Catfish made up 71% of the prey caught. [10] 5. How do shoebill parents stop their eggs from overheating? **They pour water over them.** They carry water or wet grass in the bill and pour it over the nest and eggs. [4][1] 6. How many chicks does a shoebill pair usually raise? **One.** They often hatch two, but rarely raise more than one. The second is a back-up. [1][7] 7. What does Balaeniceps, the shoebill's scientific name, mean? **Whale head.** It comes from Latin words for “whale” and “head”. [1] 8. How does a shoebill find its prey? **By sight.** It hunts by sight alone and is not known to hunt by touch. [1] 9. About how often does a shoebill flap its wings? **About 150 times a minute.** That is one of the slowest wingbeats of any bird. [1] 10. What is the shoebill's IUCN Red List status? **Vulnerable.** It is Vulnerable, with about 3,300–5,300 adults left and the number falling. [14][3] 11. Which bird is the shoebill's closest living relative? **The hamerkop.** The small brown hamerkop is its closest relative. Pelicans are related too. [1][16] 12. How do shoebills keep cool on hot days? **By vibrating their throats.** Gular fluttering, vibrating the throat, carries heat away. [3][2] ### Sources (checked 2026-10-28) 1. [Wikipedia (2026). Shoebill.](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shoebill) 2. [Animal Diversity Web (n.d.). Balaeniceps rex (shoebill). University of Michigan Museum of Zoology.](https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Balaeniceps_rex/) 3. [National Geographic (n.d.). Shoebill.](https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/birds/facts/shoebill) 4. [ZooTampa at Lowry Park (n.d.). Shoebill Stork.](https://zootampa.org/animals/shoebill/) 5. [Dallas World Aquarium (n.d.). Shoebill stork.](https://dwazoo.com/animal/shoebill-stork/) 6. [Lund N (2016). The Shoebill: Or, the Most Terrifying Bird in the World. Audubon Magazine, 5 August 2016.](https://www.audubon.org/magazine/shoebill-or-most-terrifying-bird-world) 7. [Discover Wildlife / BBC Wildlife (2026). Shoebill facts.](https://www.discoverwildlife.com/animal-facts/birds/shoebill-facts) 8. [African Parks (2022). Shoebill Conservation in Bangweulu: A Unique Solution for a Unique Bird.](https://www.africanparks.org/shoebill-conservation-bangweulu-unique-solution-unique-bird) 9. [African Parks (2013). Bangweulu's first shoebill chick of 2013. Press release.](https://www.africanparks.org/newsroom/press-releases/bangweulu-first-shoebill-chick-2013) 10. [Mullers RHE, Amar A (2015). Shoebill Balaeniceps rex foraging behaviour in the Bangweulu Wetlands, Zambia. Ostrich 86(1–2):113–118.](https://doi.org/10.2989/00306525.2014.977364) 11. [Mullers RHE, Amar A (2015). Parental nesting behavior, chick growth and breeding success of shoebills (Balaeniceps rex) in the Bangweulu Wetlands, Zambia. Waterbirds 38(1). Abstract.](https://doi.org/10.1675/063.038.0102) 12. [EDGE of Existence, Zoological Society of London (n.d.). Shoebill (Balaeniceps rex).](https://www.edgeofexistence.org/species/shoebill/) 13. [IUCN SSC Stork, Ibis and Spoonbill Specialist Group (n.d.). The Shoebill's Silent Struggle: Guarding the Future in Zambia's Wetlands.](https://storkibisspoonbill.org/news/the-shoebills-silent-struggle-guarding-the-future-in-zambias-wetlands/) 14. [GBIF (2026). Balaeniceps rex Gould, 1850: IUCN Red List category Vulnerable (VU), IUCN taxon 22697583.](https://www.gbif.org/species/2480347) 15. [UNEP/AEWA (n.d.). Balaeniceps rex. Species page (IUCN status Vulnerable).](https://www.unep-aewa.org/species/balaeniceps-rex) 16. [Wikipedia (2026). Hamerkop.](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hamerkop) 17. [Wikipedia (2026). Marabou stork.](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marabou_stork) 18. [Wikipedia (2026). Goliath heron.](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Goliath_heron) 19. [Wikidata (2026). Shoebill (Q18700): Balaeniceps rex; IUCN conservation status Vulnerable.](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q18700) 20. [Wikipedia (2026). Bangweulu Wetlands.](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bangweulu_Wetlands) ## Measurements & details - **Length:** 110-140 cm - **Wingspan:** 230-260 cm - **Weight:** 4-7 kg - **Lifespan:** 30-50 years - **Speed:** 35 km/h - **Clutch Size:** 1-3 - **Incubation:** 30-32 days ## Diet & Feeding This giant bird loves to gobble up fish and even small reptiles from muddy waters. - **Primary Foods:** African lungfish, Catfish, Tilapia, Eels, Water snakes, Frogs - **Foraging Method:** Ambush ## Ecological connections - **Hunts:** African Lungfish (*Protopterus aethiopicus*) — A primary food source in its swamp habitat. - **Eats:** African Sharptooth Catfish (*Clarias gariepinus*) — A common, large fish species hunted by shoebills. - **Eaten by:** [Nile Monitor](https://www.snappit.app/explore/nile-monitor) (*Varanus niloticus*) — Preys on shoebill eggs and chicks in the nest. - **Depends on:** [Papyrus](https://www.snappit.app/explore/papyrus) (*Cyperus papyrus*) — Provides crucial nesting material and hunting cover. ## Traits - [Feathered](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/feathered): Feathered describes animals, primarily birds, possessing a covering of feathers. - [Solitary](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/solitary): Solitary animals live alone for most of their lives, only interacting with others for mating or parental care. - [Piscivorous](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/piscivorous): Piscivorous organisms are animals that primarily subsist on a diet of fish. - [Ambush Predator](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/ambush-predator): An ambush predator hunts by patiently waiting and concealing itself, then launching a sudden attack when unsuspecting prey comes within range. - [Wetland](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/wetland): This habitat trait identifies species found in wetlands, which are areas of land saturated with water, either permanently or seasonally, including marshes, swamps, and bogs. - [Carnivorous](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/carnivorous): This trait identifies organisms whose diet consists entirely or primarily of animal tissue. - [Giant](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/giant): Giant describes organisms or objects of significantly larger size than average for their species or type. - [Endangered](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/endangered): Endangered status indicates a species is at a very high risk of extinction in the wild in the near future. ## Collections - [Birds](https://www.snappit.app/explore/collections/birds) ## Safety **Danger:** 2/5 · Low Always observe wild birds from a distance and do not try to touch them. ## Frequently Asked Questions ### How to identify Shoebill? Compare the silhouette, bill shape, tail length, wing bars and markings around the eyes. The same small brown bird at your feeder can look quite different in breeding plumage, winter plumage or its first year. Bird Identifier: upload a photo and compare the visible details. ### How long is Shoebill? 110-140 cm ### What is Shoebill's wingspan? 230-260 cm ### How much does Shoebill weigh? 4-7 kg ### How long does Shoebill live? 30-50 years ### How fast can Shoebill move? 35 km/h ### What does Shoebill eat? This giant bird loves to gobble up fish and even small reptiles from muddy waters. ### Where is Shoebill usually found? Wetlands ## Where to spot - [Weltvogelpark Walsrode](https://www.snappit.app/guides/places/weltvogelpark-walsrode) — Niedersachsen, DE · Zoo ## More Birds - [Black-crowned Night Heron](https://www.snappit.app/explore/black-crowned-night-heron) (*Nycticorax nycticorax*) - [Anna's Hummingbird](https://www.snappit.app/explore/annas-hummingbird) (*Calypte anna*) - [Great Egret](https://www.snappit.app/explore/great-egret) (*Ardea alba*) - [Blue Jay](https://www.snappit.app/explore/blue-jay) (*Cyanocitta cristata*) --- Source: [Shoebill: Characteristics, Facts & Places to See — Snappit](https://www.snappit.app/explore/shoebill)