Lesser Adjutant - Leptotilos javanicus
More Sri Lankan magic today. This photo was taken on our first mornings game drive at the Yala national park. The Lesser Adjutant (in the foreground) has just grabbed a fairly large snake from a rushy pond. The next couple of minutes were grim viewing. If you click on the picture it should enlarge and you can see a loop of the snake in the plant matter that the bird had snapped up at the same time.
These are birds of Southern Asia from the Indian sub-continent right across to China and South-East Asia. They are one of the largest storks standing a good 120 cm tall with a wingspan of 210 cm. That's close to 7 feet fully outstretched. As well as snakes they eat frogs, all manner of reptiles, small birds, insects and carrion. Like a vulture they have a bare neck and head that allows them to reach into rotting carcases.
I promised some other Yala shots while I am spending quiet a bit of time in the park. Below Mugger crocodile. They would sunbathe on the track at the beginning of the day.
Probably off the menu for a Lesser Adjutant.
Leptotilus javanicus
Yala National Park, Sri Lanka
14 June 2011
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