Black-headed Ibis

Black-headed Ibis (Threskiornis melanocephalus) is a large white ibis with a bare black head and neck, black legs and a long black downcurved bill. Body shape, bill structure, plumage pattern and voice provide the strongest field characters. Age, sex and season may alter its appearance, so identification should combine several features and careful direct field comparisons with similar species in the same habitat (Wikipedia, general species account).

It forages across natural wetlands, flooded fields and other human-modified habitats, probing or picking for fish, frogs and invertebrates, and forms breeding colonies during the rainy season. Its movements and social behaviour vary through the year, with breeding birds generally more dispersed and non-breeding birds gathering where food is concentrated. Japanese records place it within the country's documented avifauna as a resident, migrant or visitor (Wikipedia, general species account; Wildlife of Japan occurrence records).