spoonbill

[spoon-bil]

noun

1. any of several wading birds of the family Plataleidae, related to the ibises, having a long, flat bill with a spoonlike tip.

2. any of various birds having a similar bill, as the shoveler duck.

3. the paddlefish.

spoonbill

/ ˈspuːnˌbɪl /

noun

1. any of several wading birds of warm regions, such as Platalea leucorodia ( common spoonbill ) and Ajaia ajaja ( roseate spoonbill ), having a long horizontally flattened bill: family Threskiornithidae, order Ciconiiformes

Word History and Origins

Origin of spoonbill¹

First recorded in 1670–80; spoon + bill ²

Example Sentences

Activists are suing to stop it, pointing out that the site still provides habitat for endangered species like black-faced spoonbills and Far Eastern curlews.

Read more on National Geographic

"Now we can officially celebrate the return of a former lost breeding species to the Broadland landscape with the first fledged spoonbill here since the mid-17th Century," he added.

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Six types of spoonbills are found around the world but only the roseate is present in North America.

Read more on Seattle Times

Summer rains swelled the shallow inland sea, creating seasonal overflows that sustained the Everglades and its alligators, panthers, spoonbills and snail kites.

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You will see dolphins, terns, maybe even a roseate spoonbill.

Read more on Salon