This is the most widespread ibis species, breeding in scattered sites in warm regions of
Europe,
Asia,
Africa,
Australia, and the
Atlantic and
Caribbean regions of the
Americas.
[3] It is thought to have originated in the
Old World and spread naturally from Africa to northern
South America in the 19th century, from where it spread to North America.
[4] The glossy ibis was first found in the New World in 1817 (New Jersey). Audubon saw the species just once in Florida in 1832. It expanded its range substantially northwards in the 1940s and to the west in the 1980s.
[4] This species is
migratory; most European birds winter in Africa, and in North America
[5] birds from north of
the Carolinas winter farther south. Birds from other populations may disperse widely outside the breeding season. While generally declining in Europe, it has recently established a breeding colony in southern
Spain, and there appears to be a growing trend for the Spanish birds to winter in
Britain and
Ireland, with at least 22 sightings in 2010.
[6] In 2014, a pair attempted to breed in
Lincolnshire, the first such attempt in Britain
[7] A few birds now spend the summer in Ireland, but as yet there is no evidence of breeding there. The diet of the glossy ibis is variable according to the season and is very dependent on what is available. Prey includes adult and larval
insects such as aquatic
beetles,
dragonflies,
damselflies,
grasshoppers,
crickets,
flies and
caddisflies,
Annelida including
leeches,
molluscs (e.g.
snails and
mussels),
crustaceans (e.g.
crabs and
crayfish) and occasionally
fish,
amphibians,
lizards, small
snakes and nestling birds.
[1]
