Hammerhead Stork

Hammerhead Stork 

(Scopus umbretta), also hammerkop, the sole species of the family Scopidae of the order Ciconiiformes. The body is about 55 cm in length. The bill is highly compressed laterally. The plumage is dark brown, with lighter streaking and spotting. The hammerhead stork is distributed in tropical Africa, Madagascar, and southwestern Arabia. It nests in forests near water. The roofed nest is up to 2 m in diameter and consists of three chambers connected by a narrow passage about 15 cm wide; it is constructed of twigs, grass, and mud and is placed on the lower branches of trees near water or, more rarely, in rock crevices. Three to five white eggs are laid, in the topmost part of the nest; the incubation period is 21 days. The young birds leave the nest in seven weeks. The diet consists of aquatic insects, small crustaceans, and frogs.