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Garden birds

Hadeda Ibis

Bostrychia hagedash Β· isiZulu: iNkankane

Hadeda Ibis 🔍 Enlarge
Photo: Wikimedia Commons

Here all year

What it sounds like

The alarm clock nobody set. A shrieking HAA-HAA-HAA-de-dah, usually at dawn, usually directly above your bedroom.

Lynette Rudman, CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

How to recognise it

Everyone knows the noise; fewer people have looked closely at the bird. In good light the dull grey wing turns iridescent green and purple, and the long curved bill has a red stripe along the top. They probe lawns for worms and beetles, which is why they love a well-watered garden.

Seen in Manor Gardens

Nobody has logged a Hadeda Ibis here yet. If you spot one, you will be the first on the record.

More garden birds

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