Photo Courtesy of Matt Wetrich
The Dunbar Slough south of Ralston has been the home of a strange visitor the past few weeks. According to Carroll County Naturalist, Matt Wetrich, the unlikely guest is a bird known as a Wood Stork.
As Wetrich indicated, the bird is not native to Iowa. Typically, wood storks live in the Gulf Coast region and farther south into Central and South America. The stork likely had some help making the more than 750 mile trip from its usual hunting grounds.
Wood storks’ diet consist primarily of fish, and the bird has being observed hunting for prey in the waters. Wetrich says habits like the Dunbar Slough are often home to similar birds.
At last report, the wood stork was still near the Dunbar Slough. Birdwatchers from across the state have come to see the rare bird. The bird could leave at any point, and Wetrich suggest anybody wishing to see it before it leaves not interact with the bird in any way. A high-resolution photo of the wood stork and a link to the bird hunting can be found included below.
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