African spoonbill

Platalea alba

The African spoonbill (Platalea alba) is a bird found in South Africa, Kenya and Botswana. Marshes and lakes across Africa and Madagascar. It eats insects and other small invertebrates and fish. The IUCN Red List lists it as Least Concern.

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Scientific name	Platalea alba
Region	Africa
Found in	South Africa, Kenya and Botswana

🏡 Where the African spoonbill lives

Marshes and lakes across Africa and Madagascar.

🍽️ What it eats

🐛 Insects & bugs50%
🐟 Fish50%

A rough guide to its diet over a year. Source: EltonTraits (Wilman et al. 2014).

Conservation status

LCNTVUENCREWEX

Least ConcernThere are plenty of these birds.

💡 It sweeps its spoon-shaped bill from side to side in shallow water.

Hear the African spoonbill

Recorded by Tony Archer (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0), xeno-canto XC611674. Trimmed to a few seconds.

Questions about the African spoonbill

Where does the African spoonbill live?

The African spoonbill lives in South Africa, Kenya and Botswana. Marshes and lakes across Africa and Madagascar.

What does the African spoonbill eat?

insects and other small invertebrates (about 50%), fish (about 50%). These are rough shares of its diet over a year, from the EltonTraits database.

Is the African spoonbill endangered?

There are plenty of these birds. Its IUCN Red List category is Least Concern.

More birds from Africa

Sources: IUCN Red List (via Wikidata), EltonTraits 1.0 (Wilman et al. 2014), GBIF sightings for countries, Wikipedia. Last updated 2026-10-19.