Birds with very long legs tend to end up in two categories. Birds that use their long legs to wade through water to catch aquatic prey, and grassland birds that use their long legs to run after prey. Long legged birds can be stocky or elegant, and are almost always impressive in height and size. Let’s look at a list of 13 birds with long legs.
13 Birds with long legs
1. Wood Stork
- Scientific Name: Mycteria americana
- Size: 40-44 inches
The wood stork is a large wading bird found predominantly in South America, but may winter along the Gulf Coast and has year-round populations in Florida. It typically inhabits shallow-water habitats with muddy bottoms, such as tidal flats, marshes, swamps, and mangroves. These storks are known for their extremely long gray legs, which allow them to walk on soft mud or sand without sinking.
This also allows them to find food in the water without getting the bulk of their body wet. They eat small fish, frogs, and other aquatic invertebrates that they find in the water. They have bright white feathers with black on their wings, which stand in contract to their featherless head. Their scaly gray head gives them a bit of a vulture-like appearance.
2. Southern Cassowary
- Scientific Name: Casuarius casuarius
- Size: 5.8 feet
Cassowaries are large, flightless birds native to New Guinea and northern Australia. The two main large species are the southern and northern cassowary, which are quite similar and broken up by location. These cassowaries are enormous in size, reaching up to 5.8 feet in length with a 6.5 foot wingspan. They can’t fly, but cassowaries have long, powerful legs that they use for movement and defense.
These large birds are commonly found in eucalyptus forests, savannas, and swamps. They are considered shy, but can defend themselves when necessary. Between their powerful legs and toe claws, a kick from them can prove quite injurious! These creatures can also swim, jump, and run at speeds of up to 50 kilometers per hour.
3. Jabiru
