I made one of my semi-annual trips down scenic highway 395 on the east side of the Sierra in California last week. As I was driving past a large pasture in Bridgeport, I spied a flock of a reddish birds with curved beaks which I thought must be some kind of Ibis. I had never seen them before and I've been exploring California for 30 years. When I got home I looked them up and it seems that what I saw were Glossy Ibises. Now I know for some of you in other parts of the country, these are probably pretty common, but here they are rare. I didn't have the best conditions and couldn't get as close as I would have liked and then a grazing horse decided to chase them away. Here are the best ones I got

Nikon D300, ISO320, 500mm, f6.3

Wow, I'm no expert on Ibis ID, but wonder if these might be White-faced Ibis. The could be Glossy Ibis, but would be way out of the range they are usually seen in.

Either way, you were lucky to see them and getting good photographs is a plus.

I like the one with the horse. Very cool.

I'm going to say White-faced is the answer here. A quick check of Sibly Guide shows that the White-faced has a white border that goes all the way around the face and behind the eye. It is sort of a "u" shape turned sideways and visible in the second image you posted on the top three birds in a row.

For the Glossy, the border would have to be slate blue and is not continuous behind the eye.

Also, the White-faced has a red eye while the glossy has a dark eye.

Hope this helps
Jim

I go with the white face variety also.

Thanks to Jim & Durwood I think I have the correct ID on the Ibis I spotted in northern California. I stand corrected and these critters appear to be White-faced Ibis, which is not as rare in CA at the Glossy. Of course no matter what the ID, it was still a treat to see and photograph these guys.

Geo

I hear that entirely, George.

James