 The American white ibis ( Eudocimus albus ) is a species of bird in the ibis family , <unk> . It is found from North Carolina via the Gulf Coast of the United States south through most of the coastal New World tropics . This particular ibis is a medium @-@ sized bird with an overall white plumage , bright red @-@ orange down @-@ curved bill and long legs , and black wing tips that are usually only visible in flight . Males are larger and have longer bills than females . The breeding range runs along the Gulf and Atlantic Coast , and the coasts of Mexico and Central America . Outside the breeding period , the range extends further inland in North America and also includes the Caribbean . It is also found along the northwestern South American coastline in Colombia and Venezuela . Populations in central Venezuela overlap and interbreed with the scarlet ibis . The two have been classified by some authorities as a single species . 
