Ciconiiformes is the Order of colonial-nesting water birds that includes Bitterns, Egrets, Herons, Storks, Spoonbills, and Ibises.
Commonly known as Wading Birds, they nest and feed near fresh water. (Related species, known as Seabirds, spend most of their time at sea.)
(In some sources, this group has been updated to include New World Vultures, due to a perceived taxonomic similarity to Storks.)
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