Marabou Stork

The marabou stork (Leptoptilos crumeniferus)

is ugly but its soft, fluffy undertail feathers, known simply as marabou, are beautiful and were once used to trim hats and gowns and to make scarves. Few if any of the women wearing these fripperies could have known they came from a carrion eater with a scabby, blood-encrusted head and a habit of squirting its legs with its own excrement.

the marabou has two large inflatable air sacs under its skin, one on its back and one below its throat. The male puffs these up at mating time and is aggressive to all-corners - including his prospective mate. She is submissive and, once pairing is established, will also inflate her sacs and be equally offensive to intruders. Often found near fishing villages, rubbish dumps, camps and abattoirs, marabous will become quite tame and feed within a few feet of people.