What is "scarlet ibis"

Scarlet \Scar"let\, a. Of the color called scarlet; as, a scarlet cloth or thread.

Scarlet admiral (Zo["o]l.), the red admiral. See under Red. -- Scarlet bean (Bot.), a kind of bean ( Phaseolus multiflorus) having scarlet flowers; scarlet runner.

Scarlet fever (Med.), a contagious febrile disease characterized by inflammation of the fauces and a scarlet rash, appearing usually on the second day, and ending in desquamation about the sixth or seventh day.

Scarlet fish (Zo["o]l.), the telescope fish; -- so called from its red color. See under Telescope.

Scarlet ibis (Zo["o]l.) See under Ibis.

Scarlet maple (Bot.), the red maple. See Maple.

Scarlet mite (Zo["o]l.), any one of numerous species of bright red carnivorous mites found among grass and moss, especially Thombidium holosericeum and allied species. The young are parasitic upon spiders and insects.

Scarlet oak (Bot.), a species of oak ( Quercus coccinea) of the United States; -- so called from the scarlet color of its leaves in autumn.

Scarlet runner (Bot.), the scarlet bean.

Scarlet tanager. (Zo["o]l.) See under Tanager.

The scarlet ibis (Eudocimus ruber) is a species of ibis in the bird family Threskiornithidae. It inhabits tropical South America and islands of the Caribbean. In form it resembles most of the other twenty-seven extant species of ibis, but its remarkably brilliant scarlet coloration makes it unmistakable.

This medium-sized wader is a hardy, numerous, and prolific bird, and it has protected status around the world. Its IUCN status is Least Concern. The legitimacy of Eudocimus ruber as a biological classification, however, is in dispute. Traditional Linnaean taxonomy classifies it as a unique species, but an increasing number of scientists have moved to reclassify it as a subspecies of a more general American ibis species, along with its close relative Eudocimus albus.