Northern Bald Ibis
Geronticus eremita
Status: Critically Endangered. Most recent population crash resulted from the introduction of pesticides in the 1950s.
In the Old Testament, the ibis was mentioned as a fertility messenger, and was one of the first birds that Noah released from the arc. And in the Sixth Labour of Heracles in ancient Greek myth, he was charged by King Eurystheus to go to the marsh near Stymphalos, where he needed to rid the town of an enormous flock of vicious ibis-like birds. They were bronze and iron and had fearsome, powerful beaks. With loud, clapping noisemakers given to him by Athena, Heracles startled the dread flock into flight. As they did so, the hero shot them with his bow and arrows and accomplished his task.
The ibis is also found represented among hieroglyphs and ancient Egyptian artifacts. Though it was the sacred ibis (Threskiornis aethiopicus) that was the specific subject, it has been extinct since the 19th century. The ibis was sacred and was regarded as the embodiment of Thoth, god of wisdom, writing, scribes, science, and art. His Egyptian name was Djehuty, "He who is like the Ibis". Thoth was depicted with the body of a man, and the head of an ibis. Along with Ma'at, he guided the sun barge, a mythical boat bearing the sun, and dispensed arbitration in disputes among the other gods, and judgments upon the dead.
References:
Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum: RC 225 Thoth Votive Mummies, Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum. "Thoth". https://egyptianmuseum.org/deities-thoth
Encyclopedia Britannica: "Thoth" https://www.britannica.com/topic/Thoth
Mark, Joshua J. "Thoth". World History. https://www.worldhistory.org/Thoth/
Arnold, D. (1995). An Egyptian Bestiary. The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, 52(4) "28. Statuette of Thoth", "29. Hieroglyphic Sign Showing and Ibis", 30. https://doi.org/10.2307/3269051
Shuker, Karl (2003). "Dreams of a feathered Geronticus". The Beasts That Hide from Man: Seeking the World's Last Undiscovered Animals. Cosimo.
Crane, Gregory R., "The Stymphalian Birds". Perseus Digital Library, Classics Department, Tufts University. https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/Herakles/birds.html