Resembling the offspring of a platypus and an unwary flamingo, the roseate spoonbill can be found poking its bill in swamplands across America. Its pretty pink plumage was nearly its undoing in the 1800s owing to demand from milliners, but numbers have recovered in recent years. Although the species is protected, this one can be yours for a mere £83,000. More than 400 engravings of John James Audubon’s paintings of The Birds of America will be auctioned at Christie’s, New York, on Friday .
Nancy Durrant