Taxonomy
The renowned ornithologist John Gould first described the Royal Spoonbill in 1838, naming it Platalea regia and noting its similarity to the Eurasian Spoonbill (P. leucorodia). A 2010 study of mitochondrial DNA of the spoonbills by Chesser and colleagues found that the Royal and Black-faced Spoonbills were each other's closest relatives.
Read more about this topic: Royal Spoonbill