Alternative name: Eurasian Thick-knee
- Burhinus oedicnemus
Identification
38-45cm
- Plumage sandy-brown, streaked darker
- Black and white markings on the wings
- Black-tipped yellow bill
- Large yellow iris
- Prominent joints in long yellow or green legs
Distribution
Western Palearctic, tropical north Africa and Asia.
Taxonomy
Subspecies1
- B. o. distinctus:
- Western Canary Islands
- B. o. insularum:
- Eastern Canary Islands
- B. o. saharae:
- B. o. oedicnemus:
- Southern Britain and Iberian Peninsula to northern Balkans and Caucasus
- B. o. harterti:
Indian Stone-curlew was formerly considered a subspecies of this species.
Habitat
Breeds on dry sparsely vegetated open ground. On migration may be seen on sea coasts.
Behaviour
Mostly nocturnal. Outside the breeding season they can gather in large flocks.
Diet
The diet includes insects, small invertebrates and lizards.
Breeding
The nest is a bare ground scrape; 2-3 eggs are laid.
Vocalisation
Call: a Eurasian Curlew-like coo-lee
<flashmp3>Burhinus oedicnemus (song).mp3</flashmp3>
Listen in an external program
References
- Clements, JF. 2011. The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World. 6th ed., with updates to August 2011. Ithaca: Cornell Univ. Press. ISBN 978-0801445019. Spreadsheet available at http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/downloadable-clements-checklist
- Wikipedia
- Collins Pocket Guide to British Birds 1966
- Collins Field Guide 5th Edition
- Collins Bird Guide ISBN 0 00 219728 6
External Links
