Stone-curlew

Stone-curlews
Bush Stone-curlew, Burhinus grallarius
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Charadriiformes
Family: Burhinidae
Mathews, 1912
Genera

The Stone-curlews, also known as Dikkops or Thick-knees are a group of largely tropical birds in the family Burhinidae. Despite the group being classified as waders, most species have a preference for arid or semi-arid habitats. They are found worldwide within the tropical zone, with some species also breeding in temperate Europe and Australia.

They are medium to large birds with strong black or yellow black bills, large yellow eyes—which give them a reptilian appearance—and cryptic plumage. The names Thick-knee and Stone-curlew are both in common use, the preference among authorities for one term or the other varying from year to year. The term Stone-curlew owes its origin to the broad similarities with true curlews (which are not closely related). Thick-knee refers to the prominent joints in the long yellow or greenish legs and apparently originated with a name coined in 1776 for B. oedicnemus, the Thick-kneed Bustard.

They are largely nocturnal, particularly when singing their loud wailing songs, which are reminiscent of true curlews.[1]

The diet consists mainly of insects and other invertebrates. Larger species will also take lizards and even small mammals.[1]

Most species are sedentary, but the Stone Curlew is a summer migrant in the temperate European part of its range, wintering in Africa.

Species

The nine species are:

Picture Name Binomial name
Eurasian Stone-curlew Burhinus oedicnemus
No picture Senegal Thick-knee Burhinus senegalensis
Water Thick-knee Burhinus vermiculatus
Spotted Thick-knee Burhinus capensis
Double-striped Thick-knee Burhinus bistriatus
Peruvian Thick-knee Burhinus superciliaris
Bush Stone-curlew Burhinus grallarius (formerly B. magnirostris, the Bush Thick-knee).
Great Stone-curlew Esacus recurvirostris
Beach Stone-curlew Esacus giganteus (formerly E. magnirostris, the Beach Thick-knee).

References

  1. ^ a b Harrison, Colin J.O. (1991). Forshaw, Joseph. ed. Encyclopaedia of Animals: Birds. London: Merehurst Press. pp. 105–106. ISBN 1-85391-186-0. 

External links