Adults: Upperparts, brown. White wing patches above and below dark brown shoulder. Throat, breast, grey. Underparts, white. Bill, large, black with a yellow base. Eye, large, yellow. Eyestripe, broad and black, with white bands above and below. Legs, olive-yellow.
Other Scientific Names
Burhinus giganteus [Sibley and Monroe (1990, 1993)], Esacus magnirostris [BirdLife International (2000, 2004)], Esacus magnirostris [BirdLife International (2000)], Esacus magnirostris [Christidis and Boles (2008)], Esacus neglectus [Christidis and Boles (1994)]
Other Names (World)
Beach Thick-knee, Beach Stone-curlew, Beach Curlew, Australian Stone-plover, Reef Thick-knee, Large-billed Stone Plover, Large-billed Shore Plover
Voice
A quick, 'chwip', repeated, uttered in alarm, sometimes a 'chwip-chwip'. A 'weer-liew' repeated about eight times, each higher and faster. Often calls at night. Similar to that of the Bush Stone-curlew (Burhinus grallarius) but harsher and at a higher pitch.
Beach Stone-curlew (Esacus magnirostris) [XC669113]
by Drew Davison from Nightcliff, Darwin Municipality, Northern Territory, Australia (call)
Beach Stone-curlew (Esacus magnirostris) [XC521645]
by Marc Anderson from Cooloola, Gympie Regional, Queensland, Australia (call)
Breeding Season (Guide)
September - November in east, July - October in north.
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Nest
None. The eggs are laid directly on the sand, usually just above the high-tide mark.
Eggs (Guide)
1, occasionally 2; cream, irregularly spotted and blotched with brown, black and underlying inky-grey marks; oval to oblong; about 64 x 45 mm. Incubation: by both sexes.
Young
Precocial, nidifugous.
Subspecies
Forms superspecies with Great Thick-knee (Esacus recurvirostris), with which occasionally considered conspecific. Considerable confusion concerning correct nomenclature, resulting in recent proposals to adopt either giganteus or neglectus as valid species name, but magnirostris is the correct name.
No subspecies.
Similar Species
Bush Stone-curlew (Burhinus grallarius)
Restricted to open woodland, but often near beaches, and on some offshore islands. Bill, finer and shorter. Heavily streaked above and below. Has a buff forehead.
Compare Images
The Field Guide to the Birds of Australia Pizzey, G., and Knight, E., 1997, Angus & Robertson, Sydney ISBN 0 207 19691 5
Field Guide to Australian Birds Morecombe, M., 2000, Steve Parish Publishing Pty Ltd. ISBN 1 876282 10 X
Field Guide to the Birds of Australia Simpson, K., and Day, N., 1999, 6th Edition, Viking ISBN 0 670 87918 5
Reader's Digest Complete Book of Australian Birds 1988, 2nd Edition, Reader's Digest ISBN 0 949819 99 9
What Bird is That? 1984, Revised Edition, Angus & Robertson, Sydney ISBN 0 207 14846 5
Handbook of Australian, New Zealand & Antarctic Birds 1990 - , Oxford University Press, Melbourne ISBN 0 19 553244 9
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BirdLife International Species Factsheet