Himantopus leucocephalus
Silhouette: Edwin Price · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~30%
The pied stilt (Himantopus leucocephalus), also known as the white-headed stilt, is a shorebird in the family Recurvirostridae. It is widely distributed with a large total population size and apparently stable population trend, occurring in Malaysia, Japan, the Philippines, Brunei, Christmas Island, Indonesia, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Australia, and New Zealand. It is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. It is sometimes considered a subspecies of the black-winged stilt (H. himantopus).
Himantopus leucocephalus was the scientific name proposed by John Gould in 1837 who described a pied stilt from Australia. The pied stilt grows to a length of about 14 in (36 cm) with a wingspan of about 26.5 in (67 cm). The back of the head and neck, the back and the upper surfaces of the wings are glossy greenish-black. The undersides of the wings are plain black and the remainder of the plumage is white, apart from the tail feathers which are tinged with grey. The long, thin legs are pink and the toes have black claws. The long slender beak is black and the irises and the eyelids are red.
The pied stilt is resident in southern... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rottnest Island | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 2 | Cape Range | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 3 | Bali Barat National Park | 🇮🇩 Indonesia | |
| 4 | Ningaloo Marine Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 5 | Litchfield National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 6 | Abel Tasman National Park | 🇳🇿 New Zealand | |
| 7 | Fiordland National Park | 🇳🇿 New Zealand | |
| 8 | Kakadu National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 9 | Daintree National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 10 | Noosa National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 11 | Hattah-Kulkyne National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 12 | Blue Mountains National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Auckland | 🇳🇿 New Zealand | |
| 2 | Makassar | 🇮🇩 Indonesia | |
| 3 | Perth | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 4 | Sydney | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 5 | Davao City | 🇵🇭 Philippines | |
| 6 | Brisbane | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 7 | Cebu City | 🇵🇭 Philippines | |
| 8 | Jakarta | 🇮🇩 Indonesia | |
| 9 | Melbourne | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 10 | Singapore | 🇸🇬 Singapore |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Territory Wildlife Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 2 | Alice Springs Desert Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 3 | Taronga Zoo | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 4 | Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 5 | Melbourne Zoo | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 6 | Gembira Loka Zoo | 🇮🇩 Indonesia | |
| 7 | Perth Zoo | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 8 | Auckland Zoo | 🇳🇿 New Zealand | |
| 9 | Adelaide Zoo | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 10 | Australian Reptile Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 11 | Featherdale Sydney Wildlife Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 12 | Bali Bird Park | 🇮🇩 Indonesia | |
| 13 | Ipswich Nature Centre | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 14 | Ōtorohanga Kiwi House | 🇳🇿 New Zealand | |
| 15 | Ranger Red’s Zoo & Conservation Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 16 | The Lair | 🇦🇺 Australia |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a White-headed Stilt sighting in Melbourne on a given day, based on 1,673 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 82nd most-seen of the 236 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 30%, if each day is a fresh chance.
February–March and October
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a White-headed Stilt in Melbourne on a given day, against under 5% in April–September and November–January, the lowest months.
Between 10 am and 1 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most White-headed Stilt sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
9th of 10
Of the 10 cities where we can rate White-headed Stilt sightings, Melbourne ranks 9th at under 5%. The best odds are in Auckland (New Zealand, about 30%), Makassar (Indonesia, about 30%) and Perth (Australia, about 20%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the White-headed Stilt is recorded against all the birds logged in Melbourne (1,673 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
