Burhinus capensis
Silhouette: Auckland Museum · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~40% in a week ~70%
The spotted thick-knee (Burhinus capensis), also known as the spotted dikkop or Cape thick-knee, is a wader in the family Burhinidae. It is native to tropical regions of central and southern Africa. The spotted thick-knee, which can reach up to 45.5 cm (17.9 in) in height, has long legs and brown-and-white speckled plumage which provides camouflage, making it difficult to spot the bird in the grasslands and savannas where it roams. Its head is large and round with a prominent yellow eye and a short, stout beak. When in flight or standing in a characteristic position with its wings raised, it shows a striking contrasting pattern. Its legs are long and yellow and the tibiotarsal joint is expanded, giving it the name "thick-knee".
The spotted thick-knee is nocturnal and squats on the ground during the daytime, making it difficult to spot. It hunts exclusively on the ground, feeding on insects, small mammals and lizards. It nests on the ground, lining a scrape with grasses, feathers, pebbles and twigs. The female typically lays two eggs, and males and females rear the offspring together, with both bringing food back to the nest. The birds... Wikipedia →
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Johannesburg | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 2 | Pretoria | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 3 | Cape Town | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 4 | Maputo | 🇲🇿 Mozambique | |
| 5 | Nairobi | 🇰🇪 Kenya |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Spotted Thick-knee sighting in Pretoria on a given day, based on 105 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 54th most-seen of the 177 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 40%, and over a week to about 70%, if each day is a fresh chance.
December
In that month about 30% of wildlife watchers report a Spotted Thick-knee in Pretoria on a given day, against under 5% in April, the lowest month. That is one of Pretoria's wettest months, with about 130 mm of rain against almost none in July.
Between 9 am and noon
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Spotted Thick-knee sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
2nd of 5
Of the 5 cities where we can rate Spotted Thick-knee sightings, Pretoria ranks 2nd at about 10%. The best odds are in Johannesburg (South Africa, about 20%).
Same order: Charadriiformes
The closest relatives of the Spotted Thick-knee that you can see in Pretoria (order Charadriiformes, Shorebirds and Allies) are Blacksmith Lapwing (about 30%), Crowned Lapwing (about 10%) and African Wattled Lapwing (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Spotted Thick-knee is recorded against all the birds logged in Pretoria (105 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.
