Black-winged Stilt

Black-winged Stilt

Himantopus himantopus

Silhouette: Edwin Price · PhyloPic

LCLeast ConcernNTVUENCR
Daily sighting probability ~70% · Very likely
at Quanzhou

In 3 days >90%

59 Verified sightings at Quanzhou
22,122 In all 72 parks From 2019 to 2026
November Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the Black-winged Stilt

The black-winged stilt (Himantopus himantopus) is a widely distributed, very long-legged wader in the avocet and stilt family Recurvirostridae. Its scientific name, Himantopus himantopus, is sometimes used to generalize a single, almost cosmopolitan species. Alternatively, it is restricted to the form that is widespread in Europe, Asia and Africa, which equals the nominate group of H. himantopus sensu lato. Meanwhile, the black-necked (H. mexicanus) and white-backed stilts (H. melanurus) both inhabit the Americas; the pied stilt (H. leucocephalus) ranges from Australia and New Zealand. Today, most sources accept between one and four actual species.

The black-winged stilt was formally described in 1758 by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in the tenth edition of his Systema Naturae. He placed it with the plovers in the genus Charadrius and coined the binomial name Charadrius himantopus. He specified the type locality as southern Europe. The taxonomic name Himantopus comes from Greek, meaning "strap-foot" or "thong-foot". The black-winged stilt is now one of five species placed in the genus Himantopus that was introduced by the French naturalist Mathurin Jacques Brisson... Wikipedia →

Sounds

Call0:32

France · 2026

© Thierry THOMAS · XC1156818 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Nocturnal flight call0:25

Spain · 2026

© Bosco Dies / BirdingAlbufera · XC1101986 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Alarm call0:20

Italy · 2025

© Marco Preziosi · XC1015508 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Doñana National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
~70%
2 Keoladeo National Park 🇮🇳 India
~60%
3 Gonarezhou National Park 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe
~60%
4 Ranthambore National Park 🇮🇳 India
~60%
5 Yala National Park 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka
~60%
6 West Coast National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
~60%
7 Amboseli National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
~60%
8 Lower Zambezi National Park 🇿🇲 Zambia
~60%
9 Wilpattu National Park 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka
~60%
10 Lake Nakuru National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
~50%
11 Camargue 🇫🇷 France
~50%
12 Arusha National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
~50%
13 Mana Pools National Park 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe
~50%
14 Hwange National Park 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe
~50%
15 Ngorongoro Conservation Area 🇹🇿 Tanzania
~50%
16 Moremi Game Reserve 🇧🇼 Botswana
~40%
17 Udawalawe National Park 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka
~40%
18 Nairobi National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
~40%
19 Fertő-Hanság National Park 🇭🇺 Hungary
~40%
20 Hortobágy National Park 🇭🇺 Hungary
~40%
21 Chobe National Park 🇧🇼 Botswana
~30%
22 South Luangwa National Park 🇿🇲 Zambia
~30%
23 Kiskunság National Park 🇭🇺 Hungary
~30%
24 Liwonde National Park 🇲🇼 Malawi
~30%
25 Satpura National Park 🇮🇳 India
~20%
26 Tsavo East National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
~20%
27 De Hoop Nature Reserve 🇿🇦 South Africa
~20%
28 Etosha National Park 🇳🇦 Namibia
~20%
29 Serengeti National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
~20%
30 Queen Elizabeth National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
~20%
31 Kruger National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
~20%
32 Lake Manyara National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
~20%
33 Mikumi National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
~20%
34 Garden Route National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
~20%
35 Tarangire National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
~10%
36 Minneriya National Park 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka
~10%
37 Addo Elephant National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
~10%
38 Ruaha National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
~10%
39 Murchison Falls National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
~10%
40 Kafue National Park 🇿🇲 Zambia
~10%
41 Gorongosa National Park 🇲🇿 Mozambique
~10%
42 iSimangaliso Wetland Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
~10%
43 Gir National Park 🇮🇳 India
~10%
44 Awash National Park 🇪🇹 Ethiopia
~10%
45 Kidepo Valley National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
~10%
46 Nagarhole National Park 🇮🇳 India
~10%
47 Pilanesberg National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
~10%
48 Bandipur National Park 🇮🇳 India
~10%
49 Jim Corbett National Park 🇮🇳 India
~10%
50 Monfragüe National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
<5%
51 Kaziranga National Park 🇮🇳 India
<5%
52 Tsavo West National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
<5%
53 Namib-Naukluft National Park 🇳🇦 Namibia
<5%
54 Virunga National Park 🇨🇩 Democratic Republic of the Congo
<5%
55 Gobi Gurvansaikhan National Park 🇲🇳 Mongolia
<5%
56 Kaeng Krachan National Park 🇹🇭 Thailand
<5%
57 Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
<5%
58 Akagera National Park 🇷🇼 Rwanda
<5%
59 Lake Mburo National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
<5%
60 Sierra de Guadarrama National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
<5%
61 Table Mountain National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
<5%
62 uMkhuze Game Reserve 🇿🇦 South Africa
<5%
63 Samburu National Reserve 🇰🇪 Kenya
<5%
64 Mudumalai National Park 🇮🇳 India
<5%
65 Masai Mara National Reserve 🇰🇪 Kenya
<5%
66 Bandhavgarh National Park 🇮🇳 India
<5%
67 Wadden Sea National Park 🇩🇪 Germany
<5%
68 Sierra Nevada National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
<5%
69 Khao Yai National Park 🇹🇭 Thailand
<5%
70 Chitwan National Park 🇳🇵 Nepal
<5%
71 Sundarbans National Park 🇮🇳 India
<5%
72 Kanha National Park 🇮🇳 India
<5%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Quanzhou 🇨🇳 China
~70%
2 Agra 🇮🇳 India
~70%
3 Kota 🇮🇳 India
~60%
4 Rajkot 🇮🇳 India
~50%
5 Karachi 🇵🇰 Pakistan
~50%
6 Bhopal 🇮🇳 India
~50%
7 Riyadh 🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia
~50%
8 Tuen Mun 🇨🇳 China
~40%
9 Naha 🇯🇵 Japan
~40%
10 Manama 🇧🇭 Bahrain
~40%

Zoos & Centres Where Found

# Zoo / Centre Country
1 Moscow Zoo 🇷🇺 Russia In captivity
2 Pairi Daiza 🇧🇪 Belgium In captivity
3 Prague Zoo 🇨🇿 Czechia In captivity
4 Natura Artis Magistra 🇳🇱 Netherlands In captivity
5 Ostrava Zoo 🇨🇿 Czechia In captivity
6 Dvůr Králové Zoo 🇨🇿 Czechia In captivity
7 Paris Zoological Park 🇫🇷 France In captivity
8 Zoo Pilsen 🇨🇿 Czechia In captivity
9 Aquarium du palais de la Porte Dorée 🇫🇷 France In captivity
10 Slimbridge Wetland Centre 🇬🇧 United Kingdom In captivity
11 Marwell Zoo 🇬🇧 United Kingdom In captivity
12 Wilhelma 🇩🇪 Germany In captivity
13 Zoo Opole 🇵🇱 Poland In captivity
14 Gembira Loka Zoo 🇮🇩 Indonesia In captivity
15 Cologne Zoological Garden 🇩🇪 Germany In captivity
16 Auckland Zoo 🇳🇿 New Zealand In captivity
17 African Village 🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates In captivity
18 Moonlit Sanctuary Wildlife Conservation Park 🇦🇺 Australia In captivity
19 Tierpark Nordhorn 🇩🇪 Germany In captivity
20 Odense Zoo 🇩🇰 Denmark In captivity
21 Arabian Desert Safari 🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates In captivity
22 Oasi Naturalistica di Sant'Alessio 🇮🇹 Italy In captivity
23 L'Oceanogràfic 🇪🇸 Spain In captivity
24 Pyrénées Animal Park 🇫🇷 France In captivity
25 Touroparc Zoo 🇫🇷 France In captivity
26 Santillana Zoo 🇪🇸 Spain In captivity
27 Zoo Lagos 🇵🇹 Portugal In captivity
28 herpetarium warszawskiego ZOO 🇵🇱 Poland In captivity
29 Rákosův pavilon 🇨🇿 Czechia In captivity
30 Velemlokárium 🇨🇿 Czechia In captivity
31 Cologne Zoo Aquarium 🇩🇪 Germany In captivity
32 Les Oiseaux du Marais Poitevin 🇫🇷 France In captivity

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Black-winged Stilt in Quanzhou?

Very likely

About 70% of wildlife watchers report a Black-winged Stilt sighting in Quanzhou on a given day, based on 59 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 2nd most-seen of the 85 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to over 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see a Black-winged Stilt in Quanzhou?

April–May, September and November

In those months about 80% of wildlife watchers report a Black-winged Stilt in Quanzhou on a given day, against about 60% in January, the lowest month. June, August and October have too few records to rate.

What time of day is best to see a Black-winged Stilt?

Between 7 and 10 am

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Black-winged 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.

Is Quanzhou the best place to see a Black-winged Stilt?

Yes

Of the 126 cities where we can rate Black-winged Stilt sightings, Quanzhou has the highest daily chance: about 70%. Next come Agra (India, about 70%) and Kota (India, about 60%).

Where does the Black-winged Stilt sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Black-winged Stilt is recorded against all the birds logged in Quanzhou (59 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.

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