Platalea alba
Silhouette: Andy Wilson · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~50% in a week ~80%
The African spoonbill (Platalea alba) is a long-legged wading bird of the ibis and spoonbill family Threskiornithidae. The species is widespread across Africa and Madagascar, including Botswana, Kenya, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, and Zimbabwe. The species belongs to the genus Platalea, which also includes species such as the Black-faced spoonbill, Eurasian spoonbill, and Roseate spoonbill.
The African spoonbill lives in marshy wetlands with some open shallow water and nests in colonies in trees or reedbeds. They usually don't share colonies with storks or herons. They feed by moving its flat bill side to side throughout shallow water, snapping up fish, molluscs, amphibians, crustaceans, and insects when detected. Long legs and thin, pointed toes enable it to walk easily through varying depths of water. Juveniles are born with shorter bills that gradually develop into the species' unique spoon-shaped form as they mature.
The African spoonbill is almost unmistakable through most of its range. The breeding bird is all white except for its red legs and face and long grey spatulate bill. It has no crest, unlike the common spoonbill. Immature birds lack the red face... Wikipedia →
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dar es-Salaam | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 2 | Durban | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 3 | Kigali | 🇷🇼 Rwanda | |
| 4 | Serrekunda | 🇬🇲 Gambia | |
| 5 | Cape Town | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 6 | Mombasa | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 7 | Nairobi | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 8 | Johannesburg | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 9 | Kampala | 🇺🇬 Uganda |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Disney's Animal Kingdom | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | San Diego Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Prague Zoo | 🇨🇿 Czechia | |
| 4 | ZooParc de Beauval | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 5 | Dresden Zoo | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 6 | Paris Zoological Park | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 7 | Zoo Pilsen | 🇨🇿 Czechia | |
| 8 | Réserve africaine de Sigean | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 9 | Parc des oiseaux | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 10 | Aquarium du palais de la Porte Dorée | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 11 | Vinpearl Safari | 🇻🇳 Vietnam | |
| 12 | San Diego Zoo Safari Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 13 | Safaripark Beekse Bergen | 🇳🇱 Netherlands | |
| 14 | Toronto Zoo | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 15 | Safari West | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 16 | Bronx Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 17 | Bratislava Zoo | 🇸🇰 Slovakia | |
| 18 | Parc zoologique de Lisieux | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 19 | Banham Zoo | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 20 | Zoo and Botanical Garden of Branféré | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 21 | Johannesburg Zoo | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 22 | Oakland Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 23 | Phoenix Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 24 | The Maryland Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 25 | Detroit Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 26 | Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 27 | Selwo Aventura | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 28 | Luisenpark | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 29 | Warsaw Zoo | 🇵🇱 Poland | |
| 30 | Oasis Park | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 31 | Dierenpark Hoenderdaell | 🇳🇱 Netherlands | |
| 32 | Wrocław Zoological Garden | 🇵🇱 Poland | |
| 33 | Calgary Zoo | 🇨🇦 Canada | |
| 34 | Temaikén | 🇦🇷 Argentina | |
| 35 | Moody Gardens | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 36 | National Zoo of Malaysia | 🇲🇾 Malaysia | |
| 37 | ZooTampa | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 38 | Oregon Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 39 | Houston Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 40 | Neo Park Okinawa | 🇯🇵 Japan | |
| 41 | Cameron Park Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 42 | Cologne Zoological Garden | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 43 | Honolulu Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 44 | Łódź Zoo | 🇵🇱 Poland | |
| 45 | Krakow Zoo | 🇵🇱 Poland | |
| 46 | Ueno Zoo | 🇯🇵 Japan | |
| 47 | Lincoln Park Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 48 | Seville Zoo | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 49 | Valencia Bioparc | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 50 | Birdworld | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom |
Possible
About 20% of wildlife watchers report an African Spoonbill sighting in De Hoop Nature Reserve on a given day, based on 103 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 85th most-seen of the 189 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 50%, and over a week to about 80%, if each day is a fresh chance.
March, May and September
In those months about 30% of wildlife watchers report an African Spoonbill in De Hoop Nature Reserve on a given day, against about 10% in February, April and December, the lowest months. June has too few records to rate.
Between 9 am and noon
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most African Spoonbill sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
15th of 38
Of the 38 parks where we can rate African Spoonbill sightings, De Hoop Nature Reserve ranks 15th at about 20%. The best odds are in Lake Nakuru National Park (Kenya, about 60%), Amboseli National Park (Kenya, about 50%) and Nairobi National Park (Kenya, about 40%). All parks ranked.
Same family: Threskiornithidae
The closest relatives of the African Spoonbill that you can see in De Hoop Nature Reserve (family Threskiornithidae, Ibises and Spoonbills) are Hadada (about 60%), African Sacred Ibis (about 50%) and Glossy Ibis (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the African Spoonbill is recorded against all the birds logged in De Hoop Nature Reserve (103 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), 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.
