Burhinus vermiculatus
Silhouette: Auckland Museum · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~40% in a week ~70%
The water thick-knee or water dikkop (Burhinus vermiculatus) is a species of bird in the thick-knee family Burhinidae. The species is found across sub-Saharan Africa, usually close to water. The water thick-knee has a widespread distribution in sub-Saharan Africa, being found in Angola, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Eswatini, Ivory Coast, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ghana, Kenya, Liberia, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Somalia, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
Across its range it is found on the edges of lakes, estuaries and rivers, as well as mangroves and also some sheltered beaches. It also needs bushes or nearby woodlands for shelter. It is found from sea-level to 1,800 m (5,900 ft).
There are two accepted subspecies: Burhinus vermiculatus vermiculatus — Democratic Republic of Congo to Somalia and South Africa Burhinus vermiculatus buettikoferi (Reichenow, 1898) — Liberia to Gabon The water thick-knee is 38 to 41 cm (15–16 in) and weighs 293–320 g (10.3–11.3 oz). It has a heavy... Wikipedia →
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mombasa | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 2 | Dar es-Salaam | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 3 | Zanzibar City | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 4 | Cape Town | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 5 | Kampala | 🇺🇬 Uganda | |
| 6 | Durban | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 7 | Nairobi | 🇰🇪 Kenya |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | World of Birds Wildlife Sanctuary and Monkey Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Water Thick-knee sighting in Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park on a given day, based on 75 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 86th most-seen of the 220 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.
October to March
In those months about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Water Thick-knee in Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park on a given day, against about 10% in April to September, the lowest months. Those are among Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park's wettest months, with about 100 mm of rain a month against 15 mm in June.
Between 8 and 11 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Water Thick-knee sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
24th of 40
Of the 40 parks where we can rate Water Thick-knee sightings, Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park ranks 24th at about 10%. The best odds are in Lower Zambezi National Park (Zambia, about 50%), Gonarezhou National Park (Zimbabwe, about 50%) and Mana Pools National Park (Zimbabwe, about 50%). All parks ranked.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Water Thick-knee is recorded against all the birds logged in Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park (75 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.
