Recurvirostra novaehollandiae
Silhouette: Alexandre Vong · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~90% in a week >90%
The red-necked avocet (Recurvirostra novaehollandiae) also known as the Australian avocet, cobbler, cobbler's awl, and painted lady, is a wader of the family Recurvirostridae that is endemic to Australia and is fairly common and widespread throughout, except for the north and north east coastal areas of the country. Closely related to the stilts, it shares their fragile slender elegance, however the deep red head and neck distinguish them. It appeared on a 13 cent postage stamp in 1966.
The French naturalist Louis Pierre Vieillot described the red-necked avocet in 1816, and it still bears its original name. It is one of four species of avocet that make up the genus Recurvirostra. A 2004 study combining genetics and morphology showed that it was the sister taxon to a lineage that gave rise to the Andean and American avocets.
The distinguishing feature of the red-necked avocet, and all avocet species, is the distinctive upcurved bill that is used for skimming the surface of water to catch small invertebrates. The adult's head and neck is a rich chestnut brown in colour (from which it derives its name) with a narrow white eye ring and a red-brown iris... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rottnest Island | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 2 | Hattah-Kulkyne National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia |
Likely
About 60% of wildlife watchers report a Red-necked Avocet sighting in Rottnest Island on a given day, based on 298 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 13th most-seen of the 81 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 90%, and over a week to over 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
January–February and November
In those months about 70% of wildlife watchers report a Red-necked Avocet in Rottnest Island on a given day, against about 30% in May and June, the lowest months. Those are among Rottnest Island's driest months, with about 20 mm of rain a month against 120 mm in June.
Between 1 and 4 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Red-necked Avocet sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Yes
Of the 2 parks where we can rate Red-necked Avocet sightings, Rottnest Island has the highest daily chance: about 60%. Next come Hattah-Kulkyne National Park (Australia, under 5%).
Same family: Recurvirostridae
The closest relatives of the Red-necked Avocet that you can see in Rottnest Island (family Recurvirostridae, Stilts and Avocets) are White-headed Stilt (about 70%) and Banded Stilt (about 60%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Red-necked Avocet is recorded against all the birds logged in Rottnest Island (298 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.
