beach stone-curlew
{{Short description|Species of bird}}
{{Redirect|Burhinus magnirostris|the species formerly known by this name|Bush stone-curlew}}
{{Speciesbox
| image = Esacus giganteus -Daintree, Queensland, Australia-8 (1).jpg
| status = NT
| status_system = IUCN3.1
| genus = Esacus
| species = magnirostris
| authority = (Vieillot, 1818)
| synonyms = Esacus neglectus
Burhinus giganteus Wagler, 1829
Burhinus magnirostris
| range_map = Esacus recurvirostris and Esacus magnirostris ranges.png
| range_map_caption = {{leftlegend|#00FF80|E. magnirostris range|outline=gray}}{{leftlegend|#008000|E. recurvirostris range|outline=gray}}
}}
The beach stone-curlew (Esacus magnirostris) also known as beach thick-knee is a large, ground-dwelling bird that occurs in Australasia, the islands of South-east Asia. At {{convert|55|cm|in|abbr=on}} and {{convert|1|kg|lb|abbr=on}}, it is one of the world's largest shorebirds.
It is less strictly nocturnal than most stone-curlews, and can sometimes be seen foraging by daylight, moving slowly and deliberately, with occasional short runs. It tends to be wary and fly off into the distance ahead of the observer, employing slow, rather stiff wingbeats..
The beach stone-curlew is classified as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. In New South Wales it is listed as critically endangered.{{Cite web |title=Esacus magnirostris — Beach Stone-curlew |url=http://www.environment.gov.au/cgi-bin/sprat/public/publicspecies.pl?taxon_id=59533 |website=Species Profile and Threats Database}}
Distribution
The beach stone-curlew is a resident of undisturbed open beaches, exposed reefs, mangroves, and tidal sand or mudflats over a large range, including coastal eastern Australia as far south as far eastern Victoria, the northern Australian coast and nearby islands, New Guinea, New Caledonia, Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines. It is uncommon over most of its range, and rare south of Cairns.
Description
The beach stone-curlew is 54-56 cm (21-22 in) long. At a mean of {{convert|1032|g|lb|abbr=on}} in males and {{convert|1000|g|lb|abbr=on}} in females, it is the heaviest living member of the Charadriiformes outside of the gull and skua families.CRC Handbook of Avian Body Masses, 2nd Edition by John B. Dunning Jr. (Editor). CRC Press (2008), {{ISBN|978-1-4200-6444-5}}.{{Cite web |title=Esacus magnirostris (Beach Thick-knee) - Avibase |url=https://avibase.bsc-eoc.org/species.jsp?avibaseid=0CD2083B5ED35660 |access-date=2024-05-25 |website=avibase.bsc-eoc.org}} They have black and white face patterning, yellow eyes and a grey-brown upper body.
Ecology
Beach stone-curlew forage on low tide muddy sand for invertebrates, mostly crabs.{{Cite web |title=Beach Stone-curlew {{!}} BIRDS in BACKYARDS |url=https://www.birdsinbackyards.net/species/Esacus-magnirostris |access-date=2024-05-25 |website=www.birdsinbackyards.net}}{{Cite web |last= |first= |title=Beach Stone-curlew |url=https://australian.museum/learn/animals/birds/beach-stone-curlew/australian.museum/learn/animals/birds/beach-stone-curlew/ |access-date=2024-05-25 |website=The Australian Museum |language=en}}
= Breeding =
The bird breeding season is September to November. The bird nests in sand, laying one egg per season just above the high tide line on the open beach, where it is vulnerable to predation and human disturbance.https://www.lls.nsw.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0003/1325298/BeachStoneCurlew-web.pdf Threatened Fauna of the Hunter & Mid Coast The egg is vulnerable to Both parents care of the young until they reach 7-12 months of age.{{Cite book |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/9780643108035 |title=Climate Change Adaptation Plan for Australian Birds |date=2014 |publisher=CSIRO Publishing |isbn=978-0-643-10803-5 |editor-last=Garnett |editor-first=Stephen |editor-last2=Franklin |editor-first2=Donald}}
= Call =
Gallery
Beach Thick-knee Inskip Pt2.JPG|{{center|At Inskip Point, SE Queensland, Australia}}
Esacus_magnirostris_-_Beach_stone-curlew_Qld.jpg|{{center|On Green Island off Cairns}}
Beach Stone-curlew 7562.jpg|{{center|At Cape Tribulation, north Queensland, Australia}}
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
{{Commons category|Esacus magnirostris}}
{{Wikispecies|Esacus magnirostris}}
- [http://www.birdlife.org/datazone/species/index.html?action=SpcHTMDetails.asp&sid=30066&m=0 BirdLife Species Factsheet]
{{Taxonbar|from=Q339273}}