Burhinidae – Thick-knees & Stone Curlews

The Burhinidae (Thick-knees & Stone Curlews) family is related to the waders, but sufficiently distinctive to merit its own family. The order Charadriiformes also includes Pluvianellidae (Magellanic Plover), Chionidae  (Sheathbills), Pluvianidae (Egyptian Plover), Recurvirostridae (Stilts & Avocets), Haematopodidae (Oystercatchers),  Ibidorhynchidae (Ibisbill), Charadriidae (Plovers & Lapwings), Pedionomidae (Plains Wanderer), Thinocoridae (Seedsnipes), Rostratulidae (Painted Snipe), Jacanidae (Jacanas), Scolopacidae (Sandpipers), Turnicidae (Buttonquails), Dromadidae (Crab-Plover), Glareolidae (Coursers & Pratincoles), Stercorariidae (Skuas), Alcidae (Auks) and Laridae (Gulls, Terns & Skimmers).

Beach Stone-curlew Esacus magnirostris – ©Bird-Photo-Tours ASIA

The Burhinidae or stone-curlews, also known as dikkops or thick-knees, consist of ten species found throughout the tropical and temperate parts of the world, with two species found in Australia. Despite the group being classified as Charadriiformes like waders, most species have a preference for arid or semi-arid habitats.

Eurasian Stone-curlew Burhinus oedicnemus – ©Bird-Photo-Tours ASIA

Named for the stony ground on which they live, one of the most striking features of the stone-curlews is their large, piercing yellow eyes, an adaptation to their crepuscular lifestyle – they are most active at dawn, dusk and through the night. Their mottled brown and sandy plumage is ideally suited as camouflage on open, sandy ground, where their nest is often little more than a scrape in the ground.

Peruvian Thick-knee Hesperoburhinus superciliaris – ©Dubi Shapiro

They are medium to large birds with strong black or yellow black bills, large yellow eyes, which can give them a reptilian appearance, and cryptic plumage. The names thick-knee and stone-curlew are both in common use, the preference among authorities for one term or the other varying from year to year. The term stone-curlew owes its origin to the broad similarities with true curlews (which are not closely related). They get their alternative name of thick-knee from the swollen ‘knee’ joint (which, as in all birds, is actually more akin to an ankle joint) on their long yellow or greenish legs. It apparently originated with a name coined in 1776 for Burhinus oedicnemus, the Eurasian stone-curlew. Obviously, the ankle (heel) and the knee were anatomically confused.

Indian Stone-curlew Burhinus indicus – ©Dubi Shapiro

They are largely nocturnal, particularly when singing their loud wailing songs, which are reminiscent of true curlews, which can be heard across a wide area of countryside. By contrast, most spend the daylight hours quietly in the shade of a bush when available. Their long wings are not as pointed as those of most charadriiforms, and when opened, they expose bold stripes of black and white or spots of white that contrast sharply with their generally camouflaged plumage.

Great Stone-curlew Esacus recurvirostris – ©Bird-Photo-Tours ASIA

The diet consists mainly of insects and other invertebrates such as desert snails. Larger species will also take lizards and even small mammals. Most species are sedentary, but the Eurasian Stone-curlew is a summer migrant in the temperate European part of its range, wintering in Africa.