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9

Beach Stone-curlew (Esacus neglectus) Alternate name(s): "Beach Thick-knee", "Reef Thick-knee" Aboriginal name(s): "a-rabinyi", "a-wurrwin" [yanyuwa] Size: 54-56 cm Weight: 0.9-1.1 kg

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Similar species

Description     Classification     Distribution     Sightings     Photos     Breeding     Nest     Eggs     Behaviour     Food     Call/s

Physical description Click here for a physical description Beach Stone-curlews are big shorebirds. Their plumage is cryptic. The head is black, except for a white supercilium and throat, while the rest of the upperparts (neck, mantle, wings and tail) are brownish dark-grey. Chest, belly and vent are white. The upperwings have black patches surrounded by a thin white fringe. The big eyes have prominent yellow irises. The bill is very big and black, with a yellow base on the upper mandible, while the long legs and feet are yellow.

Taxonomy, classification See Beach Stone-curlew at Wikipedia .

Range, habitat, finding this species Click here for information on habitat and range The overall distribution of this species can be assessed, and specific locations where birds have been spotted can be found, based on individual sighting reports submitted by birdwatchers to ebird.org . The global distribution of the Beach Stone-curlew is available HERE . The range of Beach Stone-curlews extends from the Andaman Islands in the West, via southern Thailand, Malaysia, the Philippines, islands of eastern Indonesia and New Guinea, to the Solomon Islands in the East. They are also found around much of the coastal fringe of Australia. Beach Stone-curlews populate the entire northern coastline of the Australian continent, from about Exmouth, WA, all the way through to QLD and into northern NSW, to about the Manning River estuary. Occasionally, they go as far down the Australian East coast as Marengo Beach, near Cape Otway, which is the southern tip of the Victorian coastline. They are not found anywhere inland. Beach Stone-curlews live mostly on beaches and coastal mudflats, usually where there are densely vegetated areas nearby, in which they hide during the day. They usually emerge into open areas at sunset.

Sightings Click here for sighting information A family of Beach Stone-curlews was first found by us in a salt marsh near the mouth of the Manning River, close to Old Bar, NSW, in June 2011. Up to three birds were spotted, most likely a pair with one chick. A. Morris's help with these observations is greatly appreciated. Subsequently Beach Stone-curlews were seen by us again at the same location at various times. A single, banded Beach Stone-curlew was spotted by us in the mudflat at the Urunga board walk, Urunga Heads, in March 2015. M. Eaton reports spotting a Beach Stone-curlew at the same location in July 2017. M. Eaton reports finding a Beach Stone-curlew (in this case one with a damaged foot) at Inskip Point, QLD, in December 2017, and at Brunswick Heads, NSW, in January 2019. More Beach Stone-curlews were found at Stanage Bay, QLD, in July 2021. J. Boettcher, FNQ Nature Tours reports spotting a Beach Stone-curlew at the Esplanade, Cairns, QLD, in August 2020. Various contributors report finding Beach Stone-curlews occasionally on beaches in and around Darwin, NT.

Photos

ADULT

PAIR

Near-frontal view of a pair of Beach Stone-curlews (photo courtesy of P. Brown)
[Lee Point, Darwin, NT, October 2019]

Two Beach Stone-curlews close together (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Brunswick Heads, NSW, January 2019]

Two Beach Stone-curlews close together (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Brunswick Heads, NSW, January 2019]

Pair of Beach Stone-curlews (photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Lee Point Beach, Darwin, NT, July 2019]

Two Beach Stone-curlews on a mudflat (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Newell Beach, QLD, December 2018]

Sex unknown

Frontal view of a Beach Stone-curlew (photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Lee Point Beach, Darwin, NT, July 2019]

Frontal view of a Beach Stone-curlew; this is the bird whose calls were recorded on 23 January 2019
(photo courtesy of P. Brown)
[Casuarina Coastal Reserve, Darwin, NT, January 2019]

Frontal view of a Beach Stone-curlew (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Brunswick Heads, NSW, January 2019]

Near-frontal view of a Beach Stone-curlew; this is the bird whose calls were recorded on 23 January 2019
(photo courtesy of P. Brown)
[Casuarina Coastal Reserve, Darwin, NT, January 2019]

Near-frontal view of a Beach Stone-curlew (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Brunswick Heads, NSW, January 2019]

Near-lateral view of a Beach Stone-curlew (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Brunswick Heads, NSW, January 2019]

Close-up lateral portrait of a Beach Stone-curlew (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Inskip Point, QLD, December 2017]

Close-up lateral portrait of a Beach Stone-curlew, slightly different angle (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Inskip Point, QLD, December 2017]

Lateral view of a Beach Stone-curlew (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Brunswick Heads, NSW, January 2019]

Lateral view of a Beach Stone-curlew (photo courtesy of P. Brown)
[Lee Point, Darwin, NT, October 2019]

Lateral view of a Beach Stone-curlew; this is the bird whose calls were recorded on 23 January 2019
(photo courtesy of P. Brown)
[Casuarina Coastal Reserve, Darwin, NT, January 2019]

Close-up lateral view of a Beach Stone-curlew (photo courtesy of J. Boettcher, FNQ Nature Tours)
[Esplanade, Cairns, QLD, August 2020]

Near-dorsal view of a Beach Stone-curlew (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Inskip Point, QLD, December 2017]

Lateral view of a Beach Stone-curlew in flight (photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Darwin, NT, December 2015]

Lateral view of a Beach Stone-curlew in flight; different phase of the wing beat (photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Darwin, NT, December 2015]

Lateral view of a Beach Stone-curlew in flight, wings up (photo courtesy of P. Brown)
[Nightcliff, Darwin, NT, November 2020]

Lateral view of a Beach Stone-curlew in flight, wings up (photo courtesy of P. Brown)
[Nightcliff, Darwin, NT, November 2020]

Lateral view of a Beach Stone-curlew in flight, wings straight (photo courtesy of P. Brown)
[Nightcliff, Darwin, NT, November 2020]

IMMATURE/JUVENILE

(Probably young) Beach Stone-curlew in a saltmarsh
[Old Bar, NSW, July 2013]

Family of Beach Stone-curlews in an intertidal wetland (photo courtesy of P. Brown)
[East Point, Darwin, January 2021]

Behaviour

Social behaviour: Territorial

Mobility: Sedentary/dispersive

Elementary unit: Solitary/pair

Lateral view of a Beach Stone-curlew trying to impress the competition (photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Buffalo Creek, Darwin, NT, July 2018]

Dorsal view of a Beach Stone-curlew trying to impress the competition (photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Buffalo Creek, Darwin, NT, July 2018]

Food, Diet

(Amongst other things) Beach Stone-curlews feed on crustacians.

Lateral view of a Beach Stone-curlew with its prey (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Newell Beach, QLD, December 2018]

Dorsal view of a Beach Stone-curlew with its prey, a salt crab (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Newell Beach, QLD, December 2018]

Beach Stone-curlew digging its prey out of a mudflat (photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Urunga board walk, Urunga Heads, NSW, July 2017]

(Probably young) Beach Stone-curlew seen digging a salt crab out of the mud in a salt marsh before shaking it, sending sand flying
[Old Bar, NSW, July 2013]

Call(s)/Song

For this species we have recorded the following call(s)/song. The interpretation of their meaning is our own; comments and suggestions for improvement are welcome.

bestcrl_pb_20210706.m4a	(Darwin, NT)	Alarm calls (human)	© PB
bestcrl_pb_20190123.m4a	(Darwin, NT)	Various	© PB

More Beach Stone-curlew sound recordings are available at xeno-canto.org .

These pages are largely based on our own observations and those of our contributors. The structure of these bird pages is explained HERE. For more salient facts on any bird species please refer to a field guide.

Would you like to contribute photos or sound recordings to this site? If interested, please CLICK HERE. Credits to contributors are given HERE.

Disclaimer: Comments are always welcome. We give no guarantee that the information presented on these pages is always correct or up-to-date. External links are marked as such and we take no responsibility for the contents of external pages. All images on this site are protected by copyright & used by permission of the respective owners. If you wish to reproduce them or any of the material presented on this web site, please contact us: We hereby acknowledge the original custodians of the land which is described on these pages, including the Gomeroi/Gamilaraay people of the North-west Slopes and Plains of NSW, and the traditional owners of other lands and nations within this country. We acknowledge elders past, present and emerging. Sovereignty was never ceded.          Last updated: Sat, 25 February 2023, 19:21 +00:00