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Birds
Hamerkop
Hamerkop · Scopus umbretta
Look out for the hammer-shaped head: the Hamerkop gives itself away at the water with its extraordinary silhouette and huge nests.
Fact file
- Size
- Body length up to 56 cm, wingspan about 95 cm, weight around 450 grams
- Males and females
- Male and female look the same – no obvious differences
- Sounds
- Makes quiet, hoarse-sounding cries and clicking noises
- Diet
- Frogs, small fish, insects and other small animals in shallow water
- Offspring
- Several eggs per clutch, both parents build a huge nest together
How to identify Hamerkop
The Hamerkop is immediately striking thanks to its large head, broadened like a shovel, with a long, wedge-shaped bill. Its silhouette really does resemble a hammer. The plumage is uniformly chocolate brown and sometimes shimmers slightly bronze in the sunlight.
At around 50 centimetres tall with a wingspan of up to one metre, the Hamerkop looks stocky and compact. Its fairly short legs and rounded tail underline the bird’s squat overall shape.
More in the app
With Wildful Stories+ you also get in the app:
- general viewing tips
- one place where you can see Hamerkop
Where Hamerkop live
Namibia
South Africa
Discover Hamerkop on your trip.
The app shows you where and when to see wildlife along your route.
