Birds · Pelecaniformes · Scopidae

Hamerkop

Scopus umbretta

Least Concern

The species is abundant and widely distributed; it faces no significant short-term risk. See full glossary

The hamerkop is a brownish, medium-sized bird with an occipital crest that, together with the thick bill, gives its head the shape of a hammer. It is the only member of its family. It lives beside water and hunts amphibians and small fish. Its most astonishing feature is the nest: a closed structure more than a metre and a half across, with walls of mud and branches half a metre thick and an inner chamber reached through a tunnel.

Weight

420 g – 470 g

Size

50 cm – 56 cm

Lifespan

20 years

Diet

Carnivore

Feeds mainly on other animals.

Activity

Diurnal

Active mainly during the day.

Social structure

In pairs

Usually lives in pairs, sometimes for life.

Sighting difficulty

Easy

SavannaFreshwaterCarnivore Diurnal In pairs Bird Savanna Freshwater

46countries 39parks

Fun facts

GeneralIt builds one of the largest nests in the world: a domed vault of sticks 1.5 m across weighing as much as 50 kg.
It builds the largest nest in the world in proportion to its size: a dome of up to two metres with thousands of branches and kilos of mud, able to bear a person's weight, which a pair takes months to raise.
Once abandoned, its nests are taken over by barn owls, kestrels, genets, snakes and even geese: they are an essential source of shelter for other species in the African savannahs.
In many African cultures it is credited with supernatural powers and destroying its nest is considered a bad omen, which in practice has protected it for centuries.

Life cycle & biology

Skeleton type: Vertebrate - internal bony skeleton (bird)
Habitat & environment: River banks, wetlands, rice fields and pools of sub-Saharan Africa, Madagascar and Arabia
Sexual maturity: 2 years
Gestation / incubation: 30 days of incubation
Litter / clutch size: 4 eggs

Sources consulted: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hamerkop