Hamerkop

해머코프

A brown wading bird whose backward crest and long bill form a hammer shape. It builds a huge domed nest of sticks and mud, up to about 1.5 metres across, which other birds often reuse.

See it on the 3D globe →

At a glance

Class: Birds
Lives in: Lakes, rivers and wetlands across sub-Saharan Africa
Diet: Meat eater (carnivore)
Weight: about 0.47 kg
Length: about 0.56 m
Conservation status: Least Concern (IUCN LC)
Habitat: wetlands, rivers & lakes

Quick answers

Where does the Hamerkop live?

It lives in wetlands, rivers & lakes. On the globe you can find it near Lakes, rivers and wetlands across sub-Saharan Africa.

How big is the Hamerkop?

It grows to about 0.56 m and 0.47 kg.

What does the Hamerkop eat?

Its diet: meat eater (carnivore).

Is the Hamerkop endangered?

It is listed as Least Concern (IUCN LC).

The hamerkop is a medium-sized brown wading bird of Africa, Madagascar and Arabia. The shape of its head, with a long bill and a crest sticking out at the back, looks like a hammer. In fact, hamerkop is an Afrikaans word that means hammerhead.

It lives around lakes, rivers, fish ponds and wetlands, and hunts in shallow water for fish and frogs, spotting them by sight or touch. It is the only living bird in its own family, and it is common enough that it is rated Least Concern. It hunts by sight or by feeling for prey in the water with its bill.

The giant nest builder

The hamerkop is famous for its huge nests. It builds several every breeding season out of thousands of sticks, plastered with mud, and the nest can be about 1.5 metres across.

Unusually for a wading bird, it builds a dome with a chamber inside for the eggs, and both parents help to look after the eggs and chicks. It is a sedentary bird, so the nests stay near its home waters.

Housing for other animals

Because the nest is so large and strong, many other animals move in after the hamerkop has finished with it, including owls, ducks and other birds.

The hamerkop does not migrate far. It stays in the same area and moves around locally. The nest has a tunnel-like entrance on one side, and it often takes the birds weeks of work to finish.