Hamerkop

Scopus umbretta

Least ConcernNear ThreatenedVulnerableEndangeredCritically Endangered

Insufficient data

overall probability at Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park

2 Verified records at Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park

☀️ Diurnal When it's active during daytime hours (6am–6pm)

The hamerkop (Scopus umbretta), also called the umbrette, is a medium-sized water bird with brown plumage. It is found in mainland Africa, Madagascar and Arabia, living in a wide variety of wetlands, including estuaries, lakesides, fish ponds, riverbanks, and rocky coasts. The shape of its head, with its long bill and crest at the back, gives this species its name, hamerkop being the Afrikaans word for hammerhead. Long considered to sit with the Ciconiiformes, the species and its family is now placed with the Pelecaniformes, its closest relatives thought to be the pelicans and the shoebill. It is the only living species in the genus Scopus and the family Scopidae. The hamerkop is a sedentary bird that often shows local movements. Wikipedia →

Closest Relatives at Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park

Ardea alba

Egretta intermedia

Ardea melanocephala

Ardea cinerea

Bubulcus ibis

Threskiornis aethiopicus

Insufficient data

📅 Monthly Probability

📊

Fewer than 5 records of Hamerkop at Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park — not enough to chart months honestly.

☀️ When They're Spotted

Most active during daytime hours (6am–6pm) · across all parks (global)

☀️Diurnal

Global Distribution

Where this species is recorded worldwide. Restricted to human observations from 2019 onwards — the same kind of record and the same period the probabilities on this page are built from, so collar-tracking studies, camera-trap arrays and museum specimens are excluded. Around Santa Rosa that removes 5,924 GPS fixes from a handful of tagged jaguars.

where this species is recorded (GBIF density — it tracks where observers go, not how likely a sighting is) · parks where it occurs — tap a pin for the sighting probability there

Parks Where Found

#	Park	Country	Probability
1	Niokolo-Koba National Park	🇸🇳 Senegal	70–80%
2	Queen Elizabeth National Park	🇺🇬 Uganda	50–60%
3	Liwonde National Park	🇲🇼 Malawi	50–60%
4	South Luangwa National Park	🇿🇲 Zambia	50–60%
5	Nairobi National Park	🇰🇪 Kenya	50–60%
6	Meru National Park	🇰🇪 Kenya	50–60%
7	Akagera National Park	🇷🇼 Rwanda	40–50%
8	Lake Mburo National Park	🇺🇬 Uganda	40–50%
9	Lake Manyara National Park	🇹🇿 Tanzania	40–50%
10	Gonarezhou National Park	🇿🇼 Zimbabwe	40–50%
11	Ruaha National Park	🇹🇿 Tanzania	40–50%
12	Kafue National Park	🇿🇲 Zambia	40–50%
13	Arusha National Park	🇹🇿 Tanzania	40–50%
14	Masai Mara National Reserve	🇰🇪 Kenya	40–50%
15	Tarangire National Park	🇹🇿 Tanzania	30–40%
16	Mana Pools National Park	🇿🇼 Zimbabwe	30–40%
17	Moremi Game Reserve	🇧🇼 Botswana	30–40%
18	Mikumi National Park	🇹🇿 Tanzania	30–40%
19	Lower Zambezi National Park	🇿🇲 Zambia	30–40%
20	Selous Game Reserve	🇹🇿 Tanzania	20–30%
21	Kruger National Park	🇿🇦 South Africa	20–30%
22	Serengeti National Park	🇹🇿 Tanzania	20–30%
23	Awash National Park	🇪🇹 Ethiopia	20–30%
24	Ngorongoro Conservation Area	🇹🇿 Tanzania	20–30%
25	Virunga National Park	🇨🇩 Democratic Republic of the Congo	20–30%
26	Lake Nakuru National Park	🇰🇪 Kenya	20–30%
27	Gorongosa National Park	🇲🇿 Mozambique	20–30%
28	Murchison Falls National Park	🇺🇬 Uganda	20–30%
29	Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park	🇿🇦 South Africa	20–30%
30	Chobe National Park	🇧🇼 Botswana	20–30%
31	Samburu National Reserve	🇰🇪 Kenya	10–20%
32	iSimangaliso Wetland Park	🇿🇦 South Africa	10–20%
33	Kidepo Valley National Park	🇺🇬 Uganda	10–20%
34	Volcanoes National Park	🇷🇼 Rwanda	10–20%
35	Hwange National Park	🇿🇼 Zimbabwe	10–20%
36	Pilanesberg National Park	🇿🇦 South Africa	10–20%
37	Amboseli National Park	🇰🇪 Kenya	10–20%
38	Tsavo West National Park	🇰🇪 Kenya	10–20%
39	Mkomazi National Park	🇹🇿 Tanzania	10–20%
40	Bale Mountains National Park	🇪🇹 Ethiopia	10–20%
41	Kibale National Park	🇺🇬 Uganda	10–20%
42	Semuliki National Park	🇺🇬 Uganda	10–20%
43	Waterberg Plateau Park	🇳🇦 Namibia	5–10%
44	Berenty Reserve	🇲🇬 Madagascar	5–10%
45	Tsavo East National Park	🇰🇪 Kenya	5–10%
46	Nyungwe National Park	🇷🇼 Rwanda	5–10%
47	Aberdare National Park	🇰🇪 Kenya	5–10%
48	Addo Elephant National Park	🇿🇦 South Africa	<5%
49	Bwindi Impenetrable National Park	🇺🇬 Uganda	<5%
50	Ranomafana National Park	🇲🇬 Madagascar	<5%
51	Etosha National Park	🇳🇦 Namibia	<5%
52	Garden Route National Park	🇿🇦 South Africa	<5%
53	Namib-Naukluft National Park	🇳🇦 Namibia	<5%
54	Taï National Park	🇨🇮 Ivory Coast	Insufficient data
55	Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park	🇿🇦 South Africa	Insufficient data
56	Ankarafantsika National Park	🇲🇬 Madagascar	Insufficient data
57	Table Mountain National Park	🇿🇦 South Africa	Insufficient data

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Hamerkop

Closest Relatives at Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park

Great Egret

intermediate egret

Black-headed Heron

Grey Heron

Cattle Egret

African Sacred Ibis

📅 Monthly Probability

☀️ When They're Spotted

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found