Australian Pied Oystercatcher

Scientific Name: Haematopus longirostris

Description: The Australian Pied Oystercatcher gains its common name from its ability to feed on bivalves, which they can smash open with their long hard beaks, but sand-worms and other invertebrates are also eaten.

Oystercatchers are an inhabitant of saline wetlands, estuaries and sometimes the ocean beaches but like many larger shorebirds, they are easily disturbed by human use of beaches.

It nests on the ground, usually close to the shore, sometimes on dry areas in shallow marshes or among driftwood above the high tide line. Mud Islands, Swan Island and Point Henry are some local breeding sites. Foxes are a major predator of nesting birds, eggs and young.

Type: Bird
Where to find: Estuary, Intertidal Reefs
Size: 50cm