Whimbrel

Whimbrel

Numenius phaeopus

Least ConcernNear ThreatenedVulnerableEndangeredCritically Endangered
Daily sighting probability ~30% · Possible
at Bako National Park
32 Verified sightings at Bako National Park From 2019 to 2026
19,164 Verified sightings across all 99 parks From 2019 to 2026
February Best month highest sighting rate
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted during daytime hours (6am–6pm)

About the Whimbrel

The Eurasian whimbrel (Numenius phaeopus), historically known as the white-rumped whimbrel in North America, is a wader in the large family Scolopacidae. It is one of the most widespread of the curlews, breeding across much of subarctic Palearctic region and Europe as far south as Scotland. This species and the Hudsonian whimbrel were split in 2019, although some taxonomic authorities still consider them to be conspecific.

The Eurasian whimbrel was formally described by Carl Linnaeus in 1758 in the tenth edition of his Systema Naturae under the binomial name Scolopax phaeopus. It is now placed with the curlews in the genus Numenius that was introduced by Mathurin Jacques Brisson in 1760.

The genus name Numenius is from Ancient Greek noumenios, a bird mentioned by Hesychius. It is associated with the curlews because it appears to be derived from neos, "new" and mene, "moon", referring to the crescent-shaped bill. The specific epithet phaeopus is the Medieval Latin name for the bird, from Ancient Greek phaios, "dusky" and pous, "foot". The English name "whimbrel" is imitative of the bird's call.

Five subspecies are recognised: N. p. phaeopus (Linnaeus, 1758) – nominate... Wikipedia →

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 Daily sighting probability
1 Isla del Coco National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~80%
2 Sundarbans National Park 🇮🇳 India
~70%
3 Paracas National Reserve 🇵🇪 Peru
~70%
4 Thingvellir National Park 🇮🇸 Iceland
~60%
5 Vatnajokull National Park 🇮🇸 Iceland
~40%
6 Galápagos Islands 🇪🇨 Ecuador
~40%
7 Utría National Natural Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
~30%
8 Ostional Wildlife Refuge 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~30%
9 Bahía de Loreto National Park 🇲🇽 Mexico
~30%
10 Coiba National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
~30%
11 Bako National Park 🇲🇾 Malaysia
~30%
12 Gandoca-Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~30%
13 Cabo Blanco Absolute Nature Reserve 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~30%
14 Las Baulas Marine National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~30%
15 Namib-Naukluft National Park 🇳🇦 Namibia
~30%
16 El Vizcaíno Biosphere Reserve 🇲🇽 Mexico
~20%
17 Cape Range 🇦🇺 Australia
~20%
18 iSimangaliso Wetland Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
~20%
19 Raja Ampat 🇮🇩 Indonesia
~20%
20 Channel Islands National Park 🇺🇸 United States
~20%
21 Marino Ballena National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~20%
22 Tortuguero National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~20%
23 Pacific Rim National Park Reserve 🇨🇦 Canada
~10%
24 Tsavo East National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
~10%
25 Bali Barat National Park 🇮🇩 Indonesia
~10%
26 Ningaloo Marine Park 🇦🇺 Australia
~10%
27 Santa Rosa National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
28 Corcovado National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
29 Wrangell-St. Elias National Park 🇺🇸 United States
~10%
30 Garden Route National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
~10%
31 Cahuita National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
~10%
32 Fertő-Hanság National Park 🇭🇺 Hungary
~10%
33 Wadden Sea National Park 🇩🇪 Germany
~10%
34 Hortobágy National Park 🇭🇺 Hungary
~10%
35 Cabo Pulmo National Park 🇲🇽 Mexico
~10%
36 Daintree National Park 🇦🇺 Australia
~10%
37 Machalilla National Park 🇪🇨 Ecuador
<5%
38 Snowdonia National Park 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
<5%
39 Bastimentos Island National Marine Park 🇵🇦 Panama
<5%
40 Piedras Blancas National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
41 Addo Elephant National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
<5%
42 Doñana National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
<5%
43 Redwood National Park 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
44 Darién National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
<5%
45 Ría Lagartos Biosphere Reserve 🇲🇽 Mexico
<5%
46 Kiskunság National Park 🇭🇺 Hungary
<5%
47 Camargue 🇫🇷 France
<5%
48 La Amistad International Park (Panama) 🇵🇦 Panama
<5%
49 Palo Verde National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
50 Yala National Park 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka
<5%
51 Table Mountain National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
<5%
52 Ranthambore National Park 🇮🇳 India
<5%
53 Death Valley National Park 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
54 Gros Morne National Park 🇨🇦 Canada
<5%
55 Biebrza National Park 🇵🇱 Poland
<5%
56 Arrecifes de Cozumel National Park 🇲🇽 Mexico
<5%
57 Olympic National Park 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
58 Denali National Park 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
59 Great Bear Rainforest 🇨🇦 Canada
<5%
60 Celestún Biosphere Reserve 🇲🇽 Mexico
<5%
61 Point Pelee National Park 🇨🇦 Canada
<5%
62 Carara National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
63 Manuel Antonio National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
<5%
64 Everglades National Park 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
65 Białowieża National Park 🇵🇱 Poland
<5%
66 Acadia National Park 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
67 Taroko National Park 🇹🇼 Taiwan
<5%
68 Parque Natural Metropolitano 🇵🇦 Panama
<5%
69 Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve 🇲🇽 Mexico
<5%
70 Cairngorms National Park 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
<5%
71 Shenandoah National Park 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
72 Pyrénées National Park 🇫🇷 France
<5%
73 Katmai National Park 🇺🇸 United States
Insufficient data
74 Kruger National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
Insufficient data
75 Gir National Park 🇮🇳 India
Insufficient data
76 Cape Breton Highlands National Park 🇨🇦 Canada
Insufficient data
77 Vicente Pérez Rosales National Park 🇨🇱 Chile
Insufficient data
78 Kafue National Park 🇿🇲 Zambia
Insufficient data
79 Tangkoko Nature Reserve 🇮🇩 Indonesia
Insufficient data
80 Gorongosa National Park 🇲🇿 Mozambique
Insufficient data
81 Kenai Fjords National Park 🇺🇸 United States
Insufficient data
82 Bavarian Forest National Park 🇩🇪 Germany
Insufficient data
83 Wilpattu National Park 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka
Insufficient data
84 Caroni Swamp 🇹🇹 Trinidad and Tobago
Insufficient data
85 Isle Royale National Park 🇺🇸 United States
Insufficient data
86 Big Cypress National Preserve 🇺🇸 United States
Insufficient data
87 Ranomafana National Park 🇲🇬 Madagascar
Insufficient data
88 Ciénaga de Zapata 🇨🇺 Cuba
Insufficient data
89 Murchison Falls National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
Insufficient data
90 Tayrona National Natural Park 🇨🇴 Colombia
Insufficient data
91 Kakadu National Park 🇦🇺 Australia
Insufficient data
92 Fiordland National Park 🇳🇿 New Zealand
Insufficient data
93 Royal National Park 🇦🇺 Australia
Insufficient data
94 Sierra Nevada National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
Insufficient data
95 Serengeti National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
Insufficient data
96 Monfragüe National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
Insufficient data
97 Soberanía National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
Insufficient data
98 Joshua Tree National Park 🇺🇸 United States
Insufficient data
99 Sierra de Guadarrama National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
Insufficient data

Quick answers

What are the chances of seeing a Whimbrel in Bako National Park?

About 30% of wildlife watchers report a Whimbrel sighting in Bako National Park, based on 32 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data.

When is the best time to see Whimbrel in Bako National Park?

February has the highest sighting rate for Whimbrel in Bako National Park in our monthly data.

← Back to Bako National Park