Species guide
Tawny Frogmouth: how to recognise it
A bird of Oceania. Learn the marks that make it easy to identify, then practise with real photographs in Lore.
Practise with real photosAll species guides
Photo © Bridget Spencer · CC BY-NC · iNaturalist · all photo credits
- Scientific name
- Podargus strigoides
- Family
- Frogmouths
- Size
- About 34–47 cm
- Habitat
- Open woodland, parks and gardens
- Found in
- Oceania
The key marks
A mottled grey-brown nocturnal bird with a wide, frog-like bill. By day it sits still, looking like a broken branch.
Voice
A low, steady “oom-oom-oom” booming at night.
Good to know
Its camouflage is so good that it simply freezes with its head up and trusts that you will take it for a snapped-off stump.
Where and when
You can expect to find it in open woodland, parks and gardens. It is especially common in Australia. Distribution changes with the seasons and from year to year, so check a recent local observation source before you go looking.