Cape Crow ( Corvus capensis, family: Corvidae)

Birds & Birding in the Kruger National Park South Africa. In Roberts 6 this bird was called Black Crow

cape crow kruger national park birds The Cape Crow (Latin name Corvus capensis) is described in Roberts Birds of Southern Africa, 7th Edition. This bird has a unique Roberts number of 547 and you will find a full description of this bird on page 722 also a picture of the Cape Crow on page 768. The Cape Crow belongs to the family of birds classified as Corvidae. According to the Percy FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology the Cape Crow is also known by these other names: Cape Rook.

In the previous edition of Roberts (ie 6th edition) the Cape Crow was called the Black Crow

 

The map of the Kruger you see on this page shows the areas (coloured orange) where this bird has been identified. The basic information was provided by the Avian Demographic Unit based at UCT and I created the maps from that information ... the green dots show the locations of the various Kruger National Park Rest Camps

The Cape Crow is neither Endemic or near Endemic to the Kruger National Park.

In terms of distribution of the Cape Crow in the Kruger National Park you may not see it in all areas. Cape Crow : see above distribution map.

Kruger Park Black Cape CrowIdentification assistance for this avian species ...

The Cape Crow is a bird about the size of a grey hornbill. The height of the Cape Crow is about 50 cms and its weight is about 500 gms

The male and female Cape Crow have the same plumage and colours

  • Head is black.
  • Eye is black.
  • Bill is black.
  • Throat is black.
  • Back is black.
  • Legs are black.

This bird has normally proportioned leg length.

Main diet items for this bird ...

The Cape Crow feeds on the ground mainly

General scavenger habits

Invertebrates

Fruits

Seeds

Breeding and nesting habits for this bird ...

The Cape Crow is monogamous unless its mate dies. In the event of a partner dying Corvus capensis will seek out a new mate

The nesting habit of Cape Crow is to create the nest in branches of a tree or shrub. The bird lays eggs which are pink in colour and number between 1 to 6

Habitat and flocking behaviour for this bird ...

The preferred habitats for Cape Crow are: woodlands and arid areas including grasslands. The Cape Crow is also at home in wetland and bushveld areas.

You will normally see the Cape Crow in pairs or flocks and not as single birds.

Names of this avian species in other languages ...

Xhosa ... Unomyayi

Zulu ... iNgwababane

Afrikaans ...Swartkraai

German ... Kapkrhe

Portuguese ... Gralha do Cabo

French ... Corneille du Cap

Dutch ... Kaapse Roek

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For in-depth birding information please refer to these authoritative avian references ...

Robert's 7th edition number ... 547

The main reference source for this data was "Roberts - Birds of Southern Africa, 7th Edition" . Other references were "Newmans Birds of the Kruger Park" by Keith Newman published circa 1980 . Names in foreign languages were obtained from the Percy Fitzpatrick Institute of African Ornithology, University of Cape Town website , www.fitzpatrick.uct.ac.za