Crowned Lapwing ( Vanellus coronatus, family: Charadriidae)

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

Crowned Lapwing Kruger ParkThe Crowned Lapwing (Latin name Vanellus coronatus) is described in Roberts Birds of Southern Africa, 7th Edition. This bird has a unique Roberts number of 255 and you will find a full description of this bird on page 417 also a picture of the Crowned Lapwing on page 385. The Crowned Lapwing belongs to the family of birds classified as Charadriidae.

In the previous edition of Roberts (ie 6th edition) the Crowned Lapwing was called the Crowned Plover

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

crowned lapwing kruger national park birds The Crowned Lapwing is neither Endemic or near Endemic to the Kruger National Park. It is however a common resident

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

The Crowned Lapwing.

Identification assistance for this avian species ...

The Crowned Lapwing is a bird about the same size as a starling. The height of the Crowned Lapwing is about 31 cms and its weight is about 185 gms

The male and female Crowned Lapwing have the same plumage and colours

  • Head is grey.
  • Eye is yellow.
  • Bill is red.
  • Throat is white.
  • Back is grey, brown.
  • Legs are pink.

This bird has normally proportioned leg length.

Main diet items for this bird ...

The Crowned Lapwing feeds on the ground mainly

Invertebrates

Breeding and nesting habits for this bird ...

The Crowned Lapwing is monogamous unless its mate dies. In the event of a partner dying Vanellus coronatus will seek out a new mate

The nesting habit of Crowned Lapwing is to create the nest on the ground. The bird lays eggs which are yellow in colour and number between 2 to 3

Habitat and flocking behaviour for this bird ...

The preferred habitats for Crowned Lapwing are: grasslands

You will normally see the Crowned Lapwing in flocks.

Names of this avian species in other languages ...

Xhosa ... Igxiya

Zulu ... iTitihoye

Afrikaans ...Kroonkiewiet

German ... Kronenkiebitz

Portuguese ... Abibe-coroado

French ... Vanneau couronn

Dutch ... Diadeemkievit

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

Robert's 7th edition number ... 255

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