Pternistis natalensis
Silhouette: Amanda Kuhlman · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~70% in a week ~90%
The Natal spurfowl or Natal francolin (Pternistis natalensis) is a species of bird in the family Phasianidae. It is found in Botswana, Eswatini, Mozambique, South Africa, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. The Natal spurfowl was described in 1833 by the Scottish zoologist Andrew Smith and given the binomial name Francolinus natalensis. Smith noted that the species inhabited brushwood thickets in the vicinity of Natal, in the east of South Africa. The species is now placed in the genus Pternistis that was introduced by the German naturalist Johann Georg Wagler in 1832. A phylogenetic study published in 2019 found that the Natal spurfowl is sister to Hildebrandt's spurfowl. The Natal spurfowl is considered as monotypic: the proposed subspecies neavei is not recognised.
(Natal spurfowl = ) Natal francolin - Text and species map from Southern African Bird Atlas Project Audio recordings of the Natal spurfowl on Xeno-canto. Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pilanesberg National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 2 | Gonarezhou National Park | 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe | |
| 3 | Kruger National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 4 | Mana Pools National Park | 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe | |
| 5 | Lower Zambezi National Park | 🇿🇲 Zambia | |
| 6 | Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 7 | Hwange National Park | 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe | |
| 8 | Kafue National Park | 🇿🇲 Zambia | |
| 9 | South Luangwa National Park | 🇿🇲 Zambia | |
| 10 | uMkhuze Game Reserve | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 11 | Chobe National Park | 🇧🇼 Botswana | |
| 12 | iSimangaliso Wetland Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Harare | 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe | |
| 2 | Lusaka | 🇿🇲 Zambia | |
| 3 | Durban | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 4 | Pretoria | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 5 | Johannesburg | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Valencia Bioparc | 🇪🇸 Spain |
Possible
About 30% of wildlife watchers report a Natal Francolin sighting in Mana Pools National Park on a given day, based on 165 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 56th most-seen of the 275 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 70%, and over a week to about 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
November and December
In those months about 60% of wildlife watchers report a Natal Francolin in Mana Pools National Park on a given day, against about 20% in January, April, June and August, the lowest months. Those are among Mana Pools National Park's wettest months, with about 100 mm of rain a month against almost none in August. March has too few records to rate.
Between 6 and 9 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Natal Francolin sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
4th of 12
Of the 12 parks where we can rate Natal Francolin sightings, Mana Pools National Park ranks 4th at about 30%. The best odds are in Pilanesberg National Park (South Africa, about 60%), Gonarezhou National Park (Zimbabwe, about 60%) and Kruger National Park (South Africa, about 60%). All parks ranked.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Natal Francolin is recorded against all the birds logged in Mana Pools National Park (165 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
