Acryllium vulturinum
Silhouette: James Klarevas · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~40% in a week ~70%
The vulturine guinea fowl (Acryllium vulturinum) is the largest extant species of guinea fowl. Systematically, it is only distantly related to other guinea fowl genera. Its closest living relative, the white breasted guinea fowl, Agelastes meleagrides inhabit primary forests in Central Africa. It is a member of the bird family Numididae, and is the only member of the genus Acryllium. It is a resident breeder in northeast Africa, from southern Ethiopia and Somalia through Kenya and just into northern Tanzania.
The vulturine guinea fowl is a large (61–71 centimetres (24–28 in)) bird with a round body and small head. Its average weight is between 1kg to 1.6kg and it has longer wings, neck, legs and tail than other guinea fowl. The adult has a bare blue face and black neck, and although all other guinea fowl have unfeathered heads, this species looks particularly like a vulture because of the long bare neck and head.
The slim neck projects from a cape of long, glossy, blue and white hackles. The breast is cobalt blue, and the rest of the body plumage is black, finely spangled with white. The wings are short and rounded, and the tail is longer than others in the family... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Samburu National Reserve | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 2 | Tsavo West National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 3 | Tsavo East National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 4 | Mkomazi National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 5 | Meru National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Prague Zoo | 🇨🇿 Czechia | |
| 2 | Antwerp Zoo | 🇧🇪 Belgium | |
| 3 | Barcelona Zoo | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 4 | Zlín-Lešná Zoo | 🇨🇿 Czechia | |
| 5 | Paris Zoological Park | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 6 | Réserve africaine de Sigean | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 7 | Walsrode World Bird Park | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 8 | Parc des oiseaux | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 9 | Zoo de Doué | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 10 | Abilene Zoological Gardens | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 11 | Zoobotánico Jerez | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 12 | Zoo Miami | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 13 | Al Ain Zoo | 🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates | |
| 14 | Safari West | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 15 | Ramat Gan Safari | 🇮🇱 Israel | |
| 16 | Wow Safari Thoiry | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 17 | Selwo Aventura | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 18 | Warsaw Zoo | 🇵🇱 Poland | |
| 19 | Kyiv Zoo | 🇺🇦 Ukraine | |
| 20 | Woodland Park Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 21 | Wrocław Zoological Garden | 🇵🇱 Poland | |
| 22 | Edinburgh Zoo | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 23 | Temaikén | 🇦🇷 Argentina | |
| 24 | Fort Worth Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 25 | Indianapolis Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 26 | GaiaZOO | 🇳🇱 Netherlands | |
| 27 | Gembira Loka Zoo | 🇮🇩 Indonesia | |
| 28 | Cameron Park Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 29 | Cologne Zoological Garden | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 30 | Philadelphia Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 31 | Budapest Zoo & Botanical Garden | 🇭🇺 Hungary | |
| 32 | Krakow Zoo | 🇵🇱 Poland | |
| 33 | Bird Paradise | 🇸🇬 Singapore | |
| 34 | Green World Ecological Farm | 🇹🇼 Taiwan | |
| 35 | Riverbanks Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 36 | Aquarama Barcelona | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 37 | Rainforest Wild Asia | 🇸🇬 Singapore | |
| 38 | Seville Zoo | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 39 | Valencia Bioparc | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 40 | Biotropica | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 41 | Reserva Zoológica Oasys MiniHollywood | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 42 | Vogelpark Avifauna | 🇳🇱 Netherlands | |
| 43 | Paphos Zoo | 🇨🇾 Cyprus | |
| 44 | Monkeyland | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 45 | The Abilene Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 46 | Giraffe House | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 47 | Discovery Cove | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 48 | Inokashira Park Zoo | 🇯🇵 Japan | |
| 49 | Exmoor Zoo | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 50 | African Dawn Bird and Wildlife Sanctuary | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Vulturine Guineafowl sighting in Meru National Park on a given day, based on 20 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 140th most-seen of the 243 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 40%, and over a week to about 70%, if each day is a fresh chance.
December
In that month about 30% of wildlife watchers report a Vulturine Guineafowl in Meru National Park on a given day, against about 10% in February–April, September and November, the lowest months. May and July–August have too few records to rate.
Between 5 and 8 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Vulturine Guineafowl sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
5th of 5
Of the 5 parks where we can rate Vulturine Guineafowl sightings, Meru National Park ranks 5th at about 10%. The best odds are in Samburu National Reserve (Kenya, about 60%), Tsavo West National Park (Kenya, about 30%) and Tsavo East National Park (Kenya, about 30%). All parks ranked.
Same family: Numididae
The closest relatives of the Vulturine Guineafowl that you can see in Meru National Park (family Numididae, Guineafowl) are Helmeted Guineafowl (about 80%) and Crested Guineafowl (about 20%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Vulturine Guineafowl is recorded against all the birds logged in Meru National Park (20 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.
