Lophotis ruficrista
In 3 days ~30% in a week ~50%
The red-crested korhaan or red-crested bustard (Lophotis ruficrista) is a species of bird in the family Otididae. It is found in Angola, Botswana, Eswatini, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. The red-crested korhaan grows up to 50 cm (1.6 ft) in length with a maximal weight of 680 g (1.5 lb).
The feathering of the wings folded on the back is marked by V-formed patterns of a light cream color with some white at the sides. Breast feathers are black. Legs are pale yellow and feet gray. One syntype specimen of Otis ruficrista Smith (Rep. Exped. Centr. Afr., 1836, p.56.) is held in the collections of National Museums Liverpool at World Museum, with accession number D56 (male adult). The specimen was collected in the "Country between Latakoo and the Tropic of Capricorn", South Africa by Andrew Smith. The specimen was purchased at the sale of Smith's South Africa Museum (Lot 89, 6 June 1838) and came to the Liverpool national collection via the 13th Earl of Derby's collection which was bequeathed to the people of Liverpool in 1851. There is a further syntype specimen in the bird collection at the Natural History Museum at Tring.
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South Africa · 2024
© Sascha Schumann · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
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South Africa · 2017
© Jaunne-Marelize Van Tonder · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
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South Africa · 2025
© Luke Goddard · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Etosha National Park | 🇳🇦 Namibia | |
| 2 | Hwange National Park | 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe | |
| 3 | Kruger National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 4 | Gonarezhou National Park | 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe | |
| 5 | Waterberg Plateau Park | 🇳🇦 Namibia | |
| 6 | Chobe National Park | 🇧🇼 Botswana | |
| 7 | Moremi Game Reserve | 🇧🇼 Botswana | |
| 8 | Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 9 | Pilanesberg National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Crested Bustard sighting in Moremi Game Reserve on a given day, based on 120 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 143rd most-seen of the 334 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 30%, and over a week to about 50%, if each day is a fresh chance.
January
In that month about 30% of wildlife watchers report a Crested Bustard in Moremi Game Reserve on a given day, against under 5% in October, the lowest month. That is one of Moremi Game Reserve's wettest months, with about 150 mm of rain against almost none in May.
Between 2 and 5 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Crested Bustard sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
7th of 9
Of the 9 parks where we can rate Crested Bustard sightings, Moremi Game Reserve ranks 7th at about 10%. The best odds are in Etosha National Park (Namibia, about 30%), Hwange National Park (Zimbabwe, about 30%) and Kruger National Park (South Africa, about 20%).
Same family: Otididae
The closest relatives of the Crested Bustard that you can see in Moremi Game Reserve (family Otididae, Bustards) are Kori Bustard (about 10%) and Black-bellied Bustard (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Crested Bustard is recorded against all the birds logged in Moremi Game Reserve (120 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.
