Balearica regulorum
Silhouette: Sharon Wegner-Larsen · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~50% in a week ~80%
The grey crowned crane or gray crowned crane (Balearica regulorum) is a large crane species native to Sub-Saharan Africa. It occurs mainly in dry savannah, although it nests in somewhat wetter habitats, and can also be found in marshes, cultivated lands and grassy flatlands near rivers and lakes. Its body plumage is mainly grey and it has white cheeks, a red throat patch, and a stiff golden crown. It is omnivorous, consuming a wide variety of animal and plant matter, including plants, seeds, grain, insects, frogs, worms, snakes, small fish and the eggs of aquatic animals. It is listed as endangered on the IUCN Red List. It is the national bird of Uganda.
Other names for the species include African crowned crane, golden crested crane, golden crowned crane, East African crane, East African crowned crane, African crane, Eastern crowned crane, Kavirondo crane, South African crane, and crested crane. It is closely related to the black crowned crane, and the two species have sometimes been treated as the same species. The two are separable on the basis of genetic evidence, calls, plumage, and bare parts, and all authorities treat them as different species today.
There are two... Wikipedia →
Possible
About 20% of wildlife watchers report a Grey Crowned Crane sighting in South Luangwa National Park on a given day, based on 157 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 77th most-seen of the 257 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 50%, and over a week to about 80%, if each day is a fresh chance.
April
In that month about 40% of wildlife watchers report a Grey Crowned Crane in South Luangwa National Park on a given day, against about 10% in August and November–January, the lowest months. That is one of South Luangwa National Park's driest months, with about 50 mm of rain against 310 mm in January.
Between 8 and 11 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Grey Crowned Crane sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
16th of 26
Of the 26 parks where we can rate Grey Crowned Crane sightings, South Luangwa National Park ranks 16th at about 20%. The best odds are in Amboseli National Park (Kenya, about 70%), Nairobi National Park (Kenya, about 50%) and Lake Nakuru National Park (Kenya, about 50%). All parks ranked.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Grey Crowned Crane is recorded against all the birds logged in South Luangwa National Park (157 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.
