Lissotis hartlaubii
Silhouette: Kai Caspar · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~30%
Hartlaub's bustard (Lissotis hartlaubii) is a species of bird in the family Otididae. It is a medium-sized bustard with a long, thick neck, and long legs. It is found in open, tall grassland, range from 1,600 to 2,000 metres (5,250 to 6,560 ft) in Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda.
The common name and Latin binomial commemorate the German physician and ornithologist Gustav Hartlaub. They initially classified under the genus Eupodotis in 1839, a subsequent genetic study revealed that the genus Lissotis represents a distinct, long-standing lineage, separate from Eupodotis, emerging during the evolutionary diversification of bustards at the generic level.
A mature Hartlaub's bustard is about 60 centimetres (24 in), recorded weights range from 1,500–1,600 g (3.3–3.5 lb). They are indistinguishable from a far distance, as they are similar to L. melanogaster. The male Hartlaub's bustard has a grayish coloration with a more distinct black stripe on its face, as well as a black stripe running down its neck that connects to its black belly. They have a small head set on a long neck, and a bulky body with large legs. The female is similar in appearance to... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Meru National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 2 | Mkomazi National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 3 | Nairobi National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 4 | Amboseli National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 5 | Tsavo East National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 6 | Tsavo West National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 7 | Tarangire National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 8 | Serengeti National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 9 | Kidepo Valley National Park | 🇺🇬 Uganda | |
| 10 | Ngorongoro Conservation Area | 🇹🇿 Tanzania |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Hartlaub's Bustard sighting in Tsavo West National Park on a given day, based on 34 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 244th most-seen of the 380 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 30%, if each day is a fresh chance.
February–April, June and November
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Hartlaub's Bustard in Tsavo West National Park on a given day, against under 5% in May, July–October and December–January, the lowest months. Those are among Tsavo West National Park's wettest months, with about 75 mm of rain a month against 5 mm in July.
Between 3 and 6 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Hartlaub's Bustard sightings with a recorded time, and about 7 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
6th of 10
Of the 10 parks where we can rate Hartlaub's Bustard sightings, Tsavo West National Park ranks 6th at under 5%. The best odds are in Meru National Park (Kenya, about 20%), Mkomazi National Park (Tanzania, about 10%) and Nairobi National Park (Kenya, about 10%).
Same family: Otididae
The closest relatives of the Hartlaub's Bustard that you can see in Tsavo West National Park (family Otididae, Bustards) are Buff-Crested Bustard (about 40%), White-bellied Bustard (about 10%) and Kori Bustard (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Hartlaub's Bustard is recorded against all the birds logged in Tsavo West National Park (34 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.
