Savile's Bustard
Lophotis savilei
The Savile's Bustard (Lophotis savilei) is a legendary bustard found in 7 countries, weighing about 712 g. Savile's bustard is a species of bird in the family Otididae.
About the Savile's Bustard
Savile's bustard is a species of bird in the family Otididae. Otididae are an Old-World and understudied family of birds mostly found in Afro-Tropical regions. It is found in Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, Ivory Coast, Gambia, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, and Sudan.
Text adapted from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
How to identify it
Adults have short thin necks and legs, with a large head. The top of head and lower fore-neck are grey with a black streak centrally located on the chin and a small white shoulder strap on each side of the base neck. The upper parts of the bird are pale with black streaks and arrowhead markings. Bill is yellowish, the culmen brownish, the iris pale clayey specked with feet a yellowish clayey colour. Wings are 10 inches 10 inches (25 cm) and tail approximately 5 inches (13 cm). Voice: Savile's bustard has a clear and distinctive call, sounding like a whistled 'tuit thit'. Males during display produce a short whistled note followed by a series of short whistles, which often accelerate, tuit! tutututututututut or thut thut-thut-thut-thutututututut. They can also produce a series of frog-like notes in the same rhythm.
Where it lives
When to see it
Best months: January, February, March, April, May, June, July, September, October, November, December, with peak activity in January. It is a resident species across most of its range.
Easily confused with
Quick questions
- How do you identify a Savile's Bustard?
- Adults have short thin necks and legs, with a large head. Full identification notes are on this page.
- How big is a Savile's Bustard?
- The Savile's Bustard is a large sized bird weighing about 712 g.
- Where can you see a Savile's Bustard?
- The Savile's Bustard occurs in 7 countries, including Senegal, Nigeria, the Gambia, Benin and Burkina Faso.
- What birds look similar to a Savile's Bustard?
- The Savile's Bustard is most easily confused with the Buff-crested Bustard and the Red-crested Korhaan.
- Is the Savile's Bustard endangered?
- The Savile's Bustard is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.
Learn the Savile's Bustard for real
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