The Worlds Heaviest Flying Bird - The Kori Bustard (Gompou in Afrikaans) seen in Pilanesburg National Park South Africa
Taken with Tradtional Film Camera - had negatives put onto disc
Class: Aves,
Order: Gruiformes
Family: Otidedae
Species: Ardeotis
Genus: kori
My partner pointed this bird out to me and said it was a Bustard - I told him to mind his language!!!!
But no really it IS a "Bustard" - Dictionary definition - modification of Middle French "bistarde", from Old Italian "bistarda", from Latin avis tarda, meaning literally, "slow bird" (although it is not slow)!
Allan knew it was a Bustard because In the UK another member of the same family the "Great Bustard" became extinct in the British Isles between 1832 and an artificial reintroduction to Salisbury Plain in 2004. It forms part of the design of the Wiltshire Coat of Arms - A County in Southern England in the area where we come from.
see greatbustard.com
The South African Kori Bustards are HUGE looking like a cross between an ostrich and a monitor lizard. Except for feathers, the kori bustard seemed reptilian, with piercing yellow eyes, thick long legs ending in tiny feet, a stiletto-like bill, and a long grey & black-peppered neck.
Kori Bustards are large, heavy, mainly terrestrial birds. It is the heaviest bird capable of flight, although this title may also belong to the similarly-dimensioned Great Bustard. However it avoids flying if possible. It spends most of its time on the ground, foraging for the seeds and lizards which make up most of its diet.
The male Kori Bustard averages at about 110 cm (3.7 feet) in length and stands 60-90 cm (2-3 ft) tall. An average male bird would weigh about 13.5 kg (30 lb), but exceptional birds may weigh over 20 kg (44 lb). A report exists of a 34 kg (75 lb) bird, but it is not verified and must be beheld with skepticism because it so much heavier than any other recorded weight for a Kori Bustard. The female Kori Bustard averages 7.7 kg (17 lb) and is usually 20% shorter than a male. The Wingspan is 2.4 meter (7.9 ft) -
So bearing that in mind - if you one coming towards flying at low level you I would duck!!!!! Image being hit by something about twice the size of two large Christmas Turkeys. Once they do get off the ground, the bustards, despite their large size, are able to fly at a high velocity (60 kilometre/hour)
The southern subspecies (Ardeotis kori kori) is distributed in southern Africa in Botswana, Zimbabwe, Namibia, southern Angola, South Africa, and southern Mozambique. Kori Bustards are birds of wide, open grasslands, and lightly wooded savanna. The subspecies kori can be found in arid savanna areas where trees are scattered intermittently, they are fond of areas where the grass is short and where there is a good view of the surrounding area. Migrations in response to rainfall and/or food supply have been recorded, but the species is not migratory in the true sense.
The distribution of the kori subspecies is becoming fragmented and overall, declining in numbers. Local extinctions have been recorded. Given the continual habitat destruction from agriculture and development, hunting pressure, and a slow reproduction rate, Kori Bustards do not face a promising future in the wild. Many Kori Bustards are poached for local consumption, mainly by men over 30, Snares or Guns are used to kill birds. In some areas only tribal elders are allowed to eat bustard meat. Sometimes a traditional doctor is brought in to 'treat' it before it is eaten, because of a belief that bustard meat can otherwise cause mental illness.
There is evidence of illegal cross-border trafficking in live bustards from Botswana, up to 10 at a time are smuggled into South Africa where they are sold as a delicacy to wealthy individuals or exported outside Africa.
The Worlds Heaviest Flying Bird - The Kori Bustard (Gompou in Afrikaans) seen in Pilanesburg National Park South Africa
Taken with Tradtional Film Camera - had negatives put onto disc
Class: Aves,
Order: Gruiformes
Family: Otidedae
Species: Ardeotis
Genus: kori
My partner pointed this bird out to me and said it was a Bustard - I told him to mind his language!!!!
But no really it IS a "Bustard" - Dictionary definition - modification of Middle French "bistarde", from Old Italian "bistarda", from Latin avis tarda, meaning literally, "slow bird" (although it is not slow)!
Allan knew it was a Bustard because In the UK another member of the same family the "Great Bustard" became extinct in the British Isles between 1832 and an artificial reintroduction to Salisbury Plain in 2004. It forms part of the design of the Wiltshire Coat of Arms - A County in Southern England in the area where we come from.
see greatbustard.com
The South African Kori Bustards are HUGE looking like a cross between an ostrich and a monitor lizard. Except for feathers, the kori bustard seemed reptilian, with piercing yellow eyes, thick long legs ending in tiny feet, a stiletto-like bill, and a long grey & black-peppered neck.
Kori Bustards are large, heavy, mainly terrestrial birds. It is the heaviest bird capable of flight, although this title may also belong to the similarly-dimensioned Great Bustard. However it avoids flying if possible. It spends most of its time on the ground, foraging for the seeds and lizards which make up most of its diet.
The male Kori Bustard averages at about 110 cm (3.7 feet) in length and stands 60-90 cm (2-3 ft) tall. An average male bird would weigh about 13.5 kg (30 lb), but exceptional birds may weigh over 20 kg (44 lb). A report exists of a 34 kg (75 lb) bird, but it is not verified and must be beheld with skepticism because it so much heavier than any other recorded weight for a Kori Bustard. The female Kori Bustard averages 7.7 kg (17 lb) and is usually 20% shorter than a male. The Wingspan is 2.4 meter (7.9 ft) -
So bearing that in mind - if you one coming towards flying at low level you I would duck!!!!! Image being hit by something about twice the size of two large Christmas Turkeys. Once they do get off the ground, the bustards, despite their large size, are able to fly at a high velocity (60 kilometre/hour)
The southern subspecies (Ardeotis kori kori) is distributed in southern Africa in Botswana, Zimbabwe, Namibia, southern Angola, South Africa, and southern Mozambique. Kori Bustards are birds of wide, open grasslands, and lightly wooded savanna. The subspecies kori can be found in arid savanna areas where trees are scattered intermittently, they are fond of areas where the grass is short and where there is a good view of the surrounding area. Migrations in response to rainfall and/or food supply have been recorded, but the species is not migratory in the true sense.
The distribution of the kori subspecies is becoming fragmented and overall, declining in numbers. Local extinctions have been recorded. Given the continual habitat destruction from agriculture and development, hunting pressure, and a slow reproduction rate, Kori Bustards do not face a promising future in the wild. Many Kori Bustards are poached for local consumption, mainly by men over 30, Snares or Guns are used to kill birds. In some areas only tribal elders are allowed to eat bustard meat. Sometimes a traditional doctor is brought in to 'treat' it before it is eaten, because of a belief that bustard meat can otherwise cause mental illness.
There is evidence of illegal cross-border trafficking in live bustards from Botswana, up to 10 at a time are smuggled into South Africa where they are sold as a delicacy to wealthy individuals or exported outside Africa.