Bird Album
Crowned Lapwing
Vanellus coronatus (Boddaert, 1783)
165 gWeight
The crowned lapwing (Vanellus coronatus), crowned plover or kiewiet (in South African English), is a bird of the lapwing subfamily that occurs contiguously from the Red Sea coast of Somalia to southern and southwestern Africa.
Busiest months: July–November · Most records: Kenya, South Africa, Tanzania
Where and when it's recorded
Busiest months: July–November · Most records: Kenya, South Africa, Tanzania
Crowned Lapwing has been recorded at 327 of the 8,276 birding hotspots we track, in 16 countries and regions.
Records by month Southern Hemisphere
Where it's recorded most
- Nairobi NPKenya1,470 records
- Amboseli NPKenya1,270 records
- Rietvlei NRSouth Africa1,202 records
More places
- Ngorongoro Conservation Area – Ngorongoro CraterTanzania998 records
- Lake Nakuru NPKenya797 records
- Tarangire NPTanzania782 records
- Maasai Mara NRKenya611 records
- Marievale Bird SanctuarySouth Africa591 records
- Serengeti NPTanzania583 records
- Maasai Mara NR – Mara TriangleKenya579 records
Countries and regions with the most records
eBird records via GBIF up to 2024-12-31. A record means someone listed it; more records partly mean more birders, not more birds.
About
The crowned lapwing (Vanellus coronatus), crowned plover or kiewiet (in South African English), is a bird of the lapwing subfamily that occurs contiguously from the Red Sea coast of Somalia to southern and southwestern Africa. It is an adaptable and numerous species, with bold and noisy habits. It is related to the more localized black-winged and Senegal lapwings, with which it shares some plumage characteristics.
Excerpt from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 · authors · Read more on Wikipedia
Questions
How big is the Crowned Lapwing?
The Crowned Lapwing weighs around 165 g.
Where does the Crowned Lapwing live?
Its breeding range: Africa: inland northeast to southern Africa. It is most often recorded in Kenya, South Africa and Tanzania.
When is the best time to see the Crowned Lapwing?
At the hotspots we track, it is recorded most in July, August, September, October and November (Southern Hemisphere).
Is the Crowned Lapwing endangered?
The IUCN Red List classifies the Crowned Lapwing as Least Concern.
What does the Crowned Lapwing eat?
Main food: Insects & other invertebrates.
What family is the Crowned Lapwing in?
It belongs to the family Plovers (Charadriidae), order Charadriiformes.
At a glance
- Weight
- 165 g
- Habitat
- Grassland
- Diet
- Insects & other invertebrates
- Lifestyle
- Active on the ground
- Migration
- Resident (barely migrates)
- Conservation
- Least Concern
More measurements
- Wing
- 197 mm
- Tail
- 85 mm
- Bill
- 32 mm
- Tarsus
- 70 mm
Averages from the AVONET dataset; length from field guides where available.
Range
Africa: inland northeast to southern Africa
Breeding range, IOC World Bird List 15.2
Classification
- Order
- Charadriiformes
- Family
- Plovers Charadriidae
- Genus
- Vanellus
Other birds in the genus Vanellus
Northern LapwingVanellus vanellus
Long-toed LapwingVanellus crassirostris
Blacksmith LapwingVanellus armatus
Spur-winged LapwingVanellus spinosus
River LapwingVanellus duvaucelii
Yellow-wattled LapwingVanellus malabaricus
Black-headed LapwingVanellus tectus
White-crowned LapwingVanellus albiceps
Senegal LapwingVanellus lugubris
Black-winged LapwingVanellus melanopterus
African Wattled LapwingVanellus senegallus
Spot-breasted LapwingVanellus melanocephalus
Download illustration
Free to use with credit: “Illustration: Bird Album (birdalbum.com)”. Drawn by AI from a reference photo by Ad Konings. ↗
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