Birda Logo
Features
Birda+
About
Species Guide
Challenges
Shop
loading...
A photo of a African Crake (Crecopsis egregia)
African Crake

African Crake

Crecopsis egregia

The African crake, a member of the rail family, is a small to medium-sized bird that graces the grasslands of sub-Saharan Africa. It is characterized by its brown-streaked blackish upperparts and bluish-grey underparts, with a distinctive black-and-white barring on the flanks and belly. A stubby red bill, red eyes, and a white line extending from the bill to above the eye further distinguish this bird. The African crake is smaller than its relative, the corn crake, and can be identified by its unique plumage and eye stripe.

Identification Tips

When identifying the African crake, look for its smaller size compared to the corn crake, and note the bluish-grey underparts and barred flanks. The red bill and eyes are also key features. In flight, observe the shorter, blunter wings with less prominent white leading edges and deeper wingbeats.

Habitat

The African crake is partial to a variety of grassland habitats, from wetland edges and seasonal marshes to savannas and agricultural lands with tall crops. It thrives in grasses ranging from 0.3 to 2 meters in height and is often found near thickets or termite mounds.

Distribution

This bird is widespread across sub-Saharan Africa, avoiding only the rainforests and the driest regions. It is a partial migrant, moving with the rains to breed in areas with sufficient grass cover.

Behaviour

The African crake is diurnal, with peak activity at dusk or during light rain. It is less secretive than other crakes, often seen along roadsides. Territorial by nature, the male may display and engage in combat at territory boundaries.

Song & Calls

The African crake's vocal repertoire includes a rapid grating "krrr" call used for territory establishment and mating. Alarm calls and other vocalizations are also part of its communication, with distinct calls for different situations.

Breeding

Breeding behavior includes courtship chases and copulation. The nest is a shallow grass cup, often hidden under vegetation. Clutch sizes range from 3 to 11 eggs, with both parents sharing incubation duties. Chicks are precocial and fledge in four to five weeks.

Diet and Feeding

The diet is diverse, consisting of invertebrates, small vertebrates, and plant material, particularly grass seeds. The African crake forages both within vegetation and in open areas, displaying a variety of feeding behaviors.

Conservation status

With a large range and population, the African crake is classified as Least Concern by the IUCN. Although habitat loss and hunting pose threats in some regions, the species is currently not considered to be under significant threat.

App logo
Birda is a birdwatching app and community aimed at curious people who want to deepen their connection with nature.

African Crakes on Birda

Photos
Sightings

More Rails, Crakes & Coots

Birda Logo

Your birdwatching journey like never before

Connect with nature in minutes
Take a walk, look out of the window and log the birds that you see. Feel good about those little connections to nature.
Discover the joy of birding
Find new birding spots, see more birds, share and celebrate with a like-minded community of nature lovers.
Play your part in saving nature
Logging your birding sightings and sessions turns into positive action for our planet. Every sighting counts.

Birda Blog

What Our Birders Say
Mike T
Sense of Community
A great app, which is continually being improved. What really comes through is the passion of those behind the app. The sense of community is brilliant, so much help and support provided to new and/or in experienced birders.
Chudbond
Love Birda
I love this app. It really encourages you to log your sightings and the community is friendly and helpful.
David C
Very knowledgeable group
Nice friendly birding community. Very knowledgeable group with a willingness to help.
Birdafan
Ideal Birdwatch Companion
Simply adds to the enjoyment of my birdwatching and helps me record what I’ve seen.
Alice J
Awesome Birding Community
I absolutely love the community aspect of this app. The app is so user friendly and has fun interactive challenges to get you out birding. I’ve tried others but since I’ve started using Birda I’ve not gone back!
Amylia S
Best app for any birding person!
I love this app!! I am so addicted to it when I saw it had 3 star review I was so sad! The app is awesome!! The best app for any birding person! ❤️
Safira V
Birding and wellbeing app
Birda is an excellent platform to share your love of Birding and is a great tool of encouragement for a Birding Beginner like me. Birda has a very kind and supportive community of Birding enthusiasts. For me BIRDA is not only a BIRDING but also a WELLBEING App.
778
Great bird recording
For a while I’ve been trying to find an app to easily record bird lists and day out and struggled to find one that I like. Birda is great for this, straightforward and a great community!
D3Nature
Great app for learning Birds
I’ve been using the app for a couple of months and love it....Someone said it’s like a real life Pokémon Go for birds. They’re not far off! It’s something that the family can do that gets you out and about. Well worth downloading no matter your age.
SW H
Wonderful App
Birda is my go to app for keeping records of my bird sightings and sessions. It has fantastic information which is great at aiding identification. With all the updates that are coming in the new year, this app is something special.
As featured in
Birda Logo
AboutPressAmbassadorsAffiliatesInfluencersCareersPrivacyTerms & Conditions
An app for birdwatchers
Connect with us
Copyright © 2024 Chirp Birding. All rights reserved.