Crowned Lapwing
Vanellus coronatus
Dry veld. Crown black with encircling white band; upperparts, neck and breast light brown; belly white; eyes yellow; bill and legs red.
Lapwings
LC
Not Endemic
Description
Very common resident. Distinguished by white circle surrounding a black cap, black-tipped red bill and red legs. Eyes usually pale yellow, sometimes dark brown. Very noisy, calling ‘kie-weeet’ on the ground or a repeated ‘kree-kree-kreeip-kreeip’ in flight, day or night. Pairs and groups found on dry, open ground with short or burned grass, especially on airfields, traffic islands and sports fields; also in lightly wooded country. Often fly about in small groups at some height, calling repeatedly.
Quick Facts
Size
30 cm - M
Names
A: Kroonkiewiet
Z: iTitihoyenomqhele
Ss: Lekekeruane La Moqhaka
G: Kronenkiebitz
Bird Family
Long-legged terrestrial birds with characteristically black, white and brown colouring. Usually found in pairs or small groups, favouring short grassland areas never far from fresh water. Lapwings breed during the winter season, laying their well camouflaged eggs into a shallow scrape on the ground, which they aggressively and noisily defend from humans and other predators.
Distribution
Gallery
Behaviour
Breeding
Habitat
Pairs and groups found on dry, open ground with short or burned grass, especially on airfields, traffic islands and sports fields; also in lightly wooded country.
