Scientific Name:
Ardeotis kori

Conservation Status:
Vulnerable

Where to see them:
African Plains

Fun Facts:

• Male kori bustards are contenders for the word’s heaviest flying birds.
• The species is killed for meat in many areas.
• Kori bustard chicks are tan with black stripes.
  
  

Size
Height is 4 feet; males weigh 30 to 40 pounds, and females weigh 12 to 14 pounds.

Range 
East and southern Africa

Habitat
Savanna grasslands and scrub

Lifestyle
These are true savanna birds, spending almost all their lives on the ground. Kori bustards generally fly only to escape danger. They often walk with antelope, zebra and other mammals, taking advantage of food disturbed by the herds.

Food
Kori bustards are primarily carnivores, dining especially on large insects such as grasshoppers and locusts. They will also eat lizards, birds and small snakes if they can catch them.

Life Cycle
These birds do not form real pair bonds. The males hold territories and attract the females with their deep booming calls, and they show off their plumage to full effect during elaborate courtship displays.  Females lay two eggs and are completely responsible for incubation and rearing of chicks. There is a very high mortality rate among bustard chicks. Chicks take five years to mature and may live 30 years.

Some of My Neighbors (IN THE WILD)
Antelopes, wildebeest, zebra, crowned cranes, secretary birds

Population Status & Threats
All species of bustards take several years to mature, and their breeding success rate is low. Kori bustards are widely hunted by carnivores and man, and populations will decline very fast if hunting is excessive.

Zoo Atlanta Conservation Efforts
Zoo Atlanta’s Bird Department is closely involved with the AZA Kori Bustard Population Management Program and research.