BirdUp · Species
Australian Bustard
Ardeotis australis(Gray, JE, 1829)
Updated
Also known asGidanybarKardaat
At a glance
The Australian Bustard is a very large bird, about 80–120 cm long, listed as Least Concern and native to Australia. It can be seen year-round.
- Size
- 80–120 cm
- Conservation status
- Least Concern
- Origin
- Native
- Best seen
- Year-round
- Commonness
- Very common
01 · Identification
How to tell it apart
What does an Australian Bustard look like?
The Australian Bustard is a very large bird, about 80–120 cm long and weighing 1980–9900 g.
The Australian bustard is a large ground-dwelling bird that is common in grassland, woodland and open agricultural country across northern Australia and southern New Guinea. It stands at about one metre high, and its wingspan is around twice that length. The species is nomadic, flying to areas when food becomes plentiful, and capable of travelling long distances. They were once widespread and common to the open plains of Australia, but became rare in regions that have been used for farming. The bustard is omnivorous, mostly consuming the fruit or seed of plants, but also eating invertebrates such as crickets, grasshoppers, smaller mammals, birds and reptiles.
Description · wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0
03 · When
When to look
When can you see an Australian Bustard?
The Australian Bustard is present across its Australian range year-round, so it can be seen in any month.
- Jan
- Feb
- Mar
- Apr
- May
- Jun
- Jul
- Aug
- Sep
- Oct
- Nov
- Dec
05 · Behaviour
Habits and haunts
What does an Australian Bustard eat?
The Australian Bustard feeds on seeds, foliage/herbs, terrestrial invertebrates and terrestrial vertebrates, usually foraging in pairs or flocks or alone.
06 · Gallery
Plumage up close
4 photos
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