Black Crake

Hosts on Spekboom have recorded the Black Crake at stays in or beside Kruger National Park, Goukamma Nature Reserve, Kwandwe Private Game Reserve, Rocherpan Nature Reserve, Grootvadersbosch Nature Reserve and Vrolijkheid Nature Reserve and other reserves. A record means a host has seen it on the property or nearby, which makes these the places to base yourself; it is never a guarantee of a sighting on any given day.

The Black Crake is most recorded in Western Cape (36% of records), Mpumalanga (27% of records), KwaZulu-Natal (16% of records), based on 1,822 iNaturalist observations. 59 places to stay on Spekboom in South Africa have recorded the Black Crake on site or nearby.

The Black Crake is recorded throughout the year, so no month is the wrong month to look for it. For the parks where hosts record it most, these are the best seasons they give. Kruger National Park: Apr-Sep; Goukamma Nature Reserve: year-round, warm Oct-Apr; Kwandwe Private Game Reserve: year-round, best Mar-May, Sep-Nov; Rocherpan Nature Reserve: Winter and spring for birds and flowers, Jun-Oct. In the dry months animals concentrate at water and the grass is short.

The black crake is a waterbird in the rail and crake family, Rallidae. It breeds in most of sub-Saharan Africa except in very arid areas. It undertakes some seasonal movements in those parts of its range which are subject to drought. No subspecies have been described.