Lilac-breasted Roller
Lilac-breasted RollerLilac-breasted RollerLilac-breasted RollerLilac-breasted Roller

Lilac-breasted Roller

Coracias caudatus

Least ConcernNear ThreatenedVulnerableEndangeredCritically Endangered
70–80% · Very likely
overall probability at Hwange National Park
326 Verified records at Hwange National Park
January Best month highest sighting rate
☀️ Diurnal When it's active during daytime hours (6am–6pm)

The lilac-breasted roller (Coracias caudatus) is an African bird of the roller family, Coraciidae. It is widely distributed in Southern and Eastern Africa, and is a vagrant to the southern Arabian Peninsula. It prefers open woodland and savanna, and it is for the most part absent from treeless places. Usually found alone or in pairs, it perches at the tops of trees, poles or other high vantage points from where it can spot insects, amphibians and small birds moving about on the ground. Nesting takes place in a natural hole in a tree where a clutch of 2–4 eggs are laid, and incubated by both parents, who are extremely aggressive in defence of their nest, taking on raptors and other birds. During the breeding season the male will rise to a fair height (69 to 144 metres), descending in swoops and dives, while uttering harsh, discordant cries. Wikipedia →

70–80% of wildlife watchers report a Lilac-breasted Roller sighting in Hwange National Park, based on 326 days of visitor records from GBIF citizen-science data.

Closest Relatives at Hwange National Park

Rufous-crowned Roller
LC

Rufous-crowned Roller

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Coracias naevius

10–20% · With luck
Raquet-tailed Roller
LC

Raquet-tailed Roller

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Coracias spatulatus

10–20% · With luck
European Roller
LC

European Roller

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Coracias garrulus

5–10% · With luck
Broad-billed Roller
LC

Broad-billed Roller

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Eurystomus glaucurus

10–20% · With luck
Swallow-tailed Bee-eater
LC

Swallow-tailed Bee-eater

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Merops hirundineus

20–30% · Possible
Little Bee-eater
LC

Little Bee-eater

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Merops pusillus

20–30% · Possible
European Bee-eater
LC

European Bee-eater

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Merops apiaster

20–30% · Possible
Southern Carmine Bee-eater
LC

Southern Carmine Bee-eater

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Merops nubicoides

10–20% · With luck
Brown-hooded Kingfisher
LC

Brown-hooded Kingfisher

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Halcyon albiventris

5–10% · With luck
White-fronted Bee-eater
LC

White-fronted Bee-eater

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Merops bullockoides

5–10% · With luck
Striped Kingfisher
LC

Striped Kingfisher

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Halcyon chelicuti

5–10% · With luck
Pied Kingfisher
LC

Pied Kingfisher

☀️ Diurnal Bird

Ceryle rudis

5–10% · With luck

📅 Monthly Probability

80–90
Jan
40–50
Feb
50–60
Mar
70–80
Apr
60–70
May
40–50
Jun
70–80
Jul
70–80
Aug
60–70
Sep
80–90
Oct
60–70
Nov
70–80
Dec

☀️ When They're Spotted

Most active during daytime hours (6am–6pm) · across all parks (global)

☀️Diurnal
☀️🌙🌙12am6am12pm6pm12am

Global Distribution

Where this species is recorded worldwide. Restricted to human observations from 2019 onwards — the same kind of record and the same period the probabilities on this page are built from, so collar-tracking studies, camera-trap arrays and museum specimens are excluded. Around Santa Rosa that removes 5,924 GPS fixes from a handful of tagged jaguars.

where this species is recorded (GBIF density — it tracks where observers go, not how likely a sighting is)  ·  parks where it occurs — tap a pin for the sighting probability there

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Probability
1 Tarangire National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
80–90%
2 Moremi Game Reserve 🇧🇼 Botswana
70–80%
3 Liwonde National Park 🇲🇼 Malawi
70–80%
4 Hwange National Park 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe
70–80%
5 Meru National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
60–70%
6 Gonarezhou National Park 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe
60–70%
7 Serengeti National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
60–70%
8 Kruger National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
60–70%
9 Lake Nakuru National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
60–70%
10 Akagera National Park 🇷🇼 Rwanda
50–60%
11 Lower Zambezi National Park 🇿🇲 Zambia
50–60%
12 Mana Pools National Park 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe
50–60%
13 Chobe National Park 🇧🇼 Botswana
50–60%
14 Masai Mara National Reserve 🇰🇪 Kenya
50–60%
15 South Luangwa National Park 🇿🇲 Zambia
50–60%
16 Ruaha National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
50–60%
17 Samburu National Reserve 🇰🇪 Kenya
50–60%
18 Mikumi National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
40–50%
19 Amboseli National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
40–50%
20 Lake Mburo National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
40–50%
21 Tsavo West National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
40–50%
22 Kafue National Park 🇿🇲 Zambia
30–40%
23 Pilanesberg National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
30–40%
24 Mkomazi National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
30–40%
25 Gorongosa National Park 🇲🇿 Mozambique
30–40%
26 Ngorongoro Conservation Area 🇹🇿 Tanzania
20–30%
27 Tsavo East National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
20–30%
28 Etosha National Park 🇳🇦 Namibia
20–30%
29 Selous Game Reserve 🇹🇿 Tanzania
20–30%
30 Lake Manyara National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
20–30%
31 Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
20–30%
32 Awash National Park 🇪🇹 Ethiopia
10–20%
33 Waterberg Plateau Park 🇳🇦 Namibia
10–20%
34 Nairobi National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
5–10%
35 Arusha National Park 🇹🇿 Tanzania
<5%
36 Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
<5%
37 iSimangaliso Wetland Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
<5%
38 Aberdare National Park 🇰🇪 Kenya
<5%
39 Kidepo Valley National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
<5%
40 Murchison Falls National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
<5%
41 Virunga National Park 🇨🇩 Democratic Republic of the Congo
<5%
42 Addo Elephant National Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
Insufficient data
43 Semuliki National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
Insufficient data
44 Namib-Naukluft National Park 🇳🇦 Namibia
Insufficient data
45 Queen Elizabeth National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
Insufficient data
46 Nyungwe National Park 🇷🇼 Rwanda
Insufficient data
47 Bwindi Impenetrable National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
Insufficient data
48 Kibale National Park 🇺🇬 Uganda
Insufficient data

Quick answers

What are the chances of seeing a Lilac-breasted Roller in Hwange National Park?

About 70% of wildlife watchers report a Lilac-breasted Roller sighting in Hwange National Park, based on 326 days of visitor records from GBIF citizen-science data.

When is the best time to see Lilac-breasted Roller in Hwange National Park?

January has the highest sighting rate for Lilac-breasted Roller in Hwange National Park in our monthly data.

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