First record of the Wattled Crane Grus carunculatus in Uganda
Abstract
On the afternoon of Saturday 2 May 2009, SNK had accompanied students to Kibimba rice scheme, eastern Uganda, for fieldwork when she observed one individual Wattled Crane Grus carunculatus among 30 individual Grey Crowned Cranes Balearica regulorum. Kibimba rice scheme located in Bugiri District is one of the commercial rice-growing areas in Uganda. These birds were recorded in one of the paddocks that had been freshly harvested, a habitat most preferred by cranes in rice fields (Nachuha 2006). On sighting the bird, contact was quickly made with AB (Executive Director of NatureUganda, the BirdLife partner in Uganda) to crosscheck the sighting.
On Sunday 3 May 2009 both authors travelled back to Kibimba and confirmed this record. During the second visit, the bird was still feeding among a group of 60 Grey Crowned Cranes. It was occasionally aggressive, probably indicating that it was a new arrival to the area. When we approached it would fly together with other cranes over short distances.
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