Karoo bustard
Heterotetrax vigorsii (A. Smith, 1831)
The karoo bustard (Heterotetrax vigorsii) is a species in the family Otididae, order Otidiformes. Recorded adults weigh 1.43 kg to 1.7 kg. Its IUCN Red List status is Least Concern.
Quick facts about the karoo bustard
- Weight
- 1.43 kg – 1.7 kgsrc for Weight
- Length
- Not recorded
- Lifespan
- Not recorded
- Diet
- Omnivoresrc for Diet
- Main food
- Not recorded
- Habitat
- shrublandsrc for Habitat
- Young per litter or clutch
- 1.5src for Young per litter or clutch
- Lifestyle
- Terrestrialsrc for Lifestyle
- Migration
- Sedentarysrc for Migration
- Conservation status
- Least Concern (IUCN)src for Conservation status
- Countries on record
- Not recorded
Where does the karoo bustard live?
Not recorded
Is the karoo bustard endangered?
The karoo bustard is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List: it is not currently at risk of extinction.
- LCLeast Concern
- NTNear Threatened
- VUVulnerable
- ENEndangered
- CRCritically Endangered
- EWExtinct in the Wild
- EXExtinct
Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Least Concern species. What the categories mean.
How is the karoo bustard classified?
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- classAves
- orderOtidiformes
- familyOtididae
- genusHeterotetrax
- SpeciesHeterotetrax vigorsii (A. Smith, 1831)
Synonyms Eupodotis vigorsii, Otis vigorsii
Other names and names in other languages (39)
- KABUEnglish
- Karoo korhaanEnglish
- Karroo korhaanEnglish
- Vigors's bustardEnglish
- VaalkorhaanAfrikaans
- حبارى كاروArabic
- كورهان كاروArabic
- sisó de VigorsCatalan
- drop šedokrkýCzech
- drop VigorsůvCzech
- ceiliog gwaun VigorWelsh
- Brungrå TrappeDanish
- KnarrtrappeGerman
- karua otidoEsperanto
- Sisón del KarooSpanish
- Sisón del KarrooSpanish
- karoo trappEstonian
- mustakurkkutrappiFinnish
- Outarde de VigorsFrench
- karuanska dropljaCroatian
- feketenyakú túzokHungarian
- Otarda del karooItalian
- ノドグロショウノガンJapanese
- juodagurklis einisLithuanian
- ZwartkintrapDutch
- karootrappeNorwegian
- dropik szaroszyiPolish
- sisão-do-karooPortuguese
- abetarda-do-carruPortuguese
- abetarda-do-karooPortuguese
- Черногорлый корханRussian
- Черногорлая малая дрофаRussian
- drop sivokrkýSlovak
- Droplja iz KaruaSerbian
- karrootrappSwedish
- Karu ToyuTurkish
- корхаан чорногорлийUkrainian
- 黑喉鴇Chinese
- 黑喉鸨Chinese
Relatives of the karoo bustard
Other species in the same genus Heterotetrax.
Little brown bustard
Heterotetrax humilis
Rüppell's bustard
Heterotetrax rueppelii
CompareKaroo bustard vs Little brown bustardKaroo bustard vs Rüppell's bustard
Common questions
Answered only where our data holds the answer.
How big is the karoo bustard?
An adult karoo bustard weighs 1.43 kg – 1.7 kg, according to values recorded on Wikidata.
Is the karoo bustard endangered?
The karoo bustard is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, meaning it is not currently at risk of extinction.
What kind of animal is the karoo bustard?
The karoo bustard (Heterotetrax vigorsii) belongs to the family Otididae in the order Otidiformes.
Sources and how to cite this page
Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.
- An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles · CC0 1.0 · E096-269
Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1 - AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds · CC BY 4.0 · v7
Tobias, J.A. et al. (2022) AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds. Ecology Letters 25: 581–597. https://doi.org/10.1111/ele.13898. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.16586228.v7 - Catalogue of Life eXtended Release · CC BY 4.0 · 2026-10-16 XR
Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf - Wikimedia Commons · per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed) · 2026-11-11
Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence). - Wikidata · CC0 1.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service).
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Copy this code. The card shows the photo with its credit, key facts and a link back to this page.
CreatureData. (2026). Karoo bustard (Heterotetrax vigorsii). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/karoo-bustard
“Karoo bustard (Heterotetrax vigorsii).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/karoo-bustard.
@misc{karoo_bustard_2026,
title = {Karoo bustard (Heterotetrax vigorsii)},
author = {{CreatureData}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/karoo-bustard},
note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}