# Marabou stork (*Leptoptilos crumenifer*)

Canonical page: https://creaturedata.com/animals/marabou-stork  
Data as of: 2026-11-11

The marabou stork (Leptoptilos crumenifer), also called the Marabou or Undertaker, is a bird in the family Ciconiidae and the order Ciconiiformes. It is a medium-sized bird with an adult body mass of 6.068 kg and a wingspan of 2.56 m, with wingspans from 2.25 to 2.87 m reported. The marabou stork is a terrestrial, sedentary omnivore of grassland habitat. It lays 1 clutch per year with a clutch size of 2.2, incubates eggs for 30 days, reaches sexual maturity at 4 years, and is listed as Least Concern by the IUCN.

## Quick facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight | 5.7 kg – 7.1 kg |
| Length | Not recorded |
| Wingspan | 2.25 m – 2.87 m |
| Lifespan | 41 years |
| Diet | Omnivore |
| Longest recorded lifespan | 44.7 years |
| Main food | Not recorded |
| Habitat | grassland |
| Egg incubation | 30 days |
| Young per litter or clutch | 2.2 |
| Age at maturity | 4 years |
| Litters or clutches a year | 1 |
| Lifestyle | Terrestrial |
| Migration | Sedentary |
| Conservation status | Least Concern (IUCN) |
| Countries on record | Not recorded |

## Classification

- kingdom: Animalia
- phylum: Chordata
- class: Aves
- order: Ciconiiformes
- family: Ciconiidae
- genus: Leptoptilos
- species: *Leptoptilos crumenifer* (R. P. Lesson, 1831)

Synonyms: *Ciconia argala*, *Ciconia crumenifera*, *Leptoptilos crumeniferus*, *Leptoptilus crumeniferus*, *Leptotilus crumeniferus*

## Common questions

### What kind of animal is the marabou stork?

The marabou stork is a bird in the family Ciconiidae, order Ciconiiformes. It is also called the Marabou or Undertaker.

### How big is the marabou stork?

It has a wingspan of 2.56 m, with values from 2.25 to 2.87 m reported. It falls in the medium size class.

### How heavy is the marabou stork?

An adult Marabou stork weighs 6.068 kg, with reported values from 5.7 to 7.1 kg.

### What does the marabou stork eat?

The marabou stork is an omnivore.

### Is the marabou stork endangered?

No. It is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, which is not a threatened category.

### How long does the marabou stork live?

Its lifespan is given as 41 years, with values up to 44.7 years reported.

### How many eggs does the marabou stork lay?

It has a clutch size of 2.2 and lays 1 clutch per year, with an incubation period of 30 days.

### Who named the marabou stork?

The scientific name Leptoptilos crumenifer is credited to (R. P. Lesson, 1831).

## Sources

- [An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1), 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](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.16586228.v7), 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](https://www.checklistbank.org/dataset/316691), 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](https://commons.wikimedia.org), 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](https://www.wikidata.org), CC0 1.0, 2026-11-11. Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service).
- [Wikipedia (English)](https://en.wikipedia.org), CC BY-SA 4.0, 2026-11-11. Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).

Cite as: Marabou stork (Leptoptilos crumenifer). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/marabou-stork