Sarothrura elegans (Buff-spotted flufftail)

The Buff-spotted Flufftail (Latin name Sarothrura elegans) is described in Roberts Birds of Southern Africa, 7th Edition. This bird has a unique Roberts number of 218 and you will find a full description of this bird on page 315 also a picture of the Buff-spotted Flufftail on page 320. The Buff-spotted Flufftail belongs to the family of birds classified as Rallidae. According to the Percy FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology the Buff-spotted Flufftail is also known by these other names: Buff-spotted Crake, Buff-spotted Pygmy Crake, Buff-spotted Pygmy Rail.

The map of the Kruger you see on this page shows the areas (coloured orange) where this bird has been identified. The basic information was provided by the Avian Demographic Unit based at UCT and I created the maps from that information ... the green dots show the locations of the various Kruger National Park Rest Camps

The Buff-spotted Flufftail is neither Endemic or near Endemic to the Kruger National Park.

In terms of distribution of the Buff-spotted Flufftail in the Kruger National Park you may not see it in all areas. Buff-spotted Flufftail : see above distribution map.

Identification assistance for this avian species ...

One of the first indicators to take note of when trying to identify a bird is it relative size. For example how big is the bird compared to a well known familiar bird. The Buff-spotted Flufftail is a small bird about the size of a house sparrow. Do not take this relative indicator as anything other than a rough easy to remember indicator. It is not a accurate visualization. The height of the Buff-spotted Flufftail is about 17 cms and its weight is about 45 gms

You will find that the male Buff-spotted Flufftail plumage and colours are different to that of the female Buff-spotted Flufftail

* Head is orange.
* Eye is brown.
* Bill is black.
* Throat is orange.
* Back is black.
* Legs are black.

This bird has normally proportioned leg length.