Lilac-breasted Roller
Coracias caudatus
- KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
- PhylumChordata (Cordats)
- ClassAves (Aus)
- OrderCoraciiformes (Rollers, Kingfishers, and Allies)
- FamilyCoraciidae (Rollers)
- GenusCoracias (Typical Rollers)
- SpeciesCoracias caudatus (Lilac-breasted Roller)
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 →
10–20% of wildlife watchers report a Lilac-breasted Roller sighting in Awash National Park, based on 19 days of visitor records from GBIF citizen-science data.
Closest Relatives at Awash National Park
Abyssinian Roller
Coracias abyssinicus
Rufous-crowned Roller
Coracias naevius
European Roller
Coracias garrulus
Broad-billed Roller
Eurystomus glaucurus
Northern Carmine Bee-eater
Merops nubicus
Little Bee-eater
Merops pusillus
Pied Kingfisher
Ceryle rudis
Striped Kingfisher
Halcyon chelicuti
Whitethroated Bee-eater
Merops albicollis
Gray-headed Kingfisher
Halcyon leucocephala
Woodland Kingfisher
Halcyon senegalensis
Madagascar Bee-eater
Merops superciliosus
📅 Monthly Probability
☀️ When They're Spotted
Most active during daytime hours (6am–6pm) · across all parks (global)
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
Quick answers
What are the chances of seeing a Lilac-breasted Roller in Awash National Park?
About 16% of wildlife watchers report a Lilac-breasted Roller sighting in Awash National Park, based on 19 days of visitor records from GBIF citizen-science data.
When is the best time to see Lilac-breasted Roller in Awash National Park?
November has the highest sighting rate for Lilac-breasted Roller in Awash National Park in our monthly data.