Birds to See in Malawi in May
21 bird species on our list for Malawi are recorded regularly in May
Of these, the most often recorded are Pied Crow, Fork-tailed Drongo, House Sparrow, Cattle Egret and Egyptian Goose. New this month: Glossy Ibis, Black-crowned Night-heron, African Marsh Harrier and Purple Heron and 2 more.
On the move in May
GBIF · MayArriving
From Malawi’s bird records, 2019–2024: arriving birds are regular this month but not last; leaving birds are regular this month but not next.
Other months
All 21 birds in May
21 birds
Pied CrowCorvus albusResidentCommon46–52 cmRecorded all year · 1.87% in May
Fork-tailed DrongoDicrurus adsimilisResidentCommon23–26 cmRecorded all year · 1.71% in May
House SparrowPasser domesticusResidentCommon14–17 cmRecorded all year · 1.06% in May
Cattle EgretArdea ibisResidentCommon46–56 cmRecorded all year · 0.56% in May
Egyptian GooseAlopochen aegyptiacaResidentCommon63–73 cmRecorded all year · 0.54% in May
Grey HeronArdea cinereaResidentCommon90–98 cmRecorded all year · 0.52% in May
African JacanaActophilornis africanusResidentCommon23–31 cmRecorded all year · 0.42% in May
Helmeted GuineafowlNumida meleagrisResidentCommon53–63 cmRecorded all year · 0.38% in May
Spur-winged GoosePlectropterus gambensisResidentCommon75–115 cmRegularly Apr–Feb · 0.34% in May
Great White EgretArdea albaResidentCommon80–104 cmRecorded all year · 0.32% in May
Squacco HeronArdeola ralloidesResidentCommon40–49 cmRegularly Apr–Feb · 0.28% in May
Great CormorantPhalacrocorax carboWinter visitorCommon80–100 cmRegularly Mar–Jan · 0.26% in May
HoopoeUpupa epopsResidentCommon25–32 cmRecorded all year · 0.26% in May
Little EgretEgretta garzettaResidentCommon55–65 cmRecorded all year · 0.24% in May
Fulvous Whistling-DuckDendrocygna bicolorPassage migrantUncommon45–53 cmRegularly May–Jan · 0.16% in May
Glossy IbisPlegadis falcinellusWinter visitorCommon48–66 cmRegularly May–Jan · 0.16% in May
MoorhenGallinula chloropusPassage migrantUncommon30–38 cmRegularly Oct–May · 0.16% in May
African Marsh HarrierCircus ranivorusPassage migrantUncommon44–52 cmRegularly May–Jan · 0.12% in May
Southern Masked WeaverPloceus velatusSummer visitorCommon13–15 cmRegularly Jul–May · 0.12% in May
Purple HeronArdea purpureaPassage migrantUncommon78–90 cmRegularly Oct–May · 0.10% in May
Black-crowned Night-heronNycticorax nycticoraxPassage migrantUncommon58–65 cmRegularly May–Jan · 0.06% in May
Smallest to largest
Length, cm- Southern Masked Weaver 13–15 cm
- House Sparrow 14–17 cm
- Fork-tailed Drongo 23–26 cm
- African Jacana 23–31 cm
- Hoopoe 25–32 cm
- Moorhen 30–38 cm
- Squacco Heron 40–49 cm
- African Marsh Harrier 44–52 cm
- Pied Crow 46–52 cm
- Fulvous Whistling-Duck 45–53 cm
- Cattle Egret 46–56 cm
- Glossy Ibis 48–66 cm
- Helmeted Guineafowl 53–63 cm
- Little Egret 55–65 cm
- Black-crowned Night-heron 58–65 cm
- Egyptian Goose 63–73 cm
- Purple Heron 78–90 cm
- Great Cormorant 80–100 cm
- Great White Egret 80–104 cm
- Grey Heron 90–98 cm
- Spur-winged Goose 75–115 cm
Body length, bill to tail. Rare birds in grey.
Data: EOD – eBird Observation Dataset (Cornell Lab of Ornithology), accessed via GBIF.org, CC BY 4.0. Records from 2019–2024, aggregated and filtered by Birdfact. How these lists are made