Swamp francolin

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Swamp francolin
Swamp Francolin from Kaziranga Assam India (cropped).jpg
In Kaziranga National Park, Assam, India
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Galliformes
Family: Phasianidae
Genus: Ortygornis
Species:
O. gularis
Binomial name
Ortygornis gularis
(Temminck, 1815)
Synonyms

Francolinus gularis

The swamp francolin (Ortygornis gularis), also called swamp partridge, is a francolin species native to the foothills of the Himalayas in northern India and Nepal. It is considered extinct in the Ganges-Brahmaputra delta in Bangladesh. It is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List. [1]

Contents

Taxonomy

It was formerly classified in the genus Francolinus , but phylogenetic analyses indicates that it groups with the crested francolin (O. sephaena) and grey francolin (O. pondicerianus). All three species were reclassified in the genus Ortygornis . [2] [3] [4]

Description

From Frank Finn's The Game Birds of India & Asia (1911):

This species is easily distinguished from most of our partridges by its large size and comparatively long legs; as in the last species, the sexes are alike in plumage, but the cock is easily distinguishable by his spurs. The upper plumage is brown barred with buff, and the outer tail-feathers chestnut, as in the grey partridge; but the throat is bright rust-red, and the rest of the under-parts brown longitudinally streaked with white. The bill is blackish, the eyes dark, and the feet dull red. The cock of this species, which is a little larger than the hen, will measure fifteen inches, though his tail is only a little over four; the wing is more than seven inches, and the shank two-and-a-quarter.

Picture from Hume and Marshall. Francolinus gularis hm.jpg
Picture from Hume and Marshall.

The swamp partridge, as its name implies, has a habitat quite different from our other species, affecting high grass and cane-brakes near the edges of rivers and jheels, though it will come into cultivated ground to feed. It haunts the alluvial plains of the Ganges and Brahmaputra, extending from Pilibhit to the extremity of Assam and Cachar, and even occurs occasionally on the Khasi plateau; but it is not found in the Sundarbans. Very little is known about its breeding, but on two occasions five eggs of the species have been taken in April; they were cream-coloured and slightly speckled.

Owing to the localities which it frequents, the swamp partridge is usually shot from elephants; but Blanford states that he has shot it on foot near Colgong, in grass only three or four feet high. He says it much resembles the common grey partridge in its edible qualities, as it also does in its call ; and it is equally pugnacious. Mr Hume, in the "Game-birds of India," falls foul of his artist for representing this species standing in water like a wading-bird. No doubt the draughtsman represented it thus in ignorance, but it would be interesting to know if this, one of the very few swamp-haunting birds in the pheasant family, ever does voluntarily go into water in the wild state. The keeper of the aviary in which a specimen of this species was confined in the London Zoo told me that he had seen it standing in water.


Distribution

The Sukla Phanta Wildlife Reserve in Nepal represents the western limit of its distribution. [5]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Phasianidae</span> Family of birds

The Phasianidae are a family of heavy, ground-living birds, which includes pheasants, partridges, junglefowl, chickens, turkeys, Old World quail, and peafowl. The family includes many of the most popular gamebirds. The family is a large one and includes 185 species divided into 54 genera. It was formerly broken up into two subfamilies, the Phasianinae and the Perdicinae. However, this treatment is now known to be paraphyletic and polyphyletic, respectively, and more recent evidence supports breaking it up into two subfamilies: Rollulinae and Phasianinae, with the latter containing multiple tribes within two clades. The New World quail (Odontophoridae) and guineafowl (Numididae) were formerly sometimes included in this family, but are now typically placed in families of their own; conversely, grouse and turkeys, formerly often treated as distinct families, are now known to be deeply nested within Phasianidae, so they are now included in the present family.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Francolin</span> Group of birds

Francolins are birds in the tribe Gallini that traditionally have been placed in the genus Francolinus, but now commonly are divided into multiple genera.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Black francolin</span> Species of bird

The black francolin is a gamebird in the pheasant family Phasianidae of the order Galliformes. It was formerly known as the black partridge. It is the state bird of Haryana state, India. Fried black francolin is eaten in Azerbaijani cuisine.

<i>Francolinus</i> Genus of birds

Francolinus is a genus of birds in the francolin group of the tribe Gallini in the pheasant family.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kaziranga National Park</span> National park in the state of Assam, India

Kaziranga National Park is a national park in the Golaghat and Nagaon districts of the state of Assam, India. The park, which hosts two-thirds of the world's Indian rhinoceroses, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. According to the census held in March 2018 which was jointly conducted by the Forest Department of the Government of Assam and some recognized wildlife NGOs, the rhino population in Kaziranga National Park is 2,613. It comprises 1,641 adult rhinos ; 387 sub-adults ; and 385 calves.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Terai–Duar savanna and grasslands</span>

The Terai–Duar savanna and grasslands is a narrow lowland ecoregion at the base of the Himalayas, about 25 km (16 mi) wide, and a continuation of the Indo-Gangetic Plain in India, Nepal and Bhutan. It is colloquially called Terai in the Ganges Basin east to Nepal, then Dooars in West Bengal, Bhutan and Assam east to the Brahmaputra River. It harbours the world's tallest grasslands, which are the most threatened and rare worldwide.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grey francolin</span> Species of bird

The grey francolin is a species of francolin found in the plains and drier parts of the Indian subcontinent and Iran. This species was formerly also called the grey partridge, not to be confused with the European grey partridge. They are mainly ground-living birds and are found in open cultivated lands as well as scrub forest and their local name of teetar is based on their calls, a loud and repeated Ka-tee-tar...tee-tar which is produced by one or more birds. The term teetar can also refer to other partridges and quails. During the breeding season calling males attract challengers, and decoys were used to trap these birds especially for fighting.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lower Gangetic Plains moist deciduous forests</span> Ecoregion of India and Bangladesh

The Lower Gangetic Plains moist deciduous forests is a tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests ecoregion of Bangladesh and India. The ecoregion covers an area of 254,100 square kilometres (98,100 sq mi), comprising most of Bangladesh and the Indian states of West Bengal, Bihar and Tripura, and extending into adjacent states of Odisha, Uttar Pradesh and a tiny part of Assam, as well as adjacent western Myanmar.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Painted francolin</span> Species of bird

The painted francolin or painted partridge is a species of francolin found in grassy areas in central and southern India and in the lowlands of southeastern Sri Lanka. They are easily detected by their loud calls especially during the breeding season. Thomas C. Jerdon noted that the species was found mainly in Central India south of the Narmada and to the east of the Western Ghats as well as the Chota Nagpur and Northern Circars. It can be confused only with the black francolin with which it partly overlaps and is said to sometimes hybridize. This species can be told apart from a black francolin female by the lack of a rufous hind collar and the white spots on the underside. The face is rufous and there is no dark stripe running behind the eye.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jerdon's babbler</span> Species of bird

Jerdon's babbler is a passerine bird native to wetlands and grasslands of the Indian sub-continent. It is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List since 1994. It is a member of the genus Chrysomma of the family Paradoxornithidae.

Kaziranga National Park is an Indian national park and a World Heritage Site in Golaghat and Nagaon districts of Assam, India. It is refuge for the world's largest population of great one-horned rhinoceros. Kaziranga has the highest density of tigers among protected areas in the world and was declared a Tiger Reserve in 2006. The park has large breeding populations of elephant, wild Asiatic water buffalo and swamp deer. Kaziranga is recognized as an Important Bird Area by Birdlife International for conservation of avifaunal species. The park has achieved notable progress in wildlife conservation with respect to other protected areas in India.Kaziranga was declared a Tiger Reserve in 2006

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hildebrandt's spurfowl</span> Species of bird

Hildebrandt's spurfowl is a species of bird in the family Phasianidae. It is found in Burundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Zambia. The species is named for Johann Maria Hildebrandt, who collected the first specimens in Kenya. The sexes differ markedly in their plumage and females are smaller than males.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Crested francolin</span> Species of bird

The crested francolin is a species of bird in the family Phasianidae. It is found in southern Africa. One of its subspecies, Ortygornis sephaena rovuma, is sometimes considered a separate species, Kirk's francolin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Crimson-headed partridge</span> Species of bird

The crimson-headed partridge is a species of bird in the pheasant, partridge, and francolin family Phasianidae. Described by the British ornithologist Richard Bowdler Sharpe in 1879, it is the only species in the genus Haematortyx. It is endemic to Borneo, where it inhabits lower montane forest in the northern and central parts of the island. It is mainly found at elevations of 1,000–1,700 m (3,300–5,600 ft), but can be seen as low as 185 m (607 ft) and as high as 3,050 m (10,010 ft). Adult males have a striking appearance, with a dark blackish body and crimson red heads, necks, breasts, and undertail coverts. Females have a similar pattern, but with duller brownish-black colouration, orangish-red heads and breasts, and a brownish-black bill instead of a yellowish one. Juveniles are duller and have the crimson restricted to the top of the head.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Indian grassbird</span> Species of bird

The Indian grassbird is a passerine bird in the family Pellorneidae. It was formerly placed in the Old World warbler family, Sylviidae, and the Old World babbler family, Timaliidae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chestnut-capped babbler</span> Species of bird

The chestnut-capped babbler is a passerine bird of the family Timaliidae. It is monotypic within the genus Timalia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Perdicinae</span> Subfamily of birds

Perdicinae is a polyphyletic former subfamily of birds in the pheasant family, Phasianidae, regrouping the partridges, Old World quails, and francolins. Although this subfamily was considered monophyletic and separated from the pheasants, tragopans, junglefowls, and peafowls (Phasianinae) till the early 1990s, molecular phylogenies have shown that these two subfamilies actually constitute only one lineage. For example, some partridges are more closely affiliated to pheasants, whereas Old World quails and partridges from the Alectoris genus are closer to junglefowls. Due to this, the subfamily Perdicinae is no longer recognized by the International Ornithological Congress, with the species being split among 3 subfamilies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shuklaphanta National Park</span>

Shuklaphanta National Park is a national park in the Terai of the Far-Western Region, Nepal, covering 305 km2 (118 sq mi) of open grasslands, forests, riverbeds and tropical wetlands at an elevation of 174 to 1,386 m. It is bounded by the Mahakali river in the west and south. A small part extends north of the Mahendra Highway to create a wildlife corridor for seasonal migration of wildlife into the Sivalik Hills. It was gazetted in 1976 as Royal Shuklaphanta Wildlife Reserve and was enlarged to its present size in the late 1980s. A buffer zone of 243.5 km2 (94.0 sq mi) was added in 2004. It receives a mean annual rainfall of 1,579 mm (62.2 in) and harbours 700 floral, 456 bird, 56 reptile and 15 amphibian species.

<i>Pternistis</i> Genus of birds

Pternistis is a genus of galliform birds formerly classified in the spurfowl group of the partridge subfamily of the pheasant family. They are described as "partridge-francolins" in literature establishing their phylogenetic placement outside the monophyletic assemblage of true spurfowls. All species are endemic to Sub-Saharan Africa, excepted the double-spurred spurfowl. They are commonly known as spurfowls or francolins, but are closely related to jungle bush quail, Alectoris rock partridges, and Coturnix quail. The species are strictly monogamous, remaining mated indefinitely. They procure most of their food by digging. Spurfowls subsist almost entirely on roots, beans of leguminous shrubs and trees, tubers, and seeds, and feasting opportunistically on termites, ants, locusts, flowers, and fruit. Important predators are jackals, caracals, servals, and birds of prey, as well as herons and marabou storks.

<i>Ortygornis</i> Genus of birds

Ortygornis is a genus of birds in the francolin group of the family Phasianidae.

References

  1. 1 2 BirdLife International (2016). "Francolinus gularis". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2016: e.T22678733A92785771.
  2. Mandiwana-Neudani, T.G.; Little, R.M.; Crowe, T. M.; Bowie, R.C.K. (2019). "Taxonomy, phylogeny and biogeography of African spurfowls Galliformes, Phasianidae, Phasianinae, Coturnicini: Pternistis spp" (PDF). Ostrich. 90 (2): 145–172. doi:10.2989/00306525.2019.1584925. S2CID   195417777.
  3. Kimball, R.T.; Hosner, P.A.; Braun, E.L. (2021). "A phylogenomic supermatrix of Galliformes (Landfowl) reveals biased branch lengths". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 158: 107091. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2021.107091. PMID   33545275. S2CID   231963063.
  4. "Taxonomic Updates – IOC World Bird List" . Retrieved 2021-07-14.
  5. Baral, H.S., Inskipp, C. (2009). The Birds of Sukla Phanta Wildlife Reserve, Nepal Archived 2011-07-21 at the Wayback Machine . Our Nature 7: 56–81.