Swierstra's spurfowl

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Swierstra's spurfowl
Swierstra-s Spurfowl 143ND500 DSC1518.jpg
Swierstra's spurfowl in Angola
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Galliformes
Family: Phasianidae
Genus: Pternistis
Species:
P. swierstrai
Binomial name
Pternistis swierstrai
(Roberts, 1929)
Synonyms

Francolinus swierstrai

Swierstra's spurfowl (Pternistis swierstrai) is a species of bird in the family Phasianidae. It is found only in Angola in the rapidly shrinking Afromontane forests of peaks such as Mount Moco and Mount Soque. [2]

Contents

Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montane forests. It is threatened by habitat loss.

The scientific name commemorates the South African entomologist Cornelis Jacobus Swierstra.

Taxonomy

Swierstra's spurfowl was described in 1929 by the South African zoologist Austin Roberts from a specimen that had been collected in Mombola, Angola. He coined the binomial name Chaetopus swierstrai, choosing the specific epithet to honour the South African entomologist Cornelis Jacobus Swierstra. [3] The species is now placed in the genus Pternistis that was introduced by the German naturalist Johann Georg Wagler in 1832. [4] [5] Swierstra's spurfowl is monotypic: no subspecies are recognised. [5]

Related Research Articles

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Erckel's spurfowl, also known as Erckel's francolin, is a species of game bird in the family Phasianidae.

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

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

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<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.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yellow-necked spurfowl</span> Species of bird

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

The scaly spurfowl is a species of bird in the family Phasianidae. It is found in Angola, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Kenya, Malawi, Nigeria, Rwanda, São Tomé and Príncipe, Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda.

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Swainson's spurfowl or Swainson's francolin is a species of bird in the family Phasianidae. It is found in Angola, Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Eswatini, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. In the Shona language in Zimbabwe, this bird is called the chikwari or horwe and is considered a delicacy by outdoor and hunting enthusiasts.

<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.

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

The black-fronted spurfowl is a bird species in the family Phasianidae. It is a large species of francolin. It is endemic to Ethiopia. It was formerly considered a subspecies of the chestnut-naped spurfowl.

References

  1. BirdLife International (2016). "Pternistis swierstrai". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2016: e.T22678896A92793729. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22678896A92793729.en . Retrieved 17 November 2021.
  2. Hirschfeld, Erik; Swash, Andy; Still, Robert (2013). The World's Rarest Birds. Princeton University Press. p. 77. ISBN   9781400844906.
  3. Roberts, Austin (1929). "New forms of African birds". Annals of the Transvaal Museum. 13: 71–81 [72].
  4. Wagler, Johann Georg (1832). "Neue Sippen und Gattungen der Säugthiere und Vögel". Isis von Oken (in German and Latin). cols 1218–1235 [1229].
  5. 1 2 Gill, Frank; Donsker, David; Rasmussen, Pamela, eds. (2020). "Pheasants, partridges, francolins". IOC World Bird List Version 10.1. International Ornithologists' Union. Retrieved 11 February 2020.