Sand Partridge
Encyclopedia
The Sand Partridge, Ammoperdix heyi, is a gamebird in the pheasant family Phasianidae
of the order Galliformes
, gallinaceous birds.
This partridge
has its main native range from Egypt
and Palestine
east to south Arabia
. It is closely related and similar to its counterpart in southeast Turkey
and east to Pakistan
, the See-see Partridge
, Ammoperdix griseogularis.
This 22-25 cm bird
is a resident breeder in dry, open and often hilly country. It nests in a scantily lined ground scrape laying 5-7 eggs. The Sand Partridge takes a wide variety of seeds and some insect food.
The Sand Partridge is a rotund bird, mainly sandy-brown with wavy white and brown flank stripes. The male has a grey head with a white stripe in front of the eye and a white cheek patch. The neck sides are plain, and not speckled with white. The head pattern is the best distinction from See-see Partridge.
The female is a very washed-out version of the male, and is more difficult to distinguish from its relative due to the weak head pattern.
When disturbed, Sand Partridge prefers to run rather than fly, but if necessary it flies a short distance on rounded wings. The song is a slurred kwa-kwa-kwa.
Phasianidae
The Phasianidae is a family of birds which consists of the pheasants and partridges, including the junglefowl , Old World Quail, francolins, monals and peafowl. The family is a large one, and is occasionally broken up into two subfamilies, the Phasianinae, and the Perdicinae...
of the order Galliformes
Galliformes
Galliformes are an order of heavy-bodied ground-feeding domestic or game bird, containing turkey, grouse, chicken, New and Old World Quail, ptarmigan, partridge, pheasant, and the Cracidae. Common names are gamefowl or gamebirds, landfowl, gallinaceous birds or galliforms...
, gallinaceous birds.
This partridge
Partridge
Partridges are birds in the pheasant family, Phasianidae. They are a non-migratory Old World group.These are medium-sized birds, intermediate between the larger pheasants and the smaller quails. Partridges are native to Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Middle East...
has its main native range from Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
and Palestine
Palestine
Palestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....
east to south Arabia
Arabian Peninsula
The Arabian Peninsula is a land mass situated north-east of Africa. Also known as Arabia or the Arabian subcontinent, it is the world's largest peninsula and covers 3,237,500 km2...
. It is closely related and similar to its counterpart in southeast Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
and east to Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
, the See-see Partridge
See-see Partridge
The See-see Partridge, Ammoperdix griseogularis, is a gamebird in the pheasant family Phasianidae of the order Galliformes, gallinaceous birds....
, Ammoperdix griseogularis.
This 22-25 cm bird
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
is a resident breeder in dry, open and often hilly country. It nests in a scantily lined ground scrape laying 5-7 eggs. The Sand Partridge takes a wide variety of seeds and some insect food.
The Sand Partridge is a rotund bird, mainly sandy-brown with wavy white and brown flank stripes. The male has a grey head with a white stripe in front of the eye and a white cheek patch. The neck sides are plain, and not speckled with white. The head pattern is the best distinction from See-see Partridge.
The female is a very washed-out version of the male, and is more difficult to distinguish from its relative due to the weak head pattern.
When disturbed, Sand Partridge prefers to run rather than fly, but if necessary it flies a short distance on rounded wings. The song is a slurred kwa-kwa-kwa.