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Birdwatching in Middle East - Arabian Partridge, Alectoris melanocephala



Dear www.aladdin .st,

Thank you for being a part of eBird. To help make sure that eBird can be used for scientific research, volunteers like me follow up on unusual sightings as a part of the eBird data quality process.

I am writing about the following observation:

Species: Chukar
Count: 6
Observation Date: Dec 1, 2018
Location: Jebel Hafeet, Abu Dhabi, AE
https://ebird.org/checklist/S50769948

This is a domesticated Arabian Partridge

Thank you again for your contributions to eBird—your sightings help to make eBird useful to millions of people each year, providing real-time bird sightings and powering eBird science around the world.

The Arabian Partridge (Alectoris melanocephala) is a species of bird in the family Phasianidae, native to the southern Arabian peninsula. Two subspecies are recognised, A. m. melanocephala and A. m. guichardi. It sometimes hybridises with Philby's partridge (Alectoris philbyi) and with the rock partridge (Alectoris graeca).

Distribution and habitat
The Arabian partridge is native to southern Saudi Arabia, Yemen and western Oman. The subspecies A. m. guichardi occurs in eastern Hadramut and eastern Yemen and A. m. melanocephala occurs in the rest of the range. It is found on grassy slopes and stony ground with a reasonable amount of vegetation cover, from near sea level to an altitude of about 1,400 metres.

Arabian Partridge, Alectoris melanocephala

Range map
Range map from www.oiseaux.net - Ornithological Portal Oiseaux.net
www.oiseaux.net is one of those MUST visit pages if you're in to bird watching. You can find just about everything there


Description
Larger than other members of its genus, Alectoris, the Arabian partridge reaches a length of about 41 cm. The sexes are similar in appearance but males are a little larger than females weighing on average 724 grams against the female's 522 grams. The crown and nape are black and there is a broad white band above the eye, separated from the white chin and upper throat by a narrow black line.

This starts at the corner of the beak, passes below the eye and forms a "V" shape on the neck. The sides of the neck are pale brown and the body, wings and tail are bluish-grey with much dark barring on the flanks. The legs and beak are pink. Males have a knob on the tarsus (lower leg)

Length: 41 cm
Wingspan:
Weight: Female 522 g    Male 724 g
Longevity:
Distinctive Feature

Similar Species



From opus at www.birdforum.net
Female / Male

Males have a tarsal knob. Females are slightly smaller.

From opus at www.birdforum.net


Listen to the Arabian Partridge

www.xeno-canto.org



Behaviour
A ground-dwelling bird, it feeds on seeds, other plant material such as Mediterranean grass and cudweed, and small invertebrates. The breeding season starts in March and a clutch of five to eight eggs is laid in a shallow scoop on the ground. The eggs are pale buff flecked with brown and are incubated for about 25 days before hatching into precocial young that are soon able to leave the nest.

Status
The Arabian partridge has a wide range and is common in many parts of this. The total size of the population is unknown but the population trend appears to be steady. For these reasons, the International Union for Conservation of Nature has assessed the bird's conservation status as being of "least concern"

Conservation status
Arabian Partridge, Alectoris melanocephala
Least Concern (IUCN 3.1)
IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN. 2012. Retrieved 26 November 2013.



From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

www.birdforum.net


Sighted: 1 December 2018 (Date of first photo that I could use)
Location: Mercure Grand Jebel Hafeet Al Ain Hotel, UAE


Arabian Partridge, Alectoris melanocephala
Arabian Partridge - Mercure Grand Jebel Hafeet Al Ain Hotel, UAE - 1 December 2018

Arabian Partridge, Alectoris melanocephala
Arabian Partridge - Mercure Grand Jebel Hafeet Al Ain Hotel, UAE - 1 December 2018

Arabian Partridge, Alectoris melanocephala
Arabian Partridge - Mercure Grand Jebel Hafeet Al Ain Hotel, UAE - 1 December 2018



PLEASE! If I have made any mistakes identifying any bird, PLEASE let me know on my guestbook



       
                  



                                       

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