The Birds of Africa Volume II 9781472926999, 9781408190531

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ACIZNOWLEDGEMENTS We are most grateful to our authors for their untiring efforts and co-operation in preparing the species accounts, for providing us with unpublished notes and records, and for their patience during the protracted preparation of this volume for publication. We thank them all for their forbearance with editorial demands during a succession of drafts . We would like to acknowledge with thanks the contribution of referees, many of whom have gone to great lengths to ensure that the species accounts are as accurate and comprehensive as possible. Families have been refereed as follows : Phasianidae, R. K. Brooke, M. Ridley, the late B. W. H. Stronach and P . B. Taylor; Rallidae, P. B. Taylor; also A. Brosset, W. R . J. Dean, the late D . M. Skead and S. L. Olson; Gruidae, G. Archibald and P. Konrad; Heliornithidae, P . Ginn; Otididae, P. S. Jones, G. J. Morel, H. Schulz and W. R. Tarboton; Jacanidae W. R . Tarboton; Rostratulidae, M. de L. Brooke and D. J. Pearson; Dromadidae, C. J. Feare; Haematopodidae, J . Cooper; Recurvirostridae, D. J . Pearson and A. J. Tree; Burhinidae, J. M. Mendelsohn; Glareolidae (Egyptian Plover), J. R. J ehl, J r (coursers), C. J . Vernon, (Glareolinae), C. Erard; Charadriidae (Charadriinae), G. L. Maclean, D. J. Pearson and A . J . Tree, (Vanellinae), C. J. Skead; Scolopacidae (Phalaropodinae), D. J . Pearson, (all others), A. J . Prater; Stercorariidae, J . C. Sinclair; Laridae, J . Cooper and P . J. Grant; Sternidae, P. R . Colston and C. J. Feare; Rynchopidae, M . J . Coe and D . J . Pearson; A1cidae, E. D. H . Johnson; Pteroclidae, D . H . Thomas; and Columbidae, A. Brosset, R. J. Dowsett, F . Dowsett-Lemaire, D. Goodwin and R . de Naurois. As well as writing species accounts or refereeing, G. Archibald, the late C. W. Benson, P; L . Britton, R . K. Brooke, A. Brosset, P. J . Grant, P. A . R. Hock,ey, P. Konrad, G. J. Morel, M.-Y. Morel, D. J. Pearson, A . J. Prater, P. B. Taylor, A. J. Tree and W. R . Tarboton have assisted in many additional ways and we are most thankful to them. We are greatly indebted to the Trustees and staff of: American Museum of Natural History, Department of Ornithology; British Library of Wildlife Sounds; British Museum (Natural History ), Sub-Department of Ornithology; Carnegie Museum of Natural History; Cornell Laboratory for Ornithology; Durban Museum; Field Museum of Natural History, Bird Division; Los Angeles County Museum, Bird Division; Musee Royal de l'Afrique Centrale, Tervuren; Museum of Comparative Zoology, Harvard; Museum Alexander Koenig, Bonn; National Museum of Zimbabwe, Bulawayo; National Museums of Kenya, Nairobi; Percy FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology; Philadelphia Academy of Natural Sciences; Smithsonian Institution, US National Museum of Natural History, Department of Ornithology; and Transvaal Museum, Bird Department, for repeatedly affording study facilities and for loans of numerous study skins. We especially thank P. J. K. Burton, P . A. Clancey, P. Colston, G . R . Cunningham-van Someren, the late B. G . Donnelly, J . Fitzpatrick, I. C. J . Galbraith, F . B. Gill, D . Goodwin, J. Gulledge, A. Harris, M. P. S. Irwin, H. D. Jackson, A. C. Kemp, R. Kettle, P. Lorber, M . Louette, J. Mendelsohn, J . P . Myers, S . L. Olson, K . C. Parkes, R. Paynter, D . Read, R. W . Schreiber, L. L. Short, D . W . Snow, W . R. Siegfried, D. Steadman, M . A. Traylor, M. Walters, G. E . Watson, and D. S . Wood . Further, we are indebted to G. Archibald and K.-L. Schuchmann for organizing meetings respectively at Bharatpur, India (International Crane Workshop) and Bonn, W. Germany (Symposium on African Vertebrates ), and to the organizers of the Vth and Vlth Pan-African Ornithological Congresses at Lilongwe, Malawi, and Francistown, Botswana. We participated in all ofthese meetings, presenting papers stemming from study for Th e Birds of Africa, and were afforded facilities to discuss the enterprise. In writing accounts of Palearctic birds in Africa we have drawn freely on the detailed information in Cramp and Simmons, The Birds of the Western Palearctic, and Glutz and Bauer, Handbuch der Vogel Mitteleuropas, and it is a pleasure to record our debt to the authors of these invaluable compilations. We are especially indebted to S. Cramp and M. Wilson for providing pre-publication information from Volume IV of the former work (now published). We have drawn heavily upon the generosity of correspondents, who have readily responded to queries affecting all aspects of African ornithology. G. C. Backhurst, G. R. Cunningham-van Someren, G . Nikolaus, A . J. Prater, M. D . Rae, T. Salinger, R. W . Schreiber, K.-L. Schuchmann and G. E. Watson provided us with thousands of bird measurements. We have benefitted greatly from the kindness, in providing us with their books and papers in manuscript prior to publication, of W. R. J. Dean and M . A . Huntley (Angola), P . Colston and K . Curry-Lindahl (Mt Nimba), M. K. Rowan (Columbidae), J . M. Thiollay (Ivory Coast) and F. Dowsett-Lemaire (Columbidae). S. M . Goodman, R. W. Storer and Sherif Baha EI Din have provided us with manuscripts, records, food data and measurements from Egypt, and R. W. Schreiber and K . L. Garrett gave us complete data on African specimens in the Los Angeles County Museum. J. D . R. Vernon has provided distributional summaries for Morocco, M. Smart for Tunisia, M. W. Pienkowski for northwest Africa, P . W. P . Browne and B. Lamarche for Mauritania, G. Nikolaus and M. D . Rae for Sudan, and P. Becker for Namibia. M. de L. Brooke, J. Hinshaw, P . C. Lack, H . Lapman, E . Little (and colleagues at Augusta College's Reese Library and Aberdeen University'S Queen Mother Library, Inter-Library Loan Departments), M. W . Pienkowski, A . J. Prater, C. Sibley, G. E. Watson, M. Wil son and staff of Oxford University Edward Grey Institute have been most helpful in obtaining library materials . We are no less indebted for help given in many ways by J. S. Ash, D. R. Aspinwall, P. C. Beaubrun, D . Baird, P . Becker, P. Bergier, v

VI

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

R . K . Brooke , A . Brosset, L. Bortoli, N. Bryant, B. Campbell, J . Carver, M . A. Casado, R . Chancellor, C. Chappuis, D . R . Co llins, H. Q. P. Crick, A. A. Crowe, J . E. W. Dixon, R. J . Douthwaite, R. J. Dowsett, F. Dowsett-Lemaire, E. K . Dunn, J . H. Elgood, C. C. H . Elliott, H. F . I. Elliott, C. Erard, H. Fanshawe, G . D . Field, D . Fisher, R. W . Furness, J . P. Gee, P . Geroudet, P . J . Ginn, H . H . Gray, L. Grimes, J. Gulledge, S. I. Guttman, D . B. Hanmer, P. H ogg, D. J . H olmes, J . H . Hosken, S. Howe, R. Hudson, J. L. Ingold, M. P. S. Irwin, R. A. C. Jensen, M . C. Jennings, R. John s, E. D . H . Johnson, M . Kelsey, P. J. Knight, B. Lamarche, C. Levassor, A. Lewis, Mrs. W. Liell-Cock, P . Lorber, A . Morris, R. de Naurois, J. H. van Niekerk, B. Ochando, R. Osborne, J . R . Peek, E . H . Penry, R. and J . Plunkett, D. Pom eroy, A. Prigogine, R. Ralph, J . F. Reynolds, M . Ridley, D . V . Rockingham-Gill, M . K . rowan, A. Sala, D . Schmidl, J . T. R . Sharrock, W. R. Siegfried, C. J. Skead, G. S. Smith, t . Stevenson, P . Steyn, R . Stj ernstedt, the late B. W . H . Stronach, C. D . Taylor, K . Thangavelu, M . Thevenot, D. H . Thomas, P . Thomsen, R . Thomsen, D . A . Turner, J . P . Vande weghe, L. Walkinshaw, A . J . S . Weaving, G. R. Welch, H. J . Welch and J . B. Wood. We should like to thank the following for permission to redraw black and white line illustrations from their own published or personal references: G. Archibald (Anthropoides paradisea J A. v irgo J Balearica regulorum J B. pavonina J Bugeranus carunculatus and Grus g rus); C. T. Astley Maberly in Bokmakierie (1967) (Eupodotis ruficrista ), in Honeyguide (1979) (Neotis denhami); G. W. Begg ( Vanellus albiceps); G . R. Cunningham van Someren (Actophilornis africana ); H . Deetjen in Journal fur Ornithologie (1969) (Fulica cristata and F. atra ); M . P. L. Fogden in Ibis (1964) (Larus leucopthalmus and L. cirrocephalus ); P. G. H. Frost in the Bulletin of the British Ornithologists' Club (1975 ) (downy young of variou s Phasianidae); C. H. Fry (Podica senegalensis); D . Goodwin in 'Pigeons of the World ', Cornell University Press (1983 ) (Columba livia ), in Avicultural Magazine (1956) (Columba livia J C. guinea J Streptopelia roseogrisea and S. semitorquata ); C. J . O . H arrison in Sandgrouse (1983) (Sterna albifrons and S. saundersi); P . A. R. Hockey (H ae/'lwtopus bachmani and Charadrius marginatus); J . B. D. Hopcraft (Actophilornis africana ); J. Horsfall (Chlamy dolis undulata ); T. R. Howell in University of California Publications in Zoology (1979) (Pluvianus aegyptius); J . H . Van Niekerk in Bokmakierie (1983) (Francolinus swainsonii); G . L. Maclean ( V anellus melanopterus V. coronatus J Pterocles burchelliJ P . namaqua J Burhinus oedicnemusJ B. senegalensis J B. vermiculatus J B. capensis J Cursorius africanus ) and in The Living Bird (1968) (Pterocles namaqua and P. bicinctus); K. A. Muller in Emu (1975) (R ostratula benghalensis); D . Pearson (Gallinago gallinago G. nigripennis and G. stenura); G. P. Schaller (Ardeotis kori); W. Tarboton (Actophilornis africana); J . Terres (Rynchops jlavirostris ); N. Tinbergen in Behaviour (1959) (Larus argentatus); N . Tinbergen & G. Broekhuysen in Ostrich (1925) (Larus hartlaubii); J . Trollope in the Avicultural Magazine (1970) ( Turnix sylv atica ); A. J . Weaving (Actophilornis africana ); B. Wood in the Bulletin of the British Ornithologists' Club (1975) (Streptopelia hypopyrrha). We are especially pleased to have worked with Martin Woodcock who prepared the colour and black and white plates, Ian Willi s who drew the black and white illustrations, Claude Chappuis who prepared the list of acoustic reference s, and Lois Urban who prepared the indexes. We wish to thank the staff of Academic Press (London) Ltd and Fisher Duncan Ltd, particularly Jane Duncan, Moira Fisher, Jennie Morley and Andrew Richford for helping us through an increasingly arduous task . With Volume III already in press, each Editor has accumulated vast files of correspondence and papers . We hope that we have acknowledged all of our numerou s sources of help and apologize to-and ask the forbearance ofanyone whose name has been inadvertently omitted. Finally, we would like to thank our three wives-Kathie Fry, Sallyann Keith and Lois Urban-for their patience, tolerance and understanding during the long hours we have spent preparing this volume. J

J

Jul y 1985

Emil K . Urban C. Hilary Fry Stuart K eith

LIST OF PLATES Facing Page

Plate

Plate

Fa cing Page

1 Francolins, partridges and quail

32

17

Sandpipers

304

2

Francolins

33

18

Sandpipers and phalaropes

305

3

Francolins

48

19

Egyptian Plover, pratincoles

4

Francolins

49

5

Congo Peacock and guineafowl

96

6

Cranes

97

7

Button-quail, crakes and rails

112

8

Rails and flufftails

113

9

Rails, gallinules, coots and finfoots ..

160

10

Bustards

161

11

Bustards

176

12

Jacanas,

painted-snipes, thick-knees, woodcock and snipe

177

Oystercatchers, avocets, stilts, Crab Plover, curlews and godwits

240

14

Lapwings

241

15

Plovers

256

16

Plovers, dotterels, Ruff and turnstones

13

257

IX

coursers

and

320

20

Shorebirds in flight

321

21

Shorebirds in flight

352

22

Skuas, gulls and auks

353

23

Gulls ..

368

24

Gulls ..

369

25

Terns and skimmers

400

26

Terns ..

401

27

Gulls in flight

416

28

Terns in flight

417

29

Sandgrouse

448

30

Pigeons

449

31

Doves

464

32

Doves and green pigeons

465

This page intentionally left blank

Plate 1

(G (

f'~'

~\

~ ChU~ J

io) \

Sand Partridge (p. " Ammoperdix heyi nicol/i

~

Ad. 0'

~~

Alectoris chukar

Barbary Partridge (p.21) Alectoris barbara barbara

Ad. 9

~~~

/ /

(

../

i,'

(

(

\

Stone Partridge (p.23) Ptilopachus petrosus petrosus

Ad.

~

~ ')

/ (~;;I ~!

. \0

l

g COMmx t . , erlan , eri \ ,

R XUfOUS

Ph(ase

~/'\"

1

~

(

~

~

'

Common Quail (p. 14)

~ ~) 0 ,,- ,"", ~ " " Coturnix Coturnix c,oturnix c. coturnix

,

""'::-:urI"'

Ad. 9

Coturnix c. coturnix

I

Ad. 0'

F. a. alb ogu 1\am \ Ad. 9 \

adanwmt

Harlequin Quail (p,18)

F

a~ ~~ ~,,) ~ , . , rh,r A:.e~ttei ~ _

\

,J

"

\

,,)

:::"OHnu,

~

aibogula~

Double-'purred Francolin (p,54)

~~_~~

~\

r

' _, \

White-throated Francolin (p, 31)

FlOntoHnu,

~:lt:a,", bi'")

tu,

~ ~.-~/ ..

F c. 'gedgii'

( = clapper toni)

F c. 'clappertoni'

F c. 'sharpii'

Heugii~ '~~ ·F;;;;~~Ir~"(p .55)

( = clappertoni)

Francolinus icterorhynchus

Ad:·;

32

~

c~~~ ~~~;"::d=:Otg~

"tC\

( F a. albogularis

t hm,"",

_ _

()

~ ~\\C BlueQua~ '~;J ~\ ~ =:fj3£? , Cotu,""

~

12in 30cm

Plate 2

F. s. '1Jvumg. Ad. 0'

F. s. s~1!h~~~! Ad . q

\(

~

~

Orange River Francolin (po 41)

Natal Francolin (po 52)

'pallidior'

=levaillantoides ) Francolinus adspersus

F. I. levaillantoides Ad.

0'

N . B. undertail coverts should be white

Cape Francolin (po 58) ) Francolinus capensis / Ad.

Grey-breasted Francolin (po 72) Francolinus rufopictus Ad. 0'

I

0'

F. a. castaneiventer

F.

tA,~ ;""O'

)

z

Francolinus afer

:~~~~.'~':;Z~~'(~."'~@;~

33

Plate 3

~f?

Latham's Forest Francolin (p.28) Fral1colil1u s lathami

Ad.

0'

Ahanta Francolin (p.45) Fral1colil1us ahal1lensis

Nahan's Francolin (p.47) \

F. s. 'squamatus ' (= squamatus)

_,~ f~

? --~- ~ ~~

Moorland Francolin (p. 40) ~

J!JI~ /

Handsome Francolin (p.62) Francolinus nobilis

Ad. 9 Jackson 's Francolin (p.63) Francolinus jacksoni

Ad.

0'

Djibouti Francolin (p.65) Fran\colinus ochropectus

Ad.

0'

F. c. cas taneicollis Ad.

0'

Grey-striped Francolin (p.46) Francolinus griseos triatus

~ j~

~,

F. c. 'kaffanus' (= castaneicollis) ....;.::,..

(

Francolinus swierstrai

~~O'

~ ~..-".~~ Chestnut-naped Francolin (p.64) Francolinus castaneicollis

48

Swierstra's Francolin (p.60)

+

dPU~.~ . - -=: 12in

30cm

Plate 4

/J>r""'----'-'~.~

Ring-necked F rancoli \ Francolinus n (p.35) streptophorus Ad . V

~

I

\

,

~

~

Harwood's F rancolin (

~~~"t5\

(~

Fe k 0' /

4f~

~

rancolin( Francolinus f znSChl ' p.38) Ad.

0'

~~

Ad. 9

F. l. kikuy uenS1.S A

.

~.~~

.9::.. 2:;

~

~

Grey-wi ng F rancolin ( Francolinu s al ncanus ' (p.36) Ad.

0'

/

12in

30cm

49

Plate 5

~-~~ Black Guineafowl (p.3)

Ag"a"" mg"

('

\

/

)J

Ad

)/~ (

. e Guineafowl Vulturm . (p.7) A cryll~1-!.m . ~lt.l!.,~~'!:..um .-....--"....-...... Ad. "9:.

Ad. 9

N . m. meleagris Ad. 0'

N. m. mitrata Ad. 0'

96

12in 30 cm

i

I

Plate 6

Com m on Crane

( '\,

(p:132)

Grus

J

\

Imm .

I

/ •.....

Imm.

Ad.

/ /

Irane II

(p.133) Wattled s ca runcuialUS

B~~"anu II

Imm.

Imm.

:r:

J

Ad .

Imm.

Bl ack

,

.

pavon ina

Balm'i'~

. 12in 30cm

i

I

97

Plate 7

oTum,! ,Ylv:"a I------, . (: "a:P.718 r:I . . ' .

) '< ~

Little Button-Quail

V - _____ _

,

T h. nana

~~~

. . T. h. hOllenlOlla

'~~~~

corn~:::,;~.>~~ ~

~~~

Afr;can

2.

~

Crak~ (p~98j

~~.,,~ .

')

.

Ad.

Ad.

Porzana pus ilia intermedia "~::

Imm.

.= -.',== 'r-" . ..-/

Ad.

(J'

»

Little

C;;ke (p. 1(6)

/\ .

Ad.

11 2

~ ~ ..

Ad. non·bmding

12in

30cm

/

Plate 8

(~ Himaffl";~ha'ma~/

~~ ~\if'

-~'J

Grey~~~~~;:;:~~

p ..,...--..--.---

'\

~

~;~

Imm.

)

;

Rouget's Rail (p. 101)

R"ug,~ r-A~d_.~_ / /

0'

rl

':W ::::~~= hl::: ~::::.s::::' po"""'tte"7' d ~Fflu~ ff:-: ta-;t il (p.87) Sarothrura pulchra

4 12in

30cm

9"

,J~

i

I

113

Plate 9

\

•. A d.

/

'Lesser Moorhen (p.125)

Gallin~~~

P. p. porphyria Ad. madagascariensis Ad.

Purple Gallinule (p. 118) Porphyria martinica Ad. Ad.

Eurasian

(~ '---;1 .'.. . . . .

'-

160

12in

30cm

0'

Plate 10

.'."

Ad.

(

0'

.

u. w

•• ~'.,

non-breeding

Kori Bustard (p. 159) Ardeolis kori strlllhilincu/IiS Ad. 0'

]

Ad. a~ Arabian Bustard (p. 158) Ardeotis arabs stieberi

~

) ~

~J(;~ ____ Nubian Bustard (p . 154) Neolis nuba nuba Ad.

0'

Ad.

0'

Houbara (p. 156) Chlamy dolis undulata undulala

/'

Ad.

Ad. 9 0'

Heuglin's Bustard (p.155) Neotis heuglinii

)

Little Bustard (p. 149) Teo'ax tetrax tetrax

~ \-1 (

N. d. jacksoni ,

?

",w"',,.,.,....

\

~, ~ A:U:Wi~;~

.... ..•........ __ ..,.....,._-....::,~,

Denham's Bustard (p.151) Neotis denhami denhami Ad.

Bu"ard (p.153) Ad.

0'

~

IJ J

J

0'

IT

JJ

12in 30cm

161

Plate 11

1(5\

Ad. 9

Little Brown Bustard (p.171) Eupodotis humilis Ad.

0'

~

Riippell's Korhaan (p. 170)

EUPO~

::P:Hi

Jj Karoo Korhaan (p. 169) Eupodotis vigorsii v igorsii Ad.

0'

~Bi~~k K~;h;~~ ' (p; i68) Eupodotis afra afraoides

-

-

---,

x'a:o:

/

~/ 176

12in 30cm

I

I

Plate 12

~

Water Thick-knee (p.203)

/

_" ~~~ J

Senegal Thick-knee (p.201) ..!!~!.~!'!:us sen:ra../e_n_si_s _

f-

Jack Snipe (p.299) Lymnocryptes minimus -

-

Pintail

-,

.~--~~

sniP~ 300)~

Conunon Snipe (p. Gallinago gallinago gallinago

~

~"

Greater Painted-Snipe (p . 186) R ostratula benghalensis benghalensis ','':'':'
C;> , but no marked plumage dimorphi sm . Ceres cartilaginou s, bills and legs red or orange-red, usually with two spurs. Calls nasal and raucous; roost in trees. Largely confined to tropical forests within 15° of equator. Plate 3 (Opp . p . 48)

Fr ancolinus s q u amatus Cassin. Scaly F rancolin. F rancolin ecaille. Francolinus squamatus Cassin, 1857. Proc. Acad . Sci . Philad., 8, p . 321; Cape Lopez, Gabon. Forms a superspecies with F. ahantensis and F. griseostriatus. R a n ge a nd S tatu s . Endemic resident, almost entirely confined to belt of equatorial Africa between lOON and laOS. Distribution rather patchy; found from S-central Nigeria south through Gabon to extreme W Zaire, and from Cameroon east in belt along northern edge of main forest block to Uganda, SW Ethiopia, central Kenya and highlands of N and E Tanzania and N Malawi. Also in highland s of E Zaire, Rwanda, Burundi and W T anzania, and in di sjunct populations in Cabinda, central and S Zaire, and Jebel Marra (W-central Sudan). Locally common to abundant, e.g. in vicinity of Owerri (Nigeria) outnumbers Double-spurred Francolin F. bicalcaratus by c. 20 to 1. Forest destruction and trapping may lead to local extinction. D escription. ADULT 6 : forehead and crown uniform greybrown, sup ercilium light grey; sid es of h ead pale grey-brown, feathers tipped darker. M antle to mid- back dark brownish grey, feat hers irregularly m argined with buff and den sely vermicu lated with black; remaining upperparts greyish brown densely vermiculated and irregularly barred with buff. Throat buff; breast grey-brown, underparts greyish buff, densely vermiculated darker, especiall y on feather margins, producing

Francolinus squama/us

:.'.

~'

,~I

(

r--/', I ..... '

I I

I I

"

,

"

F rancolinus ahantensis scal y effect. Undertail-coverts dark grey, densely ve rmiculated with black and edged with buff. Flight-feathers uniform grey, inner secondaries spotted with black. Upper mandible dark brown, lower mandible orange; eye dark brown; naked skin above ear greyish yellow; legs orange. ADULT ~ : like J but ave rages smaller. SIZE: (47 J J , 60 c;?