Orange River Francolin
Scleroptila gutturalis
Medium-sized, beautifully-patterned francolin. Shows rufous patches in the wings in flight. Found on the ground in areas with thick grass, including pure grassland and open savanna. Shy and retiring. Loud call is a quickly repeated “chuk-a-cheiw”. Similar to several other francolin species, which also show rufous in the wing. Lacks the belly barring of Shelley’s Francolin, has a black necklace unlike Red-winged Francolin, and found at lower elevations than the mountain-dwelling Moorland Francolin.
Identification
The Orange River francolin (Scleroptila gutturalis) is a species of bird in the family Phasianidae found in grassland and woodland in Africa. In the taxa from the northern part of its distribution (Ethiopia, South Sudan, Somalia, Uganda and Kenya), the neck-line does not reach the eye and the belly is whitish. In the southern taxa (Angola, Namibia, Botswana, South Africa and Lesotho) the neck-line reaches the eye and the belly is buff. This has led some authorities to treat them as separate species: The Archer's or acacia francolin (S. gutturalis with subspecies lorti) in the north, and the Orange River francolin (S. levaillantoides with subspecies jugularis) in the south.
Taxonomy
Genus: Scleroptila; Family: Phasianidae; Order: Galliformes.
- Scientific name
- Scleroptila gutturalis
- Authority
- (Rüppell, 1835)
- Order
- Galliformes
- Family
- Phasianidae
- Genus
- Scleroptila
Range and habitat
- Migration
- Resident species
Behavior
Migration pattern: Resident species.
Conservation
Population trend: stable.
- Population trend
- stable
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
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