- Alectoris chukar
Identification
Length 32-35cm
- Light brown back
- Grey breast
- Buff belly
- White face
- Black gorget
- Rufous-streaked flanks
- Red legs
When disturbed, it prefers to run rather than fly, but if necessary it flies a short distance on rounded wings.
Similar Species
It is very similar to the Rock Partridge, but is browner on the back and has a yellowish tinge to the foreneck. The sharply defined gorget distinguishes this species from the Red-legged Partridge.
Distribution
This partridge has its main (native) range in Asia from Pakistan, India and Afghanistan in the east to southeastern Europe in the west, and is closely related and similar to its western equivalent, the Red-legged Partridge. It has been introduced widely, and became established in the United States, Canada, New Zealand and Hawaii. In Great Britain, hybrids between this species and the also introduced Red-legged Partridge are common.
Taxonomy
There are 14 subspecies.
Habitat
This is a resident breeder in dry, open, and often hilly country.
Behaviour
It nests in a scantily lined ground scrape laying 8 to 20 eggs. Chukars will take a wide variety of seeds and some insects as food; however, Drooping Brome (Cheatgrass) is this species' strong food preference.
This species is relatively unaffected by hunting or loss of habitat due to its remote and physically demanding terrain preferences. Its numbers from year to year are most largely affected by weather patterns during the breeding season.
Vocalisation
The song is a noisy chuck-chuck-chukar-chukar.
