Harwood's Francolin

The Harwoodfrankolin ( Francolinus harwoodi ) is a bird of the genus Frankoline from the family of pheasant -like. With a portfolio of 10000-19999 living specimens he has applied since 1988 as an endangered species

Features

The Harwoodfrankolin is 30-34 cm long, round and quite small. Its plumage is entirely black and with thick stripes on the abdomen. Its beak and skin around the eyes are red. His loud, hoarse - ko - ree exultant sounds clearly in the early morning hours. The best known is the opportunity to observe the bridge over the Blue Nile in the Jemma Valley in Ethiopia.

Dissemination

The Harwoodfrankolin is native only in the highlands of central Ethiopia around the Blue Nile. It has been observed in studies in large numbers in the Jemma Valley and Jara Valley and in the surrounding valleys and in the river basins of the northern Showa Zone in 1996. The maximum population density was 92 birds per 1 km ². It is not known whether the birds between regions switch back and forth. If this is not the case, some of the subsets have a size of more than 1,000 copies. In the inhabited areas also suffer from Harwoodfrankolin for humans great scarcity of resources, so that undergrowth rich areas cleared for use as farmland and trees for the extraction of timber and firewood are made. Thus, the natural habitat of the Harwoodrankolins is effectively destroyed. In addition, the bird is hunted heavily. His eggs are collected and eaten. Therefore, the Harwoodfrankolin is considered endangered.

Way of life

The Harwoodfrankolin preferred as shelter and nesting brambles and cattails. This grows along narrow, shallow watercourses. He also sleeps in brambles on a hillside. The breeding season is from September to December, the clutch size is 4-7 eggs. He seems to be polygamous.