Swierstra's Francolin

The Swierstrafrankolin ( Francolinus swierstrai ) is a bird of the genus Frankoline from the family of pheasant -like. With a portfolio of live specimens from 2.500 to 9.999, he is since 1988 as an endangered species

Features

The Swierstrafrankolin is about 33 cm long. Its plumage is black and white, his legs and wings are bright red. The male has a black and white striped feathers with a broad black breast band on a white background and a black spotted abdomen. The upper body is seen close-up of a very dark brown. The female has a similar patterned abdomen as the male, but has a lighter rust-brown color on the back and wings on. His voice is similar in chatter bamboo francolin and the Hildebrandt 's Francolin.

Dissemination

The Swierstrafrankolin is native only to the west of Angola. There he is spread by Tundavala in Hila district on the north by Cariango in Suanza Sul district, on the island mountains in Huambo district and in the Bailundu Highlands. In the Bailundu Highlands he lives on Mount Moco in deep wooded gorges. There exist about 15 hectares, the largest remaining stocks of original Afro- montane forests in Angola.

Way of life

The Swierstrafrankolin is native to montane area where he lives mainly in forests and at the edges of forests. But he was already observed on rocky and grassy mountain slopes, large grass savannas on mountain plateaus and canyons. He's hiding in the dense undergrowth of bushes, shrubs, tall grass and fern. The Swierstrafrankolin feeds on grass seeds and the seeds of legumes. He also eats insects, which he pecks of the leaf litter. Its breeding behavior is virtually unexplored, but specimens that were seen in August, put a breeding season from May to June next. On Mount Moco the Swierstrafrankolin of propagating clearings and fire clearance is threatened, and the remaining forests are increasingly disappearing rapidly. Also, hunting is a serious problem. Already in the 1970s it was proposed to build a 60 km ² large reserve at Mount Moco. This plan was, however, not yet been implemented.