Bearded bustard

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Bearded bustard
BengalFlorican.jpg

Bearded bustard ( Houbaropsis bengalensis )

Systematics
Class : Birds (aves)
Order : Otidiformes
Family : Bustards (Otididae)
Genre : Houbaropsis
Type : Bearded bustard
Scientific name of the  genus
Houbaropsis
Sharpe , 1893
Scientific name of the  species
Houbaropsis bengalensis
( Gmelin , 1789)

The bearded bustard ( Houbaropsis bengalensis ) is a very rare species of bustard , the only one of the genus Houbaropsis . It occurs in tropical areas of Asia and is threatened with extinction (according to IUCN Red List 2009: critically endangered ).

features

The bustard reaches a size of 66 to 68 centimeters. Adult male birds have black plumage with white wings that are completely white with black tips when in flight. Female and young birds are brownish to reddish-brown and have yellow-brown wings with thin dark stripes. The feet and legs are yellow, the beak and iris are dark.

habitat

Bearded bustards live in lower-lying dry and seasonally flooded natural grasslands, which are often interspersed with scattered shrubbery and open forest areas. Most Indian populations appear to be sedentary, while those in Cambodia migrate over short distances. In the vicinity of Tonle Sap, they breed in the flooded grasslands of the lake during the dry season and migrate to more forested areas nearby at the beginning of the rainy season.

Distribution of populations

There are two distinct populations:

  • On the Indian subcontinent , bearded bustards are native to Uttar Pradesh , Assam , Arunachal Pradesh and the Terai of Nepal . This population is extremely small and defragmented with 220-280 birds in India and around 50 birds in Nepal. While the Indian populations appear to have stabilized, the numbers of individuals in Chitwan National Park in Nepal have declined. According to an estimate from 2007, only 28–36 adult birds survive in Nepal, while in 2001 there were still 32–60.
  • In southeast Asia, bearded bustards are native to Cambodia and perhaps still to the south of Vietnam . In a survey from 2006–2007, ornithologists estimate the population at 368-1,480 birds. More than half of them live in seasonally flooded grasslands in Kompong Thom Province . According to this estimate, the population has decreased rapidly within a few years as a result of habitat loss. While there were around 3,000 individuals in 1997, bird conservationists fear the Cambodian population will be extinct by 2012 if the loss of natural grassland cannot be stopped.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ LP Poudyal, PB Singh, S. Maharjan: The Decline of Bengal Florican Houbaropsis bengalensis in Nepal. In: Danphe. Volume 17, No. 1, 2008, pp. 4-6. (Full text as pdf)

literature

  • N. Baral, N. Timilsina, B. Tamang: Status of Bengal Florican Houbaropsis bengalensis in Nepal. In: Forktail. Volume 19, 2003, pp. 51-55. (PDF file)
  • R. Grimmett, C. and T. Inskipp: Birds of the Indian Subcontinent. Christopher Helm, London 1998, ISBN 0-7136-4004-9 .
  • J. Hoyo, A. Elliott, DA Christie: Handbook of the Birds of the World. Volume 3: Hoatzins to Auks. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona 1996, ISBN 84-87334-20-2 .

Web links

Commons : Bearded Bustard ( Houbaropsis bengalensis )  - Collection of images, videos and audio files