Yellow-necked Spurfowl Pternistis leucoscepus Scientific name definitions

33–36 cm (1 Madge, S., and P. McGowan (2002). Pheasants, Partridges and Grouse, including Buttonquails, Sandgrouse and Allies. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ); male 615–896 g, female 400–615 g. Large francolin with orange-red bare skin around eye . Only francolin with bare yellow skin on throat and foreneck; large buff patch in primaries conspicuous in flight; black bill separates present species from darker P. afer, and from P. rufopictus is also distinguished by yellow bare skin around eyes (2 Urban, E. K., C. H. Fry, and S. Keith, Editors (1986). The Birds of Africa. Volume 2. Academic Press, London, UK. Close ). Female  averages smaller and has shorter spurs  (male has two spurs) (1 Madge, S., and P. McGowan (2002). Pheasants, Partridges and Grouse, including Buttonquails, Sandgrouse and Allies. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ). Iris brown, bill  black with reddish base, facial skin red and legs brownish black (1 Madge, S., and P. McGowan (2002). Pheasants, Partridges and Grouse, including Buttonquails, Sandgrouse and Allies. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ). Juvenile  duller and less distinctly marked, with greyer narrowly white-streaked underparts, buff-vermiculated upperparts, and paler facial and throat skin (1 Madge, S., and P. McGowan (2002). Pheasants, Partridges and Grouse, including Buttonquails, Sandgrouse and Allies. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ).

Eritrea S through Ethiopia to SE South Sudan, NE Uganda, Kenya, N & S Somalia and NC Tanzania.

Inhabits both natural habitats and those altered by man, appearing to prefer Acacia/Commiphora bush with mixed annual and perennial grasses, and typically 200–400 mm of rain per year; in Ethiopia and Eritrea, in open grasslands, light thornbush, scrub and Salvadora thicket (4 Ash, J. S., and J. Atkins (2009). Birds of Ethiopia and Eritrea: An Atlas of Distribution. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ). Occurs from sea-level to 2400 m (1 Madge, S., and P. McGowan (2002). Pheasants, Partridges and Grouse, including Buttonquails, Sandgrouse and Allies. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ). Believed to be reasonably adaptable, and occurs in cultivation, including that within woodland, but only where human population fairly sparse.

Sedentary. In early morning may walk or fly hundreds of metres to particular areas, e.g. of crops, to feed. When alarmed runs or flies to cover.

In S Kenya and Tanzania, feeds predominantly on sedge tubers, especially Cyperus rotundus, which constitute over 50% by volume over year; fruits and seeds of herbs and grasses, mainly Commelina, Urochloa and Oxygonum, 12·7% by volume over year; wide range of other plant matter of nearly 30 species, primarily seeds, amounting to 16·2%; also insects, 18·8%, mainly termites, 17·5%. Follows elephants and rhinos to scratch around in fresh droppings, presumably for undigested food items (2 Urban, E. K., C. H. Fry, and S. Keith, Editors (1986). The Birds of Africa. Volume 2. Academic Press, London, UK. Close ). During dry season, sedge tubers are main food, but these possibly drop to 7–18% by volume after rain, when grass and herb seeds become more important, and insects even more so until seeds have set. May also feed on fallen grain and legume crops around harvest time. Scratches loose ground  with feet and eats food items exposed; sometimes takes grit at roadsides (2 Urban, E. K., C. H. Fry, and S. Keith, Editors (1986). The Birds of Africa. Volume 2. Academic Press, London, UK. Close ). Feeds for 1–1·5 hours in morning and again in late afternoon (2 Urban, E. K., C. H. Fry, and S. Keith, Editors (1986). The Birds of Africa. Volume 2. Academic Press, London, UK. Close ). Seldom drinks (2 Urban, E. K., C. H. Fry, and S. Keith, Editors (1986). The Birds of Africa. Volume 2. Academic Press, London, UK. Close ). Usually recorded in small, scattered coveys, occasionally up to 30 together (4 Ash, J. S., and J. Atkins (2009). Birds of Ethiopia and Eritrea: An Atlas of Distribution. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ).

Advertising call, given from termite mound, fence post or low tree (occasionally the ground) (2 Urban, E. K., C. H. Fry, and S. Keith, Editors (1986). The Birds of Africa. Volume 2. Academic Press, London, UK. Close ), similar to but slightly lower-pitched than P. afer, a loud grating “ko-waarrk, ko-waarrk, ko-weeark”, sometimes becoming more prolonged but fading in pitch towards terminus (1 Madge, S., and P. McGowan (2002). Pheasants, Partridges and Grouse, including Buttonquails, Sandgrouse and Allies. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ).

Breeds late in rains if possible, so that hatching is in cool dry season. Nesting mainly May–Jul in Kenya and N Tanzania, but recorded in every month except Feb; apparently year-round in Ethiopia, though no records in Sept–Oct (4 Ash, J. S., and J. Atkins (2009). Birds of Ethiopia and Eritrea: An Atlas of Distribution. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ); and young seen in early Feb in Somalia (5 Ash, J. S., and J. E. Miskell (1998). Birds of Somalia. Pica Press, Robertsbridge, UK. Close ). Monogamous and territorial during breeding season; rains are likely to stimulate breeding activity. Nest is a scrape, sometimes sparsely (1 Madge, S., and P. McGowan (2002). Pheasants, Partridges and Grouse, including Buttonquails, Sandgrouse and Allies. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ) lined with grass, feathers, etc. In areas and times of low rainfall only a few pairs may form and no breeding may take place. Usually five creamy to pale pinkish-buff eggs speckled darker (1 Madge, S., and P. McGowan (2002). Pheasants, Partridges and Grouse, including Buttonquails, Sandgrouse and Allies. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ) (3–8) but up to 17 recorded, presumably the product of two females (1 Madge, S., and P. McGowan (2002). Pheasants, Partridges and Grouse, including Buttonquails, Sandgrouse and Allies. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ), size 43–47·3 mm × 32–37·8 mm, c. 31 g (2 Urban, E. K., C. H. Fry, and S. Keith, Editors (1986). The Birds of Africa. Volume 2. Academic Press, London, UK. Close ); incubation 18–20 days; downy chicks have dark brown broad central stripe above, buffy underparts. Chicks  leave nest at c. 24 hours and stay with parents until adult size; at 4–6 weeks full set of juvenile primaries complete; spurs erupt around 18th week. Where there are two rainy seasons, family groups split at onset of following rains; where only one rainy season, may remain together until next breeding season. Many broods fail: average 4·3 chicks remain at 10–14 weeks; survival to adulthood probably < 2 birds/pair/year.

Not globally threatened (Least Concern). Mace Lande: safe. Occurs in suitable habitat throughout area of more than 2,000,000 km². Considered frequent overall, but is common in some areas; in Kenya, densities of 81 birds/km² and 78 birds/km² recorded in suitable habitat at Selengei and Olturot respectively, down to c. 2 birds/km² in wooded brushland; now extinct in extensive tracts of the country. Frequent to common in Ethiopia and Somalia (where range recently extended) (6 Mills, M. S. L., and C. Cohen (2015). Birds of Somalia: new records, range extensions and observations from Somaliland. Scopus 34:31–39. Close ), but numbers have decreased in some parts of the first-named country as a result of hunting, capture for food and grazing pressure (4 Ash, J. S., and J. Atkins (2009). Birds of Ethiopia and Eritrea: An Atlas of Distribution. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ); formerly considered the commonest francolin in N Karamoja, NE Uganda, but no recent information from this region (7 Carswell, M., D. Pomeroy, J. Reynolds, and H. Tushabe (2005). The Bird Atlas of Uganda. British Ornithologists’ Club and British Ornithologists' Union, Oxford, UK. Close ). Numbers generally higher in cultivation; species can tolerate some human settlements, but retreats from densely populated areas. Decline in Kenya partly due to use of nylon in making snares for trapping; species easily trapped at edges of cultivation. Not in need of conservation attention, but extent of local extinctions should be monitored.