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AVES: BIRDS
SCIENTIFIC NAME: AEGYPIUS
MONACHUS
COMMON NAME: CINEROUS VULTURE OR EURASIAN BLACK VULTURE
ORDER: ACCIPITRIFORMES
FAMILY: ACCIPITRIDAE
GENUS: AEGYPIUS
Physical Description
It is the largest and most handsome of vultures,
measuring 100-110cm in length and having an enormous wingspan
measuring 250-295cm. Females have a wing length that is about
5 cm. longer than that of the males. Females also weigh more than
males do (males weigh from 7 to 11.5kg and females weigh from
7.5 to 12.5kg).
The bird is a uniform dark chocolate brown all
over and has a short wedge-shaped tail. The vulture’s bill is
compressed and black in colour but has a pale purple cere that
goes well on a pale pink face and nape. The absolutely bare crown
gives it a distinct profile. There is a tuft of spiky feathers
ascending the rear part of its neck and on its chin and throat.
The shoulders and neck ruff of a sub-adult bird is pale brown,
while that of a nestling is brownish-grey.
Habitat, Distribution and Feeding Patterns
There is some breeding throughout Balochistan
and the tribal areas of NWFP, as well as migration to lower Sindh
in the winter. Some birds migrate to the Thar and Cholistan deserts
and to the Potohar plateau around Rawalpindi. During the 1950s
sizable groups of Cinerous Vultures could be seen on the outskirts
of Karachi at refuse dumps. They have also been sighted at the
Khadeji Falls, which is a favourite winter roosting ground. They
perch on trees but prefer flat ground surfaces and can take off
from the ground in just 2-3 steps.
They feed on the carcasses of both large and small
animals (sheep, camels etc).
Breeding and Other Patterns/Habits
Vultures form pair bonds that are long lasting
and possibly life long. They nest solitarily and choose nesting
sites that are usually at the top of juniper trees. The same nest
is reoccupied and repaired by the couple year after year. Over
time the nests become an enormous structure that can measure anywhere
up to 2m wide and 1.8m deep.
A single egg is laid, which is whitish in colour
covered in light brown patches with dark maroon and brown streaks.
Incubation period lasts from 52 to 55 days during which time both
parents take part in sitting on the egg. Both parents also feed
the young by regurgitating food on to the nest floor.
Cinerous Vultures are usually silent animals but
have been observed making loud squawking or roaring noises (Stuart
Baker). Other reports state that they make constant croaking and
hissing sounds while feeding on a carcass.
Status
Their numbers have diminished due to several factors.
One of them is the demand by European and American zoos to display
these rather magnificent birds. The other factor is the recent
epidemic of an unknown infectious disease. Due to this they appear
to be sick and are often perched with their necks hanging limp.
After about a month of being in this state, they invariably die.
Various groups are now working towards identifying the cause of
this disease and its method of treatment. Vultures are nature’s
most efficient scavengers, and it is because of this fact that
their decline is so disturbing.
2000 Red List Status:
Low risk / near threatened
SCIENTIFIC NAME: PAVO
CRISTATUS
COMMON NAME: INDIAN PEAFOWL
ORDER: GALLIFORMES
FAMILY: PHASIANIDAE
GENUS: PAVO
Physical Description
It is a long legged and long necked bird, whose
size is comparable to that of a domestic turkey. The average length
of a male is 92-122cm, while females measure from 80-90cm. The
wingspan measures 240cm; males can weigh up to 5 kg and females
can weigh 2.75 to 4kg.
There is a distinct difference in colour between
the sexes. The males have an iridescent dark blue head, neck and
breast. This intensity of colour is offset by a white cheek patch,
which consists of bare skin. There is a fan shaped crest of short
black quills on the crown, topped by small iridescent green tips.
His mantle and back are a brilliant golden/bronzy green and each
feather is margined in black. Both the lower belly and under-wing
coverts are also black. The tail is wedge-shaped and a dull grey-brown,
and is usually hidden underneath a greatly elongated and decorated
upper tail that forms the beautiful train.
The train measures from 140 to 160cm and consists
of long, bronzy green feathers that almost always end in the famous
ocelli, better known as the Peacock’s ‘eyes’. Each eye is roughly
pear shaped, being broader at its base. It comprises of an inner
purplish pupil that is surrounded by blue and then a copper coloured
disc. An outer rim of green and dark bronze encloses the entire
pattern. The long, powerful thighs are light brown and the legs
and feet are a dark brown colour.
Females are less brilliantly coloured or attractive
than males. They have similar crests as males but have rugged
brown napes and grey-brown necks and backs. The lower neck has
a metallic green gloss to it. They have dull white bellies, chestnut
flight feathers and dark brown tails with whitish tips.
Habitat, Distribution and Feeding Patterns
Indian peafowl is found around the north-eastern
border regions of the Punjab as well as in the south-eastern corner
of Sindh. Their numbers are, however, dwindling. In the 1940s
they were quite abundant in many areas in Sindh with sufficient
water supplies, such as the Sanghar and Mirpurkhas Districts.
But after independence they were shot down in increasing numbers
by hunters who, unlike the predominantly Hindu community of Tharparkar,
did not regard these birds as sacred.
Today there is a larger number of birds in the
extreme southern border regions where the Hindu community still
protects them. There also seems to be a large population around
the Kallar Kahar Lake in the Salt Range, mainly due to the fact
that the birds roost in a local mosque. A sizeable wild population
still exists in the foothills of Sialkot. They feed mainly during
the early morning hours and ,at around the same time, have been
seen coming to water bodies to drink. They are largely omnivorous
birds and feed on flower buds, green shoots, insects, seeds and
small lizards. They have also been known to kill and eat snakes.
Breeding and Other Patterns/Habits
Peacocks are well known for their courtship dance.
Each male has his own particular dancing ground in which he will
fan his train during the early morning and late afternoon. The
dance consists of raising the train upright over their backs and
quivering the feathers. This causes an audible rustle of quills,
especially when the peacock begins to step in a kind of dancing
motion.
The peahens usually lay their eggs in hollows that
are scraped out of the bare earth and then covered with a pile
of brushwood. The incubation period of the eggs is about 28 days
long. There are 4 to 6 eggs in a clutch, of a creamy white colour
and occasionally speckled red-brown like the eggs of a domestic
turkey. The females are very attentive to the needs of their young
ones.
The Peacock emits a loud trumpet-like scream, which
sounds like ‘mee-haw’. This happens at dusk when the birds ascend
into trees to roost for the night. Adults communicate danger or
alarm by emitting an explosive, horn sounding ‘baap’. However
females warn their young of danger by making rapid ‘kor-kor’ or
‘ko-ko-ko’ sounds.
2000 Red List Status:
Not present
SCIENTIFIC NAME: CHLAMYDOTIS
UNDULATA
COMMON NAME: HOUBARA BUSTARD OR MCQUEEN’S BUSTARD
SUB-SPECIES: CHLAMYDOTIS UNDULATA MACQUEENII
ORDER: GRUIFORMES
FAMILY: OTIDIDAE
GENUS: CHLAMYDOTIS
Physical Description
The Houbara or McQueen’s Bustard has a body length
of 55-65cm, with a tail length of 18cm. Its wing span measures
from 135cm to 170cm with an individual wing length of usually
41cm. Average males weigh up to 1,700 grams, while females weigh
up to 1,900 grams (Stuart Baker).
They have long thin necks and legs. The entire
upper portion of their bodies is a sandy colour, which is marked
with fine winding patterns of grey and black. The females are
somewhat smaller than males but have a similar plumage. The Houbara
Bustards have broad square tipped tails with grey crossbars at
the edge. The lower breast and body are entirely white and the
crown is black with a narrow, white, down-curved crest of feathers.
They have two conspicuous bands of fine black feathers that run
down either side of the bird’s neck (these feathers are black
at the base and tip, and white in the center). Both the long crest
of crown feathers and the feathers along the side and upper breast
become erect during the courtship display. The lower part of the
breast is a blue-grey. The legs have three very short and cushioned
toes, with no hind toe. Both the feet and the base of the bill
are a greenish-yellow colour and the tip of the bill is black.
During flight it is seen that the primary wings
are white and black tipped. However, the secondary wings are largely
black with white carpal areas and have indistinct black wing bars.
These sub-species are paler than their North African
counterparts and have more black on their crowns as well as darker
grey chest bibs.
Habitat, Distribution and Feeding Patterns
Houbara Bustards are the best-adapted Otididae
species to an arid, semi-desert environment. The Pakistani subspecies
is a migratory resident, entering Pakistan’s north-western borders
and crossing through Balochistan and the NWFP. There is evidence
that they migrate at night on foot, covering from 1 to 2km per
night. Large populations also spend their winters in the borderline-desert
areas of Cholistan and Thar. The movement of these birds is increasingly
dependent on the availability of food, as well as seclusion and
freedom from disturbances.
They are largely nocturnal feeders, especially
when there is a high level of disturbance. They usually feed on
other plants and insects, but the mustard crop is their favourite
food. During winter their diet consists mainly of vegetable matter,
particularly succulent plant shoots, but they also catch and eat
insects and consume a large amount of grit. In Sindh, they have
been known to eat certain berries and leaves of plants. They also
feed on medium sized dung beetles and ants.
Breeding and Other Patterns/Habits
During the breeding season males become increasingly
aggressive towards one another. They erect their tails and fan
them over their back with their wings. The courtship display involves
the erection of the crest of feathers on the head and the neck
ruff as well as the gradual sinking of the head down into the
shoulders. The long white plumes of the lower pectoral region
are erected vertically thus completely hiding the neck and head.
The female is solely responsible for tending,
feeding and incubating the young. The chicks are fed bill to bill
for the first few days after hatching. The eggs are glossy in
texture and dark olive in colour. Normally, 3 to 4 eggs are laid
in a clutch.
The Houbara Bustards are generally silent birds
but may emit short calls during courtship. Females and their young
remain in constant contact by emitting high-pitched ‘peeping’
noises. They may also give a short, gruff bark when they are alarmed.
Despite coming across as rather slow creatures,
Houbara Bustards are swift and strong flyers.
Status
There has been a decline in the number of most
members of the Otididae Family over the past three decades. This
is mainly due to the constant hunting of these birds by Arab Falconers.
2000 Red List Status:
Low risk / near threatened. |
