The Snow Partridge – 10,000 Birds
eBird calls the Snow Partridge a “stone-colored terrestrial fowl of stony hillsides, mountain ridges, and meadows above treeline” – and in reality, it’s spectacular how nicely the fowl matches in with its environment, not less than after I noticed it at about 4000 meters of altitude on the Balangshan cross.
Presumably, the fowl I noticed was a male provided that it has a spur, and the invoice is coral-red (females apparently shouldn’t have spurs, and the invoice is pinkish or greyish-pink, in line with the HBW).
One other indicator was the decision, which sadly I didn’t handle to seize on this video. However possibly you possibly can think about it when you have a look at the photograph beneath.
Based on one paper, it was tried to introduce the Snow Partridge into the Nice Basin ranges of Nevada round 1970. I assume individuals had been a bit extra naive about doubtlessly disturbing current ecosystems then.
The Snow Partridge additionally has the doubtful honor of internet hosting a tick that inhabits an altitude a lot increased than most different ticks (supply).
The species landed a uncommon PR success when it managed to get on the cowl of Present Zoology in 2022 (which by the way appears to point out a feminine with chicks, because the invoice is extra greyish than crimson). An article within the journal describes how the species diverged into two completely different populations about 0.4 million years in the past, pushed by the extension of glaciers.
And provided that the Snow Partridge and the Tibetan Snowcock are considerably comparable of their presence and habitat necessities, how do they divide the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau amongst themselves? It appears the snowcock prefers colder, drier circumstances, whereas the partridge prefers increased humidity and (unusually) rain. Thoughts you, I noticed each species inside only a few kilometers of the cross highway, so this doesn’t appear to be a really strict habitat participation.
