Chukar

Chukar, adult male; Kern Co., CA; September

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1. Cool Facts
2. Description
3. Similar Species
4. Sound
5. Range
6. Habitat
7. Reproduction
8. Conservation Status
9. Other Names

A native of southern Eurasia, the Chukar was introduced into the United States from Pakistan to be a game bird. It lives in arid, rocky terrain across the western United States and southern Canada.

Cool Facts

• The Chukar varies slightly in color across its native range in Eurasia. In more humid areas they are darker and more tinged with olive-brown on the upperparts and are more warmly colored on the underparts, whereas birds in more arid areas tend to be grayer and paler, less brown on the upperparts and paler on the underparts.

• The Chukar takes advantage of all water sources, from rivers and creeks, to springs and nearly stagnant seeps that hardly moisten the ground. They have been found getting water in mine shafts over 3 m (10 feet) below ground level, and sometimes they have been observed well back in mine tunnels where only faint light revealed the water.

Description

• Size: 34-38 cm (13-15 in)
• Weight: 550-675 g (19.42-23.83 ounces)

Small chicken-like bird. Short neck and tail. Grayish brown back and chest. Buffy belly. Bold black and chestnut barring on flanks. Black line through eye, down neck and onto chest. Throat white. Bill and legs red. Short, rounded wings.

Sex Differences

Sexes look alike, male slightly larger.

Immature

Juvenile similar to adult, but dull brownish gray with faint brown barring.

Similar Species

• Gray Partridge lacks black necklace, has reddish throat, and a dark bill.
• Mountain Quail is darker, with a dark throat, and a long head plume.

Sound

Call a series of "chuks."

Range

Range Map

© 2004 Cornell Lab of Ornithology

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Summer Range

Resident from southern British Columbia to central California, northern Arizona, western Colorado, and southern and central Montana. Native to central and southern Eurasia. Introduced to Hawaii and New Zealand.

Habitat

Rocky hillsides, mountain slopes with grassy vegetation, open and flat desert with sparse grasses and barren plateaus.

Reproduction

Clutch Size

Condition at Hatching

Open-eyed and covered in down, able to leave the nest and feed itself.

Conservation Status

Continues to be introduced in some areas.

Other Names

Perdrix choukar (French)
Perdriz chukar (Spanish)

Sources used to construct this page:

Christensen, G.C. 1996. Chukar (Alectoris chukar). In The Birds of North America, No. 258 (A. Poole and F. Gill, eds.). The Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, PA, and The American Ornithologists_ Union, Washington, D.C.