Yellow-throated Sandgrouse
Pterocles gutturalis
Kalahari and Arid west. Face and throat yellow; crown, hindneck, upperparts and breast pale yellow heavily dappled blackish; belly dusky; vent rufous.
NT
Not Endemic
Description
Locally common resident and visitor. Larger than other sandgrouse. Male has bold black gorget; both sexes have clear, pale yellow throats and ear coverts, and blackish bellies and underwings. In flight calls a harsh ‘tweet’ or ‘tweet-weet’; on arriving at a waterhole emits a hoarse ‘golli, golli’. Mainly concentrated in northern Botswana, but range extends eastwards into Zimbabwe, southeast to as far as Rustenburg and westwards into northern Namibia. Drinks in the morning, sometimes also in the afternoon.
Quick Facts
Size
30 cm - M
Names
A: Geelkeelsandpatrys
Ss: Kokwi Ya Mmetsosehla
G: Gelbkehl-Flughuhn
Bird Family
Pigeon-like birds with cryptic coloration, males more boldly patterned than females. They have pointed wings and short bills and legs, with the front of the tarsus feathered to the toes. Their walk is shuffling but their flight swift and powerful, the birds often covering considerable distances daily to reach water where, at certain favoured pools, they gather in great flocks morning or evening. All inhabit arid western regions, the Double-banded Sandgrouse ranging more easterly.
Distribution
Gallery
Behaviour
Breeding
Habitat
