Nyctiperdix

<i>Pterocles</i>

Pterocles

Genus of birds

Pterocles is a genus of near passerine birds in the sandgrouse family. It includes all the species in the family except for two central Asian species in Syrrhaptes.

Quick Facts Pterocles, Scientific classification ...

These sandgrouse have small, pigeon-like heads and necks, but sturdy compact bodies. They have long pointed wings and sometimes tails. Their legs are feathered down to the toes, but unlike species of the genus Syrrhaptes the toes are not feathered.

Pterocles species have a fast direct flight, and flocks fly to watering holes at dawn and dusk.

Two to three eggs are laid directly on the ground. They are buff or greenish with cryptic markings. All species are resident.

Taxonomy

The genus Pterocles was introduced in 1815 by the Dutch zoologist Coenraad Jacob Temminck.[1] The type species was subsequently designated by the English zoologist George Robert Gray as the pin-tailed sandgrouse.[2][3] The genus name combines the Ancient Greek pteron meaning "wing" with -klēs meaning "notable" or "splendid".[4]

Species

The genus contains 14 extant species:[5]

More information Image, Common Name ...

A fossil species, Pterocles bosporanus, is known from the early Pleistocene of Crimea.[6]

References

  1. [1]
    Temminck, Coenraad Jacob (1815). Histoire Naturelle Générale des Pigeons et des Gallinacés (in French). Vol. 3. Amsterdam: J. C. Sepp et fils. pp. 238, 712.
  2. [2]
    Gray, George Robert (1840). A List of the Genera of Birds : with an Indication of the Typical Species of Each Genus. London: R. and J.E. Taylor. p. 62.
  3. [3]
    Peters, James Lee, ed. (1937). Check-List of Birds of the World. Vol. 3. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press. p. 3.
  4. [4]
    Jobling, James A. (2010). The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names. London: Christopher Helm. p. 322. ISBN 978-1-4081-2501-4.
  5. [5]
    Gill, Frank; Donsker, David; Rasmussen, Pamela, eds. (January 2022). "Turacos, bustards, cuckoos, mesites, sandgrouse". IOC World Bird List Version 12.1. International Ornithologists' Union. Retrieved 14 August 2022.
  6. [6]
    Zelenkov, N. V. (2023-08-01). "A New Species of Sandgrouse (Aves: Pteroclidae) from the Early Pleistocene of the Crimea". Doklady Biological Sciences. 511 (1): 264–266. doi:10.1134/S0012496623700497. ISSN 1608-3105.
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