Pin-Tailed Sandgrouse

The Pin-Tailed Sandgrouse (Pterocles alchata) is a medium-large bird in the sandgrouse family. The pin-tailed sandgrouse lives in open, stony terrain, semiarid desert edges, treeless plains, and sporadically dried-out mud flats. It loves sandy soils and is far less dependent on vegetation cover than the black-bellied sandgrouse (Pterocles orientalis), which has a similar range. In winter, it may visit the plowed or fallowed ground. It does not occur at elevations above about 1,000 meters (3,300 ft).

The pin-tailed sandgrouse is about 35 centimeters long. Its upper sections and head are a yellowish-green color. White underparts with a chestnut breast band dividing the belly from the green neck make up this species. Although the two sexes are somewhat similar, the female can hide better and has a shorter tail than the male. This gregarious species breeds on dry open treeless plains and similar habitats. Its nest is a ground scrape into which two or three cream-colored eggs with cryptic markings are laid. Both sexes incubate the eggs.