The Canarian houbara (''Chlamydotis undulata fuertaventurae)'' is a large bird in the
bustard
Bustards, including floricans and korhaans, are large, terrestrial birds living mainly in dry grassland areas and on the steppes of the Old World. They range in length from . They make up the family Otididae (, formerly known as Otidae). Bustards ...
family. It is a
houbara bustard
The houbara bustard (''Chlamydotis undulata''), also known as African houbara, is a relatively small bustard native to North Africa, where it lives in arid habitats. The global population is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List since 2014. ...
subspecies
In biological classification, subspecies is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (morphology), but that can successfully interbreed. Not all species ...
which is
endemic
Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...
to the eastern
Canary
Canary originally referred to the island of Gran Canaria on the west coast of Africa, and the group of surrounding islands (the Canary Islands). It may also refer to:
Animals Birds
* Canaries, birds in the genera ''Serinus'' and ''Crithagra'' i ...
archipelago
An archipelago ( ), sometimes called an island group or island chain, is a chain, cluster, or collection of islands, or sometimes a sea containing a small number of scattered islands.
Examples of archipelagos include: the Indonesian Archi ...
, in
Macaronesia
Macaronesia (Portuguese: ''Macaronésia,'' Spanish: ''Macaronesia'') is a collection of four volcanic archipelagos in the North Atlantic, off the coasts of Africa and Europe. Each archipelago is made up of a number of List of islands in the At ...
in the
North Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the "Old World" of Africa, Europe an ...
, where it is a scarce and threatened non-migratory resident. It is the animal symbol of the island of
Fuerteventura
Fuerteventura () is one of the Canary Islands, in the Atlantic Ocean, part of the North Africa region, and politically part of Spain. It is located away from the northwestern coast of Africa. The island was declared a biosphere reserve by UNES ...
.
Taxonomy
The Canarian houbara is one of three subspecies of the houbara bustard. Archaeological evidence indicates that it has been present in the Canary Islands for 130–170,000 years. However, genetic data point to a more recent separation of ''C. u. fuertaventurae'' from the nominate subspecies around 20–25,000 years ago. It suggests that there was an initial colonisation of the Canary Islands about 130,000 years ago, followed by a second colonisation 19-30 000 years ago, with subsequent isolation until today.
Description
The Canarian houbara is distinguished from the other two subspecies by its smaller size, less sandy colouring, and darker and more extensive markings on the back.
[Heredia, Borja. (Compiler). (1995). ]
Action Plan for the Houbara Bustard in the Canary Islands
'. BirdLife International. Retrieved on 16 December 2008. It is the largest bird native to the Canary Islands.
Distribution and habitat
Houbaras are restricted to the islands of
Fuerteventura
Fuerteventura () is one of the Canary Islands, in the Atlantic Ocean, part of the North Africa region, and politically part of Spain. It is located away from the northwestern coast of Africa. The island was declared a biosphere reserve by UNES ...
,
Lobos
Lobos is the headquarters city of the Lobos Partido in Buenos Aires Province, Argentina. It was founded on 2 June 1802 by José Salgado.
Background
Located 100 km from Buenos Aires, Lobos is currently a fertile agricultural area known ma ...
,
Lanzarote
Lanzarote (, , ) is a Spanish island, the easternmost of the Canary Islands in the Atlantic Ocean. It is located approximately off the north coast of Africa and from the Iberian Peninsula. Covering , Lanzarote is the fourth-largest of the i ...
and
Graciosa
Graciosa Island () (literally "graceful" or "enchanting" in Portuguese) is referred to as the ''White Island'', the northernmost of the Central Group of islands in the Azores. The ovular Portuguese island has an area of , a length of and a width ...
, though it is uncertain as to whether they continue to exist on Lobos. In the past, they also inhabited the islands of
Tenerife
Tenerife (; ; formerly spelled ''Teneriffe'') is the largest and most populous island of the Canary Islands. It is home to 43% of the total population of the archipelago. With a land area of and a population of 978,100 inhabitants as of Janu ...
and
Gran Canaria
Gran Canaria (, ; ), also Grand Canary Island, is the third-largest and second-most-populous island of the Canary Islands, an archipelago off the Atlantic coast of Northwest Africa which is part of Spain. the island had a population of that co ...
, where they are now extinct. Annual rainfall in their range is less than while mean monthly temperatures range between in January–February and in August–September.
They inhabit semi-arid plains, rocky hills and immobile dunes, sparsely vegetated with bushes and grasses. They will sometimes feed in farmland in the early morning and at dusk, but avoid human settlements, cornfields, forests and lava flows.
[
]
Behaviour
Breeding
Outside the breeding season
Seasonal breeders are animal species that successfully mate only during certain times of the year. These times of year allow for the optimization of survival of young due to factors such as ambient temperature, food and water availability, and cha ...
the birds may be gregarious and forage in small parties.[ However, when breeding, males hold and defend individual territories for courtship display some 500–1000 m across. During this period both sexes tend to be solitary, only coming together for ]mating
In biology, mating is the pairing of either opposite-sex or hermaphroditic organisms for the purposes of sexual reproduction. ''Fertilization'' is the fusion of two gametes. ''Copulation'' is the union of the sex organs of two sexually reproduc ...
. Courtship takes place from December to March with the male displaying his head and throat plumage while strutting in a line or circle. The female lays two or three eggs
Humans and human ancestors have scavenged and eaten animal eggs for millions of years. Humans in Southeast Asia had domesticated chickens and harvested their eggs for food by 1,500 BCE. The most widely consumed eggs are those of fowl, especial ...
in a scrape on the ground between February and April. Males are probably polygynous
Polygyny (; from Neoclassical Greek πολυγυνία (); ) is the most common and accepted form of polygamy around the world, entailing the marriage of a man with several women.
Incidence
Polygyny is more widespread in Africa than in any ...
and do not help to rear the young. The chicks are nidifugous and accompany the female after hatching. Usually only one chick survives from each clutch, rarely two.[
]
Feeding
The birds are omnivorous, feeding on the ground and consuming a variety of arthropod
Arthropods (, (gen. ποδός)) are invertebrate animals with an exoskeleton, a Segmentation (biology), segmented body, and paired jointed appendages. Arthropods form the phylum Arthropoda. They are distinguished by their jointed limbs and Arth ...
s, mollusc
Mollusca is the second-largest phylum of invertebrate animals after the Arthropoda, the members of which are known as molluscs or mollusks (). Around 85,000 extant species of molluscs are recognized. The number of fossil species is esti ...
s and smaller vertebrate
Vertebrates () comprise all animal taxa within the subphylum Vertebrata () ( chordates with backbones), including all mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fish. Vertebrates represent the overwhelming majority of the phylum Chordata, ...
s as well as plant material. The chicks require insects in order to grow properly.[
]
Status and conservation
The Action Plan published in 1995 estimated the total population of Canarian houbaras at about 700–750 birds, comprising 300–350 on Fuerteventura and Lobos, and 400 on Lanzarote and Graciosa.[ However a later study estimated the number of birds on Fuerteventura at 177.] Although they are classified as endangered on the Spanish Bird Red List
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, also known as the IUCN Red List or Red Data Book, founded in 1964, is the world's most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of biologi ...
, and are protected by legislation, they are threatened
Threatened species are any species (including animals, plants and fungi) which are vulnerable to endangerment in the near future. Species that are threatened are sometimes characterised by the population dynamics measure of ''critical depensat ...
by several factors, including habitat destruction
Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss and habitat reduction) is the process by which a natural habitat becomes incapable of supporting its native species. The organisms that previously inhabited the site are displaced or dead, thereby ...
from development, increased disturbance from tourism
Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring (disambiguation), touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tour (disambiguation), tours. Th ...
, illegal hunting
Hunting is the human activity, human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, or killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to harvest food (i.e. meat) and useful animal products (fur/hide (skin), hide, ...
, collisions with powerlines and disturbance by truffle
A truffle is the fruiting body of a subterranean ascomycete fungus, predominantly one of the many species of the genus ''Tuber''. In addition to ''Tuber'', many other genera of fungi are classified as truffles including ''Geopora'', ''Peziz ...
collectors.[
]
See also
* List of animal and plant symbols of the Canary Islands
A ''list'' is any set of items in a row. List or lists may also refer to:
People
* List (surname)
Organizations
* List College, an undergraduate division of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America
* SC Germania List, German rugby uni ...
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q3813361
Birds of the Canary Islands
Birds described in 1894