Chukar Partridge

Alectoris chukar (Gray, JE, 1830)

32–35 cmLength51 cmWingspan502 gWeight

It has a black band forming a collar around a white throat, a red bill and legs, and black-and-white stripes on the flanks.

Busiest months: March–April and September · Most records: Israel, United Arab Emirates, Palestinian Territories

Least Concern

How to identify

Field marks

Black band runs through the eye and forms a collar around the white throat
Flanks with black-and-white barring
Bill coral-red; legs red
Back pale brown; breast gray; belly buff

Male, female and young

Sexes similar, but the female is slightly smaller and lacks spurs.

Voice

A noisy “chuck-chuck-chukar-chukar”.

Where and when it's recorded

Chukar Partridge has been recorded at 181 of the 8,171 birding hotspots we track, in 32 countries and regions.

Records by month Northern Hemisphere

Where it's recorded most

Private estate near Green MubazzarahUnited Arab Emirates2,857 records
Gazelle ValleyIsrael2,569 records
Hatzuk Beach TLVIsrael898 records

More places

Antikythira Bird ObservatoryGreece658 records
Jerusalem Bird ObservatoryIsrael639 records
Yeruham LakeIsrael452 records
Mt. KabirPalestinian Territories445 records
Hulda ReservoirIsrael362 records
Kfar AdumimPalestinian Territories334 records
Green MubazzarahUnited Arab Emirates325 records

Countries and regions with the most records

Israel United Arab Emirates Palestinian Territories United States Greece Cyprus Türkiye Kazakhstan

eBird records via GBIF up to 2024-12-31. A record means someone listed it; more records partly mean more birders, not more birds.

About

The chukar partridge (Alectoris chukar), or simply chukar, is a Palearctic upland gamebird in the pheasant family Phasianidae. It has been considered to form a superspecies complex along with the rock partridge, Philby's partridge and Przevalski's partridge and treated in the past as conspecific particularly with the first.

Excerpt from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 · authors · Read more on Wikipedia

Questions

How big is the Chukar Partridge?

The Chukar Partridge is about 32–35 cm long, with a wingspan of 51 cm and weighs around 502 g.

Where does the Chukar Partridge live?

Its breeding range: Palearctic: southern. It is most often recorded in Israel, United Arab Emirates and Palestinian Territories.

When is the best time to see the Chukar Partridge?

At the hotspots we track, it is recorded most in March, April and September (Northern Hemisphere).

Is the Chukar Partridge endangered?

The IUCN Red List classifies the Chukar Partridge as Least Concern.

What does the Chukar Partridge eat?

Main food: Seeds.

What family is the Chukar Partridge in?

It belongs to the family Pheasants & Allies (Phasianidae), order Galliformes.

At a glance

Length: 32–35 cm
Wingspan: 51 cm
Weight: 502 g
Habitat: Shrubland
Diet: Seeds
Lifestyle: Active on the ground
Migration: Resident (barely migrates)
Conservation: Least Concern

More measurements

Wing: 154 mm
Tail: 82 mm
Bill: 22 mm
Tarsus: 40 mm

Averages from the AVONET dataset; length from field guides where available.

Range

Palearctic: southern

Breeding range, IOC World Bird List 15.2

Subspecies · 6

Alectoris chukar falki w Uzbekistan to nc Afghanistan and w China
Alectoris chukar dzungarica Tien Shan Mts. (e Kazakhstan, w China) to nw Mongolia
Alectoris chukar pallida w Xinjiang (w China)
Alectoris chukar pallescens ne Afghanistan to w Tibet
Alectoris chukar potanini w Mongolia and nw China
Alectoris chukar pubescens ne Xinjiang (w China) to sw Mongolia and n Ningxia (c China)