Black-bellied Sandgrouse

Pterocles orientalis (Linnaeus, 1758)

Black-bellied Sandgrouse, Pterocles orientalis, breeds in the south-western Palearctic and also in northern Africa. It is a sandgrouse in the family Pteroclidae, first named by Linnaeus in 1758. The species uses dry open plains and similar country for breeding, but it does not occupy places with no vegetation at all. Its nest is a scrape on the ground, and three greenish eggs with camouflage markings are laid there. Both sexes sit on the eggs, while only the male carries water.

Order

Pterocliformes

Family

Pteroclidae — Sandgrouse

Breeding range

Palearctic: sw, also n AF