India has six species of Francolins, though two of them - the Grey Francolin (Francolinus pondicerianus) and the Black Francolin (Francolinus francolinus) are common in the northern part of the country where I live, while the Painted Francolinus (Francolinus Pictus) is more common in peninsular India. Of the other three species, two - Swamp Francolin (Francolinus gularis) and Tibetan Partridge (Perdix hodgsoniae) are found in the Himalayan belt, while the Chinese Francolin (Francolinus pintadeanus) is resident in Manipur in the far east.
Of these, the Grey Francolin is most sighted, especially if you are birding in and around Delhi. Quite often, I have chanced upon families of Grey Francolin with adults and chicks in tow, feeding like chicken on forest pathways, and disappearing into the undergrowth quickly when they perceive anyone approaching. They are mostly found in scrub forests and open grass plains. They are known as 'teetar' in Hindi, and are part of local folklore.
Grey Francolin and chicks, Okhla Bird Sanctuary
Of these, the Grey Francolin is most sighted, especially if you are birding in and around Delhi. Quite often, I have chanced upon families of Grey Francolin with adults and chicks in tow, feeding like chicken on forest pathways, and disappearing into the undergrowth quickly when they perceive anyone approaching. They are mostly found in scrub forests and open grass plains. They are known as 'teetar' in Hindi, and are part of local folklore.
Grey Francolin, Keoladeo Bird Sanctuary
This image of a Grey Francolin was captured in the famed Keoladeo Bird Sanctuary in Bharatpur. I have a number of images of this species from other places like the Okhla Bird Sanctuary near Delhi and Basai wetlands in Haryana. The image below is a group of Grey Francolin, photographed at the Tal Chappar Wildlife Sanctuary in Churu, Rajasthan state of India.
Grey Francolin, Tal Chappar Wildlife Sanctuary
Will update the post with more images, as and when I capture them.
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