Bird Watching in Pakistan

Chakur (Partridge) - National Bird of Pakistan

The Chukar (Alectoris chukar) is a Eurasian upland game bird in the pheasant family Phasianidae of the order Galliformes, gallinaceous birds. Its native range in Asia from Pakistan and Kashmir, India and Afghanistan. It is closely related and similar to its western equivalent, the Red-legged Partridge, Alectoris rufa. The Chukar is a rotund 32-35 cm long bird, with a light brown back, grey breast, and buff belly. The face is white with a black gorget. It has rufous-streaked flanks and red legs. When disturbed, it prefers to run rather than fly, but if necessary it flies a short distance on rounded wings. Chukar prefer rocky, steep, and open hillsides. The Chukar is a resident breeder in dry, open, and often hilly country. In the wild, Chukar travel in groups of 5-40 birds called coveys. It nests in a scantily lined ground scrape laying 8 to 20 eggs. Chukars will take a wide variety of seeds and some insects as food. When in captivity, they will lay 1 egg per day throughout the breeding season if the eggs are collected daily. For hunters, Chakur is a very challneging bird becuase of its surgical upward flights and sudden disappearances in the bushes.

Western Tragopan pheasant - Pallas's Fish-eagle - Greater Spotted Eagle

Pakistan, due to its diverse weather and varied land is home to some of the rare and exclusive birds in the world. Its wetlands and lakes attract millions of migratory birds from across the globe, specially Siberia each year, which besides its own native birds in their natural habitat in the jungles and mountains, provide an excellent opportunity to the bird watchers around the world. Western Tragopan pheasant (Tragopan melanocephalus) is one of the rare species that exists in the northerly mountains and the Macharia National Park, where it is being bred and chances are that this beautiful bird will be able to be saved of its near extinction in Pakistan.

Some of the bird sanctuaries and wild life habitats in Pakistan are  as under:-

Lammagier Vulture - Griffon Vulture - Laggar falcon - Kestrel

Black-tailed Godwit - Dalmatian Pelican - Mallard - Northern-Shoveler

Imperial Eagle - Indian Skimmer - Common Coot

Brooks's Leaf-warbler - Spectacled Finch - Ruddy Shelduck

Northern Pintail - Sarus Crane - Greater Flamingo -Eurasian Wigeon

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This page was created on 13 September 2006 - Updated 6 January 2009

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