Chlamydotis Undulata - Houbarafund

Chlamydotis Undulata Chlamydotis Undulata, commonly known as houbara is a rare bird which is found in the UAE and it is the pride of UAE. Unfortunately, these beautiful birds fighting for their existence.

Houbarafund.org is constantly endeavoring for the protection for the houbara bird. Thus, we are working for maintaining the proper balance in the nature and preserve our local fauna.

Houbara bustards are large-bodied birds with long legs and a slender neck. The upper body is speckled, sandy brown and the underside is creamy white. The male has long, black feathers around the back of his neck, and white feathers on the front, lower neck. Wide bands of distinct black and white occur on the wings and the square tail is sandy-brown with four distinct black bars.

With a wingspan of up to 1.5 meters, males weigh an average of 2.2 kilos while females weigh an average of 1.2 kilos.

Asian and North African Houbara differ by subtle variations of back colorations, and extent of black and white feathers on neck and chest.

Previously considered as one species, the Houbara Bustard has been split into two distinct species on the basis of genetic, morphologic, geographic and behavioral criteria:  The Asian Houbara (Chlamydotis macqueenii) or MacQueen’s Bustard  The North African Houbara (Chlamydotis undulata)

Houbara bustards inhabit large open landscapes from the steppes to remote, semi-arid regions of sand and stone desert with sparse plant life.

The bird’s speckled appearance is a perfect camouflage in its natural habitat making it almost invisible, when motionless.

The North African Houbara bustard is found over most of North Africa, from Western Sahara up to the Nile valley in Egypt. Eighty per cent of wild populations is located in Morocco and Algeria.

The Houbara Bustard spends most of its time on the ground foraging for food. It is omnivorous and opportunistic; its diet consisting of plants, seeds, insects, spiders, small rodents, and lizards. Adaption to its arid habitat enables the Houbara to obtain enough of its fluid from food and it seldom needs to drink water. Houbara feeds mostly at sunrise or dusk.

Adult birds are mainly solitary but can forage in small groups according to the period of the year.

The male Houbara bustard performs extravagant displaying behavior on a site he will use year after year, fluffing out the neck feathers and throwing his head back so that it is almost hidden inside a large ruff of black and white while he struts swiftly in a straight line or circle. The female visits one display site just for mating and then leaves to another area where she will lay her eggs.

She makes a shallow hollow, a ‘scrape’, in the open ground where she lays one to six eggs, but more generally three to four. The male takes no part in egg incubation which lasts 23 days, or in rearing or defending the youth. His only contribution to breeding is by mating with the female.

The greatest threats to the Houbara bustard are from poaching, unregulated hunting, habitat loss through development and agriculture, and habitat degradation through overgrazing.

For More Information Please Visit: http://www.houbarafund.org/en/home