Macqueen's Bustard

MacQueen's bustard (Chlamydotis macqueenii) is a large bird in the bustard family. It is native to the desert and steppe regions of Asia, west from the Sinai Peninsula extending across Kazakhstan east to Mongolia. In the 19th century, vagrants were found as far west of their range as Great Britain. Populations have decreased by 20 to 50% between 1984 and 2004 mainly due to hunting and changes in land-use. MacQueen's bustard is a partial latitudinal migrant while the houbara bustard (C. undulata) is more sedentary. Both species are the only members of the genus Chlamydotis. MacQueen's bustard used to be regarded as a subspecies of the houbara bustard and known as the "Asian houbara". This medium-sized bustard is about 65 cm (26 in) long with a 140 cm (55 in) wingspan. It is brown above and white below, with black stripes down the sides of the neck. In flight, the long wings show large areas of black and brown on the flight feathers and a white patch at the base of the primaries. From below the wing is mostly white with a black trailing edge. Sexes are similar, but the female is smaller and paler above.