Home - Guineafowl (Numididae) - Helmeted Guineafowl
File:Numida meleagris.jpg - Wikimedia Commons
Helmeted Guineafowl
Numida meleagrisNumida meleagris __NOTOC__ The Helmeted Guineafowl (Numida meleagris) is the best known of the guineafowl bird family, Numididae, and the only member of the genus Numida. It breeds in Africa, mainly south of the Sahara, and has been widely introduced into the West Indies, Brazil, Australia and southern France. It breeds in warm, fairly dry and open habitats with scattered and such as savanna or farmland. Males often show aggression towards each other, and will partake in ravenous fighting which will leave other males bloodied and otherwise injured. Attempts at making themselves look fearsome is when their wings raise upwards from their sides and feathers bristle across the length of the body, or they may also rush forwards with a gaping beak. The nest is a well-hidden, generally unlined scrape and a clutch is normally 6-12 eggs which the female incubates for 26–28 days. Nests containing larger numbers of eggs are generally believed to be the result of more than one hen using the nest; eggs are large and an incubating bird could not realistically cover significantly more than a normal clutch. Domestic birds at least, are notable for producing extremely thick-shelled eggs that are reduced to fragments as the chicks hatch, rather than leaving two large sections and small chips from where any chick has removed the end of the egg. It has been noted that domesticated Guineahens are not the best of mothers, and will often abandon their nests. The chicks are cryptically coloured and rapid wing growth enables them to flutter onto low branches barely a week after hatching. These guineafowl live as long as 12 years in the wild. Upper body Helmeted Guineafowl, Drakensberg, KZN, South Africa Young chicks with an adult, Drakensberg, KZN, South Africa The Helmeted Guineafowl is a large (53–58 cm) bird with a round body and small head. They weigh about 1.3 kg. The body plumage is gray-black spangled with white. Like other guineafowl, this species has an unfeathered head, in this case decorated with a dull yellow or reddish bony knob, and red and blue patches of skin. The wings are short and rounded, and the tail is also short. Various sub-species are proposed, differences in appearance being mostly a large variation in shape, size and colour of the casque and facial wattles. This is a gregarious species, forming flocks outside the breeding season typically of about 25 birds that also roost communally. Guineafowl are particularly well-suited to consuming massive quantities of ticks, which might otherwise spread lyme disease. These birds are terrestrial, and prone to run rather than fly when alarmed. Like most gallinaceous birds, they have a short-lived explosive flight and rely on gliding to cover extended distances. Helmeted Guineafowl are great runners, and can walk 10 km and more in a day. They make loud harsh calls when disturbed. Their diet consists of a variety of animal and plant food; seeds, fruits, greens, snails, spiders, worms and insects, frogs, lizards, small snakes and small mammals. Guineafowl are equipped with strong claws and scratch in loose soil for food much like domestic chickens, although they seldom uproot growing plants in so doing. As with all of the numididae, they have no spurs. Flocks of guineafowl have flourished in recent years in the Southern Suburbs of Cape Town, where they seem to have adapted remarkably well. The flocks move slowly along the quieter suburban roads, looking for food on the grassy 'pavements' and in gardens where the fence is low enough for some to enter without feeling separated from the flock. They often roost at night on the roofs of bungalows. While residents generally appreciate the local wildlife, it can be a nuisance, obstructing traffic and making a lot of noise in the early morning. Their success is probably due to the large but cautious flock - they can fend off cats, do not enter gardens with dogs, and are visible enough in the quiet roads in which they live to avoid being run over. Although many young guineafowl manage to fall down drains (and are left behind by the flock), it is not enough to restrain their numbers. Adult birds are sometimes caught and eaten by the homeless. In the early days of the colonisation of North America, the native Wild Turkey (Meleagris gallopavo) was confused with this species. This led to the English name of the American bird, since Turkey and Guinea were equally far-off and exotic places. The word meleagris, Greek for guineafowl, is also shared in the scientific names of the two species, although for the guineafowl it is the species name, whereas for the turkey, it is the name of the genus and (in an altered state) the family.
Helmeted Guineafowl photos and videos:
Links:
|
Helmeted Guineafowl - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia The Helmeted Guineafowl (Numida meleagris) is the best known of the guineafowl bird family, Numididae, and the only member of the genus Numida. It breeds in Africa ... en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Numida_meleagris Numida meleagris (Helmeted guineafowl) - biodiversity explorer Breeding season. Breeding generally follows good rains. Laying dates: Namibia, Botswana and Zimbabwe: January - March; South Africa - summer rainfall region: peak ... www.biodiversityexplorer.org/birds/numid... Numida meleagris - Wikimedia Commons commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Numida_meleag... Numida meleagris This page is a Tree of Life Leaf Page. Each ToL leaf page provides a synopsis of the characteristics of a group of organisms representing a leaf ... tolweb.org/Numida_meleagris Helmeted Guineafowl, Numida meleagris - Kenya Birds Helmeted Guineafowl factsheet: Information and photograph ... Numida meleagris Other Names Reichenow's Guineafowl, Tufted Guineafowl Pintade de Numidie Pintade ... www.kenyabirds.org.uk/h_gfowl.htm Numida meleagris - Wikispecies - Wikimedia Foundation species.wikimedia.org/wiki/Numida_meleag... Helmeted guineafowl ( Numida meleagris ) Information on the helmeted guineafowl is currently being researched and written and will appear here shortly... www.arkive.org/helmeted-guineafowl/numid... Numida meleagris - Avibase Photo powered by flickr.com. Order: Galliformes Family: Numididae. English: Helmeted Guineafowl Scientific: Numida meleagris. Protonym: Phasianus meleagris avibase.bsc-eoc.org/species.jsp?avibasei... Helmeted Guineafowl (Numida meleagris) | the Internet Bird Collection Guineafowl (Numididae) Helmeted Guineafowl (Numida meleagris) - HBW 2, p. 565. French: Pintade de Numidie German: Helmperlhuhn Spanish: Pintada Común ... ibc.lynxeds.com/species/helmeted-guineaf... Wildcliff Nature Reserve: Helmeted Guineafowl (Numida meleagris) Dedicated to conservation in the Cape Floral Kingdom ... Helmeted Guineafowl (Numida meleagris) Description. Well known gregarious, resident, large guineafowl. wildcliff.org/fauna/birds/numida_meleagr... | ADW: Numida meleagris: PICTURES - Animal Diversity Web To cite this page: Myers, P., R. Espinosa, C. S. Parr, T. Jones, G. S. Hammond, and T. A. Dewey. 2012. The Animal Diversity Web (online). Accessed at http ... animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/acco... ITIS Standard Report Page: Numida meleagris Expert(s): Expert: Alan P. Peterson, M.D. Notes: PO Box 1999 Walla Walla, Washington 99362-0999 : Reference for: Numida meleagris : Expert: www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt... Diane Doble Theatre Prints and Greetings cards: Guineafowl (Numida ... Since then, and having seen many indigenous helmeted guineafowl (Numida Meleagris) flocks in the bush when I lived in Central Southern Africa I have been enamoured by ... dianedoble.com/photo_6097460.html Numida meleagris - definition of Numida meleagris by the Free ... Noun 1. Numida meleagris - a west African bird having dark plumage mottled with white; native to Africa but raised for food in many parts of the world guinea fowl ... www.thefreedictionary.com/Numida+meleagr... Helmeted Guinea Fowl Skeleton (Numida meleagris) | WOK-1432 Helmeted Guinea Fowl Skeleton (Numida meleagris) | WOK-1432: Natural Bone - The Helmeted Guinea fowl is a large bird with a round body and small head. It breeds in ... www.skullsunlimited.com/record_variant.p... Guinea Fowl - dp pages, sites The guinea fowl, Numida meleagris, is a semi-domesticated ground bird that originated in East and South Africa and Madagascar. Large numbers of the bird are raised in ... dp.biology.dal.ca/vigs/guinea.html Melanism in guinea fowl (Numida meleagris) is associated with a ... Melanism in guinea fowl (Numida meleagris) is associated with a deletion of Phenylalanine-256 in the MC1R gene. www.mendeley.com/research/melanism-guine... Guinea Fowl - Welcome to The Cozy Nest Guinea Fowl "Numida Meleagris" In Texas and Missouri, where the three Amigos are from, two frequently asked questions are, "Got grasshoppers?" thecozynest.com/index/guinea_fowl.htm Numida meleagris - Helmeted Guineafowl, Gewone Tarentaal (Roberts ... Fernkloof Nature Reserve - Hermanus - Birds - Numida meleagris ... Family - Scientific name - Numida meleagris Common name - Helmeted Guineafowl, Gewone Tarentaal ... fernkloof.com/species.mv?1186 The structure of the excurrent ducts of the testis of the guinea ... The structure of the excurrent ducts of the testis of the guinea-fowl (Numida meleagris). www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC123... |
