Red-legged Partridge (Alectoris rufa)
Swift (Apus apus)
Resembles Rock Partridge, Chukar and Barbary Partridge, but these can generally be excluded due to little overlap in range. May be confused with Partridge in flight, but note evenly coloured upperparts, larger size and white supercilium. Differs from all other Alectoris by the combination of broad, speckled collar and marked, black eyestripe. The white throat ends much higher than in congeners, and the upperparts are darker and more brownish. The barring on the flanks is less marked, and seems evenly coloured at a distance.
Sound:Song very similar to Chukar and Rock Partridge. Differs from the latter by fuller and deeper tone and timbre, and more even rhythms. Harder to tell from Chukar, but note Red-legged's tendency to end phrases with a di- or trisyllabic "ka-kaaa" or "ka-ka-kaaa" with a drawn and accented last note. Similar rhythm may be heard in Chukar, but then as a main rhythmic motif. Other calls include hoarse, screeching short utterances.
Song:
Distribution:
Xeno-canto: map
Ecology:Birdlife ecology
Links:
Observation.org Latest observations
Image search Flickr NB! May give other species
CCAll black swift with small white throat patch. Very difficult to separate from Pallid swift and Plain Swift. Pallid Swift; brownish plumage tone (best seen against darker background), bigger throat-patch than swift, scale pattern on body more prominent, wing-tips slightly rounded, "saddle" darker than wings, and more contrast between darker outer primaries and inner. Plain Swift; throat patch smaller and more diffuse than swift, wings and body more slender, tail noticeably deeper forked.
Sound:A shrilling trill "zreeeee" of about 1 -2 seconds length, gradually rising in pitch with accentuated firs half, then falling from the middle of phrase. Often continued with a dry lower pitched "trrrrrr" before calling again. Very vocal at breeding area, and often a flock will call together. Despite being quite similar to Pallid Swift, the call is probably the best field character to separate the two. Pallid puts the stress on the ending of the call, followed by a quick fall in pitch (dynamics like moaning with a quick release). Plain Swift calls similar to Common Swift, but differs in slightly fluctuating pitch during the call, and a loss of resonance towards the ending (thinner sounding).
Song/contact call:
Distribution:
Wikipedia: map (se also Xeno-canto below)
Ecology:Birdlife ecology
Links:
Observation.org Latest observations
Image search Flickr NB! May give other species
CC