Clapperton's spurfowl is a species of bird in the family Phasianidae. It is found in Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Sudan, and Uganda.
Region
Sahel and Sudano-Sahelian zone of West and Central Africa
Typical Environment
Occurs from Mauritania and Mali east through Niger, Chad, and northern Nigeria to Cameroon, Central African Republic, Sudan, South Sudan, Eritrea, Ethiopia, and northwestern Uganda. It favors dry savanna, Sahelian scrub, thornbush, and lightly wooded acacia country. Often found on rocky hillsides, along wadis, and at the edges of cultivation where cover and seed sources are available. It adapts to human-modified landscapes, using field margins, fallows, and village outskirts if there is shrub cover. Water is not strictly required daily, but it concentrates near seasonal watercourses in the dry season.
Altitude Range
0–2000 m
Climate Zone
Arid
Ease of Keeping
Beginner friendly: 2/5
Named after the Scottish explorer Hugh Clapperton, this spurfowl inhabits the Sahel and adjoining savannas of West and Central Africa. It spends most of its time on the ground and explodes into short, powerful flights when flushed. Males have sharp leg spurs used in dominance bouts. Pairs or small family coveys often give loud, grating duets at dawn and dusk.
Temperament
wary and secretive, usually calm when concealed but explosive when flushed
Flight Pattern
short rapid wingbeats with brief glides; strong, explosive takeoff
Social Behavior
Typically found in pairs or small family coveys, especially outside the breeding season. Nests are simple ground scrapes hidden under grass tussocks or shrubs. Breeding often coincides with seasonal rains, and both adults are attentive to the brood. Uses dust-bathing sites and communal roosts in dense cover.
Migratory Pattern
Resident
Song Description
Vocalizations are loud, grating cackles and repeated rattling duets, most active at dawn and dusk. Calls carry far across open savanna and are used to maintain territory and pair bonds.
Plumage
Heavily mottled and vermiculated brown upperparts with barred flanks and streaked underparts. The throat is paler, often whitish, bordered by darker malar stripes; wings can show warmer rufous tones. Feathers are dense and cryptic, providing excellent camouflage in scrub and grass.
Diet
Feeds on a mix of seeds, grasses, and shoots, supplemented by bulbs and berries when available. Takes a variety of invertebrates, including termites, beetles, and other insects, especially during the wet season. Often exploits spilled grain and weed seeds around agricultural plots. Forages by walking and scratching at the ground and leaf litter.
Preferred Environment
Edges of scrub, open acacia woodland, rocky slopes, and field margins where cover meets open foraging spaces. Frequently uses tracks, fallows, and lightly grazed pastures, retreating into denser shrubs when disturbed.
