Description:

A large pin-tailed sandgrouse, with pale orange face patch and throat. Fine black barring on crown and breast, sandy upperparts with bold black spotting on scapulars, and white lower breast and belly. Male has unbarred sandy mantle and wing-coverts. Female has fine black barring on mantle, coverts and breast.

Distribution:

Possible resident in the extreme northern border areas of Hunza and Ghizer. Semi-desert or desert uplands, inhabiting bare, stony plains, rocky hillsides and gravelly or sandy river valleys, often at the edge of snowfields. Mostly at 3200-4100m.

Behavior:

Apparently, as an exception among sandgrouse, flies to drink only irregularly, apparently acquires sufficient moisture from vegetation and snow. Usually in singles, pairs and smaller groups. Eats buds, flowers and green parts of plants, especially legumes, in summer, switching mainly to seeds of similar species in winter, when takes advantage of diggings by snowcocks and Argali sheep.

Photo Gallery:

Range & Occurrence:

Resident Species

Summer Breeder

Winter Visitor

Passage Migrant

Distribution Map of Tibetan Sandgrouse in Gilgit-Baltistan (Status: )

Seasonal Occurrence of Tibetan Sandgrouse

Resources:

Birds of Pakistan: Helm Field Guides (R. Grimmett & T. Inskipp)
The Birds of Pakistan (T. J. Roberts)
Birds of the Indian Subcontinent (C. Inskipp, R. Grimmett & T. Inskipp)
Birds of South Asia: The Ripley Guide (P. Rasmussen & J. Anderton)
Birds of India: Collins Field Guide (N. Arlott)
Handbook of the Birds of India and Pakistan (S. Ali & S. D. Ripley)
Handbook of the Birds of the World (https://www.hbw.com)
The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World, 6th Edition
iNaturalist BoGB (inaturalist.org/projects/birds-of-gilgit-baltistan)
Birds of Gilgit-Baltistan (http://fb.me/birdsgb)

*Gallery images on this page are shared from flickr.com, and are copyrighted to their respective creators or owners.