Chukar
(Alectoris chukar)

Overview

Summary

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The Chukar was introduced to the dry interior of southern British Columbia in the early 1950s (Campbell et al. 1990). The species' restricted range makes monitoring by the major broad-scale surveys difficult. The few data from Christmas Bird Count suggest that the population has undergone a large decrease since the early 1970s. National population goals have not been established for this and or other introduced species.

Designations

Population status

Population estimate

Distribution maps

• BirdLife International / NatureServe
• North American Breeding Bird Survey (BBS): Relative Abundance and Breeding Distribution (1970-2016)

Migration strategy, occurrence

Responsibility for conservation

Conservation and management

The Chukar was introduced widely in North America for hunting. Populations can vary widely from year to year depending on environmental factors (Beason 1995), possibly limited by winter weather (Strazomski 2015).

Bird conservation region strategies

Environment and Climate Change Canada and partners have developed Bird Conservation Region Strategies in each of Canada’s Bird Conservation Regions (BCRs). In these strategies, selected species are identified as priorities for one or more of the following reasons:

• conservation concerns (i.e., species vulnerable due to population size, distribution, population trend, abundance, or threats)
• stewardship responsibilities (i.e., species that typify the regional avifauna or have a large proportion of their range or population in the sub-region)
• management concerns (i.e., species that require ongoing management because of their socio-economic importance as game species, or because of their impacts on other species or habitats)
• other concerns (i.e., species deemed a priority by regional experts for other reasons than those listed above or because they are listed as species at risk or concern at the provincial level)

Select any of the sub-regions below to view the BCR strategy for additional details.

References

• Beason, R.C. 1995. Horned Lark (Eremophila alpestris), The Birds of North America Online (A. Poole, Ed.). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, New York. Beason, R.C. 1995. Horned Lark (Eremophila alpestris), The Birds of North America Online (A. Poole, Ed.). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, New York. (Link)
• Campbell, R.W., N.K. Dawe, I. McTaggart-Cowan, J.M. Cooper, G.W. Kaiser, and M.C.E. McNall. 1990. The Birds of British Columbia, Nonpasserines: Diurnal Birds of Prey Through Woodpeckers. Vol. 2. Royal British Columbia Museum, Victoria, B.C..
• Strazomski, B. 2015. Chukar. In: Davidson, P.J.A., R.J. Cannings, A.R. Couturier, D. Lepage, and C.M. Di Corrado (eds.). The Atlas of the Breeding Birds of British Columbia, 2008-2012. Bird Studies Canada. Delta, B.C. . Strazomski, B. 2015. Chukar. In: Davidson, P.J.A., R.J. Cannings, A.R. Couturier, D. Lepage, and C.M. Di Corrado (eds.). The Atlas of the Breeding Birds of British Columbia, 2008-2012. Bird Studies Canada. Delta, B.C. . (Link)