The Elgon francolin (''Scleroptila elgonensis'') is a

francolin Francolins are birds in the tribe Gallini that traditionally have been placed in the genus ''Francolinus'', but now commonly are divided into multiple genera. As previously defined, they were paraphyletic as the genus '' Pternistis'', which wa ...

found in moorland at altitudes above from eastern

Uganda }), is a landlocked country in East Africa. The country is bordered to the east by Kenya, to the north by South Sudan, to the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the south-west by Rwanda, and to the south by Tanzania. The south ...

(

Mount Elgon Mount Elgon is an extinct shield volcano on the border of Uganda and Kenya, north of Kisumu and west of Kitale. The mountain's highest point, named "Wagagai", is located entirely within Uganda.

) to central

Kenya ) , national_anthem = " Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi , ...

.McGowan, P. J. K. (1994). Moorland Francolin (''Francolinus elgonensis''). Pp. 494 in: del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A., & Sargatal, J. eds. (1994). ''

Handbook of the Birds of the World The ''Handbook of the Birds of the World'' (HBW) is a multi-volume series produced by the Spanish publishing house Lynx Edicions in partnership with BirdLife International. It is the first handbook to cover every known living species of bird. ...

.'' Vol. 2. New World Vultures to Guineafowl. Lynx Edicions, Barcelon. Zimmerman, D. A., Turner, D. A., & Pearson, D. J. (1999). ''Birds of Kenya & Northern Tanzania. Christopher Helm, London. Sinclair, I., & Ryan, P. (2003). ''Birds of Africa south of the Sahara.'' Struik Publishers, Cape Town. Dickinson, E. C. eds. (2003). ''

The Howard and Moore Complete Checklist of the Birds of the World The ''Howard and Moore Complete Checklist of the Birds of the World'' is a book by Richard Howard and Alick Moore which presents a list of the bird species of the world. It was the first single-volume world bird list to include subspecies names, ...

''. 3rd edition. It was described by Ogilvie-Grant in 1891 as ''Francolinus elgonensis'', and some authorities still use the genus ''

Francolinus ''Francolinus'' is a genus of birds in the francolin group of the tribe Gallini in the pheasant family. Species Its three species range from western Asia and central Asia through to southern Asia and south-eastern Asia Southeast Asia, als ...

'' for all members otherwise placed in ''Scleroptila''. It was previously considered a subspecies of the

moorland francolin The moorland francolin (''Scleroptila psilolaema'') is a species of bird in the family Phasianidae. It is endemic to Ethiopia. Distribution It is found in moorland in the highlands of Ethiopia. Taxonomy The Elgon francolin of the highlands of ...

(''S. psilolaema''), which is now thought to be

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found els ...

Ethiopia Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the Er ...

. Alternatively, it was suggested as a subspecies of the Shelley's francolin (''S. shelleyi elgonensis''), or even a

hybrid Hybrid may refer to: Science * Hybrid (biology), an offspring resulting from cross-breeding ** Hybrid grape, grape varieties produced by cross-breeding two ''Vitis'' species ** Hybridity, the property of a hybrid plant which is a union of two diff ...

between the moorland and

red-winged francolin The red-winged francolin (''Scleroptila levaillantii'') is a species of bird in the family Phasianidae. It is found in Angola, Burundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Rwanda, South Africa, Eswatini, Tanzania, Uganda, ...

s. However, it was split as a distinct species by the

IUCN Red List The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, also known as the IUCN Red List or Red Data Book, founded in 1964, is the world's most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of biol ...

and

BirdLife International BirdLife International is a global partnership of non-governmental organizations that strives to conserve birds and their habitats. BirdLife International's priorities include preventing extinction of bird species, identifying and safeguarding ...

in 2014, and by the

International Ornithological Congress International is an adjective (also used as a noun) meaning "between nations". International may also refer to: Music Albums * ''International'' (Kevin Michael album), 2011 * ''International'' (New Order album), 2002 * ''International'' (The T ...

in 2022 based on a 2019 study. The Elgon francolin resembles the

, but the latter is duller (less

rufescent Rufous () is a color that may be described as reddish-brown or brownish-red, as of rust or oxidised iron. The first recorded use of ''rufous'' as a color name in English was in 1782. However, the color is also recorded earlier in 1527 as a dia ...

) and has a black-dotted throat, and also differs in vocalizations.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q55110838 Elgon francolin Birds of East Africa Elgon francolin