Helmeted Guineafowl
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? Helmeted
Guineafowl |
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| Numida
meleagris Linnaeus, 1766 |
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The Helmeted Guineafowl (Numida meleagris) is the best known of the guineafowl bird family, Numididae. It breeds in Africa, mainly south of the Sahara, and has been widely introduced into the West Indies and southern France.
It breeds in warm, fairly dry and open habitats with scattered shrubs and trees such as savanna or farmland. It lays its large clutch of 12-15 eggs in a well-hidden lined scrape, and the females incubate the eggs for 24-30 days. These guineafowl live as long as 12 years in the wild.
The Helmeted Guineafowl is a large (60-68 cm) bird with a round body and small head. They weigh about 1.3 kg. The body plumage is gray-black spangled with white. Like other guineafowl, this species has an unfeathered head, in this case decorated with a dull yellow or reddish bony knob, and red and blue patches of skin. The wings are short and rounded, and the tail is also short.
This is a gregarious species, forming flocks outside the breeding season typically of about 25 birds. Its diet consists of seeds and small invertebrates. This guineafowl is terrestrial, and will run rather than fly when alarmed. Helmeted Guineafowl are great runners, and can run 5 km in a day. It makes loud harsh calls when disturbed. Their diet consists of a variety of animal and plant food; seeds, berries, greens, small snails, spiders, and insects.
In the early days of the European colonisation of North America, the native Wild Turkey (Meleagris gallopavo) was confused with this species. This led to the English name of the American bird, since Turkey and Guinea were equally far-off and exotic places. The word meleagris, Greek for guineafowl, is also shared in the scientific names of the two species.
Helmeted Guineafowl is often domesticated, and it is this species that is sold in Western supermarkets. It can be cooked using any recipe that calls for chicken but is considered to be more flavorful and, because of its higher cost, is generally served at special occasions. It is particularly common in French cuisine.