Pallas's sandgrouse

Pallas's sandgrouse (Syrrhaptes paradoxus) is a medium to large bird of the sandgrouse family, measuring roughly 30 to 41 centimetres in length. It has a small, pigeon-like head and neck on a sturdy, compact body, with long pointed wings and tail. Its plumage is buff-coloured and barred above, with a black belly patch and pale underwings that separate it from the related Tibetan sandgrouse. Males have a grey head and breast, an orange face and a grey breast band, while females are duller with more barring on the upperparts. Its feathered feet lack a hind toe and the three front toes are fused, giving a paw-like appearance. The species breeds across the middle latitudes of central Asia on dry steppes, nesting in a ground scrape that holds two or three eggs. It is a partial migrant, and irruptions have carried it as a vagrant as far west as Great Britain and Ireland. Because it feeds mainly on dry seeds it must drink large amounts of water, and males carry water to their chicks in soaked breast plumage. It is named for the German zoologist Peter Simon Pallas.