Buff-spotted flufftail

The buff-spotted flufftail (Sarothrura elegans) is a species of bird in the family Sarothruridae. It is found in forested areas^[2] of Angola, Botswana, Burundi, Cameroon, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Gabon, Guinea, Kenya, Liberia, Malawi, Mozambique, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, South Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.

Buff-spotted flufftail
Conservation status
Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Aves
Order:	Gruiformes
Family:	Sarothruridae
Genus:	Sarothrura
Species:	S. elegans
Binomial name
Sarothrura elegans (Smith, 1839)
Synonyms
Coturnicops elegans

Its diet is semi-omnivorous, consisting of various invertebrates as well as grass and tree seeds, which are thought to aid it in grinding other foods.^[3][4][5]

Its population is steady.^[3]

Specimen at Nairobi National Museum

References

1. BirdLife International (2016). "Sarothrura elegans". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2016: e.T22692219A93342389. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22692219A93342389.en. Retrieved 12 November 2021.
2. Van Opstal, Mattias; Oosterlynck, Bernard; Belay, Million; Erens, Jesse; De Beenhouwer, Matthias (2019-05-26). "First assessment of bird diversity in the UNESCO Sheka Forest Biosphere Reserve, southwestern Ethiopia: species richness, distribution and potential for avian conservation". Journal of Threatened Taxa. 11 (7): 13850–13867. doi:10.11609/jott.4726.11.7.13850-13867. ISSN 0974-7907.
3. Tarakini, Tawanda; Mabika, Innocent; Mwedzi, Tongayi; Mundy, Peter; Fritz, Hervé (2021-05-11). "Diet and Life-History Traits of Savannah Dwelling Waterbirds in Southern Africa: Implications for Their Conservation Status". Birds. 2 (2): 173–184. doi:10.3390/birds2020013. ISSN 2673-6004.
4. del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A., and Sargatal, J. 1996. Handbook of the Birds of the World, vol. 3: Hoatzin to Auks. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona, Spain.
5. Hockey, P.A.R., Dean, W.R.J. and Ryan, P.G. 2005. Roberts birds of southern Africa. Trustees of the John Voelcker Bird Book Fund, Cape Town, South Africa.

External links

• Image at ADW Archived 2008-12-02 at the Wayback Machine
• Species text in The Atlas of Southern African Birds
• Sarothrura elegans at avibase.bsc-eoc.org