Black-bellied Sandgrouse

Pterocles orientalis(Linnaeus, 1758)

Order: Pteroclidiformes
Family: Pteroclididae
Presence in the Strait: Vagrant
Protection in Spain: Vulnerable · Andalusian Catalogue
In Spanish: Ganga ortega

Photograph: Marcelo Cabrera, CC BY, vía iNaturalist

Length: 33–39 cm
Wingspan: 70–73 cm
Weight: 385–475 g

Presence in the Strait

Accidental. One record of eight birds near Tarifa on 21.10.76.

Identification

Black belly and short tail. Males have grey head, neck and breast and orangey-chestnut throat. Females have sandy tones with black spotting. Their nearest breeding area is Eastern Andalucía.

Bioestrecho editorial text. Last revised: 8 September 2026.

Photographs from iNaturalist observations with the licence checked file by file. Those marked “Strait” were taken within the area; place and date are those of each observation.

Calendar in the Strait

No observations with a compatible licence in the area, or taxon without a match in GBIF.

Conservation

The catalogues, Andalusian and Spanish, are what binds; the Red Book assesses the Spanish population with IUCN criteria, and the global Red List is the context.

LCNTVUENCR

Andalusian Catalogue: Vulnerable
Spanish Catalogue: Vulnerable
Red Book of the Birds of Spain 2021: EN/VU* · Endangered (Canary Islands) · breeding
Global Red List (IUCN): Not assessed

Plan: AVES ESTEPARIAS · Annex I of the Birds Directive

Andalusian Catalogue: Junta de Andalucía, list of 24 April 2025. Spanish Catalogue: MITECO, table of 30 June 2025. Red Book: SEO/BirdLife, 2021 (Annex I). IUCN: via GBIF, 6 September 2026. Red Book and IUCN categories are assessments; catalogue categories are legal obligations.

Same genus in the Strait

Pin-tailed Sandgrouse31–39 cm · Vagrant · overlapping size

Species of the same genus that also occur here, ordered by how close they are in size. Being relatives does not mean they are confused in the field, but that is where the doubts start: compare size and season.

Classification

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Pteroclidiformes
Family: Pteroclididae
GBIF taxon key: 2480193

Sources

Distribution and calendar: GBIF, live query
Photograph: Marcelo Cabrera, CC BY, vía iNaturalist
Taxonomy: GBIF backbone, pending WoRMS for marine taxa
Editorial text: written by Bioestrecho
Last revised: 8 September 2026

Black-bellied Sandgrouse

Presence in the Strait

Identification

Gallery