Abdelwahab Chedad, Djamel Bendjoudi, Omar Guezoul
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Sahara, sedentarization, Streptopelia turtur, wintering.
The European Turtle Dove (Streptopelia turtur) is a summer-migrant pigeon fancier that can be found all over Algeria, especially in forests, orchards, gardens, palm groves, oases and around natural or artificial water bodies, but with a difference in its distribution. This paper provides new data on the wintering and sedentary life of Streptopelia turtur in the Algerian Northern Sahara. Data from several stations were recorded between 2018 and 2020. In Ghardaïa, where the summering period is spread over 8 months from March to October, the number of couples counted varied between 0.03 and 4.5 per hectare between 2018 and 2019. In Adrar, the Streptopelia turtur is considered a sedentary species. In Timimoun, it winters in gardens, palm groves and oases; during the breeding period, the number of couples recorded varied between 3 and 6.13 per hectare in 2019 and 2020 respectively. In the old Timimoun palm grove the number of couples in 2019 was 2.5 and 2.25 couples in 2020. On the other hand, during the wintering period, the density reached 10.33 couples/hectare in Timimoun in 2019/2020 and only 2.33 couples/hectare in the old palm grove. During cold season, the Streptopelia turtur partially leaves the palm groves and oases and prefers to winter in the towns around the gardens by frequenting restaurants and public markets where trophic resources are available. In the region of Ghardaïa, breeding begins just after the arrival of the species (March to April). But for the Adrar and Timimoun regions, breeding is early, with parade and nest building beginning in late January and the first broods being recorded in early February. So far, two subspecies have probably been identified: S. t. arenicola is the subspecies which breeds in Ghardaïa, Timimoun and Adrar and S. t. hoggara is the resident breeder subspecies which breeds in Timimoun and Adrar.
Cite this paper: Chedad, A., Bendjoudi, D., Guezoul, O. (2020). NEW DATA ON THE WINTERING AND SEDENTARY LIFE OF THE EUROPEAN TURTLE DOVE STREPTOPELIA TURTUR IN THE ALGERIAN NORTHERN SAHARA. Current Trends in Natural Sciences, 9(17), 65-73. https://doi.org/10.47068/ctns.2020.v9i17.007
