Crested Francolin

The crested francolin (Ortygornis sephaena) is a species of bird in the family Phasianidae. It is found in southern Africa. One of its subspecies, Ortygornis sephaena rovuma, is sometimes considered a separate species, Kirk´s francolin.

Taxonomy: Formerly, the crested francolin was classified in its own genus Dendroperdix, but phylogenetic analysis indicates that it groups with the grey francolin (O. pondicerianus) and swamp francolin (O. gularis). As a result, all three species were reclassified into the genus Ortygornis.

Subspecies: Subspecies include:

• Ortygornis sephaena grantii (Hartlaub, 1866)
• Ortygornis sephaena rovuma (Gray, GR, 1867) - Kirk´s francolin
• Ortygornis sephaena sephaena (Smith, A, 1836)
• Ortygornis sephaena spilogaster (Salvadori, 1888)
• Ortygornis sephaena zambesiae (Mackworth-Praed, 1920)