Egzotikus madárfajok vadászati célú honosításának kísérletei a történelmi Magyarország területén = Attempts to introduce exotic bird species for hunting purposes in the territory of the Kingdom of Hungary

Bozó, László and Bende, Attila (2025) Egzotikus madárfajok vadászati célú honosításának kísérletei a történelmi Magyarország területén = Attempts to introduce exotic bird species for hunting purposes in the territory of the Kingdom of Hungary. MAGYAR APRÓVAD KÖZLEMÉNYEK, 17. pp. 213-227. ISSN 1418-284X

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Abstract

In Hungary, there has always been a great demand for the introduction and hunting of various exotic bird species. However, these attempts failed for most species, as the climate was generally unsuitable for them. Our work has summarised the attempts to naturalise several of these bird species. The Helmeted Guineafowl (Numida meleagris L.) has been introduced in many European countries since the Middle Ages. In Hungary, the first attempt was made in the late 1870s, followed by several unsuccessful attempts. One of the most notable of these was the manor of Kétegyháza, where Helmeted Guineafowls were kept from 1885. Although the preoccupation with the species was dying out by the time of the First World War, records from the second half of the 20th century were still being published. There were several reasons for this failure, including interbreeding with domestic Guineafowl, unfavourable climatic conditions and the lack of shrubbery as a hiding place. The Californian Quail (Callipepla californica SHAW, 1798) was introduced to Europe in 1852, while the first birds were imported to Hungary (Nyitraivánka) in 1882. In the 1880s, Zseliz, Kiskartal and an estate near Székesfehérvár were also mentioned, but all these introductions were unsuccessful as the birds did not prefer cold, snowy winters. Moreover, hunting them was not an easy task, as they dispersed after release. The first ideas of introducing the Greater Prairie-Chicken (Tympanuchus cupido L.) date back to the years before the First World War, and the possibility of introducing the species was raised again in the 1920s. However, the breeding birds never arrived in Hungary, so this species was never introduced into the Hungarian hunting grounds. The Reeves’s Pheasant (Syrmaticus reevesii Gray, 1829) appeared in the mid-1880s in the Hungarian hunting grounds, first in Szigetmonostor and then in more and more areas of the country. The released birds were successfully hunted in most places and its populations increased. Silver Pheasants (Lophura nycthemera L.) have been used by ornamental bird breeders throughout the country, but their introduction for hunting is not known. However, they have been used for hunting near our borders near Rétfalu (Wiesen), and these birds often strayed to the Hungarian hunting grounds, where they were shot. The Himalayan Snowcock (Tetraogallus himalayensis G. R. GRAY, 1843) was attempted to be introduced to the High Tatras but failed. The same was the case with the Indian Peafowl (Pavo cristatus L.) in Győr bishopric's manor in Szany. The field identification of the Alpine Rock Partridge (Alectoris graeca MEISNER, 1804) and the Red-legged Partridge (Alectoris rufa L.) is not a simple task, making it difficult to judge exactly which species was targeted by the early attempts at colonisation. The former species had a hunting culture in the Croatian karstic region, but these could not be practised by hunters in other parts of the country, as all the colonisation attempts in the High Tatras were unsuccessful. In contrast, the Red-legged Partridge was successfully introduced in several places from the end of the 19th century. The occurrence of the Rock Ptarmigan (Lagopus muta MONTIN, 1776) has not been confirmed in the Carpathians during the study period but attempts to introduce it in the High Tatras have been unsuccessful. The Red-winged Tinamou (Rhynchotus rufescens TEMMINCK, 1815) would have added to the list of American exotics. The species was experimented with in several hunting grounds but was never successfully introduced.

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