Guinea fowl (Numida meleagris)

Personal Information
There are two groups of Guinea fowl in the Zoo. One is on the east side of the Main Building near the snow leopards and the other is in the goat yard in A Step Into Africa.

Status in the Wild
International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List status: Least concern. It is estimated that two million live in the wild.

Habitat
This species inhabits western, northeastern and southern Africa. They prefer to live in woodlands, shrub-filled grasslands and open Savannah.

Diet
Guinea fowl are omnivores, eating seeds, fruits, greens, snails, spiders, insects, frogs and small lizards.

Guinea fowl are a social species, living in flocks of up to 25 birds that roost communally.
The guinea fowl has a long history of domestication for consumption of its eggs and meat and, more recently it has been used for pest control, such as to control the tick population to curb the spread of lyme disease.
Guinea fowl are generally terrestrial. They are prone to run rather than fly when alarmed, but are agile and powerful flyers that can hover and fly backwards if necessary.
Young guinea fowl are called keets, and a group of guinea fowl is called a mob.