Order: Galliformes

Family: Phasianidae

Scientific name: Perdicula erythrorhyncha, Sykes, 1832

IUCN Red list status-Least Concern

Did you know?

  1. Painted Bush Quail is an endemic bird found in India.

Description

Painted Bush Quail is 18-20 cm long and weighs 70-80 grams. They are brightly coloured having red bill and legs. The male bird has a black face and white super cilium and throat. The female has brick red underside. It lacks the white throat and head stripe of the male. They are typically found in a covey of 6 to 10 birds. They have the habit of taking dust-bathe in the morning and evening. The group quickly reunites by the constant call of the members to one another.

Diet

The Painted Bush Quail feed on grass, seeds, weeds, grains and insects. They come out in open grassy patches on forest roads and cart tracks to feed seeds, grain and small insects. The forage time is mainly day and it is done in groups or in convoy.

Habitat

The habitat of Painted Bushh Quail is grasslands, bush and scrub forests, forest edges, cultivated fields etc. In India it is distributed mainly in Western Ghats and Eastern Ghats region. It is an endemic bird of India and not reported from anywhere in the sub continent.

Reproductive Behaviour

The breeding season of Painted Bush Quail varies locally, but it is said mainly in December to March. Nest is a scrape in the ground at the root of a bush or grass clump, thinly lined with grass. Normally 4 to 7 eggs are laid. Female alone incubates the egg for 16–18 days. Females are said to defend their young often by attacking dogs and even humans that intrude.

Call

Call is a triple noted “kirikee-kirikee-kirikee” and soft whistles which rises and falls in pitch.

Related Species and Sub Species

  • Jungle Bush Quail (Perdicula asiatica).
  • Rock Bush Quail (Perdicula argoondah).
  • Manipur Bush Quail (Perdicula manipurensis).
  • Perdicula erythrorhyncha erythrorhyncha of Western Ghats in Maharashtra, Kerala and Tamil Nadu.
  • Perdicula erythrorhyncha blewitti of Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal and Odisha.

 

Migratory Behaviour

Rare Resident