Partridge
Encyclopedia
Partridges are bird
s in the pheasant
family, Phasianidae
. They are a non-migratory
Old World group.
These are medium-sized birds, intermediate between the larger pheasant
s and the smaller quail
s. Partridges are native to Europe
, Asia
, Africa
, and the Middle East
. Partridges are ground-nesting seed-eaters.
According to Greek legend, the first partridge appeared when Daedalus
threw his nephew, Perdix
, off a roof in a fit of jealous rage
.
Partridges are famously featured in the Christmas carol "The 12 Days of Christmas
", where they appear in the first line of the first chorus and the last line of the remaining choruses, "A partridge in a pear
tree."
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
s in the pheasant
Pheasant
Pheasants refer to some members of the Phasianinae subfamily of Phasianidae in the order Galliformes.Pheasants are characterised by strong sexual dimorphism, males being highly ornate with bright colours and adornments such as wattles and long tails. Males are usually larger than females and have...
family, Phasianidae
Phasianidae
The Phasianidae is a family of birds which consists of the pheasants and partridges, including the junglefowl , Old World Quail, francolins, monals and peafowl. The family is a large one, and is occasionally broken up into two subfamilies, the Phasianinae, and the Perdicinae...
. They are a non-migratory
Bird migration
Bird migration is the regular seasonal journey undertaken by many species of birds. Bird movements include those made in response to changes in food availability, habitat or weather. Sometimes, journeys are not termed "true migration" because they are irregular or in only one direction...
Old World group.
These are medium-sized birds, intermediate between the larger pheasant
Pheasant
Pheasants refer to some members of the Phasianinae subfamily of Phasianidae in the order Galliformes.Pheasants are characterised by strong sexual dimorphism, males being highly ornate with bright colours and adornments such as wattles and long tails. Males are usually larger than females and have...
s and the smaller quail
Quail
Quail is a collective name for several genera of mid-sized birds generally considered in the order Galliformes. Old World quail are found in the family Phasianidae, while New World quail are found in the family Odontophoridae...
s. Partridges are native to Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
, Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
, and the Middle East
Middle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
. Partridges are ground-nesting seed-eaters.
According to Greek legend, the first partridge appeared when Daedalus
Daedalus
In Greek mythology, Daedalus was a skillful craftsman and artisan.-Family:...
threw his nephew, Perdix
Perdix (mythology)
Perdix was a nephew and student of Daedalus as well as the grandson of Athena in Greek mythology....
, off a roof in a fit of jealous rage
Rage (emotion)
Rage is a feeling of intense anger. It is associated with the Fight-or-flight response and oftentimes activated in response to an external cue, such as the murder of a loved one. The phrase, 'thrown into a fit of rage,' expresses the immediate nature of rage that occurs before deliberation. If left...
.
Partridges are famously featured in the Christmas carol "The 12 Days of Christmas
The Twelve Days of Christmas (song)
"The Twelve Days of Christmas" is an English Christmas carol that enumerates a series of increasingly grand gifts given on each of the twelve days of Christmas. Although first published in England in 1780, textual evidence may indicate the song is French in origin...
", where they appear in the first line of the first chorus and the last line of the remaining choruses, "A partridge in a pear
Pear
The pear is any of several tree species of genus Pyrus and also the name of the pomaceous fruit of these trees. Several species of pear are valued by humans for their edible fruit, but the fruit of other species is small, hard, and astringent....
tree."
Species list in taxonomic order
- Genus PtilopachusPtilopachusPtilopachus is an African genus of birds in the pheasant family. As traditionally defined, only the Stone Partridge was included in this genus, but based on genetic evidence it now also includes the Nahan's Partridge...
- Stone PartridgeStone PartridgeThe Stone Partridge, Ptilopachus petrosus, is a bird of the pheasant family. This largely brown bird, which commonly holds its tail raised, is found in scrubland and lightly wooded habitats, often near rocks, from Kenya and Ethiopia to Gambia...
, Ptilopachus petrosus - Nahan's Partridge, Ptilopachus nahani
- Stone Partridge
- Genus LerwaSnow PartridgeThe Snow Partridge is a gamebird in the pheasant family Phasianidae found widely distributed across the high-altitude Himalayan regions of India, Pakistan, Nepal and China. It is the only species within the genus...
- Snow PartridgeSnow PartridgeThe Snow Partridge is a gamebird in the pheasant family Phasianidae found widely distributed across the high-altitude Himalayan regions of India, Pakistan, Nepal and China. It is the only species within the genus...
, Lerwa lerwa
- Snow Partridge
- Genus TetraophasisTetraophasisTetraophasis is a genus of bird in the Phasianidae family.It contains the following species:* Verreaux's Monal-Partridge * Szechenyi's Monal-Partridge...
- Verreaux's Monal-Partridge, Tetraophasis obscurus
- Szechenyi's Monal-Partridge, Tetraophasis szechenyii
- Genus AlectorisAlectorisAlectoris, is a genus of partridges with representatives in southern Europe, north Africa and Arabia, and across Asia in Pakistan to Tibet and western China. Members of the genus, notably the Chukar and Red-legged Partridge, have been introduced to the United States, Canada, New Zealand and Hawaii...
- Arabian PartridgeArabian PartridgeThe Arabian Partridge is a species of bird in the Phasianidae family.It is found in Oman, Saudi Arabia, and Yemen. Also recently introduced to Pakistan via Oman.-References:...
, Alectoris melanocephala - Przevalski's PartridgePrzevalski's PartridgeThe Przevalski's Partridge or Rusty-necklaced Partridge is a species of bird in the Phasianidae family.It is found only in China.-References:* BirdLife International 2004. . Downloaded on 10 July 2007....
, Alectoris magna - Rock PartridgeRock PartridgeThe Rock Partridge, Alectoris graeca, is a gamebird in the pheasant family Phasianidae of the order Galliformes, gallinaceous birds.This partridge has its main range in southwestern Asia and southeastern Europe, and is closely related and very similar to its eastern equivalent, the Chukar...
, Alectoris graeca - ChukarChukarThe Chukar Partridge or Chukar is a Eurasian upland gamebird in the pheasant family Phasianidae. It has been considered to form a superspecies complex along with the Rock Partridge, Philby's Partridge and Przevalski's Partridge and treated in the past as conspecific particularly with the first...
, Alectoris chukar - Philby's PartridgePhilby's PartridgePhilby's Partridge , is a relative of the chukar, red-legged partridge and barbary partridges native to southwestern Arabia and northern Yemen. Although similar in appearance to other Alectoris species, Philby's Partridge can be distinguished by its black cheeks and throat.The name commemorates the...
, Alectoris philbyi - Barbary PartridgeBarbary PartridgeThe Barbary Partridge , is a gamebird in the pheasant family Phasianidae of the order Galliformes, gallinaceous birds....
, Alectoris barbara - Red-legged PartridgeRed-legged PartridgeThe Red-legged Partridge is a gamebird in the pheasant family Phasianidae of the order Galliformes, gallinaceous birds. It is sometimes known as French Partridge, to distinguish it from the Grey or English Partridge....
, Alectoris rufa
- Arabian Partridge
- Genus AmmoperdixAmmoperdixAmmoperdix is a small genus in the pheasant family Phasianidae of the order Galliformes. It contains two similar species:* See-see Partridge, Ammoperdix griseogularis* Sand Partridge, Ammoperdix heya...
- See-see PartridgeSee-see PartridgeThe See-see Partridge, Ammoperdix griseogularis, is a gamebird in the pheasant family Phasianidae of the order Galliformes, gallinaceous birds....
, Ammoperdix griseogularis - Sand PartridgeSand PartridgeThe Sand Partridge, Ammoperdix heyi, is a gamebird in the pheasant family Phasianidae of the order Galliformes, gallinaceous birds.This partridge has its main native range from Egypt and Palestine east to south Arabia...
, Ammoperdix heyi
- See-see Partridge
- Genus PerdixPerdixPerdix is a genus of partridges with representatives in most of temperate Europe and Asia. One member of the genus, the Grey Partridge, has been introduced to the United States and Canada....
- Grey PartridgeGrey PartridgeThe Grey Partridge, Perdix perdix, also known as the English Partridge, Hungarian Partridge, or Hun, is a gamebird in the pheasant family Phasianidae of the order Galliformes, gallinaceous birds...
, Perdix perdix - Daurian PartridgeDaurian PartridgeThe Daurian Partridge Perdix daurica is a gamebird in the pheasant family Phasianidae of the order Galliformes, gallinaceous birds. The name derives from the "Dauria" region....
, Perdix dauurica - Tibetan PartridgeTibetan PartridgeThe Tibetan Partridge is a gamebird in the pheasant family Phasianidae of the order Galliformes. They are found widely across the Tibetan Plateau and have some variations in plumage across populations. They forage on the ground in the sparsely vegetated high altitude regions, moving in pairs...
, Perdix hodgsoniae
- Grey Partridge
- Genus RhizotheraRhizotheraRhizothera is a genus of bird in the Phasianidae family.It contains the following species:* Long-billed Partridge * Hose's Partridge...
- Long-billed PartridgeLong-billed PartridgeThe Long-billed Partridge is a species of bird in the Phasianidae family.-Distribution and habitat:It is found in the Malay Peninsula, Sumatra and Borneo. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forests, subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests, and subtropical or tropical moist...
, Rhizothera longirostris
- Long-billed Partridge
- Genus Margaroperdix
- Madagascar PartridgeMadagascar PartridgeThe Madagascar Partridge is a species of bird in the Phasianidae family. It is found only in Madagascar.Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests and subtropical or tropical moist montanes....
, Margaroperdix madagascarensis
- Madagascar Partridge
- Genus Melanoperdix
- Black Wood-partridge, Melanoperdix nigra
- Genus XenoperdixXenoperdixThe genus Xenoperdix , described only in 1994, consist of two species of African partridges that are most closely related to Southeast Asian Hill Partridges....
- Rubeho Forest Partridge, Xenoperdix obscuratus
- Udzungwa Forest Partridge, Xenoperdix udzungwensis
- Genus ArborophilaArborophilaArborophila is a genus of bird in the Phasianidae family. It is a very diverse genus, having the second most members within the Galliformes after Francolinus. These are fairly small, often brightly marked partridges found in forests of eastern and southern Asia...
, the hill partridgeHill PartridgeThe Hill Partridge is a species of bird in the Phasianidae family. It is found in India, Nepal, Bhutan, Tibet, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam...
s- Hill PartridgeHill PartridgeThe Hill Partridge is a species of bird in the Phasianidae family. It is found in India, Nepal, Bhutan, Tibet, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam...
, Arborophila torqueola - Sichuan PartridgeSichuan PartridgeThe Sichuan Partridge is a species of bird in the Phasianidae family.It is found only in China.Its natural habitat is temperate forests.It is threatened by habitat loss.- Habitat :...
, Arborophila rufipectus - Chestnut-breasted PartridgeChestnut-breasted PartridgeThe Chestnut-breasted Partridge is a species of partridge endemic to the eastern Himalayas north of the Brahmaputra, and is known from Bhutan, West Bengal , Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh, north-east India, Nepal Himalaya and south-east Tibet.It is a distinctive partridge with chestnut breast-band...
, Arborophila mandellii - White-necklaced PartridgeWhite-necklaced PartridgeThe White-necklaced Partridge , also known as the Collared Hill-partridge, is a vulnerable species of bird in the Phasianidae family. It is endemic to hill and mountain forests in southeastern China. It is threatened by habitat loss.-References:* BirdLife International 2004. . .-External links:*...
, Arborophila gingica - Rufous-throated PartridgeRufous-throated PartridgeThe Rufous-throated Partridge is a species of bird in the Phasianidae family.It is found in Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, India, Laos, Myanmar, Nepal, Thailand, and Vietnam. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests and subtropical or tropical moist montane...
, Arborophila rufogularis - White-cheeked PartridgeWhite-cheeked PartridgeThe White-cheeked Partridge is a species of bird in the Phasianidae family.It is found in Bangladesh, China, India, and Myanmar....
, Arborophila atrogularis - Taiwan PartridgeTaiwan PartridgeThe Taiwan Partridge , also called Taiwan Hill Partridge, is a species of bird in the Phasianidae family.It is found only in Taiwan.Its natural habitat is temperate forests.It is threatened by habitat loss....
, Arborophila crudigularis - Hainan PartridgeHainan PartridgeThe Hainan Partridge is a species of bird in the Phasianidae family.It is endemic to Hainan Island, China.Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests and subtropical or tropical moist montanes....
, Arborophila ardens - Chestnut-bellied PartridgeChestnut-bellied PartridgeThe Chestnut-bellied Partridge, Arborophila javanica also known as Chestnut-bellied Hill-partridge or Javan Hill-partridge is a small, up to 28cm long, partridge with a rufous crown and nape, red legs, grey breast, brown wings, red facial skin, and a black mask, throat and bill. It has a rufous...
, Arborophila javanica - Grey-breasted Partridge, Arborophila orientalis
- Bar-backed PartridgeBar-backed PartridgeThe Bar-backed Partridge is a species of bird in the Phasianidae family.It is found in Cambodia, China, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam....
, Arborophila brunneopectus - Orange-necked PartridgeOrange-necked PartridgeThe Orange-necked Partridge is a species of bird in the Phasianidae family.It is found in eastern Cambodia and southern Vietnam along the Cambodian-Vietnam border....
, Arborophila davidi - Chestnut-headed PartridgeChestnut-headed PartridgeThe Chestnut-headed Partridge is a species of bird in the Phasianidae family. It is found in highland forests in Cambodia and Thailand. It includes the subspecies diversa, but alternatively it is treated as a separate species, the Siamese Partridge .-References:* BirdLife International 2004....
, Arborophila cambodiana - Red-breasted PartridgeRed-breasted PartridgeThe Red-breasted Partridge , also known as the Bornean Hill-partridge, is a species of bird in the Phasianidae family. It is endemic to hill and montane forest in Borneo.-References:...
, Arborophila hyperythra - Red-billed PartridgeRed-billed PartridgeThe Red-billed Partridge is a species of bird in the Phasianidae family. It is endemic to highland forests in Sumatra, Indonesia. It is the only member of the genus Arborophila where the bill is completely red .-References:* BirdLife International 2004....
, Arborophila rubrirostris - Scaly-breasted PartridgeScaly-breasted PartridgeThe Green-legged Partridge , also known as the Scaly-breasted Partridge or Green-legged Hill-partridge, is a species of bird in the Phasianidae family. It is found in forests in Indochina, ranging slightly into southernmost China...
, Arborophila chloropus - Chestnut-necklaced PartridgeChestnut-necklaced PartridgeThe Chestnut-necklaced Partridge is a species of bird in the Phasianidae family. It is found in forests in the Thai-Malay Peninsula, Sumatra and Borneo. It is closely related to the Vietnam Partridge and Scaly-breasted Partridge, and their taxonomy is not entirely settled.The Chestnut-necklaced...
, Arborophila charltonii - Sumatran Partridge, Arborophila sumatrana
- Vietnam Partridge, Arborophila merlini
- Hill Partridge
- Genus Caloperdix
- Ferruginous PartridgeFerruginous PartridgeThe Ferruginous Partridge is a species of bird in the Phasianidae family. It belongs to the monotypical genus Caloperdix. It is found in Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, and Thailand....
, Caloperdix oculea
- Ferruginous Partridge
- Genus Haematortyx
- Crimson-headed PartridgeCrimson-headed PartridgeThe Crimson-headed Partridge is a species of bird in the Phasianidae family. It is found in Indonesia and Malaysia....
, Haematortyx sanguiniceps
- Crimson-headed Partridge
- Genus Rollulus
- Crested Partridge, Rollulus roulroul
- Genus PtilopachusPtilopachusPtilopachus is an African genus of birds in the pheasant family. As traditionally defined, only the Stone Partridge was included in this genus, but based on genetic evidence it now also includes the Nahan's Partridge...
- Stone PartridgeStone PartridgeThe Stone Partridge, Ptilopachus petrosus, is a bird of the pheasant family. This largely brown bird, which commonly holds its tail raised, is found in scrubland and lightly wooded habitats, often near rocks, from Kenya and Ethiopia to Gambia...
, Ptilopachus petrosus
- Stone Partridge
- Genus BambusicolaBambusicolaBambusicola is a genus of bird in the Phasianidae family.It contains the following species:* Mountain Bamboo Partridge, Bambusicola fytchii* Chinese Bamboo Partridge, Bambusicola thoracicus...
- Mountain Bamboo Partridge, Bambusicola fytchii
- Chinese Bamboo PartridgeChinese Bamboo PartridgeThe Chinese Bamboo Partridge is a small partridge native to eastern mainland China and Taiwan, and introduced successfully to Japan...
, Bambusicola thoracica
External links
- Partridge videos on the Internet Bird Collection