From Opus

Alternative names: Little Buttonquail; Small Buttonquail; Andalusian Hemipode; Kurrichane Buttonquail

Turnix sylvaticus

Photo by Jugal Tiwari
Naliya Grasslands, India, Aug 2010

[edit] Identification

15cm

• Streaked sandy brown upperparts
• Buff underparts
• Black flank markings
• Plain face
• Grey wing with white wingbar
  

Sexes are similar
Immature birds are more spotted underparts

[edit] Distribution

Southern Spain and most of Africa. India and tropical Asia to Indonesia.

[edit] Taxonomy

[edit] Subspecies

Nine subspecies are recognized:^[1]

• T. s. sylvaticus - Southern Iberian Peninsula, northern Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia
• T. s. lepuranus - Africa south of the Sahara and extreme south Arabian Peninsula
• T. s. dussumier - Extreme eastern Iran to India and Burma
• T. s. davidi - Peninsular Thailand to south China, northern Indochina and Taiwan
• T. s. whiteheadi - Luzon Island (n Philippines)
• T. s. nigrorum - Negros Island (Philippines)
• T. s. celestinoi - South Philippines (Bohol and Mindanao)
• T. s. suluensis - Sulu Archipelago
• T. s. bartelsorum - Java and Bali

[edit] Habitat

Grasslands or scrub jungle. Also cornfields and stretches of grassy plains.

[edit] Behaviour

[edit] Diet

The diet includes insects and seeds.

[edit] Breeding

The female builds the nest which is a pad of grass placed in a natural hollow in the ground, amongst the stems of a tuft of grass. The 4 speckled greyish eggs are incubated by the male who cares for the precocial young.

[edit] References

1. Clements, JF. 2010. The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World. 6th ed., with updates to December 2010. Ithaca: Cornell Univ. Press. ISBN 978-0801445019. Spreadsheet available at http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/Clements%206.5.xls/view
2. Wikipedia

• List of references

[edit] External Links