Hill Partridge
Encyclopedia
The Hill Partridge is a species of bird
in the Phasianidae
family. It is found in India
, Nepal
, Bhutan
, Tibet
, Myanmar
, Thailand
and Vietnam
. Its natural habitat
s are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest
s and subtropical or tropical moist montane forests.
Males of the species have ornate patterns and markings, a combination of an orange crown and face set against a black head and streaked throat. Females lack the head markings but share the variegated wings and grey-streaked underparts of the male. Four subspecies have been identified on the basis of differences on the head markings on the male. The food of this species comprises seeds and various invertebrates, which it collects by scratching in leaf litter. The birds are mostly seen in pairs or small coveys of up to 10 individuals that may be made up of family groups.
The Hill Partridge has a hen-like contact call that is constantly uttered when it is feeding. Indian populations breed between April and June, although earlier breeding has been recorded at lower altitudes. The average clutch size is 3-5 eggs but up to nine eggs have also been observed. Incubation times are unrecorded in wild birds but are reported to be 24 days for captive birds. The nest is shaped like a bowl, with a dome of glass when it is placed in a bank. The range spans over a narrow band from the western Himalayas
to north Vietnam
. The species is not globally threatened and is common in most parts of its range.
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...
in the 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...
family. It is found in India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, Nepal
Nepal
Nepal , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked sovereign state located in South Asia. It is located in the Himalayas and bordered to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India...
, Bhutan
Bhutan
Bhutan , officially the Kingdom of Bhutan, is a landlocked state in South Asia, located at the eastern end of the Himalayas and bordered to the south, east and west by the Republic of India and to the north by the People's Republic of China...
, Tibet
Tibet
Tibet is a plateau region in Asia, north-east of the Himalayas. It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people as well as some other ethnic groups such as Monpas, Qiang, and Lhobas, and is now also inhabited by considerable numbers of Han and Hui people...
, Myanmar
Myanmar
Burma , officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar , is a country in Southeast Asia. Burma is bordered by China on the northeast, Laos on the east, Thailand on the southeast, Bangladesh on the west, India on the northwest, the Bay of Bengal to the southwest, and the Andaman Sea on the south....
, Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
and Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
. Its natural habitat
Habitat
* Habitat , a place where a species lives and grows*Human habitat, a place where humans live, work or play** Space habitat, a space station intended as a permanent settlement...
s are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest
Forest
A forest, also referred to as a wood or the woods, is an area with a high density of trees. As with cities, depending where you are in the world, what is considered a forest may vary significantly in size and have various classification according to how and what of the forest is composed...
s and subtropical or tropical moist montane forests.
Males of the species have ornate patterns and markings, a combination of an orange crown and face set against a black head and streaked throat. Females lack the head markings but share the variegated wings and grey-streaked underparts of the male. Four subspecies have been identified on the basis of differences on the head markings on the male. The food of this species comprises seeds and various invertebrates, which it collects by scratching in leaf litter. The birds are mostly seen in pairs or small coveys of up to 10 individuals that may be made up of family groups.
The Hill Partridge has a hen-like contact call that is constantly uttered when it is feeding. Indian populations breed between April and June, although earlier breeding has been recorded at lower altitudes. The average clutch size is 3-5 eggs but up to nine eggs have also been observed. Incubation times are unrecorded in wild birds but are reported to be 24 days for captive birds. The nest is shaped like a bowl, with a dome of glass when it is placed in a bank. The range spans over a narrow band from the western Himalayas
Himalayas
The Himalaya Range or Himalaya Mountains Sanskrit: Devanagari: हिमालय, literally "abode of snow"), usually called the Himalayas or Himalaya for short, is a mountain range in Asia, separating the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau...
to north Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
. The species is not globally threatened and is common in most parts of its range.