Long-tailed Wood-Partridge
Dendrortyx macroura
Very elusive, chickenlike bird of humid evergreen and pine-evergreen forests in the highlands of central Mexico. Usually in pairs or small groups on the forest floor; may be seen beside quiet trails and roads early and late in the day. Runs away quickly and rarely flies. Note the white stripes on black head, red bill and eyering, and overall gray-brown body; tail often held cocked, like a chicken. Loud rollicking songs are given mainly early and late in the day and most often reveal its presence.
Identification
The long-tailed wood partridge is 29.0 to 42.2 cm (11.4 to 16.6 in) long and weighs 266 to 465 g (9.4 to 16.4 oz). Males are heavier than females, and adults of both sexes have a long tail though the female's is somewhat shorter. In adults, most of the head is black; the face has white streaks above and below the eye. The short crest on the crown is tipped with buff. The upper back is chestnut edged with gray and the lower back is olive brown, black, and tawny mottling. The breast is bluish gray with chestnut streaks. The juvenile is similar but with dark brown spots and less chestnut on the underparts. There are variations among the subspecies, but it is unknown if there are vocal differences or genetic ones other than plumage color among them.
Taxonomy
The long-tailed wood partridge shares the genus Dendrortyx with two other species, all of which appear to be quite distinct from each other. It has these six subspecies:
- Scientific name
- Dendrortyx macroura
- Authority
- (Jardine & Selby, 1828)
- Order
- Galliformes
- Family
- Odontophoridae
- Genus
- Dendrortyx
Range and habitat
The subspecies of the long-tailed wood partridge are distributed in four discrete zones.<p>The long-tailed wood partridge inhabits humid pine-oak, pine, fir, and montane evergreen forests with dense understories. In elevation it ranges between 1,200 and 3,300 m (3,900 and 10,800 ft).
- Migration
- Resident species
Behavior
The long-tailed wood partridge forages mainly on the ground, scratching in leaf litter, but also climbs in low branches to search. Its diet is mostly seeds and small fruits but also includes small arthropods and leaves.<p>The long-tailed wood partridge's breeding season extends from February to September, with nesting itself beginning in late April. Four nests have been described. One was a depression lined with grass in a natural cavity in the ground. One was a cavity of pine needles at the base of a rock and the others were at the base of a rock outcrop and under a small shub. The last two were not well concealed. Three of them each contained four eggs and the other six eggs.<p>The long-tailed wood partridge's song is "complex, loud and rhythmic", usually given as a duet by both members of a pair. One description calls it "a loud, ringing korr-EEE-oh, korr-EEE-oh, korr-EEE-oh, korr-EEE-oh". Pairs vocalize at any time of day and night during the breeding season and mostly at dawn and dusk from a night roost otherwise. The species also has an alarm call, "a repetition of short low-pitched, unmodulated squeaky notes."
Conservation
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
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Crithagra citrinipectus
A small gray-brown seedeater with a lemon-yellow rump, white tail tips, and a boldly marked face with pale patches (white to lemon-yellow) above and below the eye. The throat and upper breast are lemon-yellow in the male and buff in the female. Pairs and small flocks occupy savanna, grassland, and palm savanna, where the species is partial to Ilala Palm. It forages on the ground and in small shrubs and grass. The similar Yellow-fronted Canary is yellower, has a broader eyebrow, and lacks wingbars and the vertical dark stripe below the eye.
Mosque Swallow
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This large swallow has rusty-red underparts, a pale buff throat, and a white leading edge to the underwing that is obvious only in flight. It is mostly resident, although it is also a wet season migrant to the north of its range. Pairs prefer wooded savanna, nesting in banks, termite mounds, and often holes in trees, particularly baobabs. The Mosque Swallow may be confused with the juvenile Rufous-chested Swallow, but it lacks the latter species’ dark “ear-flaps” and buffy forward part of the underwing.
Reischek's Parakeet
Cyanoramphus hochstetteri
A medium-sized, emerald-green parakeet endemic to the Antipodes Islands, including smaller outer islands. Recognized by its distinctive bright red crown and small red patches behind the eyes. Green body plumage has a slight yellowish tint. Males are larger than females. Most commonly found in areas of low vegetation and open areas along the coast. Forms small flocks in autumn and winter. Calls are a distinctive parakeet chatter. Distinguished from Red-crowned Parakeet by lack of range overlap and the more yellow-green body plumage. Easily distinguished from larger, all-green Antipodes Island Parakeet.
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