Stripe-faced Wood-Quail
Odontophorus balliviani
Chunky, dark brown quail of cloud forest and elfin forest. Dark brown body is spotted white below; black bandit mask and reddish crown are distinctive. May be found singly, in pairs, or in small groups. Quite secretive, and often goes undetected until flushed suddenly from nearly underfoot. Forages on the ground, climbing over mossy tree roots and scraping aside leaves with its feet to look for small prey. Listen for its low caroling song given at dusk, an often duetted “dwee-put, dwee-put….”
Identification
The stripe-faced wood quail is 26 to 28 cm (10 to 11 in) long. Males are estimated to weigh 311 g (11.0 oz) and females 324 g (11.4 oz). The male has a brown face with a patch of bare red skin around the eye and a black line under it. The crown and crest are chestnut with a buff border. The back and rump are brown with black vermiculation. The throat is buff with white streaks and the breast and belly are brown with white diamond-shaped spots. The female is similar, but is paler brown above and more rufous below.
Taxonomy
The specific epithet of the stripe-faced wood quail commemorates José Ballivián, President of Bolivia at the time of the naming. It is monotypic.
- Scientific name
- Odontophorus balliviani
- Authority
- Gould, 1846
- Order
- Galliformes
- Family
- Odontophoridae
- Genus
- Odontophorus
Range and habitat
The stripe-faced wood quail is found on the east slope of the Andes in southeastern Peru's Cuzco and Puno Provinces and western Bolivia's La Paz and Cochabamba Departments. It inhabits subtropical montane forest that has many tree ferns, bamboos, and epiphytes. The forest varieties include primary and young secondary forest and stunted cloudforest; it is also found in clearings, wet meadows, and gulleys. In elevation it typically ranges from 1,000 to 3,300 m (3,300 to 10,800 ft) but is occasionally found as low as 800 m (2,600 ft) in Peru.
- Migration
- Resident species
Behavior
No information about the stripe-faced wood quail's foraging behavior or diet has been published.<p>Almost nothing is known about the stripe-faced wood quail's breeding phenology. It has been noted singing regularly during May in Bolivia.<p>The stripe-faced wood quail's advertising call is "a rapidly repeated 'whydlyi-i, whydlyi-i....'" given by both members of a pair. They also have a harsh rattling alarm call and chirps that appear to be contact calls.
Conservation
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
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Porphyriops melanops
Small marsh bird with a disjunct range in South America, from central Colombia to eastern Brazil to central Chile. Note gray head and breast, warm brown upperparts, and brown flanks with white spots. Its greenish bill is distinctive. Singles or pairs can be seen swimming or walking in marshy habitat at the edge of lakes or ponds, sometimes remaining quite hidden. Unlikely to be confused, but compare with juvenile Common Gallinule, which has a dingy bill and a bold white stripe on the flanks.
Sri Lanka Scimitar-Babbler
Pomatorhinus melanurus
A striking babbler, with a long, bright yellow-orange downcurved bill, bold white eyebrow, deep chestnut upperparts, and clean white underparts. Inhabits the understory of forested areas and nearby scrub in both the lowlands and mountains, where typically encountered in pairs, and often moving with mixed species flocks. Distinctive song comprised of staccato “yee-doo-doo-doo” notes, sometimes given in duet with the second bird uttering a strident “ker-trick”.
Bougainville Island-Thrush
Turdus bougainvillei
Poorly-known and seldom-seen thrush endemic to Bougainville, in the northwestern Solomons, where it inhabits montane forests. Dark overall, with orange bill, eyering, legs, and feet. Behavior poorly-known, but like other Island-Thrushes, likely forages at all levels of forest, especially on the ground. Vocalizations are poorly understood.
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