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The species Himalayan Quail is possibly extinct. |
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Artwork © by spizaetos
- Ophrysia superciliosa
Identification
25 cm (9¾ in)
Male:
Slate-grey, tinged with olive above, and with black edgings to the sides of the feathers, a black, head streaked with white, and black under-tail-coverts spotted with white.
Female:
Brown, spotted with black centres to the feathers and the face a sort of pinkish grey. The bill is red, bright coral in the male and dusky in the female, and the legs are dull red.
Distribution
Western Himalayas in north-western India.
Status
Classified as Critically Endangered in the 2008 IUCN Red List.1 No reliable records since 1876.
Taxonomy
This is a monotypic species[1].
Habitat
Steep slopes with long grass and scrub at altitudes of 1 650 to 2 400 m.
Behaviour
Diet
Their diet consists of grass seeds. They also probably eat some berries.
Breeding
There is no information available.
References
- Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2018. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2018. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
- BirdLife International. 2008. Species factsheet: Ophrysia superciliosa. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 25/12/2008.
- Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive (retrieved May 2019)
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2025) Himalayan Quail. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 27 April 2025 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Himalayan_Quail
