| Chestnut-backed buttonquail | |
|---|---|
 | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Charadriiformes |
| Family: | Turnicidae |
| Genus: | Turnix |
| Species: | T. castanotus |
| Binomial name | |
| Turnix castanotus (Gould, 1840) | |
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| Distribution of the chestnut-backed buttonquail | |
| Synonyms [2] | |
Hemipodius castanotusGould | |
The chestnut-backed buttonquail (Turnix castanotus) is a species of bird in the family Turnicidae. It is endemic to Australia.
John Gould described the species in 1840, from a specimen collected by Benjamin Bynoe, ship's surgeon of HMS Beagle, from northwestern Australia, as Hemipodius castanotus. [3] English zoologist George Gray placed it in the genus Turnix in 1870. [4] William Robert Ogilvie-Grant corrected the name to Turnix castanonota in 1889. [5] Three subspecies were described by Gregory Mathews, [2] but all are now considered as invalid and merely individual variants. [6]
"Chestnut-backed buttonquail" has been designated the official name by the International Ornithologists' Union (IOC). [7] The species name is derived from the Ancient Greek words kastanon "chestnut" and noton "back". [8] Gould called it "chestnut-backed hemipode" in 1848, noting the colonists called it "thick-billed quail". The buttonquail species were generally known as "quail" (hence "chestnut-backed quail" ) until the RAOU promoted the current usage of "buttonquail" in 1978, which was then universally adopted. [8]
Native to northern Australia, the species ranges from the Dampier Peninsula in Western Australia across to Westmoreland Station in the Gulf Country of northwestern Queensland, with possible records from Gregory Downs and Augustus Downs further east. It is also native to Melville Island and Groote Eylandt. It was common around Borroloola and McArthur River, but not currently. Its existence in Queensland was only confirmed in 2020. [9]
Its natural habitats are low grasslands and Eucalyptus forests and woodland, favouring quartzite-sandstone ridges, plateaus and escarpments, mostly (but not always) in areas that receive over 800 mm (31 in) summer rainfall. [6]
The usual sex roles are reversed in the buttonquail genus ( Turnix ), as the larger and more brightly-coloured female mates with multiple male partners and leaves them to incubate the eggs. [10] The female lays a clutch of 1–5 (usually 4) pyriform eggs, which are glossy-white with sparse small dark blotches. [11]
Galliformes is an order of heavy-bodied ground-feeding birds that includes turkeys, chickens, quail, and other landfowl. Gallinaceous birds, as they are called, are important in their ecosystems as seed dispersers and predators, and are often reared by humans for their meat and eggs, or hunted as game birds.
The Phasianidae are a family of heavy, ground-living birds, which includes pheasants, partridges, junglefowl, chickens, turkeys, Old World quail, and peafowl. The family includes many of the most popular gamebirds. The family is a large one and includes 185 species divided into 54 genera. It was formerly broken up into two subfamilies, the Phasianinae and the Perdicinae. However, this treatment is now known to be paraphyletic and polyphyletic, respectively, and more recent evidence supports breaking it up into two subfamilies: Rollulinae and Phasianinae, with the latter containing multiple tribes within two clades. The New World quail (Odontophoridae) and guineafowl (Numididae) were formerly sometimes included in this family, but are now typically placed in families of their own; conversely, grouse and turkeys, formerly often treated as distinct families, are now known to be deeply nested within Phasianidae, so they are now included in the present family.
The pied currawong is a black passerine bird native to eastern Australia and Lord Howe Island. One of three currawong species in the genus Strepera, it is closely related to the butcherbirds and Australian magpie of the family Artamidae. Six subspecies are recognised. It is a robust crowlike bird averaging around 48 cm (19 in) in length, black or sooty grey-black in plumage with white undertail and wing patches, yellow irises, and a heavy bill. The male and female are similar in appearance. Known for its melodious calls, the species' name currawong is believed to be of indigenous origin.
Buttonquail or hemipodes are members of a small family of birds, Turnicidae, which resemble, but are not closely related to, the quails of Phasianidae. They inhabit warm grasslands in Asia, Africa, Europe, and Australia. There are 18 species in two genera, with most species placed in the genus Turnix and a single species in the genus Ortyxelos.
The barred buttonquail or common bustard-quail is a buttonquail, one of a small family of birds which resemble, but are closely related to, the true quails. This species is resident from India across tropical Asia to south China, Indonesia and the Philippines.
The common buttonquail, also called Kurrichane buttonquail, small buttonquail, or Andalusian hemipode is a buttonquail, one of a small family of birds which resemble but are unrelated to the true quails.
The banded stilt is a nomadic wader of the stilt and avocet family, Recurvirostridae, native to Australia. It belongs to the monotypic genus Cladorhynchus. It gets its name from the red-brown breast band found on breeding adults, though this is mottled or entirely absent in non-breeding adults and juveniles. Its remaining plumage is pied and the eyes are dark brown. Nestling banded stilts have white down, unlike any other species of wader.
The painted buttonquail is a species of buttonquail, the family Turnicidae, which resemble, but are unrelated to, the quails of Phasianidae. This species is resident in Australia where numbers are believed to be in decline. A subspecies, the Abrolhos painted buttonquail, is endemic to the Houtman Abrolhos islands.
The little buttonquail is a species of buttonquail, part of a small family of birds which resemble, but are unrelated to, the true quails. This species is resident in Australia, where it is one of the more common buttonquails.
The yellow-legged buttonquail is a buttonquail, one of a small family of birds which resemble, but are unrelated to, the true quails. This family is peculiar in that the females are larger and more colourful than the males and are polyandrous.
The buff-breasted buttonquail is the largest and possibly the rarest of the buttonquail. This species is endemic to Cape York Peninsula, in Queensland, Australia.
The black-breasted buttonquail is a rare buttonquail endemic to eastern Australia. As with other buttonquails, it is unrelated to the true quails. The black-breasted buttonquail is a plump quail-shaped bird 17–19 cm (6.7–7.5 in) in length with predominantly marbled black, rufous, and pale brown plumage, marked prominently with white spots and stripes, and white eyes. Like other buttonquails, the female is larger and more boldly coloured than the male, with a distinctive black head and neck sprinkled with fine white markings. The usual sex roles are reversed, as the female mates with multiple male partners and leaves them to incubate the eggs.
The inland thornbill was originally described by English ornithologist John Gould in The Birds of Australia. Inland thornbills are within the order passerines. The inland thornbill belongs to the genus Acanthiza, which now has three more species than the eleven outlined by Gould in The Birds of Australia. The Noongar people of southwestern Western Australia call A. apicalis "Djoobi-Djoolbang". The inland thornbill is also known as the broad-tail thornbill and presently contains several subspecies that were once considered independent species. The word apicalis comes from the Latin for 'tipped'.
The red-backed kingfisher is a species of kingfisher in the subfamily Halcyoninae, also known as tree kingfishers. It is a predominantly blue-green and white bird with a chestnut rump. It is found across the continent of Australia, mainly inhabiting the drier regions.
The red-backed buttonquail is a species of bird in the family Turnicidae. It is found in Australia, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines and the Solomon Islands. Other names by which it is known in different parts of its range include black-backed, black-spotted and orange-breasted buttonquail. There are fourteen recognised subspecies.
The Madagascar buttonquail is a species of bird in the buttonquail family, Turnicidae, that is endemic to Madagascar and a few small islands nearby. It is a ground-dwelling species with an unusual breeding biology in which the sexual dimorphism is reversed, with female being more brightly coloured than the male and it is the male that incubates the eggs and mainly cares for the young.
The red-chested buttonquail is a species of bird in the family Turnicidae. It is endemic to Australia. The species is generally regarded as widespread, although uncommon, in New South Wales, Queensland, northern Western Australia and the Northern Territory, and classified as Vulnerable in Victoria.
The chestnut quail-thrush is a native Australian bird of the family Cinclosomatidae. These scrub birds are endemic to Australia and found in all states - barring Tasmania. They are relatively uncommon and are isolated to the semi-arid and arid fringes of the Australian interior.
The lovely fairywren, or lovely wren, is a species of bird in the Australasian wren family, Maluridae. It is endemic to northeastern Australia. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forest and subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest.
A becard is a bird of the genus Pachyramphus in the family Tityridae.
