Jungle Bush Quail

The jungle bush quail (Perdicula asiatica) is a species of quail in the family Phasianidae. It is native to the Indian subcontinent, where it is found in peninsular India and Sri Lanka. It has also been reported from Nepal but has not been seen there since the 19th century, and an introduced population exists on the island of Réunion. A small species of quail long and weighing , it shows significant sexual dimorphism. Males have brown with blackish and buff marking and whitish with black barring. The face is mainly dark reddish-brown, with brown , a buffy-white , and the turning whitish towards the back of the neck. Females have a similar pattern, but with pinkish-brown underparts, more uniform wings, and duller moustachial stripes. The species inhabits dry areas with shrubby or rocky cover in a variety of habitats. It feeds on seeds and small insects, typically in small groups of 6–25 birds. Breeding starts at the end of the rains and lasts until the end of the cold season, with the exact timing varying across its range. It nests in shallow scrapes in cover and lays clutches of 4–8 eggs. Incubation is only done by the female. The International Union for Conservation of Nature considers the jungle bush quail to be of least concern due to its large range and stable population. Taxonomy and systematics The jungle bush quail was originally described as Perdix asiatica by John Latham in 1790 based on specimens from the "Mahratta region". It was moved to the genus Perdicula, of which it is the type species, by Brian Hodgson in 1837. The generic name Perdicula is a Modern Latin diminutive of the genus Perdix, and means "small partridge". The specific epithet asiatica comes from the Latin asiaticus, meaning Asiatic. Jungle bush quail is the official common name designated by the International Ornithologists' Union. Other names for the species include jungle quail, jungle bush-quail, jungle bushquail, Ceylon jungle bush quail, and Konkan jungle bush quail. Subspecies There are five recognised subspecies of the jungle bush quail: