The Chinese bamboo partridge is a small from eastern China, 11–12 inches (27–31 cm) long, mottled brown with a rusty face and black-spotted flanks. It doesn't live in the wild on the U.S. mainland; it was released in Hawaii with mixed success and has become well established in Japan.
Appearance
- Appearance
- About 11–12 in (27–31 cm) long, males slightly larger. Mottled black, chestnut, and cream above, with a gray stripe over the eye, a rusty face and throat, an ochre-yellow breast, and black spots on the flanks.
- Voice
- Males give loud, multi-syllable calls through the day and year round.
Where it lives
- Typical habitats
- Forest edges
- Thickets
- Bamboo groves
- Grasslands
- Range
- Native to eastern mainland China. Introduced to Japan, Hawaii, and Argentina; it has disappeared from Hong Kong.
- Preferred conditions
- Despite its name, it doesn't depend on bamboo. It lives in warm forests and grasslands.
Behavior
- Diet
- An omnivore that eats seeds, fruit, and small invertebrates such as insects.
- Activity
- Secretive and hard to see. It stays hidden until you get close, then bursts up with loud wingbeats.
Life cycle
- Nest
- A simple scrape or grass-lined nest on the ground.
- Clutch size
- 5–10 eggs
- Incubation
- The female incubates alone for about 18 days.
- Fledging
- Chicks leave the nest within hours of hatching and follow their parents.
Conservation
- IUCN Red List
- LCLeast ConcernLow risk of extinction
Culture and stories
- Culture and stories
- It has been kept as a cage bird in China for centuries.
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