painted buttonquail
{{Short description|Species of bird}}
{{Speciesbox
| name = Painted buttonquail
| image = Painted Button-quail male 0A2A8644.jpg
| image_caption = Adult male painted buttonquail; mainland subspecies
| image2 = Painted Button-quail female 0A2A9601.jpg
| image2_caption = Adult female painted buttonquail; mainland subspecies
| status = LC
| status_system = IUCN3.1
| genus = Turnix
| species = varius
| authority = (Latham, 1801)
| synonyms =
- Turnix varia (Latham, 1801) (lapsus)
- Turnix novaecaledoniae
| range_map = Painted Button-Quail.jpg
| range_map_caption = Distribution of the painted button quail
}}
The painted buttonquail (Turnix varius) 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 (Turnix varius scintillans), is endemic to the Houtman Abrolhos islands.
Taxonomy
The painted buttonquail was first described by the English ornithologist John Latham in 1801 under the binomial name Perdix varia.{{cite book | last=Latham | first=John | author-link=John Latham (ornithologist) | year=1801 | title=Supplementum indicis ornithologici sive systematis ornithologiae | place=London | publisher=Leigh & Sotheby | language=Latin | url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/33261437 | page=lxiii }}
"Painted buttonquail" has been designated the official name by the International Ornithologists' Union (IOU).{{cite web| editor1-last=Gill | editor1-first=Frank | editor1-link=Frank Gill (ornithologist) | editor2-last=Donsker | editor2-first=David | year=2021| title= Buttonquail, thick-knees, sheathbills, plovers, oystercatchers, stilts, painted-snipes, jacanas, Plains-wanderer, seedsnipes | work=World Bird List Version 12.1 | url=https://www.worldbirdnames.org/new/bow/buttonquail/ | publisher=International Ornithologists' Union | access-date=9 April 2022 }}
Two subspecies are recognised.
The possibly-extinct New Caledonian buttonquail (Turnix novaecaledoniae) of New Caledonia was formerly considered a third subspecies, but was split as a distinct species by the IOC in 2021.{{Cite web|title=Species Updates – IOC World Bird List|url=https://www.worldbirdnames.org/new/updates/species-updates/|access-date=2021-06-13|language=en-US}}
Description
File:Painted Button-quail chicks, Gunbower ps.jpg
The painted buttonquail is about {{convert|19|to|20|cm|1|abbr=on}} long. It is a ground-dwelling bird and is found in grassy forests and woodlands. It feeds on insects and seeds, and the males incubate the eggs for a fortnight and then care for the young.
The female is the more brightly coloured of the sexes. Her eyes are red, and her crown, face and breast are flecked with white. Her shoulders are chestnut with thin white streaking above them. The male is slightly smaller and duller in colour.
Distribution and habitat
The painted buttonquail is native to Australia. Its range extends from Queensland southwards to New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia and Tasmania. A separate population is present in the southwestern part of Western Australia. The subspecies Turnix varius scintillans is endemic to the Houtman Abrolhos islands off the west coast of Australia.
The painted buttonquail became established on Rottnest Island around 2002.{{cite journal | last1=Saunders | first1= Denis A. | last2= de Rebeira | first2=C. P. | year=2009 | title= A case study of the conservation value of a small tourist resort island: Birds of Rottnest Island, Western Australia 1905–2007 | journal= Pacific Conservation Biology | volume=15 |pages= 11–31 | doi=10.1071/PC090011| s2cid= 87832707 | url=https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/a90c/cc5ce4298418899d78e8ba7e3b0488753230.pdf | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200226000900/https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/a90c/cc5ce4298418899d78e8ba7e3b0488753230.pdf | url-status=dead | archive-date=2020-02-26 }}
Status
The painted buttonquail has a wide range. An estimate of the population size has not been made but numbers are suspected to be in decline. It is said to be common in suitable habitat in some areas and uncommon in others. The IUCN has listed it as being of "Least Concern".{{cite web |url=http://www.birdlife.org/datazone/speciesfactsheet.php?id=515 |title=Species factsheet: Turnix varius |publisher=BirdLife International |access-date=2013-12-16}}
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- {{Commons category-inline|Turnix varius|Turnix varius}}
- {{Wikispecies-inline|Turnix varius|Turnix varius}}
- [http://avibase.bsc-eoc.org/species.jsp?lang=EN&avibaseid=AC18D7C47F7036C8&sec=summary Painted buttonquail (Turnix varius) (Latham, 1801)] Avibase 2009
{{Taxonbar|from=Q663363}}