Arborophila
White-necklaced partridge (Arborophila gingica)
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Galliformes
Family: Phasianidae
Subfamily: Rollulinae
Genus: Arborophila
Hodgson, 1837
Type species
Perdix torquela (hill partridge)
Species

About 20, see text

Arborophila is a bird genus in the family Phasianidae. The genus has the second most members within the Galliformes after Pternistis, although Arborophila species vary very little in bodily proportions with different species varying only in colouration/patterning and overall size. These are fairly small, often brightly marked partridges found in forest of eastern and southern Asia.[1] Some species in this genus have small ranges, and are threatened by habitat loss and hunting.

Taxonomy

The genus Arborophila was introduced in 1837 by the English naturalist Brian Houghton Hodgson to accommodate a single species, the hill partridge, which is therefore the type species.[2][3] The genus name combines the Latin arbor, arboris meaning "tree" with the Ancient Greek philos meaning "-loving".[4]

Species

While most species in this genus are highly distinctive and their taxonomic treatment is settled, there are three complexes where the species limits have not been entirely resolved and to various degrees are disputed: A. orientalis–sumatrana–campbelli–rolli complex, A. cambodiana complex, and A. chloropus–merlini–charltonii complex.[1] A. torqueola is always called the hill partridge or common hill-partridge, but in all other species "hill" is often disregarded (for example, A. rufipectus is variously known as the Sichuan hill-partridge or Sichuan partridge). The genus contains 19 species.[5]

Image Common Name Scientific name Distribution
Hill partridge Arborophila torqueola India, Nepal, Bhutan, Tibet, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam.
Sichuan partridge Arborophila rufipectus China
Chestnut-breasted partridge Arborophila mandellii Bhutan, Darjeeling, Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh and south-eastern Tibet
White-necklaced or collared partridge Arborophila gingica China (Zhejiang, Jiangxi, Fujian, Guangdong and Guangxi.)
Rufous-throated partridge Arborophila rufogularis Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, India, Laos, Myanmar, Nepal, Thailand, and Vietnam
Red-billed partridge Arborophila rubrirostris Sumatra, Indonesia.
Siamese partridge Arborophila diversa eastern Thailand.
Chestnut-headed partridge Arborophila cambodiana Cambodia.
Hainan partridge Arborophila ardens Hainan Island, China.
Taiwan partridge Arborophila crudigularis Taiwan
White-cheeked partridge Arborophila atrogularis India, northern Myanmar, and northeast Bangladesh
Bar-backed partridge Arborophila brunneopectus Cambodia, China, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam
Orange-necked partridge Arborophila davidi Cambodia
Red-breasted or Bornean partridge Arborophila hyperythra Borneo
Malayan partridge Arborophila campbelli Peninsular Malaysia.
Roll's partridge Arborophila rolli Sumatra, Indonesia.
Sumatran partridge Arborophila sumatrana Sumatra, Indonesia.
Chestnut-bellied partridge Arborophila javanica Java.
Grey-breasted or white-faced partridge Arborophila orientalis eastern Java, Indonesia.

References

  1. ^ a b Madge, Steve; McGowan, Phil (2002). Pheasants, Partridges & Grouse. London: Christopher Helm. p. 10. ISBN 0-7136-3966-0.
  2. ^ Hodgson, Brian Houghton (1837). "On two new genera of rasorial birds". Madras Journal of Literature and Science. 5: 300–305 [303].
  3. ^ Peters, James Lee, ed. (1934). Check-List of Birds of the World. Vol. 2. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press. p. 98.
  4. ^ Jobling, James A. (2010). The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names. London: Christopher Helm. p. 53. ISBN 978-1-4081-2501-4.
  5. ^ Gill, Frank; Donsker, David; Rasmussen, Pamela, eds. (July 2021). "Pheasants, partridges, francolins". IOC World Bird List Version 11.2. International Ornithologists' Union. Retrieved 25 November 2021.

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