Page 153 - Complete Birds of Britain and Europe (DK - RSPB)

GAMEBIRDS
Order Galliformes Family Phasianidae Species Perdix perdix
Grey Partridge pale orange- small
head
brown face
slightly arched, pale
brown wings
streaked dull
back brown
bill
dumpy, pale
brown body
rusty
orange
tail sides
pale
IN FLIGHT
streaks
on grey
breast
broad, horseshoe-
shaped, dark
brown patch
on belly

dull brown
legs
STUBBLE BIRD
FLIGHT: low, fast, on bowed wings, with quick Winter corn stubbles
wingbeats and short glides. provide good habitat
but are now rarely left
for long. Intensive
his small, neat, grouse-like bird is typical of old-fashioned farming has led to
Tfarmland with meadows, arable crops, and plenty of large declines.
hedges; extensive cereal prairies suit it far less well. Its territorial
call on summer evenings draws attention
to it where it manages to survive in
modern intensively farmed landscapes. It
moves secretively through grassy habitats,
often pausing to raise its head and look
around. Family groups gather together in
tight flocks, called “coveys” and sometimes
fly off together in such groups if disturbed.
VOICE Distinctive, mechanical, creaky, FAST FLIGHT
low, rhythmic note, kieeer-ik or ki-yik. A covey dashes past low and fast on whirring
NESTING Shallow scrape wings, with frequent glides. OCCURRENCE
Widespread from UK, France,
on ground, lined with SIMILAR SPECIES extreme N Spain, east across
some grass and leaves, Europe, and north to Finland. In
well hidden under long RED LEGGED PARTRIDGE PHEASANT farmland, heaths, dunes, and
grass; 10–20 eggs; flies on flatter wings with fingered tips; juvenile; especially traditional grassy
see p.150
see p.153
1 brood;April–June. longer, cocked tail meadows with abundant insect
FEEDING Feeds as it white longer legs food; in reduced numbers in
face
walks over ground, patch modern farmland with grassy field
taking seeds, leaves, margins and hedges.
and shoots; chicks feed larger and Seen in the UK
plainer
on insects. J F M A M JJ A S O N D
Length 29–31cm (11 1 ⁄2 –12in) Wingspan 45–48cm (18–19in) Weight 350–450g (13–16oz)
Social Family groups Lifespan Up to 5 years Status Vulnerable
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