Chinese francolin, Francolinus pintadeanus (protonym, Tetrao Pintadeanus), also known as the Burmese francolin, photographed in Hong Kong, China.
Image: Marie-Louise Ng, 14 August 2011 (with permission) [velociraptorize].
Question: This bird and its relatives share several morphological structures with others in its taxonomic family. What are those shared features? Can you name this species?
Response: This is a Chinese francolin, Francolinus pintadeanus. This bird is a member of the large Old World family, the Phasianidae, the pheasants and partridges. This family includes the junglefowl (including familiar barnyard chickens), Old World Quails, monals and peafowl. Some authorities also include the Tetraonidae (grouse), the African Numididae (guineafowls) and the New World Meleagrididae (turkeys) in Phasianidae.
Phasianids are placed within the taxonomic order, Galliformes. The Phasianids are terrestrial, ground living species that are generally plump, with broad relatively short wings and strong legs. The bill is short, strong and has a curved culmen. This group often shows sexual dimorphism, with males being larger than females. Males of the larger species tend to have dramatic and brightly coloured plumage and extravagant facial ornaments, such as wattles or crests. Many Phasianids have a spur on their legs, a feature shared with guineafowl and turkeys (and which may have led to these taxa being included with the Phasianids).
Chinese francolins have a white cheek-patch and a white throat separated by a black stripe. There is a rufous stripe on the top of the head and the overall body plumage is mottled black and white. Male and female Chinese francolins look very similar, although females are paler in colour and lack spurs.
Here's a video of a Chinese francolin sitting in a tree, screeching loudly:
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