White-faced Partridge vs Painted Francolin
Arborophila orientalis compared with Francolinus pictus
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Attribute | White-faced Partridge | Painted Francolin |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific Name | Arborophila orientalis | Francolinus pictus |
| Order | Galliformes | Galliformes |
| Family | Phasianidae | Phasianidae |
| Conservation Status | Vulnerable | Least Concern |
| Length | — | — |
| Wingspan | 28.5 cm (11.2 in) | 27.8 cm (10.9 in) |
| Weight | 310.5 g (10.95 oz) | 291.0 g (10.26 oz) |
| Diet | Eats seeds, invertebrates, and small fruits on floor of East Javan and Balinese montane forests. … | Eats seeds, grain, invertebrates, and plant material; forages in dry grass and scrubby areas of … |
| Clutch Size | 2-4 | 4-8 |
| Population Trend | — | — |
Habitat Comparison
Song & Call Comparison
White-faced Partridge
Rising 'wheee-oo' whistle with clean, flute-like quality; calls from E Java mountains at dusk and dawn. Alarm produces sharp abrupt chips. Covey contact maintained with low rolling clucks.
Painted Francolin
Loud, insistent 'ka-TURR-ka' calls from Indian scrub; similar to Black Francolin but slightly higher and less grating. Alarm is rapid cackling cackle. Males call from termite mound or rock at …
Geographic Range & Migration
White-faced Partridge
Endemic to the Lesser Sunda Islands of eastern Java, Bali, and Lombok. Found in montane and lowland forest.
Painted Francolin
Endemic to India; resident of open scrub, dry grassland, and farmland across most of peninsular India.
Conservation Status
White-faced Partridge
Painted Francolin
How to Tell Them Apart
White-faced Partridge
Brown above; face and throat strikingly white contrasting with dark crown and neck; breast grey; flanks olive-grey streaked white; bare reddish eye-ring; extensive white on face is immediately distinctive.
Painted Francolin
Richly patterned; black above with large white spots; rufous-orange face and throat; white-spotted black flanks; rufous-chestnut underparts with black shaft streaks. Female lacks rufous on face; duller below.
About These Birds
White-faced Partridge
A medium-sized partridge (~310 g) of family Phasianidae, with a distinctive white face and scaly brown upperparts. Found in montane forests of eastern Java and Bali. Inhabits highland broadleaved forest at 800–2,500 m elevation. Forages secretively on the forest floor for seeds and invertebrates. Vulnerable; restricted to a small area of eastern Java and Bali with ongoing deforestation.
Painted Francolin
A small Phasianidae francolin (~291 g) of rocky hillsides, scrub, and dry grassland across peninsular India and Sri Lanka. Both sexes are intricately spotted and streaked in rufous and white. Shy; detected by resonant calls. Feeds on seeds and invertebrates on the ground. Least Concern; common locally.