Gunnison Grouse vs Painted Francolin
Centrocercus minimus compared with Francolinus pictus
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Attribute | Gunnison Grouse | Painted Francolin |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific Name | Centrocercus minimus | Francolinus pictus |
| Order | Galliformes | Galliformes |
| Family | Phasianidae | Phasianidae |
| Conservation Status | Endangered | Least Concern |
| Length | — | — |
| Wingspan | 57.0 cm (22.4 in) | 27.8 cm (10.9 in) |
| Weight | 1575.0 g (55.56 oz) | 291.0 g (10.26 oz) |
| Diet | Highly dependent on sagebrush for winter foliage; eats forbs and invertebrates in spring and summer. … | Eats seeds, grain, invertebrates, and plant material; forages in dry grass and scrubby areas of … |
| Clutch Size | 6-10 | 4-8 |
| Population Trend | — | — |
Habitat Comparison
Song & Call Comparison
Gunnison Grouse
Lek display similar to Sage Grouse but faster and higher-pitched: 'swish-swish-ploop-ploop'; 9-note sequence vs. 7 in Sage Grouse. Plume rattle more pronounced. Alarm is harsh cacking.
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
Gunnison Grouse
Endemic to Gunnison Basin and adjacent areas of southwestern Colorado. Found in sagebrush habitat. Critically endangered.
Painted Francolin
Endemic to India; resident of open scrub, dry grassland, and farmland across most of peninsular India.
Conservation Status
Gunnison Grouse
Painted Francolin
How to Tell Them Apart
Gunnison Grouse
Male similar to Sage Grouse but smaller; black belly, white breast, spiky tail with more white barring; prominent white neck filoplumes; yellow eye-combs; yellow-green breast air sacs used in display.
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
Gunnison Grouse
A large grouse (~1.6 kg) of family Phasianidae, closely related to Sage Grouse but smaller with longer filoplumes during lek display. Restricted to the Gunnison Basin of southwestern Colorado and a small area of Utah. Entirely dependent on intact sagebrush habitat. Endangered; one of North America's rarest birds with fewer than 5,000 individuals, threatened by habitat fragmentation and drought.
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.