Bearded Wood-partridge vs Tawny-faced Quail
Dendrortyx barbatus compared with Rhynchortyx cinctus
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Attribute | Bearded Wood-partridge | Tawny-faced Quail |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific Name | Dendrortyx barbatus | Rhynchortyx cinctus |
| Order | Galliformes | Galliformes |
| Family | Odontophoridae | Odontophoridae |
| Conservation Status | Vulnerable | Near Threatened |
| Length | — | — |
| Wingspan | 30.1 cm (11.9 in) | 22.0 cm (8.7 in) |
| Weight | 407.5 g (14.37 oz) | 139.66666666666666 g (4.93 oz) |
| Diet | Forages in Mexican cloud forests for seeds, invertebrates, and small fruits. Critically endangered; diet poorly … | Forages on floor of Central American and Colombian rainforests for seeds and invertebrates. Scratches leaf … |
| Clutch Size | 4-8 | -- |
| Population Trend | — | — |
Habitat Comparison
Song & Call Comparison
Bearded Wood-partridge
Emits a loud, resonant hooting call similar to other Dendrortyx wood-partridges. The owl-like hooting carries through cloud forest; calls are poorly differentiated from Long-tailed.
Tawny-faced Quail
Soft, plaintive two-note whistle 'pee-woo' uttered from dense undergrowth; rarely recorded and quiet. Alarm is a barely audible sharp 'pip'; flock contact maintained with muffled clucks.
Geographic Range & Migration
Bearded Wood-partridge
Endemic to cloud forest in the Sierra de Juárez, Oaxaca, Mexico, and adjacent Veracruz at 1,500-2,500 m. Rarely observed.
Tawny-faced Quail
Resident from Mexico south through Central America to Ecuador and Venezuela. Found in lowland and foothill forest.
Conservation Status
Bearded Wood-partridge
Tawny-faced Quail
How to Tell Them Apart
Bearded Wood-partridge
Rufous-brown above; grey head with white supercilium; distinct black-and-white beard streaks on lower throat and chin; breast streaked black and white; flanks rufous-brown; belly pale buff.
Tawny-faced Quail
Male has tawny-orange face and throat; grey breast with rufous flanks; brown back streaked black. Female has rufous-brown face, buff supercilium, and brown streaked upperparts; both have strong colour contrast.
About These Birds
Bearded Wood-partridge
A medium-sized New World quail (~405 g) of family Odontophoridae, with a distinct facial streak resembling a beard. Endemic to cloud forest in a restricted area of the Sierra Madre Oriental of eastern Mexico. Forages on the ground for seeds and invertebrates. Vulnerable; critically restricted range in highly fragmented Mexican highland forests, with ongoing habitat loss from agricultural expansion.
Tawny-faced Quail
A small New World quail (~140 g) of family Odontophoridae, with tawny-orange facial coloring and cinnamón-barred flanks. Inhabits humid lowland and foothill forests from Honduras to Ecuador and Venezuela. Forages on the forest floor for seeds and small invertebrates. Near Threatened; shy and little-studied, dependent on intact forest but experiencing habitat loss throughout its Central and South American range.