Salvadori's Pheasant vs African Blue Quail
Lophura inornata compared with Synoicus adansonii
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Attribute | Salvadori's Pheasant | African Blue Quail |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific Name | Lophura inornata | Synoicus adansonii |
| Order | Galliformes | Galliformes |
| Family | Phasianidae | Phasianidae |
| Conservation Status | Near Threatened | Least Concern |
| Length | — | — |
| Wingspan | 41.9 cm (16.5 in) | 14.9 cm (5.9 in) |
| Weight | 685.0 g (24.16 oz) | 41.666666666666664 g (1.47 oz) |
| Diet | Ground forager; takes seeds, fruits, invertebrates, and small animals in Sumatran montane forests. | Feeds on small grass seeds, invertebrates, and plant matter in African tropical grassland and wetland … |
| Clutch Size | 2 | 3-9 |
| Population Trend | — | — |
Habitat Comparison
Shared Habitats
Salvadori's Pheasant only
None
African Blue Quail only
Song & Call Comparison
Salvadori's Pheasant
Infrequently recorded 'kak-kak' alarm calls; Sumatran montane endemic. Vocally poorly known. Contact between birds presumably low guttural clucks. Flushed birds produce loud wing clatter.
African Blue Quail
High, thin 'wee-wee-wee-wee' whistle in series; tiny, cryptic African grassland quail. Alarm is a sharp 'pip'. Very quiet overall; contact clucks barely audible. Calls at dawn and dusk.
Geographic Range & Migration
Salvadori's Pheasant
Endemic to Sumatra; resident of primary and secondary montane forest between 600 and 2,100 m elevation.
African Blue Quail
Nomadic resident of open grassland, wetland edge, and savanna across sub-Saharan Africa from Senegal to Ethiopia and south to Angola.
Conservation Status
Salvadori's Pheasant
African Blue Quail
How to Tell Them Apart
Salvadori's Pheasant
Male uniformly dark olive-brown with slight greenish gloss; blue orbital skin; no crest; unadorned appearance relative to other Lophura. Female slightly paler rufous-brown; both sexes lack vivid markings.
African Blue Quail
Male dark slaty-blue overall with chestnut flanks; white face markings with black border; similar to Asian Blue Quail. Female brown with buff streaking; pale underparts. African counterpart of Asian Blue …
About These Birds
Salvadori's Pheasant
A medium-sized Phasianidae pheasant (~685 g) restricted to montane forests of Sumatra above 1,000 m. Both sexes are sombre dark brown, the male with a finely laced pale pattern. Little studied; forages on seeds and invertebrates on forest floor. Near Threatened from montane forest loss in Sumatra.
African Blue Quail
A tiny Phasianidae quail (~42 g) of tall grasses and moist savanna across sub-Saharan Africa. Males have a slaty-blue face and rusty-buff flanks; one of Africa's smallest birds. Highly secretive; rarely flushed. Feeds on tiny grass seeds and invertebrates. Migratory or nomadic following rains. Least Concern.