Ptilopachus
Genus of birds
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Ptilopachus is an African genus of birds in the New World quail family.
| Ptilopachus | |
|---|---|
| |
| Stone partridge | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Galliformes |
| Family: | Odontophoridae |
| Subfamily: | Ptilopachinae Bowie, Coehn & Crowe 2013 |
| Genus: | Ptilopachus Swainson, 1837 |
| Type species | |
| Ptilopachus erythrorhynchus[1] = Tetrao petrosus Swainson, 1837 | |
| Species | |
|
Stone partridge (P. petrosus) | |
Taxonomy
The genus Ptilopachus was introduced in 1837 by the English naturalist William Swainson to accommodate a single species, the stone partridge, which is therefore the type species.[2][3] The genus name is from Ancient Greek ptilon meaning "feather" with pakhus meaning "thick" or "dense".[4]
As traditionally defined, only the stone partridge was included in this genus, but based on genetic evidence, it now also includes Nahan's partridge (formerly considered a francolin). The study also concludes that this genus is more closely related to the New World quails (Odontophoridae) and might be considered their only African representative.[5][6][7]
| Image | Genus | Common name | Distribution |
|---|---|---|---|
| P. petrosus Gmelin, 1789 | Stone partridge | Kenya and Ethiopia to Gambia |
 | P. nahani (Dubois, AJC, 1905) | Nahan's partridge | northeastern DR Congo and western Uganda |
Description
At about 25 cm (9.8 in) in length, both are relatively small, terrestrial birds with a red eye-ring, base of the bill, and legs, and brownish upperparts.[8]
See also
- Donacobius, the only American species of an otherwise Old World bird lineage
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