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Dark buttonquail of forested areas with dense layers of leaf litter in southeastern Queensland.
Vulnerable
Endemic to Australia
Indigenous: Black-Fronted Quail, Black-Breasted Quail, Black-Breasted Turnix
At a glance
FamilyButtonquail
SizeSmall
RarityUncommon
HabitatClosed forest, Irrigated farmland, Open woodland, Sparse woodland, and Waterbodies
Best timeReported across most months in Queensland, with no narrow seasonal peak.
Sounds
Sound sampleRecorded by Peter Boesman
Range map
Range map
113visible hotspots
1600visible records
2states
SparseModerateDense hotspot
Aggregated occurance data is sourced from 14 different actively-updating datasets including eBird Australia, iNaturalist Australia, BirdLife Australia, and multiple state-based bird surveys through Atlas of Living Australia.
Species notes
Overview
Heavily patterned, with pale and dark mark markings below. Female has a mostly black head, heavily marked underparts, and a pale eye (Painted Buttonquail has a red eye); male has paler face, pale eye, and is less richly marked below. Vocalizations include a repeated clucking call.
Behavior
Dark buttonquail of forested areas with dense layers of leaf litter in southeastern Queensland. When feeding, this species creates deep, circular depressions in the leaf litter; searching for the presence of these depressions is often the best way to locate it.
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