The Phasianidae are a

family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

of heavy, ground-living

bird Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweigh ...

s, which includes

pheasant Pheasants ( ) are birds of several genera within the family (biology), family Phasianidae in the order (biology), order Galliformes. Although they can be found all over the world in introduced (and captive) populations, the pheasant genera na ...

partridge A partridge is a medium-sized Galliformes, galliform bird in any of several genera, with a wide Indigenous (ecology), native distribution throughout parts of Europe, Asia and Africa. Several species have been introduced to the Americas. They a ...

junglefowl Junglefowl are the only four living species of bird from the genus ''Gallus'' in the bird order Galliformes, and occur in parts of South and Southeast Asia. They diverged from their common ancestor about 4–6 million years ago. Although origin ...

chicken The chicken (''Gallus gallus domesticus'') is a domesticated junglefowl species, with attributes of wild species such as the grey and the Ceylon junglefowl that are originally from Southeastern Asia. Rooster or cock is a term for an adult m ...

turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...

Old World quail Old World quail is a collective name for several genera of mid-sized birds in the tribe Coturnicini of the pheasant family Phasianidae. Although all species commonly referred to as "Old World quail" are in the same tribe, they are paraphyletic ...

, and

peafowl Peafowl is a common name for three bird species in the genera '' Pavo'' and ''Afropavo'' within the tribe Pavonini of the family Phasianidae, the pheasants and their allies. Male peafowl are referred to as peacocks, and female peafowl are refe ...

. The family includes many of the most popular

gamebirds Galliformes is an order of heavy-bodied ground-feeding birds that includes turkeys, chickens, quail, and other landfowl. Gallinaceous birds, as they are called, are important in their ecosystems as seed dispersers and predators, and are often ...

. The family is a large one and includes 185 species divided into 54 genera. It was formerly broken up into two

subfamilies In biological classification, a subfamily (Latin: ', plural ') is an auxiliary (intermediate) taxonomic rank, next below family but more inclusive than genus. Standard nomenclature rules end subfamily botanical names with "-oideae", and zoologi ...

, the

Phasianinae The Phasianinae (Thomas Horsfield, Horsfield, 1821) are a subfamily (biology), subfamily of the pheasant family (Phasianidae) of landfowl, the order (biology), order Galliformes. The subfamily includes true pheasants, tragopans, grouse, Turkey ( ...

and the

Perdicinae Perdicinae is a polyphyletic former subfamily of birds in the pheasant family, Phasianidae, regrouping the partridges, Old World quails, and francolins. Although this subfamily was considered monophyletic and separated from the pheasants, trago ...

. However, this treatment is now known to be

paraphyletic In taxonomy (general), taxonomy, a group is paraphyletic if it consists of the group's most recent common ancestor, last common ancestor and most of its descendants, excluding a few Monophyly, monophyletic subgroups. The group is said to be pa ...

and

polyphyletic A polyphyletic group is an assemblage of organisms or other evolving elements that is of mixed evolutionary origin. The term is often applied to groups that share similar features known as homoplasies, which are explained as a result of converg ...

, respectively, and more recent evidence supports breaking it up into two subfamilies:

Rollulinae Rollulinae is a bird subfamily containing the jungle and wood partridges. They are the most basal member of the family Phasianidae, having diverged during the late Eocene or early Oligocene, about 30-35 million years ago. Many taxonomists former ...

and

, with the latter containing multiple

tribes The term tribe is used in many different contexts to refer to a category of human social group. The predominant worldwide usage of the term in English is in the discipline of anthropology. This definition is contested, in part due to conflic ...

within two

clades A clade (), also known as a monophyletic group or natural group, is a group of organisms that are monophyletic – that is, composed of a common ancestor and all its lineal descendants – on a phylogenetic tree. Rather than the English term, t ...

. The

New World quail The New World quail are small birds only distantly related to the Old World quail, but named for their similar appearance and habits. The American species are in their own family, the Odontophoridae, whereas Old World quail are in the pheasant f ...

(Odontophoridae) and

guineafowl Guineafowl (; sometimes called "pet speckled hens" or "original fowl") are birds of the family Numididae in the order Galliformes. They are endemic to Africa and rank among the oldest of the gallinaceous birds. Phylogenetically, they branched o ...

(Numididae) were formerly sometimes included in this family, but are now typically placed in families of their own; conversely,

grouse Grouse are a group of birds from the order Galliformes, in the family Phasianidae. Grouse are presently assigned to the tribe Tetraonini (formerly the subfamily Tetraoninae and the family Tetraonidae), a classification supported by mitochondr ...

and

s, formerly often treated as distinct families (Tetraonidae and Meleagrididae, respectively), are now known to be deeply nested within Phasianidae, so they are now included in the present family.

Description

Phasianids are terrestrial. They range in weight from in the case of the

king quail The king quail (''Synoicus chinensis''), also known as the blue-breasted quail, Asian blue quail, Chinese painted quail, or Chung-Chi, is a species of Old World quail in the family Phasianidae. This species is the smallest "true quail", rangin ...

to in the case of the

Indian peafowl The Indian peafowl (''Pavo cristatus''), also known as the common peafowl, and blue peafowl, is a peafowl species native to the Indian subcontinent. It has been introduced to many other countries. Male peafowl are referred to as peacocks, and ...

. If turkeys are included, rather than classified as a separate family, then the considerably heavier

wild turkey The wild turkey (''Meleagris gallopavo'') is an Upland game bird, upland ground bird native to North America, one of two extant species of Turkey (bird), turkey and the heaviest member of the order Galliformes. It is the ancestor to the domestic ...

capably reaches a maximum weight of more than . Length in this taxonomic family can vary from in the king quail up to (including the elongated train) in

green peafowl The green peafowl or Indonesian peafowl (''Pavo muticus'') is a peafowl species native to the tropical forests of Southeast Asia. It has been listed as endangered on the IUCN Red List since 2009 because the global population has been declining r ...

, thus they beat even the

true parrot The true parrots are about 350 species of hook-billed, mostly herbivorous birds forming the superfamily Psittacoidea, one of the three superfamilies in the biological order Psittaciformes (parrots). True parrots are widespread, with species in ...

s in length diversity within a family of birds. Generally,

sexual dimorphism Sexual dimorphism is the condition where the sexes of the same animal and/or plant species exhibit different morphological characteristics, particularly characteristics not directly involved in reproduction. The condition occurs in most ani ...

is greater in larger-sized birds, with males tending to be larger than females. They are generally plump, with broad, relatively short

wing A wing is a type of fin that produces lift while moving through air or some other fluid. Accordingly, wings have streamlined cross-sections that are subject to aerodynamic forces and act as airfoils. A wing's aerodynamic efficiency is expres ...

s and powerful legs. Many have a

spur A spur is a metal tool designed to be worn in pairs on the heels of riding boots for the purpose of directing a horse or other animal to move forward or laterally while riding. It is usually used to refine the riding aids (commands) and to back ...

on each

leg A leg is a weight-bearing and animal locomotion, locomotive anatomical structure, usually having a columnar shape. During locomotion, legs function as "extensible struts". The combination of movements at all joints can be modeled as a single ...

, most prominently with

(including

chickens The chicken (''Gallus gallus domesticus'') is a domesticated junglefowl species, with attributes of wild species such as the grey and the Ceylon junglefowl that are originally from Southeastern Asia. Rooster or cock is a term for an adult m ...

pheasants Pheasants ( ) are birds of several genera within the family Phasianidae in the order Galliformes. Although they can be found all over the world in introduced (and captive) populations, the pheasant genera native range is restricted to Eurasi ...

turkeys The turkey is a large bird in the genus ''Meleagris'', native to North America. There are two extant turkey species: the wild turkey (''Meleagris gallopavo'') of eastern and central North America and the ocellated turkey (''Meleagris ocellat ...

, and

. Some, like

quails Quail is a collective name for several genera of mid-sized birds generally placed in the order Galliformes. The collective noun for a group of quail is a flock, covey, or bevy. Old World quail are placed in the family Phasianidae, and New Wor ...

partridges A partridge is a medium-sized galliform bird in any of several genera, with a wide native distribution throughout parts of Europe, Asia and Africa. Several species have been introduced to the Americas. They are sometimes grouped in the Perdic ...

, and

, have reduced spurs to none at all. A few have two spurs on each of their legs instead of one, including peacock-pheasants and

spurfowl Spurfowl are two genera of birds: * ''Galloperdix'', from India and Sri Lanka * ''Pternistis ''Pternistis'' is a genus of galliform birds formerly classified in the spurfowl group of the Perdicinae, partridge subfamily of the Phasianidae, phea ...

. The bill is short and compact, particularly in species that dig deep in the earth for food such as the Mearns quail. Males of the bigger galliform

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

often boast brightly-coloured

plumage Plumage ( "feather") is a layer of feathers that covers a bird and the pattern, colour, and arrangement of those feathers. The pattern and colours of plumage differ between species and subspecies and may vary with age classes. Within species, ...

, as well as facial ornaments such as combs, wattles, and/or crests.

Distribution and habitat

The Phasianidae are mostly an

Old World The "Old World" is a term for Afro-Eurasia that originated in Europe , after Europeans became aware of the existence of the Americas. It is used to contrast the continents of Africa, Europe, and Asia, which were previously thought of by the ...

family, with a distribution that includes most of

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

and

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an area ...

(except the far north), all of

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

except the driest

desert A desert is a barren area of landscape where little precipitation occurs and, consequently, living conditions are hostile for plant and animal life. The lack of vegetation exposes the unprotected surface of the ground to denudation. About on ...

s, and south into much of eastern

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

and (formerly)

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

. The

Meleagridini Grouse are a group of birds from the order Galliformes, in the family Phasianidae. Grouse are presently assigned to the tribe Tetraonini (formerly the subfamily Tetraoninae and the family Tetraonidae), a classification supported by mitochondri ...

(turkeys) are native to the

New World The term ''New World'' is often used to mean the majority of Earth's Western Hemisphere, specifically the Americas."America." ''The Oxford Companion to the English Language'' (). McArthur, Tom, ed., 1992. New York: Oxford University Press, p. 3 ...

, while the Tetraonini (grouse) are circumpolar; both of these are members of

. The greatest diversity of species is in

Southeast Asia Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, south-eastern region of Asia, consistin ...

and Africa. The

Congo peacock The Congo peafowl (''Afropavo congensis''), also known as the African peafowl or ''mbulu'' by the Bakôngo, is a species of peafowl native to the Congo Basin. It is one of three peafowl species and the only member of the subfamily Pavoninae nat ...

is specific to the African Congo. Overall,

is restricted to the tropics of

East East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the fa ...

& Southeast Asia and the mountains of

Tanzania Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands and ...

, Phasianinae have a circumpolar range in the temperate zones of both

Eurasia Eurasia (, ) is the largest continental area on Earth, comprising all of Europe and Asia. Primarily in the Northern and Eastern Hemispheres, it spans from the British Isles and the Iberian Peninsula in the west to the Japanese archipelago a ...

and

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

(but also range into the tropics of east and southeast Asia), and

Pavoninae The Phasianinae ( Horsfield, 1821) are a subfamily of the pheasant family (Phasianidae) of landfowl, the order Galliformes. The subfamily includes true pheasants, tragopans, grouse, turkey and similar birds. Although this subfamily was consid ...

have a wide range across Africa, Eurasia, and

Australasia Australasia is a region that comprises Australia, New Zealand and some neighbouring islands in the Pacific Ocean. The term is used in a number of different contexts, including geopolitically, physiogeographically, philologically, and ecologica ...

in both temperate and tropical zones. The family is generally

sedentary Sedentary lifestyle is a lifestyle type, in which one is physically inactive and does little or no physical movement and or exercise. A person living a sedentary lifestyle is often sitting or lying down while engaged in an activity like soci ...

and resident, although some members of the group undertake long migrations, like ptarmigans and

. Several species in the family have been widely introduced around the world, particularly pheasants, which have been introduced to Europe, Australia, and the Americas, specifically for hunting purposes. Captive populations of peafowl, domestic chickens, and turkeys have also escaped or been released and became

feral A feral () animal or plant is one that lives in the wild but is descended from domesticated individuals. As with an introduced species, the introduction of feral animals or plants to non-native regions may disrupt ecosystems and has, in some ...

Behaviour and ecology

The phasianids have a varied diet, with foods taken ranging from purely vegetarian diets of seeds, leaves, fruits, tubers, and roots, to small animals including insects, insect grubs, and even small reptiles. Most species either specialise in feeding on plant matter or are predatory, although the chicks of most species are insectivorous. In addition to the variation in diet, a considerable amount of variation exists in breeding strategies among the Phasianidae. Compared to birds in general, a large number of species do not engage in

monogamy Monogamy ( ) is a form of dyadic relationship in which an individual has only one partner during their lifetime. Alternately, only one partner at any one time (serial monogamy) — as compared to the various forms of non-monogamy (e.g., polyga ...

(the typical breeding system of most birds). The francolins of Africa and some partridges are reportedly monogamous, but polygamy has been reported in the pheasants and junglefowl, some quail, and the breeding displays of peacocks have been compared to those of a

lek Lek or LEK may refer to: * Lek mating, mating in a lek, a type of animal territory in which males of a species gather * Albanian lek, the currency of Albania * Lek (magazine), a Norwegian softcore pornographic magazine * Lek (pharmaceutical comp ...

. Nesting usually occurs on the ground; only the

tragopan ''Tragopan'' is a bird genus in the pheasant family Phasianidae. Member of the genus are commonly called "horned pheasants" because males have two brightly colored, fleshy horns on their head that can be erected during courtship displays. The ha ...

s nest higher up in trees or stumps of bushes. Nests can vary from mounds of vegetation to slight scrapes in the ground. As many as 20 eggs can be laid in the nest, although 7-12 are the more usual numbers, with smaller numbers in tropical species. Incubation times can range from 14–30 days depending on the species, and is almost always done solely by the hen, although a few involve the male partaking in caring for the eggs and chicks, like the

willow ptarmigan The willow ptarmigan () (''Lagopus lagopus'') is a bird in the grouse subfamily Tetraoninae of the pheasant family Phasianidae. It is also known as the willow grouse and in Ireland and Britain, where the subspecies '' L. l. scotica'' was previo ...

and

bobwhite quail The northern bobwhite (''Colinus virginianus''), also known as the Virginia quail or (in its home range) bobwhite quail, is a ground-dwelling bird native to Canada, the United States, Mexico, and Cuba, with introduced populations elsewhere in th ...

Relationship with humans

The

red junglefowl The red junglefowl (''Gallus gallus'') is a tropical bird in the family Phasianidae. It ranges across much of Southeast Asia and parts of South Asia. It was formerly known as the Bankiva or Bankiva Fowl. It is the species that gave rise to the ...

of Southeast Asia is the undomestic ancestor of the domesticated

, the most important bird in agriculture, and the

Wild turkey The wild turkey (''Meleagris gallopavo'') is an Upland game bird, upland ground bird native to North America, one of two extant species of Turkey (bird), turkey and the heaviest member of the order Galliformes. It is the ancestor to the domestic ...

similarly is the ancestor of the

Domestic turkey The domestic turkey (Meleagris gallopavo domesticus) is a large fowl, one of the two species in the genus '' Meleagris'' and the same species as the wild turkey. Although turkey domestication was thought to have occurred in central Mesoamerica a ...

. Several species of pheasants and partridges are extremely important to humans.

Ring-necked pheasant The common pheasant (''Phasianus colchicus'') is a bird in the pheasant family (Phasianidae). The genus name comes from Latin ''phasianus'', "pheasant". The species name ''colchicus'' is Latin for "of Colchis" (modern day Georgia), a country on ...

s, several partridge and quail species, and some francolins have been widely introduced and managed as game birds for hunting. Several species are

threatened Threatened species are any species (including animals, plants and fungi) which are vulnerable to endangerment in the near future. Species that are threatened are sometimes characterised by the population dynamics measure of ''critical depensat ...

by human activities.

Systematics and evolution

The

clade A clade (), also known as a monophyletic group or natural group, is a group of organisms that are monophyletic – that is, composed of a common ancestor and all its lineal descendants – on a phylogenetic tree. Rather than the English term, ...

Phasianidae is the largest of the branch

Galliformes Galliformes is an order of heavy-bodied ground-feeding birds that includes turkeys, chickens, quail, and other landfowl. Gallinaceous birds, as they are called, are important in their ecosystems as seed dispersers and predators, and are often ...

, comprising 185 species divided into 54 genera. This group includes the pheasants and partridges, junglefowl chickens, quail, and peafowl. Turkeys and grouse have also been recognized as having their origins in the pheasant- and partridge-like birds. Until the early 1990s, this family was broken up into two

: the

, including

s, and

s; and the

, including

s, and

francolin Francolins are birds in the tribe Gallini that traditionally have been placed in the genus ''Francolinus'', but now commonly are divided into multiple genera. As previously defined, they were paraphyletic as the genus ''Pternistis'', which was ...

Molecular phylogenies Molecular phylogenetics () is the branch of phylogeny that analyzes genetic, hereditary molecular differences, predominantly in DNA sequences, to gain information on an organism's evolutionary relationships. From these analyses, it is possible to ...

have shown that these two subfamilies are not each

monophyletic In cladistics for a group of organisms, monophyly is the condition of being a clade—that is, a group of taxa composed only of a common ancestor (or more precisely an ancestral population) and all of its lineal descendants. Monophyletic gro ...

, but actually constitute only one lineage with one common ancestor. For example, some

s (genus ''

Perdix ''Perdix'' is a genus of Galliform gamebirds known collectively as the 'true partridges'. These birds are unrelated to the subtropical species that have been named after the partridge due to similar size and morphology. Taxonomy The genus ''Pe ...

'') are more closely affiliated to

s, whereas

s and

s from the genus ''

Alectoris ''Alectoris'' is a genus of partridges in the family Phasianidae, closely related to Old World quail (''Coturnix'' and relatives), snowcocks ('' Tetraogallus''), partridge-francolins (''Pternistis''), bush quail (''Perdicula''), and sand and see- ...

'' are closer to

s. The earliest fossil records of phasianids date to the late Oligocene epoch, about 30 million years ago.

Recent genera

Taxonomy and ordering is based on Kimball ''et al''., 2021, which was accepted by the

International Ornithological Congress International is an adjective (also used as a noun) meaning "between nations". International may also refer to: Music Albums * ''International'' (Kevin Michael album), 2011 * ''International'' (New Order album), 2002 * ''International'' (The T ...

. Tribes and subfamily names are based on the 4th edition of the ''

Howard and Moore Complete Checklist of the Birds of the World The ''Howard and Moore Complete Checklist of the Birds of the World'' is a book by Richard Howard and Alick Moore which presents a list of the bird species of the world. It was the first single-volume world bird list to include subspecies names, ...

''. Genera without a tribe are considered to belong to tribe ''incertae sedis''. * Subfamily

**''

Xenoperdix Forest partridges (''Xenoperdix'' sp.) are partridges, described only in 1994, consists of two species of African partridges that are most closely related to Southeast Asian hill partridges. Both species have boldly barred plumage and a red bil ...

'' Dinesen et al. 1994 (forest partridges) **'' Caloperdix'' Blyth 1861 (ferruginous partridge) **''

Rollulus The crested partridge (''Rollulus rouloul'') also known as the crested wood partridge, roul-roul, red-crowned wood partridge, green wood quail or green wood partridge is a gamebird in the pheasant family Phasianidae of the order Galliformes, gal ...

'' Bonnaterre 1791 (crested partridges) **'' Melanoperdix'' Jerdon 1864 (black partridge) **''

Arborophila ''Arborophila'' is a bird genus in the family Phasianidae. The genus has the second most members within the Galliformes after ''Pternistis'', although ''Arborophila'' species vary very little in bodily proportions with different species varying ...

'' Hodgson 1837 (hill partridges) *Subfamily

**Phasianinae "Erectile clade" ***''

Lerwa The snow partridge (''Lerwa lerwa'') is a gamebird in the pheasant family Phasianidae found widely distributed across the high-altitude Himalayan regions of India, Pakistan, Nepal and China. It is the monotypic, only species within its genus, and ...

'' Hodgson 1837 (snow partridge) ***''

Ithaginis The blood pheasant (''Ithaginis cruentus''), also known as blood partridge, is the only species in genus ''Ithaginis'' of the pheasant family. It is a relatively small, short-tailed pheasant that is widespread and is fairly common in eastern Him ...

'' Wagler 1832 (blood pheasant) ***Tribe Lophophorini ****''

Tragopan ''Tragopan'' is a bird genus in the pheasant family Phasianidae. Member of the genus are commonly called "horned pheasants" because males have two brightly colored, fleshy horns on their head that can be erected during courtship displays. The ha ...

'' Cuvier 1829 non

Gray Grey (more common in British English) or gray (more common in American English) is an intermediate color between black and white. It is a neutral or achromatic color, meaning literally that it is "without color", because it can be composed o ...

1841 (tragopans) ****''

Tetraophasis ''Tetraophasis'' is a genus of Galliformes in the family Phasianidae, which includes chickens, pheasants, partridges, grouse, turkeys, quail, and peafowl. It contains the following species: * Verreaux's monal-partridge (''Tetraophasis obscurus'' ...

'' Elliot 1871 (monal-partridges) ****''

Lophophorus A monal is a bird of genus ''Lophophorus'' of the pheasant family, Phasianidae. Description The males all have colorful, iridescent plumage. Their physique is rather plump. Their diet consists of plants such as roots and bulbs and insects. ...

'' Temminck 1813 non Agassiz 1846 (monals) ***''

Pucrasia The koklass pheasant (''Pucrasia macrolopha'') is a species of gamebird, being closely related to progenitive grouse that lived during the Miocene. They are distantly related to pheasants and are most closely related to grouse and turkeys. Kokla ...

'' Gray 1841 (koklass pheasant) ***Tribe Tetraonini ****'' Meleagris'' Linnaeus 1758 (turkeys) ****''

Bonasa The ruffed grouse (''Bonasa umbellus'') is a medium-sized grouse occurring in forests from the Appalachian Mountains across Canada to Alaska. It is the most widely distributed game bird in North America. It is non-migratory. It is the only speci ...

'' Stephens 1819 (ruffed grouse) **** ''

Tetrastes ''Tetrastes'' is a genus of birds in the grouse Grouse are a group of birds from the order Galliformes, in the family Phasianidae. Grouse are presently assigned to the tribe Tetraonini (formerly the subfamily Tetraoninae and the family Tet ...

'' Keyserling & Blasius 1840 (hazel grouse) **** ''

Centrocercus Sage-grouse are grouse belonging to the bird genus ''Centrocercus.'' The genus includes two species: the Gunnison grouse (''Centrocercus minimus'') and the greater sage-grouse (''Centrocercus urophasianus''). These birds are distributed through ...

'' Swainson 1832 (sage-grouse) **** ''

Dendragapus The genus ''Dendragapus'' contains two closely related species of grouse that have often been treated as a single variable taxon (blue grouse). The two species are the dusky grouse (''Dendragapus obscurus'') and the sooty grouse (''Dendragapus ...

'' Elliot 1864 (blue grouse) **** ''

Tympanuchus ''Tympanuchus'' is a small genus of birds in the grouse family. They are commonly referred to as prairie chickens. Taxonomy The genus ''Tympanuchus'' was introduced in 1841 by the German zoologist Constantin Wilhelm Lambert Gloger for the great ...

'' Gloger 1841 (prairie-chickens and sharp-tailed grouse) **** ''

Lagopus ''Lagopus'' is a small genus of birds in the grouse subfamily commonly known as ptarmigans (). The genus contains three living species with numerous described subspecies, all living in tundra or cold upland areas. Taxonomy and etymology The ge ...

'' Brisson 1760 (ptarmigans) **** ''

Falcipennis The Siberian grouse (''Falcipennis falcipennis''), also known as Siberian spruce grouse, Amur grouse, or Asian spruce grouse, is a short, rotund forest-dwelling grouse. A sedentary, non-migratory bird, it is the only member of the genus ''Falcipe ...

'' Elliot 1864 (Siberian grouse) ****'' Canachites'' Stejneger, 1885 (spruce grouse) **** ''

Tetrao ''Tetrao'' is a genus of birds in the grouse subfamily known as capercaillies. They are some of the largest living grouse. Taxonomy The genus ''Tetrao'' was introduced in 1758 by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in the tenth edition of his ...

'' Linnaeus 1758 (capercaillies) **** ''

Lyrurus ''Lyrurus'' is a genus of birds in the grouse subfamily. They are known as black grouse because the male's plumage of both species is colored black as its base colour. Taxonomy The genus ''Lyrurus'' was introduced in 1832 by the English natural ...

'' Swainson 1832 (black grouse) ***''

Rhizothera ''Rhizothera'' is a bird genus in the family Phasianidae, native to Malaysia and Indonesia. They are the only genus in the tribe Rhizotherini. Established by George Robert Gray in 1841, it contains the following species: * Long-billed partridge ...

1841 ***''

'' Brisson 1760 (true partridges) ***Tribe

Phasianini Phasianini is a tribe of birds in the subfamily Phasianinae. It contains the true pheasants. Species in this tribe are found throughout Europe and Asia. This grouping was supported by a 2021 phylogenetic analysis of Galliformes, and accepted by th ...

****''

Syrmaticus __NOTOC__ The genus ''Syrmaticus'' contains the five species of long-tailed pheasants. The males have short spurs and usually red facial wattles, but otherwise differ wildly in appearance. The hens (females) and chicks of all the species have a ...

'' Wagler 1832 (long-tailed pheasants) ****''

Chrysolophus ''Chrysolophus'' is a genus of the Phasianidae, pheasant family of birds. The genus name is from Ancient Greek ''khrusolophos'', "with golden crest". These are species which have spectacularly Feather, plumaged males. The golden pheasant is nat ...

1834 (ruffed pheasants) ****''

Phasianus The "typical" pheasant genus ''Phasianus'' in the family Phasianidae consists of two species. The genus name is Latin for pheasant. Taxonomy The genus ''Phasianus'' was introduced in 1758 by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in the tenth edi ...

'' Linnaeus 1758 (true pheasants) ****''

Catreus In Greek mythology, Catreus or Katreus (, ; grc, ) was the eldest son of Minos and Pasiphaë, and Minos' successor as king of Crete. Catreus had one son, Althaemenes, and three daughters, Apemosyne, Aerope and Clymene. Catreus was mistakenly k ...

'' Cabanis 1851 (cheer pheasant) **** ''

Crossoptilon Eared pheasants are pheasants from the genus ''Crossoptilon'' in the family Phasianidae. Species Established by Brian Houghton Hodgson in 1838, the genus contains four species: The name ''Crossoptilon'' is a combination of the Greek Greek m ...

'' Hodgson 1838 (eared pheasants) ****'' Lophura'' Fleming 1822 non Gray 1827 non Walker 1856 (gallopheasants) **Phasianinae "Nonerectile clade" ***Tribe

Pavonini Pavonini is a tribe of bird in the subfamily Phasianinae. Members of this family are primarily found in tropical Asia, along with one species in the Congo Rainforest in Africa. It contains two of the most charismatic members of the Phasianidae, ...

****'' Rheinardia'' Maingonnat 1882 (crested arguses) **** ''

Argusianus The great argus (''Argusianus argus'') is a species of pheasant from Southeast Asia. It is not to be confused with the two species of closely related crested argus, genus ''Rheinardia''. Taxonomy Carl Linnaeus gave the great argus its specif ...

'' Rafinesque 1815 (great argus) ****''

Afropavo The Congo peafowl (''Afropavo congensis''), also known as the African peafowl or ''mbulu'' by the Bakôngo, is a species of peafowl native to the Congo Basin. It is one of three peafowl species and the only member of the subfamily Pavoninae nat ...

'' Chapin 1936 (African peafowl) **** '' Pavo'' Linnaeus 1758 (Asiatic peafowl) ***''

Tropicoperdix ''Tropicoperdix'' is a genus of two species of birds in the pheasant family, Phasianidae. Although formerly classified in the now-defunct subfamily Perdicinae, phylogenetic evidence supports them being a sister group to the tribe Polyplectronini ...

'' Blyth 1859 ***''

Haematortyx The crimson-headed partridge (''Haematortyx sanguiniceps'') is a species of bird in the pheasant, partridge, and francolin family Phasianidae. Described by the British ornithologist Richard Bowdler Sharpe in 1879, it is the only species in the ...

'' Sharpe 1879 (crimson-headed partridge) ***''

Galloperdix ''Galloperdix'' is a genus of three species of bird in the pheasant family, Phasianidae. These terrestrial birds are restricted to the Indian Subcontinent, with the red spurfowl and painted spurfowl in forest and scrub in India, and the Sri Lanka ...

'' Blyth 1845 (Indian spurfowls) ***Tribe Polyplectronini ****''

Polyplectron The peacock-pheasants are a bird genus, ''Polyplectron'', of the family Phasianidae, consisting of eight species. They are colored inconspicuously, relying on heavily on crypsis to avoid detection. When threatened, peacock-pheasants will alter t ...

'' Temminck 1807 (peacock-pheasants) ***Tribe

Gallini Gallini may refer to: * Gallini (surname), an Italian surname * Gallini (bird), a tribe of gamebird including francolins, bamboo partridges, and junglefowl (including the chicken The chicken (''Gallus gallus domesticus'') is a domest ...

****''

Bambusicola Bamboo partridges, sometimes called ridge partridges, are medium-sized non-migratory birds of the genus ''Bambusicola'' in the family Phasianidae.They have a wide native distribution throughout Asia. They were formerly grouped in the Perdicinae ...

'' Gould 1863 (bamboo partridges) ****'' Gallus'' Brisson 1760 (junglefowl, including the domestic chicken) ****''

Peliperdix Latham's francolin (''Peliperdix lathami'') or the forest francolin, is a species of bird in the francolin group of the family Phasianidae. It is the only member of the monotypic genus ''Peliperdix''. It is found in Angola, Cameroon, Central Afr ...

'' Bonaparte 1856 (Latham's francolin) ****''

Ortygornis ''Ortygornis'' is a genus of bird in the francolin group of the family Phasianidae. Taxonomy The genus ''Ortygornis'' was introduced in 1852 by the German naturalist Ludwig Kaiser to accommodate a single species, the grey francolin, which is th ...

'' Reichenbach, 1852 ****''

Francolinus ''Francolinus'' is a genus of birds in the francolin group of the tribe Gallini in the pheasant family. Species Its three species range from western Asia and central Asia through to southern Asia and south-eastern Asia Southeast Asia, als ...

'' Stephens 1819 ****''

Campocolinus ''Campocolinus'' is a genus of Bird, birds in the francolin group of the family Phasianinae, Phasianidae. They are found in Sub-Saharan Africa. Species It contains three species, all of which were formerly classified in ''Peliperdix''. The specie ...

'' Crowe ''et al'' 2020 ****''

Scleroptila ''Scleroptila'' is a genus of birds in the francolin group of the tribe Gallini of the pheasant family. Its eight species range through Sub-Saharan Africa Sub-Saharan Africa is, geographically, the area and regions of the continent of Af ...

'' Blyth 1852 ***Tribe

Coturnicini Coturnicini is a tribe of birds in the subfamily Phasianinae. It contains the Old World quail, snowcocks, and African spurfowl, among others. Members of this tribe have a wide range throughout Africa, Eurasia, and Australasia. This tribe contains ...

****'' Tetraogallus''

1832 (snowcocks) ****''

Ammoperdix ''Ammoperdix'' is a small genus in the pheasant family Phasianidae of the order Galliformes. It contains two similar species: * See-see partridge, ''Ammoperdix griseogularis'' * Sand partridge, ''Ammoperdix heyi'' The see-see partridge occur ...

'' Gould 1851 (see-see and sand partridges) **** ''

Synoicus ''Synoicus'' is a genus of 4 species of Old World quail. The species in the genus are distributed throughout Sub-Saharan Africa, tropical Asia, and Australasia. Two of the four species in the genus were originally classified in ''Excalfactoria'' ...

'' Bosc 1792 ****'' Margaroperdix'' Reichenbach 1853 **** ''

Coturnix ''Coturnix'' is a genus of five extant species and five to eight known extinct species of Old World quail. These species are distributed throughout Africa, Eurasia, Australia, and formerly New Zealand. An extinct radiation of flightless, insula ...

'' Garsault 1764 (typical Old World quails) ****''

'' Kaup 1829 (rock partridges) ****''

Perdicula ''Perdicula'' is a small genus of quail in the family Phasianidae, containing four species that are collectively known as the bush quails. Taxonomy The generic name ''Perdicula'' is a Modern Latin diminutive of the genus ''Perdix'', and mea ...

'' Hodgson 1837 (bush-quails) ****''

Ophrysia The Himalayan quail (''Ophrysia superciliosa'') or mountain quail, is a medium-sized quail belonging to the pheasant family. It was last reported in 1876 and is feared extinct. This species was known from only 2 locations (and 12 specimens) in ...

'' Bonaparte 1856 (Himalayan quail) ****''

Pternistis ''Pternistis'' is a genus of galliform birds formerly classified in the spurfowl group of the partridge subfamily of the pheasant family. They are described as "partridge-francolins" in literature establishing their phylogenetic placement out ...

'' Wagler 1832 (partridge-francolins; African spurfowls)

Past taxonomy

This is the

former ordering of Phasianidae, which primarily grouped genera based on appearance and body plans. *Subfamily

Horsfield 1821 ** ''

'' Dinesen et al. 1994 (forest partridges) **'' Caloperdix'' Blyth 1861 **''

'' Bonnaterre 1791 (crested partridges) **'' Melanoperdix'' Jerdon 1864 **''

'' Hodgson 1837 (hill partridges) ** ''

1841 ** ''

'' Hodgson 1837 ** ''

'' Blyth, 1859 ** ''

'' Gould 1851 (see-see and sand partridges) ** ''

'' Bosc 1792 ** '' Margaroperdix'' Reichenbach 1853 ** ''

'' Garsault 1764 (typical Old World quails) ** '' Tetraogallus''

1832 (snowcocks) ** ''

'' Kaup 1829 (rock partridges) ** ''

'' Wagler 1832 (partridge-francolins; African spurfowls) ** ''

'' Bonaparte 1856 ** ''

'' Hodgson 1837 (bush-quails) ** ''

'' Gould 1863 (bamboo partridges) ** ''

'' Blyth 1852 ** ''

'' Bonaparte 1856 ** ''

'' Stephens 1819 (true francolins) **''

'' Reichenbach, 1852 **''

'' Crowe ''et al'' 2020 ** ''

'' Brisson 1760 (true partridges) ** ''

'' Sharpe 1879 ** ''

'' Blyth 1845 (Indian spurfowls) ** ''

'' Elliot 1871 (monal-partridges) * Subfamily

Meleagridinae Grouse are a group of birds from the order Galliformes, in the family Phasianidae. Grouse are presently assigned to the tribe Tetraonini (formerly the subfamily Tetraoninae and the family Tetraonidae), a classification supported by mitochond ...

** '' Meleagris'' Linnaeus 1758 (turkeys) * Subfamily

(pheasants, peafowl, junglefowl, monals, and tragopans) ** ''

'' Temminck 1807 (peacock-pheasants) ** '' Gallus'' Brisson 1760 (junglefowl, including the domestic chicken) ** ''

'' Wagler 1832 ** ''

'' Gray 1841 (koklass pheasant) ** ''

'' Cuvier 1829 non

1841 (tragopans) ** ''

'' Temminck 1813 non Agassiz 1846 (monals) ** '' Rheinardia'' Maingonnat 1882 ** ''

'' Rafinesque 1815 (argus pheasants) ** ''

'' Chapin 1936 (African peafowl) ** '' Pavo'' Linnaeus 1758 (Asiatic peafowl) ** ''

'' Wagler 1832 (long-tailed pheasants) ** ''

'' Linnaeus 1758 (true pheasants) ** ''

1834 (ruffed pheasants) ** '' Lophura'' Fleming 1822 non Gray 1827 non Walker 1856 (gallopheasants) ** ''

'' Cabanis 1851 ** ''

'' Hodgson 1838 (eared pheasants) * Subfamily Tetraoninae (

) ** ''

'' Stephens 1819 (ruffed grouse) ** ''

'' Keyserling & Blasius 1840 (hazel grouse) ** ''

'' Swainson 1832 (sage-grouse) ** ''

'' Elliot 1864 (blue grouse) ** ''

'' Gloger 1841 (prairie-chickens and sharp-tailed grouse) ** ''

'' Brisson 1760 (ptarmigans) ** ''

'' Elliot 1864 (Siberian grouse) **'' Canachites'' Stejneger, 1885 (spruce grouse) ** ''

'' Linnaeus 1758 (capercaillies) ** ''

'' Swainson 1832 (black grouse)

Fossil genera

Extinct genus assignment follows the Mikko's Phylogeny Archive and Paleofile.com websites. *†'' Alectoris” pliocaena'' Tugarinov 1940b * †'' Bantamyx'' Kuročkin 1982 * †'' Centuriavis'' Ksepka, Early, Dzikiewicz & Balanoff 2022 * †'' Diangallus'' Hou 1985 * †'' “Gallus” beremendensis'' Jánossy 1976b * †'' “Gallus” europaeus'' Harrison 1978 * †''

Lophogallus ''Lophogallus'' is a genus of prehistoric Phasianidae, phasianid which is known from the Oshin Formation during the middle Miocene. It is known from the holotype humerus and a referred partial femur, both from the type locality of Naran Bulak, Mo ...

'' Zelenkov & Kuročkin 2010 * †'' Megalocoturnix'' Sánchez Marco 2009 * †'' Miophasianus'' Brodkorb 1952 Miophasianus''_Lambrecht_1933_nomen_nudum_;_''Miogallus.html" ;"title="' Miophasianus'' Lambrecht 1933 nomen nudum ; ''Miogallus">' Miophasianus'' Lambrecht 1933 nomen nudum ; ''Miogallus'' Lambrecht 1933] * †''Palaeocryptonyx'' Depéret 1892 [''Chauvireria'' Boev 1997; ''Pliogallus'' Tugarinov 1940b non Gaillard 1939; ''Lambrechtia'' Janossy 1974 ] * †''

Palaeortyx ''Palaeortyx'' is an extinct genus of granivorous galliform bird that lived 28.4 to 2.588 million years ago.Mayr, G. ''et al.'' (2006"A nearly complete skeleton of the fossil galliform bird ''Palaeortyx'' from the late Oligocene of Germany" ''Act ...

'' Milne-Edwards 1869 'Palaeoperdix''_Milne-Edwards_1869.html" ;"title="Palaeoperdix.html" ;"title="'Palaeoperdix">'Palaeoperdix'' Milne-Edwards 1869">Palaeoperdix.html" ;"title="'Palaeoperdix">'Palaeoperdix'' Milne-Edwards 1869!-- ActaOrnithol41:129. AnnNHMusWien104A:237. CanJEarthSci39:19. Endins14:95. Geobios2:157,36:719. Palaeontology43:481;48:1331. PaleontogrItal89:3. ZoolJLinnSoc128:149. --> * †''Panraogallus'' Li et al. 2018 * †''Plioperdix'' Kretzoi 1955 [''Pliogallus'' Tugarinov 1940 non Gaillard 1939] * †''Rustaviornis'' Burchak-Abramovich & Meladze 1972 * †'' Schaubortyx'' Brodkorb 1964 * †'' Shandongornis'' Yeh 1997 * †'' Shanxiornis'' Wang et al. 2006 * †'' Tologuica'' Zelenkov & Kuročkin 2009 *Tribe Tetraonini (grouse) **†'' Cynchramus'' Zelenkov Bonaparte 1828 ** †''

Palaealectoris ''Palaealectoris'' is an extinct monotypic genus of landfowl, belonging to the family Tetraonidae, distantly related with modern grouses. Its fossilized remains, found in the Marsland Formation, a part of the Agate Fossil Beds National Monument i ...

'' Zelenkov Wetmore 1930 **†''

Proagriocharis ''Proagriocharis'' is a genus of extinct turkey relatives from the upper Pliocene The Pliocene ( ; also Pleiocene) is the epoch in the geologic time scale that extends from 5.333 million to 2.58

'' Zelenkov Martin & Tate 1970 ** †''

Rhegminornis ''Rhegminornis calobates'' is an extinct species of turkey (bird), turkey from the early Miocene of Florida. It was described by Alexander Wetmore in 1943. References

Miocene birds Tetraonini Miocene birds of North America Fossil taxa de ...

'' Zelenkov Wetmore 1943

Phylogeny

Cladogram based on a 2021 study by De Chen and collaborators that sequenced DNA flanking

ultra-conserved element An ultra-conserved element (UCE) was originally defined as a genome segment longer than 200 base pairs (bp) that is absolutely conserved, with no insertions or deletions and 100% identity, between orthologous regions of the human, rat, and mouse gen ...

s. The extinct

Himalayan quail The Himalayan quail (''Ophrysia superciliosa'') or mountain quail, is a medium-sized quail belonging to the pheasant family. It was last reported in 1876 and is feared extinct. This species was known from only 2 locations (and 12 specimens) in ...

(genus ''

'') was not included in the study. The species numbers and the inclusion of the genera '' Canachites'', ''

'', ''

'' and ''

'' follows the list maintained by

Frank Gill Frank Gill may refer to: * Frank Gill (Australian footballer) (1908–1970), Australian rules footballer with Carlton * Frank Gill (footballer, born 1948), footballer for Tranmere Rovers *Frank Gill (politician) (1917–1982), New Zealand politicia ...

Pamela Rasmussen Pamela Cecile Rasmussen (born October 16, 1959) is an American ornithologist and expert on Asian birds. She was formerly a research associate at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C., and is based at the Michigan State University. She ...

and David Donsker on behalf of the

International Ornithologists' Union The International Ornithologists' Union, formerly known as the International Ornithological Committee, is a group of about 200 international ornithologists, and is responsible for the International Ornithological Congress and other international ...

References

External links

Phasianidae videos
on the Internet Bird Collection * {{Authority control Bird families Extant Rupelian first appearances Taxa named by Thomas Horsfield