''Pternistis'' is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nom ...

galliform 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 ...

birds formerly classified in the

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 ...

group of the partridge subfamily of the pheasant family. They are described as "partridge-francolins" in literature establishing their phylogenetic placement outside the monophyletic assemblage of true spurfowls. All species are endemic to Sub-Saharan Africa, excepted the

double-spurred spurfowl The double-spurred spurfowl (''Pternistis bicalcaratus'') is a gamebird in the pheasant family Phasianidae of the order Galliformes, gallinaceous birds. Like most spurfowls, it is restricted to Africa. It is a resident breeder in tropical west Af ...

(also present in Morocco). They are commonly known as spurfowls or francolins, but are closely related to

jungle bush quail The jungle bush quail (''Perdicula asiatica'') is a species of quail in the family Phasianidae. It is native to the Indian subcontinent, where it is found in peninsular India and Sri Lanka. It has also been reported from Nepal but has not been se ...

, '' Alectoris'' rock partridges, and ''

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, insul ...

'' quail. The species are strictly monogamous, remaining mated indefinitely. They procure most of their food by digging. Spurfowls subsist almost entirely on roots, beans of

leguminous A legume () is a plant in the family Fabaceae (or Leguminosae), or the fruit or seed of such a plant. When used as a dry grain, the seed is also called a pulse. Legumes are grown agriculturally, primarily for human consumption, for livestock for ...

shrubs and trees, tubers, and seeds, and feasting opportunistically on

termite Termites are small insects that live in colonies and have distinct castes (eusocial) and feed on wood or other dead plant matter. Termites comprise the infraorder Isoptera, or alternatively the epifamily Termitoidae, within the order Blatto ...

ant Ants are eusocial insects of the family Formicidae and, along with the related wasps and bees, belong to the order Hymenoptera. Ants evolved from vespoid wasp ancestors in the Cretaceous period. More than 13,800 of an estimated total of ...

locust Locusts (derived from the Vulgar Latin ''locusta'', meaning grasshopper) are various species of short-horned grasshoppers in the family Acrididae that have a swarming phase. These insects are usually solitary, but under certain circumstanc ...

s, flowers, and fruit. Important predators are

jackal Jackals are medium-sized canids native to Africa and Eurasia. While the word "jackal" has historically been used for many canines of the subtribe canina, in modern use it most commonly refers to three species: the closely related black-backed ...

caracal The caracal (''Caracal caracal'') () is a medium-sized wild cat native to Africa, the Middle East, Central Asia, and arid areas of Pakistan and northwestern India. It is characterised by a robust build, long legs, a short face, long tufted e ...

serval The serval (''Leptailurus serval'') is a wild cat native to Africa. It is widespread in sub-Saharan countries, except rainforest regions. Across its range, it occurs in protected areas, and hunting it is either prohibited or regulated in ran ...

s, and

birds of prey Birds of prey or predatory birds, also known as raptors, are hypercarnivorous bird species that actively hunt and feed on other vertebrates (mainly mammals, reptiles and other smaller birds). In addition to speed and strength, these predat ...

, as well as herons and marabou storks. The genus ''Pternistis'' was introduced by the German naturalist

Johann Georg Wagler Johann Georg Wagler (28 March 1800 – 23 August 1832) was a German herpetologist and ornithologist. Wagler was assistant to Johann Baptist von Spix, and gave lectures in zoology at the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich after it was moved ...

in 1832. The name is from the

Ancient Greek Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic p ...

''pternistēs'' meaning "one who strikes with the heel". The

type species In zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the species that contains the biological type specime ...

was designated by the English zoologist

George Robert Gray George Robert Gray FRS (8 July 1808 – 6 May 1872) was an English zoologist and author, and head of the ornithological section of the British Museum, now the Natural History Museum, in London for forty-one years. He was the younger brother ...

in 1841 as the Cape spurfowl (''Pternistis capensis''). Most of the species within the genus formerly included "francolin" in their common name. Beginning in 2004 various ornithologists have recommended that it would be clearer to restrict the use of "francolin" to members of the genus ''

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 Central Asia, also known as Middle Asia, is a region of Asia that s ...

'' and closely related genera (''

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 ...

'', ''

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 the ...

'', ''

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

'', ''

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 A ...

'') and to use "spurfowl" for all members of the genus ''Pternistis''. Both are in different tribes within the subfamily

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 ...

: ''Pternistis'' is placed with the

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 ...

s in the 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 conta ...

, while the true francolins are placed with the

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 ...

in the 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 ...

. This recommendation was adopted in 2020 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 ...

and colleagues in the online list of world birds that they maintain on behalf of the

International Ornithological Committee 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 ...

(IOC). The common name "spurfowl" is also used for the three Asian species that are placed in the genus ''

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 Lan ...

''.

Species

The genus contains 24 species: * Hartlaub's spurfowl, ''Pternistis hartlaubi'' * Mount Cameroon spurfowl, ''Pternistis camerunensis'' *

Handsome spurfowl The handsome spurfowl (''Pternistis nobilis'') is a species of bird in the pheasant family Phasianidae. It is a large, up to 35 cm long, terrestrial forest bird with a dark reddish brown plumage, grey head, red bill and legs, brown iris, bare ...

, ''Pternistis nobilis'' *

Chestnut-naped spurfowl The chestnut-naped spurfowl (''Pternistis castaneicollis'') is a species of bird in the pheasant family Phasianidae. At in length and weighing , it is a large species of spurfowl. It is found in Ethiopia and Somaliland. The population is believ ...

, ''Pternistis castaneicollis'' * Black-fronted spurfowl, ''Pternistis atrifrons'' *

Erckel's spurfowl Erckel's spurfowl (''Pternistis erckelii''), also known as Erckel's francolin, is a species of game bird in the family Phasianidae. Taxonomy Erckel's spurfowl was described in 1935 by the German naturalist Eduard Rüppell from specimens colle ...

, ''Pternistis erckelii'' *

Djibouti spurfowl The Djibouti spurfowl or Djibouti francolin (''Pternistis ochropectus'') is a bird species in the pheasant family, Phasianidae. It is critically endangered and found only in Djibouti, a nation in the Horn of Africa. This species is grayish-bro ...

, ''Pternistis ochropectus'' * Swierstra's spurfowl, ''Pternistis swierstrai'' *

Ahanta spurfowl The Ahanta francolin or Ahanta spurfowl (''Pternistis ahantensis'') is a species of bird in the pheasant family, Phasianidae. It is native to western Africa, where it occurs in Benin, Ivory Coast, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Ma ...

, ''Pternistis ahantensis'' * Grey-striped spurfowl, ''Pternistis griseostriatus'' *

Jackson's spurfowl Jackson's spurfowl or Jackson's francolin (''Pternistis jacksoni'') is a species of bird in the family Phasianidae. It is found in Kenya and Uganda. Its preferred habitats include mountainous forests and stands of bamboo. The species is named aft ...

, ''Pternistis jacksoni'' * Red-billed spurfowl, ''Pternistis adspersus'' * Cape spurfowl, ''Pternistis capensis'' *

Natal spurfowl The Natal spurfowl or Natal francolin (''Pternistis natalensis'') is a species of bird in the family Phasianidae. It is found in Botswana, Eswatini, Mozambique, South Africa, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. Taxonomy The Natal spurfowl was described in 18 ...

, ''Pternistis natalensis'' *

Hildebrandt's spurfowl Hildebrandt's spurfowl (''Pternistis hildebrandti'') is a species of bird in the family Phasianidae. It is found in Burundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Zambia. The species is named for J ...

, ''Pternistis hildebrandti'' *

Double-spurred spurfowl The double-spurred spurfowl (''Pternistis bicalcaratus'') is a gamebird in the pheasant family Phasianidae of the order Galliformes, gallinaceous birds. Like most spurfowls, it is restricted to Africa. It is a resident breeder in tropical west Af ...

, ''Pternistis bicalcaratus'' * Scaly spurfowl, ''Pternistis squamatus'' *

Heuglin's spurfowl Heuglin's spurfowl (''Pternistis icterorhynchus'') is a species of bird in the family Phasianidae. It is found in Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the Congo, South Sudan, and Uganda. The German explorer Theodor von Heuglin first de ...

, ''Pternistis icterorhynchus'' *

Clapperton's spurfowl Clapperton's spurfowl (''Pternistis clappertoni'') is a species of bird in the family Phasianidae. It is found in Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Sudan, and Uganda. Taxonomy Clappert ...

, ''Pternistis clappertoni'' *

Harwood's spurfowl Harwood's spurfowl (''Pternistis Harwoodi''), also known as Harwood's Francolin, is a species of bird in the family Phasianidae. It is a grey-brown bird with red bill and tail, and red bare skin around the eyes. Both sexes have similar coloring, ...

, ''Pternistis harwoodi'' * Swainson's spurfowl, ''Pternistis swainsonii'' *

Yellow-necked spurfowl The yellow-necked spurfowl or yellow-necked francolin (''Pternistis leucoscepus'') is a species of bird in the family Phasianidae. It is found in Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda. This species is named for ...

, ''Pternistis leucoscepus'' * Grey-breasted spurfowl, ''Pternistis rufopictus'' *

Red-necked spurfowl The red-necked spurfowl or red-necked francolin (''Pternistis afer''), is a gamebird in the pheasant family Phasianidae that is a resident species in southern Africa. Taxonomy The red-necked spurfowl was described in 1776 by the German zoologis ...

, ''Pternistis afer''

Notes

References

Bird genera {{Galliformes-stub