Family PHASIANIDAE Horsfield, 1821

Museums

Regional Maps

• Meleagridinae Gray, G.R., 1840.

  Compiled from secondary source:

   Gray, G.R. 1840. A List of the Genera of Birds, with an indication of the typical species of each genus. London : R. & J.E. Taylor viii 80 pp. [Date published Apr 1840: published before Apr.] [60].
• Pavonidae Rafinesque, C.S. 1815. Analyse de la nature, ou tableau de l'univers et des corps organises. Palerme : Privately Published 224 pp. [Date published April to July].

  Type genus:

   Pavo Linnaeus, 1758.

Introduction

The Phasianidae (true pheasants and quails) is now recognised as a full family Dickinson (2003: 44) and Christidis and Boles (2008: 60). The family has been studied using DNA analysis, and osteology by several authors, e.g. Kimball et al. (1999) and Dyke et al. (2003), although the position of several of the monophyletic units remains unresolved. The family is cosmopolitan, apart from Antarctica, composed of 180 species in 49 genera (Dickinson 2003); eight species are found in Australian, only three of which are native, with three subspecies for two of these.

Pheasants and quails generally gregarious associating in loose groups known as coveys although pairs or individuals are not unknown. Their calls are generally restricted to communication between pairs or groups. Grassland and pastures are their preferred habitats although during migrations or nomadic movements they will occur in otherwise unlikely situations (e.g. suburban gardens and parks). All are gramivorous while also taking small invertebrates.

Breeding behaviour in the family usually follows a set pattern, the birds arriving in an ideal environment, and following seasonal or climatic variations, quickly establishing territory and selecting nest sites. Pairs are maintained as succinct pairings, females construct the nest of grasses in situations such as under tussocks. Incubation is undertaken by the pair. Eggs, varying in number but up to seven or eight per clutch, are usually of a short pyriform or oval shape, the base colour is generally a pale cream, however they vary from unmarked in some species to heavily so with blotches, spots or dots. Both sexes provide the care during incubation. Phasianids have precocial young: the juveniles are dependent on the parent for their first two to three weeks after which they are totally independent; they are capable of weak flight after this short period.

General References

Christidis, L. & Boles, W.E. 2008. Systematics and Taxonomy of Australian Birds. Melbourne : CSIRO Publishing 288 pp. [60-61]

Dickinson, E.D. (ed.) 2003. The Howard & Moore Complete Checklist of the Birds of the World. London : Christopher Helm 1039 pp. [44-61]

Dyke, G.J., Gulas, B.E. & Crowe, T.M. 2003. Suprageneric relationships of galliform birds (Aves, Galliformes): A cladistic analysis of morphological characters. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 137: 227-244 [227-244]

Kimball, R.T., Braun, E.L. Zwartjes, P.W., Crowe, T.M. & Ligon, I.D. 1999. A molecular phylogeny of the pheasants and partridges suggests that these lineages are not monophyletic. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 11: 38-54 [38-54]