Yellow-legged Buttonquail

The yellow-legged buttonquail occurs from India and Myanmar to Manchuria, Taiwan, and Hainan, as well as the Nicobar and Andaman Islands. It is a terrestrial bird preferring open, sandy ground broken by patches of short, rough grass. Its mottled brown and buff plumage provides camouflage against soil and dry vegetation. Females are larger and more strongly patterned than males, reflecting the species’ reversed sex roles. ADW reports body masses ranging from 35 to 113 g but does not provide complete length or wingspan measurements. (Animal Diversity Web)

Its omnivorous diet includes grain, grass seeds, green crop shoots, ants, beetles, grasshoppers, and other small insects. Females advertise for and may mate with several males, while the quieter male undertakes incubation and parental care. The nest is a shallow ground scrape concealed beneath or beside grass. A clutch normally consists of four eggs, and the male incubates them for roughly twelve to thirteen days. The precocial chicks leave the nest soon after hatching and follow the male while learning to forage. (Animal Diversity Web)