pchunchiu

A buttonquail sp. was seen near the summit of Kai Kung Leng today afternoon. The light was too strong that coloration or pattern of the bird was unable to be noticed. However, its relatively small size, bulky body structure and short bill fit a buttonquail. It was hiding in short grasses which was flushed by me.

lpaul

This would be the first summer record of a buttonquail in HK.  Bear in mind though that young galliformes can fly before they are fully grown, for partridges the young are capable of flying when about 1/3 the size of adults.  Are you sure that this was not simply a young Chinese Francolin.

pchunchiu

Thanks Paul. I didn't have much experience of seeing a flying Chinese Francolin but the bird flied like a quail or buttonquail I've encountered before. It has a strong and frequent wingbeat and it flied for some distance (>50m) at a speed similar to a snipe. The tail of the bird is inconspicuous and the wing tips looked pointed to me. Could you please further comment on its identity? Thank you very much.

[ Last edited by pchunchiu at 10/07/2009 22:15 ]

John Holmes

Hi,

In mid-May 2001 (I think) I encountered two buttonquails when driving up Robin's Nest (Hung Fa Leng), which is similar habitat to Kai Kung Leng. I didn't have the camera with me, but the buttonquail walked right past the car once I had stopped.  I was confident they were Barred Buttonquail, but I guess my record either got lost or was rejected.

Anyway, Prof. CHENG's "Synopsis of the Avifauna of China"  describes Barred Buttonquail as resident in South China.    Birders don't go up Hongkong's hills very much in high summer, and buttonquail are hard to flush out as well.

I'm sure that sooner or later someone will get a satisfactory sighting or record shot of Barred Buttonquail as a HK breeding bird !

John