Himalayan Quail

The sole member of its genus, this distinctive quail is known from only two small areas of the western Himalayas. All documented records come from a small series of specimens collected between 1836 and 1876 in northern India. This enigmatic species seems to prefer the cover of tall grasses on steep slopes, which likely conspire to make it very difficult to detect.

The last two specimens were collected from the mountains outside of Nainital in northern India (December 1876; BirdLife International 2001).