Black-breasted Wood-Quail

How to find it

Plan to listen rather than look, since like most wood-quails it is heard far more often than it is seen. Go in the morning, when groups sing to mark their territory. Monteverde and Tapanti are two highland places where it has been heard. A birder's account says it is easier to see in Costa Rica than in Panama, especially in the forests around Monteverde. Watch forest edges, roads and strips of trees: on one tour a few quail crossed a road in the Monteverde area right in front of the group.

How to recognise it

This is a dark, stocky quail about 23 cm long.

Upperparts: dark brown.

Face, breast and belly: black.

Throat: a white patch that varies in size and can be hard to notice.

Lower breast: white barring, with a brown belly in some descriptions.

Eye chestnut, bill black, legs dull grey.

On the dim forest floor it often reads as a compact, dusky bird, so look for the black face and breast against the brown back.

Behaviour and diet

It forages on the ground inside humid montane forest, in groups of up to 10 to 15 birds. It is a shy bird: when approached it walks off into the undergrowth and only reluctantly flies. Because of that, a quiet, patient approach suits it better than scanning for a quick look. Guests in the Savegre Valley once watched one scuttle through undergrowth in a strip of trees, split from its covey by the group's presence.

Where it lives

It lives in the interior of cool, humid montane forest at about 700 to 1850 m elevation, in the mountain ranges of Costa Rica and Panama. In Costa Rica it is a locally common resident at middle elevations and is more numerous on the Pacific side. In the northern ranges it occurs on both slopes. A separate, isolated population lives in the Dota region.

Similar birds

The black breast and face help separate it from other Costa Rican quail. Other wood-quails in the country include Spotted Wood-Quail, Black-eared Wood-Quail and Marbled Wood-Quail.

Names and lore in Costa Rica

Costa Ricans know it as Codorniz Pechinegra, the name on the official AOCR list. Gallinita de Monte (little hen of the mountain), Chirrascuá and the odd Huevos de Chancho are also used.

Status and conservation

It is a resident endemic (R-END) on the AOCR list, fairly common, and its IUCN status is Least Concern despite the small range.