Gray Partridge

The Gray Partridge was introduced from Eurasia and can be found in flat agricultural land along the length of the United States-Canadian border. Other areas include the upper Plains states and northern New York.

Gray Partridge

The Gray Partridge is a small chicken-like bird with a short neck and tail and a green bill. It has a grayish back and chest with a dark reddish U-shaped belly patch and chestnut barring on its flanks. Females are similarly colored but duller. 

The wings are short and rounded, which is a perfect shape for explosive takeoffs when the bird is threatened. Most flying is done close to the ground with wing-flapping and wobbly gliding, producing a whirring sound. The voice is a high, hoarse "keev" and a "pitt-pitt-pitt" when alarmed.

Partridges feed on grass, seeds and shoots; during breeding season, they also eat insects. 

Nests are usually well hidden under hedges or clumps of vegetation. Partridges scrape the ground and line it with grass and leaves. After breeding, they form groups known as "coveys." The Gray Partridge hens produce some of the largest clutches of any bird species. Clutch sizes average 16 to 18 eggs and can be as large as 22 eggs! 

When chicks hatch, they are open-eyed and covered with down and are able to leave the nest and feed themselves. For about two weeks after hatching, the young feed on sawflies, beetles and aphids.

Abundant in Britain, the Gray Partridge can be found on wastelands, moors and sand dunes. Adults prefer open grass or vegetation, but tend to move their chicks into cereal crops with abundant sources of invertebrate food.

Gray Partridges tolerate cold climates, and in early winter, they may change their locale, being seen in the occasional pear tree!